Nicely done sir. I really like the angle you took and basically answered any questions of “does it actually work”. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Also, those are some nice looking recipes. I’m a custard, cream, bakery fan myself.
I felt the same way bro.
Hook me up with the recipe and I will give it a try and then I could send the bottle to you so you can try it.
Yes, it will, I dislike it also and I think most of us do. So, do you have one coming?
I’m thinking about it. It’s one of those things I want, but I have needs to attend to first.
I think for many, this is a big statement. Because obviously, for me and everyone who did not know of or understand homogenization in regards to vape juice, we actually knew nothing about juice maturity. All there’s been in the DIY community from day one is “Time Is How A Juice Matures”. And there’s no “Because” after that, because no one actually knew what the because was. Well, industry professionals knew, but the DIY crowd didn’t. So, of course, all there was in regards to the process was speculation and guesswork. It feels like someone leaked the Magician’s Handbook online and showed us all how the Juice Maturity trick is done 
Thanks for the write-up. Well done! And funny line:
I know exactly what you mean. I don’t like to barrow money but I did barrow it for the GC and I don’t regret it. I did regret it at first. Before I started using it and now I have none at all.
Thanks for your excellent observations and posts. I’ll try to clarify where I can, and explicitly say so where I can’t. I am not a chemist and will make no pretenses about what I am not qualified to answer. However, I will say what I think, not know, about strawberry fading.
So the short answer to the use of any high shear mixer is that they are purely mechanical devices that produce a number of functions to achieve desired results, These include particle size reduction, cellular disruption, emulsification, mixing of powders with liquids which are otherwise very time consuming and difficult, and homogenization. (More below) Of course many of these functions are combined.
Nail on the head. As a requirement I had to take a course in the philosophy of science where it is made clear that absolutes are essentially non existent. It is by empirical observation under carefully controlled testing involving only one variable which will produce acceptable scientific conclusions and eliminate all bias. Otherwise “empiric” conclusions are made which equate to quackery, magical thinking, forgone conclusions etc. etc.
Ummm, nail on head again: no answer unless it is nonsense like “you can’t” “but you don’t …” etc. etc. I have never said that the conventional “steep” method doesn’t work. When I hear “steeped” I know that people mean vape ready juice. What I reject is assigning “rules” to what amounts to thousands of flavor concentrates which are all made with different chemical compositions. I think a reasonable question is "OK, tell me what chemicals are in the concentrate that are reacting with another that causes this vague “degrading” and “harm” and for those with a bugaboo about using controlled heat, at what temperature do these occur. Crickets…
The chemists are experts and getting very good at making concentrates for our purposes. But all our e juices have one thing in common; VG.
It is well established that VG is a poor solvent. Our concentrates for the most part are pg based and while very thin and much lighter has excellent properties as a solvent and therefore dissolves the flavor materials and keeps them dissolved.
With heat VG becomes less viscous (thinner) but as with nearly all chemicals it becomes more soluble e.g. it will dissolve the flavor materials. Combined with the mechanical forces of a high shear mixer it will homogenize the mix of dense heavy materials with the very thin ones and make it uniform. VG’s properties, necessary for vaping, is the obstacle. Some concentrates readily dissolve and penetrate VG. Some others damned near never do without the use of mechanical energy.
As ffar as the fading issue, I routinely make strawberry mixes. I have used a high shear homogenizer for well over two years without any fading issues with strawberries and with Lemon Sicily which many say tends to fade. I do recall these issues from years ago. What I think may be causing these issues is that the creams eventually overpower these flavors and or you may have too much EM in the recipe which will trick your senses. I use a combination of Red Touch FA and INW Shisha Strawberry which work very well for me. Since I don’t have to wait for creams and custards I have likely adjusted my mix where I have a good balance and don’t experience fading.
@Dan_the_Man, thanks very much for the kind offer. I’m over in the UK, and as I said, I’m not in the market for a GC. The reason for that is purely that I dont do much new recipe development now, I have about 30 or so mixes I love, and always have 2 - 3 litres in the steep box, so I just mix up a 250/500ml every so often to keep it stocked and rotate known mixes. I do occasionally play, but really don’t mind the wait.
