So after discussing in chat some problems with ordering bottles and being shorted tips or caps, I decided to count my 100 from my last order from ebay. Sure enough, 50 30ml bottles, 51 15ml bottles (a freebie! woot! lol), 91 caps (thank goodness I keep them and have extras), and 110 tips. It’s been over a month since I got them and since I have all the bottles and tips I need and extra caps, I am not too worried.
Nugget of wisdom from me today: check your bottle order as soon as you get it if you order in bulk.
To reduce my worry levels when mixing (stupid anxiety disorder so I’m a proper fret-head) I’ve started putting a puppy pad down on the work surface I mix on, so that when I’ve finished mixing I can just carefully fold it up and pop it in the bin, any spills are absorbed…I buy them in bulk when they’re on offer at BnM
My biggest tip to anyone new to DIY is to abandon measuring by volume in favor of measuring by weight. Volume seems easier because we understand volume measurement for liquids, but it is not. In the end, syringes are expensive and they are a pain to clean. Mixing by weight is cheap and easy. $20-30 and you are all set. It is faster, cleaner, cheaper, and more precise in the long run, and cleanup is as easy as dropping the used pipettes in the bin. Literally bottle on scale, turn on scale, measure flavors directly into the bottle from the dropper, tare between each flavor, nic in, tare, pg in, tare, top up the vg. So easy.
I buy mine in 50’s, as soon as they come (if they haven’t already) I put the drippers loosely in the bottles so I know I have enough, then I just shelve em
The best back up is an RDA. I know some people love them and some people think they are a pain in the ass to drip all the time. But if your RTA decides to shit it’s juice all over your mod then having an RDA handy will get you through the day. They are small and can be stored unjuiced in a little ziplock bag or plastic case.
Never adapt a mix and make a large batch in anticipation you will like it. Just because the masses loves it, you may not. Start small and make sure it’s right for you before you over commit.
I have not been in the game for long. When creating anything new or untried just make small batches, and only try a small amount. Didn’t like throwing out those 100ml lots.
This wasn’t a problem when I only had 30ish flavors and three recipes but it is now. Label your bottles and set out your flavors before you start. I keep a small shipping box near where I’m mixing to keep them all in a cue of what I’m mixing.
Also, I like to keep a little note book and pencil near by to jot down notes, like if I’m getting low on something or if I accidentally added a little too much of a flavor so I can remember what I did. It helps so much to not have to remember this stuff later.
Oh! And if you combine your testers to try a few flavors together, weigh them and write it all down so you can reverse engineer it if it turns out really good.
Very good tips and tidbits to be found in this list.The one tip I have is the one I struggle most with and that is to keep a notebook handy when you mix.Document everything …
Eventually you will find a mix that just didn’t make the cut even after a month of testing.You will delete the recipe on ELR writing it off as a lost cause only to discover after finding it in the back of the steep cabinet six months later it is delicious. This has happened more times than I care to think about and it happened again today.
I wish I had started using a notebook from the start , perhaps it would have been easier to stick with it.
Sometimes I add a drop or two and the scale doesn’t change, in those instances breathe on the scale and the weight will go up then down to the correct weight.
You can weight down to 1/2 drop by forming a drop on the dropper then touching it to the inside top of the container.
While he mentioned losing wire as a result, I’d say his tidbit of wisdom applies to the 10th power when it comes to Nicotine!! A double dose can be a surprise if you lose your place (at 3mg), but at 12-18mg (or higher!) it could prove downright dangerous. Plan your mixing session to minimize distractions!
My separate tip (though related) would be:
Wear quality nitrile gloves every time before you go to handling/dispensing 100mg/ml Nicotine.
Also, if you’re “breaking down” a liter of nic:
do it over the sink,
fill your bottles to the max (minimize air), apply cap, then rinse in the sink,
place filled bottles into a Ziploc bag, which has been labeled with the brand, the date, the batch number, and the phone number for poison control!
store excess Nicotine in the freezer for long term storage.
I have no problems with my DIY labeling. I assign all my recipes a number and place that number on top of my cap and under the DIY mix bottle. The labels are no larger than 3/32"x 1/8" when cut with an Xacto knife. This size of the label and the adhesion to surface area insures that a label adheres 98% of the time. When the mix is done, it’s easy to remove both labels with your thumbnail and clean the bottle for reuse.
Just one pretty obvious one: always check your nicotine concentration first thing when you get your shipment! My supplier’s bottling line seems to be flawed, one out of three deliveries is off. Should be 100mg/ml, the biggest deviation I once got was 68 mg/ml. (insert infuriated cursing here). They sent me free bottles of nicotine afterwards to make up for it, though.
I once ordered from NN a one Liter bottle of nicotine, one Liter bottle of their VG and one Liter bottle of their PG,
when I got them I counted one, two, three, fourth WTF? One Liter of VG, one Liter PG and “two liters of Nicotine” and I said oh crap. When I contacted them, they said, “It’s on us.” Wow…
