About to start making my own, could use some advice.

[spc13m]

For starters, im sure the majority of you DIY folks have probably heard this 1,000+ times. So i apologize in advance.
Anyways, im about to start making my own juice. Ive become unsatisfied with my local shops, and their in-house blends and id like to start getting more bang for my buck by doing it myself. Now I know in the beginning its not gonna be a real money saver. I understand that I'll experience "bad batches" I'll definitely do my best to learn from my mistakes.

I have some concerns though. The source of the product I'll be buying. I want good premium stuff, and I was hoping I could I get tips with that.

1. I primarily use an rda. So my juices are definitely going to have to be VG based. Where can I purchase good safe vegetable glycerin, preferably in a larger bottle as I plan to make larger batches in the near future. I plan to use some 177mL bottles I bought, but im starting off with 10mL bottles until I can fine tune my mixture.

2. Nicotine, where can I get quality VG based nicotine? I usually just do 3 milligrams of nicotine when I vape. Do I need to buy like 100% nicotine in a vg base, or how does that work?

3. Propylene Glycol. Is it necessary? I really wanna stick with VG (I like clouds)

4. diluting substances. I understand that my mixture cannot be entirely comprised of VG, I imagine trying to vape a gelatinous goo isn't very pleasurable. Can I use an alcoholic substance like vodka? Or do some people do it with pg? (If thats even feasible idk)

5. Flavoring. My favorite juice flavor is Blueberries and cream. I dont understand what it is about it, but I just love it. I definitely would appreciate recommendations on where to get quality blueberry flavoring as well as cream flavoring. I prefer them both to be vg as well.

6. Mixing Calculator. This is important, who knows of a extremely accurate mixing calculator? Especially any Android apps.

7. Syringes. What kind, how many, and can I get them from walgreens or walmart?

If you feel I left anything out please provide input. I welcome any kind of feedback just as long as its not negative of course. On a final note, I know im not experienced with this, dont worry. I dont plan to start off by
Myself. I have a friend who is experienced, and he'll be teaching me how to mix. Im also well aware that nicotine is a toxin. I have the necessary PPE to safely handle it.

Thanks

 

[eyerhere]

Are you trying to compact your entire diy education into 1 post. You can find all the answers throughout this forum. Diy masters thread hoosiers and dannys blogs are a few to start.

 

[Boletus]

Most of it is opinion, really, especially with regard to vendors, and there are a wide range of opinions to sort through. Don't get too fixated about finding one vendor that is "the best" for all of your needs; some are better than others for some equipment/supplies, but not everything. You will find a few that work for you. Hopefully others here will share their preferences, because I am such a tightwad that I don't really have any favorites.

For specific points:
4. PG: It works and a lot of folks use it, though you do not need to use it, if you do not want to. But many flavors are in a PG base, so you may have to go a little out of your way to completely avoid it. If you are not worried about smallish amounts in your flavorings, you can minimize PG by replacing it with distilled water. It is not a 1:1 replacement volume-wise, and you may need to play around a bit to find the right consistency that works in your gear. 10-20% water will get you in the neighborhood. You can use alcohol too, but I prefer to drink that.

6. Mixing calculators: I don't have a favorite, since i do not use them, but the accuracy of any will be as precise as you will need it. Download a couple and play with them. There is one in the stickies, and a lot of folks recommend one by ECF member hotrod; a quick search should find you that. Maybe someone else knows the most Android-freindly one.

7. Syringes: assuming you do not want to spend a bunch of money getting your toes wet, you can get by with one each 1 ml and 10 ml cheap disposable syringes. If you get three 1 ml syringes, you will not have to worry about rinsing flavor syringes in the middle of a batch. You might get them at a pharmacy, but you will want blunt tipped needles. Most vendors that have DIY supplies carry syringes pretty cheap, and you don't need to buy a box of them at a time.

I created a blog with some things I consider useful; maybe they will help you. It has links to other reading that will be very useful:
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/blogs/boletus/6859-general-tips-new-e-juice-diy-ers.html
Note that member blogs are one of the least obvious features of ECF. If you see the text, "Blog Entries" under someone's avatar with a number to the right, clicking on the number will take you to their blogs. I have links to Danny's and Hoosier's blogs in mine. As eyerhere mentioned they have a lot of great info.

And yes, there is a bit of learning to do if you want to do DIY well, even though it is not really all that complicated. You can do it by trial and error, or do the reading and avoid some common pitfalls and perhaps have a more enjoyable learning curve.

 

[Boletus]

... Do I need to buy like 100% nicotine in a vg base, or how does that work?...

A bit of an important distinction here: the highest concentration nicotine base you want to work with is 100 mg/ml, which is approximately equal to 10%. Anything stronger than that and you should be working in a lab with a fume hood, and previous chemistry experience.

 

[purelyscientific]

1. I buy my PG/VG by the gallon from essentialdepot.com. I used to buy it from wizardlabs.us(WL) when I was first starting out. Buying in bulk from essentialdepot is much cheaper.

2. I started off buying my nicotine from WL and still buy it from them. It's the cheapest I've found and doesn't have an 'off' taste. When you buy nicotine you're going to have the option to buy it in different concentrations.(12mg/mL, 18, 24, 36, 48, 60, 100). DO NOT buy the nicotine strength you plan to vape because you're going to be diluting it with flavoring/PG/water/alcohol. I started off by buying 60mg/mL nicotine but now I buy 100mg/mL because it costs less per mg and is stronger which gives me more room to play around with ratios and higher flavor juices. Since you're only vaping 3mg juice i recommend 36mg to play around with. It's pretty safe at that concentration and will give you plenty of room to play with ratios and higher flavor percentage juices.

3&4. PG is not necessary. PG is a better flavor carrier and gives th. VG is more smoother and gives better clouds. You can use 100% VG but you're going to have to dilute it with water or alcohol. I've always used between 40-70% PG in my juices. I recommend you pick some up and play with different PG/VG ratios to see what you like best.

5. I've never used VG based flavorings. I've also never found a good cream flavor. However, TFA Blueberry wild is a great PG based blueberry flavoring and I highly recommend it. It is reminiscent of the blueberry smell/taste in muffin mix.

6. I use e-juicemeup calculator on my computer. I don't use an android phone. Sorry I can't help you more with this.

7. Defiantly get a bunch of 1mL luer lock syringes. I use 14g blunt needle tips. Anything smaller than that and you're going to have trouble sucking up VG especially if it is not diluted and not at room temperature. I also recommend you get a bunch of 10mL for mixing bottles over 10mL and a couple 20mL for mixing large batches. My most used syringes are my 1 and 10mL.

Tips-
If you buy a big bottle of nic you should buy some 60/120mL boston round brown bottles to break it down into small batches for storage so that it doesn't oxidize as quick and go bad. Start with 1 flavor mixes. Be conservative with additives such as ethyl maltol and menthol, a little goes a long way. Don't measure using drops. Take people's opinions on what % flavorings are good at on here with a grain of salt. Chances are that their ratio, nic strength, syringe gauge, and device are all different than yours.(this will effect measurements and flavor)

 

[R Coy]

http://www.amazon.com/American-Weig...qid=1416278474&sr=1-1&keywords=.01+gram+scale

I got a scale, mix right in my bottles. Find the "A new calculator to try" thread, and use that. It is amazingly quick and clean.