Saying that, I’d have snapped one up a few years back when I started mixing, and, like a lot of us, really struggled!
Very interesting. Always wondered what was happening with steeping since the first days of mixing and witnessing the flavour change with time.
I just knew it tasted different, but didn’t know why.
Now I see people blind testing identical fresh mixed and GC’d recipes to steeped ones, and they taste the same… I guess now we know why!!
I think that’s important enough to repeat… it should be clear that no one who is using the GC is saying that it is the only path to mature juice. Time maturing obviously works and always has, and anyone who wants to continue using the time wait process will have a finished product.
But anyone who wants to mix in the morning and have a finished juice, well, later that morning is probably (definitely) going to want this beauty. The only wait I have anymore is simply waiting for the juice to cool to room temp after it’s homogenized and de-bubbled.
Totally agree @anon70102222, absolute godsend for those that develop recipes, or mix with a different routine to me. To be fair, the only reason I mix in the manner I do, is because I had to.
Great rundown @Fishaddict420. I am already on the waiting list, and you answered any questions I might have.
On the Strawberry custard thing, I have a recipe with those flavors that I stir on my hotplate for 6 hours at 120 degrees that turns out fantastic. So I am very curious to try a comparison of the GC against my hotplate stirrer on that recipe.
Also, I can see myself using both devices in the future due to the hotplate easily pre-blending and heating things, then finishing with the GC before bottling.
I have an oak barrel steeped juice that sits in the barrel two weeks, then matures on the shelf for 2 month before I vape it. This will be a life changer if that recipe can be shortened to two weeks!
Awesome breakdown based on recipes 
well done 
Gotta love it. As for the “bubbles,” @anon36682625 wrote something up about that. I think it’s at VC. Anyhow, he says it’s gasses. Just so you know my friend.
Wait a minute here… are you saying you steep one of your recipes in an oak barrel? That is a great idea. I have wanted to do that but never did find a barrel. I looked you up on the recipe side but I think you must keep most of your stuff private. Anywho, I love that idea and would like to know what kind of recipe it is. If you don’t mind that is.
Be careful of bacteria or oarticulants.
Yeah man. I wrote up a post in the forum HERE about it a couple years ago with all the info you need if you want to try it. Here is the recipe.
As far as bacteria… I use the barrel to store my Makers Mark in for a week or so after rinsing with cold water, then hot water. Using cold water first rinses away any ejuice residue, then the hot water opens the wood grain. I then poor a little bourbon in and swish it around (dispense into shot glass, drink, repeat until things get blurry). Then I pour the bottle in the barrel. After a week or so I drain the barrel and leave the cork and spout off to let it dry. Before mixing, repeat the rinse, swish, drink with bourbon, then fill with water for a couple days to resaturate the barrel to help it seal, then pour my juice in.
I spoke to the barrel manufacturer about bacteria and they kinda explained this method to me in a roundabout way. I added the drinking portion of the procedure of course.
Also, when I started doing this there were others here that tried oak chips in their juice to impart the oak flavor. Both methods work based on what others said. Although I never tried the oak chips, I can tell you the 2 week steep in the barrel DEFINITELY changes the juice and gives it a very unique flavor.
That is awesome.
AWESOME!!! Thanks for the link. I’ll go give it a look see.
Also, It’s good to have you back.
Thanks man. Good to be back. I will have my lab set back up in a couple weeks. I am hoping to pickup a GC shortly after that and try out some recipes, with Drunken Custard at the top of the list. I just ordered 3 more barrels lol. They are on sale for $30 ea.
That takes me back to pretty early childhood helping my mother make wine. Had to go find that “special” oak barrel and retrieve it from a pretty iffy part of Detroit. We did everything from picking the grapes to sampling the wine. It was a little larger barrel however, lol.
An old buddy of mine has an ex-father-in-law that used to make some killer wine. His son worked at Jim Beam, and he used to bring his dad a barrel once a month when they were done with it. It gave his wine such a great flavor he kept using them. Probably the best wine I have ever tasted. But I am not a big wine drinker 