Hi. This is my first post so it feels proper to introduce my self as well. I’ve been a smoker for almost 20 yrs, quited n started vaping 2.5 yrs ago since my wife got pregnant, n though i was ok (i should’ve known better) with harmin myself…i couldn’t even bear with the idea that i would harm my child. Still, it felt like a super egoist move on my side, cause if u don’t want to harm the ones u love u quit n that’s it, but m a human n there r moments (happy or sad,psychological pressure,emotional moments or collisions etc) where u need “that smoke”.
Fast forward, about a year ago i started diy-ing n at july of this year i created an account at elr. I have few of my own recipes that i consider as really gd (though i’ve posted none n i’ll explain why) n fewer that i found here…which brought me to open this topic n lay my experience n concerns that came with it.
As i mention above, vaping was a way out for me in quiting smoke n so is for other ppl, who have their own stories as well, n need every possible help n guidance that can be offered cause buyin a pack of cigs is easy in contrast to change coils or make them,mix liquids n so on. Long story short, i really believe this forum was made in honest to help new vapers but it’s really difficult nowdays to make sense of it at all. U have ppl post recipes that make no sense (3% super sweet in a recipe for example) u have ppl ratin recipes 2’ after its upload,others comment on a copy paste base (fantastic,thnx for sharin,awesome…) in their every comment n finally but most important u have many “much viewed n followed” mixers that consist an elite which makes recipes only for themselves or others on their level. Those ppl use 12-16 flavors (cause they care bout the notes) from many different companies, which dependin on which part of the world u reside might be really difficult to get, n they look like hobistas to me which makes me feel that the reason we all started vapin n got in here is long forgotten.
I gotta ask n finish, (hopin that my post didn’t take that much) how does this logic benefit new vapers? How can they go through elr n find 2-3 solid recipes (from year 2018 n not 6 years ago) that’ll hold them away from smokin again? How they will be helped in order to start makin their mixes? How will they feel assured that their effort, time n money (which r limited to many ppl n automatically excludes them from the process) won’t go into the can?
The reason i never posted any recipe was never being afraid to be judged, to the contrary m ok with takin the responsibility with my friends n fam that’ll taste them but not ok to put ppl in a condition where they’ll have to spend 20€ on flavors just to make my recipe, which subjectively to me might be awesome but s*"*y to everyone else.
I opened this topic cause i didnt want to go n comment on anyones recipe n start a war or a debate, that was never my goal, i just wanted to hear others opinions n to see where i stand n what to expect. Is vaping a way out or merely a hobby?
It is an open recipe posting place, and you are correct some recipe make no sense, and some are not for your usecase.
That being said, it is an invaluable resource to lots of people, and it is free.
You seem quite angry about the state of things, yet you are experienced enough to sort the grain from the chaff on the recipe side, why not enjoy the inspiration and the free resource this is.
If you even want a modicum of reasonable discourse to this rant, it would help greatly if you showed a bit of respect and actually formed real sentences with real words. I’m no grammar nazi but that is all but impossible to read easily, and shows a lot of disrespect to others. Save the shortcuts for texting with ur bros.
All i can say is sorry that caused u all those issues,i never meant to show lack of respect to anyone. U on the other hand meant to do exactly that n i honestly hope ur satisfied with it cause it seems to mean a lot to u. Sorry again for any inconvenience
Well I took the time to look closer at your post, because I agree at first look it does read a bit like an insult.
I’m sure this wasn’t your intention, at least that’s always my first impression lol
Anyways, for me vaping wasn’t a hobby, I wanted to stop smoking. 25 years, nearly 3 packs a day. But I couldn’t find a device or juice I liked, that’s why I joined forums. Trying to get some help from someone somewhere.
I don’t use nicotine anymore but I still vape due to personal reasons I don’t want to mention at the moment, and because I mix for friends I need to be able to taste the juice first.
To answer your question now it’s a hobby, well a bit more of that. I’m here everyday helping newer people, some don’t appreciate it, fine but at least I as many others here are giving back and helping where we can.
Just with everything there’s stages, you have beginners, beginners but with a bit more knowledge, advanced users, professional, every day joe etc.
We never made that a problem here, we help who ever asks, we don’t discriminate based on social media followers and participation or brand/manufacturer somebody is using.
You shouldn’t be afraid of that. Share whatever you like, or even ask for help if you’re stuck, nobody gonna tell you to get the hell out 
You can even share privately via forum and don’t need to publish it on the recipe site itself, a lot of us do that. And maybe one day you’re more comfortable in doing even that.
All I can say is, take your time read a bit, ask questions, try forming some connections with others and you’ll see that it’s not as bad as you think it would be.
1-3 flavor recipes is not bad actually and if it keeps ppl away from smoking we accomplished something. Most like more complexes recipes, or we like to push the boundaries a bit, this is not a must or requirement to be a member here
Welcome to the forums.
To answer your question, i started vaping to quit smoking, and diy became a necessity because of the price of commercial eliquid.
However, i found that diy is fun, so it also became my hobby.
Some mixers used different kinds of flavors because it’s what work for them. For instance, i used to like strawberry ripe TFA at 8% on it’s own in a recipe. Over time, i found out that it fade after a month or two, so i mixed it with red touch FA now in a recipe.
I get what you’re saying (i think), and when i found a recipe with a lot of flavors in the recipe, i would usually just take the main notes, simplified it and build from that, rather than follow a recipe exactly as is (if i think a recipe use too many different flavors or substituted if a recipe have some flavors in it that i dont have)
For some who used sweetener at higher percentages, i found they’re trying to emulate the sweeteness level of a commercial e liquid. Which make sense if they’re trying to clone/remix, or still new to diy and still like the sweet level of commercial eliquid, or to sell their recipe, maybe?
High flavor percentage also normal to be used in pod system.
About the ratings and comments on the recipe side… It’s all subjective, isnt’it? Sorry, couldn’t comment much about this one.
Anyway, @Godcomplexdude , welcome to the forum, and happy mixing!
I have nothing towards elr and i respect everything about it being free, i also respect the fact that it is an invaluable resource (or was or could be) to many people. i’m here cause as i said above it seemed (and i do believe that it is) like an honest effort but i’m just asking, is this what was expected when it first created?
It is a diy site, @Godcomplexdude . First rule of diy, if you find something is good for you, go for it. Mix the way you want. Everyone else does. Everything else, you could ask in the forum.
Ps: if you think 3% sweetener is too much, search for betty clone on the recipe side 
Boy was this a chore to read …
I’m 100% with @anon44944642 here.
Sorry but ur, n, ppl and similar are not really words and make your text very difficult to comprehend. In addition. I would suggest using paragraphs and breaks to make it easier to read.
Now that i’m through with my rant, let me address some of the issues you raise which have nothing to do with the reality on this forum.
I’m a relative newcomer to the world of e-liquid DiY. I started this summer, and my beginning was on ELR. I went over the site (not the forum), looked at the recipes, saw that people use to make e-liquid, tried out a recipe or two, and eventually joined the forum where I learned pretty much all I know about making e-liquid nowdays.
I posted questions, and most of the answers I got were right on. I never felt ridiculed or belittled by the ‘elite’ you mention here.
As for the recipes, everyone has their own style. I like simpler 3-4 flavor recipes, other people like more complex 9-12 flavor recipes. Some like more, some like less, but definitely nobody is forcing you to spend any amount of cash on the flavors just because they made that recipe. The whole idea of DiY is to make what works for you.
Rant over, back to other stuff …
To answer your question, they don’t. At least with not putting work and research into what they want to accomplish.
I didn’t come to ELR to learn how to quit smoking or to find the right set up of gear to keep me off cigarettes. I came here to learn how to make ejuice that I liked and fit my style of vaping. This site did do that. It is a recipe site for this purpose.
If people are trying to quit smoking then there are other forums and sites that focus on that.
Don’t get me wrong, when people come here for help they get it. They get it here more than any other site I’ve seen on the Internet. I’ve seen people give unconditional support with a kind word, a supportful idea, giving away or paying forward gear, juice, flavors and even cash.
Your first post comes off as if ELR is a failure. It most certainly isn’t.
And finally, I am in fact a hobbyist. A collector. An asshole. If you don’t like it, eff off.
The rant was not simply limited to the less-than-optimal structure of the post. If that was the only issue I would just have ignored it. I don’t have time to run posts through a decryption process so I don’t.
The main driver for me is taking a first post and using it to insult the community, not only by extremely casual discourse, but more so by insulting this 100% free service that has been provided, and by belittling other mixers and recipes-
and
Sorry, but when you arrive in a community and begin on a theme like that, it smacks of trolling to me.
It definitely is trolling. That’s the main reason that this is my last reply on this topic 
Vapimg for me was a way to quit smoking , then after awhile it became more of a hobby…
Thank u all for the warm welcoming. I want to clarify that it was not my intend to insult anyone or to show disrespect, i wouldn’t expect or ask for anyone to answer in that case cause all i would want is just to state. It might be the fact that i’m Greek and the cultural expression might differ. In any case, honestly, it wasn’t a bitter “rant” (as someone above mentioned) from someone that didn’t find a way to fit. I’m ok with what i get n what i managed to mix myself till now…i was just wondering but it seems that i better shouldn’t.
As far as for the insult part and the disrespect about the community, i don’t even know you people and i’ve never seen a single recipe of yours…so it depends totally on where you position yourselves on what you read and the way you interpret it. I even changed the way i write when i understood that it causes you issues to show respect to everyone else the way i can.
If it still offends u in any way, now that i clarified that it was never my intention, you should probably adress it elsewhere.
The topic title sparked my interest. I started vaping to quit cigarettes but it quickly grew to a hobby and not just the diy e-liquid. I enjoy tinkering with gear and taking care of them. As far as the body of your topic, it has long been a topic of frustrated discussions here (where’s my dead horse gif?)
People mix for different reasons and have different styles of how we go about it. This is as it should be in my opinion. I only mix so I can afford the gear I want. If I was chained to commercial juices my cousin and myself would have very limited choices gear wise.
Before you attempted to clarify your original post, you received replies that reflected the tone of your post.
You also received some replies from folks who decided to overlook the trollish theme and give you genuine advice.
This should show you a few things if you have paid attention… This is a community of DIY mixers that is proud of this resourse, grateful for this resource, and protective of this resource. It is also a warm and welcoming community, but one that will bristle when a first-poster comes in with guns blazing.
Now that you have clarified, I can better understand your position. Seeing further posts from you tends to tell me that you were maybe looking for real advice and assistance rather than just trolling the community. You will see that there are many helpful members here, including all of us who have posted negatively in your view, that will be willing and happy to welcome you here and help guide you on your DIY mixing journey. If you ease up on your tone a bit, I am certain we will both help you and learn from you as well.
As a general rule of thumb regarding recpies and finding recpies without 3% ss cap. Read read and read. It takes me 3minutes to find a recpie…but I have 3 years of practice.
Reading and participating in the forum can be very helpful. For which I always say…read read read and research. The more you do the easier it is.
I don’t blame you but i would not ever share ethical inquiries with you. Since you gave me two or three advices though let me do the same and throw them away immediatelly if you will.
When you are trying to teach someone something make sure you are standing at the same place. I never adressed the community (never had an idea what it means to you specifically). If i expected blazing guns my way i would never ask a single thing.
Most of the things you mention were not known to me but were a part of what led to your furious answer.
There is a thing called thematic analysis, (it is a qualitative approach in translating written speech) it might help you understand how disrespectfull you were towards me personally and in how many different ways, while i imediatelly after your reply even started writing like on an essay cause (once again) i never meant to offend you.
There are people who replied in a proper and welcoming way and i thank them for that but i gotta thank them twice cause before you i had no idea that it would be too much to ask for.
In any case, thanks for whatever it was that you did and for the late welcoming (?) Despite the fact that still you didn’t answer any of the questions but you seemed to enjoy the debate you opened (a lot).
Cheers.
You should also see things from my perspective. Someone comes in with their first post- the poor structure was not sufficient to get a proper gauge of intent. Along with that, there were (as worded) direct attacks on users and recipes. Trolls do roll through here occasionally, and they sound a hell of a lot like you did.
So, you may have preferred that I welcomed you unconditionally and took you under my wing, but that couldn’t happen, now could it? Not the way you walked into the room, it couldn’t.
So please… Stop sitting there being offended. Try to see it from both perspectives and understand why more members than just myself posted aggressively. Step back from your defensive position and stop trying to prove you are the better man. It does not matter how educated you are, or where you are, or what you are. What matters is that you are open to sharing the passion for DIY that this community has, and embrace it with the perspective of wanting to be a part of this community, not try to stand above or below it. You didn’t like a few of the responses you received, but hopefully by now you know why you got them.
Your experience here will not be defined by our responses- it will be defined by yours.