E-cigarettes: research - experiments - ideas

Hi, I'm a roll up smoker, my first ever vape comes today. Im struggling a bit with understanding how it all works and all the lingo. I bought an Innokin vape, I also bought five 10ml bottles of Nic Nic 50/50 Flavourless Nic Salt 20mg Nicotine Shot. Ive been using grok and chatgpt to help me understand or try to. Grok says I cant use that liquid straight, I must mix 2ml nic salt, 4ml PG, 4ml VG per 10ml bottle for a safe, 5mg/ml e-liquid. Chatgpt says I can smoke the nic salt as is. I'm struggling a bit to get my head round this. I've always been wary and prejudiced against vaping but want to try it and save a lot of money.
 
mugatea said:
oh chatgpt now agrees with grok. I need to research way more.
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Neither Grok nor Chatgpt are qualified to write anything on vaping. Crap in, crap out..

You can use the 20 mg nic salt straight and dilute it if it feels too strong. What you dilute it with is your choice. Any combination of vg, pg and distilled water is possible. Water should not exceed 50%.
 
Hello All,

I'm a couple weeks into vaping, and I have to say I'm pretty happy with the results so far. Before I get into the details, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone in this thread--you all have provided an invaluable source of information with a special thanks to Scottie and broken.english for specific instructions and "how-tos." Thank you, thank you.


Setup and Solutions
1) I bought the Vaporesso Luxe X Pro; 250 ml of 100mg/ml nicotine in vegetable glycerin solution; 1/2 gallon of VG from centralvapors and picked up a gallon of distilled water from the market. All in it was about $100. The Luxe came with two 5ml pods: 0.4 and 0.6 ohm.
2) I started with a 50/50 h2o/VG and 10mg/ml target nicotine solution. My 12ml non-needle syringe worked fairly well, but attempting to do small 5ml test batches proved challenging since the "resolution" of the syringe is not great at those volumes, but I managed a rough approximation to the targets.
3) Once I figured out how the Luxe X worked (the manual is awful--I relied on youtube videos) I was able to fill a pod and start vaping. The 0.6 ohm pod worked well then started leaking after I was about halfway through the fill. The luxe was getting wet in the battery area, and I couldn't get the device to work again to the point where I thought I would have to send it back. Found this blunt but effective link to fix the problem: vaporesso_xros_pod_leaking (reddit). Got everything working again except for the 0.6 ohm pod and am using the 0.4 ohm pod instead. I just haven't gotten around to retry filling the 0.6 ohm pod, even though I prefer it.
4) The 10mg/ml target solution seemed a little light on the nicotine, so in the next 5ml batch, I targeted a 15mg/ml nicotine in a 50/50 h2o/VG solution. Halfway through that, I decided it was too heavy on nicotine and have since switched back (permanently, it seems) to the 10mg/ml nicotine solution.

Results/Findings
5) I picked up a couple of 15ml plastic fill bottles from Amazon and now make 30ml at a time and fill up both bottles. After 11 days, I'm almost done with the first bottle. I just started tracking my "puff" count because it seems highly likely that I'm getting more nicotine than I did when smoking cigarettes. It's an odd concept trying to convert one cigarette into a puff count, though.
6) If I recall correctly from this thread and from the transcripts, the C's have said that there is 5mg of nicotine per cigarette. I don't recall/know whether they were referring to the amount of nicotine in the cigarette or if that is the amount absorbed. From what I have read online, it looks like the amount of nicotine that is absorbed is dependent on a number of factors and that the nicotine in a cigarette, depending on brand, ranges from 6 to 28mg, but only 1-2mg of nicotine is actually absorbed--so maybe 20%?--hard to tell from those numbers.
7) On a satisfaction score, I think vaping is not quite as "satisfying" as smoking, but the massive cost savings more than offsets this minor detractor. Good cigarettes (organic American Spirit is what I buy) are very expensive in comparison, and I don't have the desire to roll my own.
8) I have noticed a tickle in the back of my throat that appears a couple times a day at random times. It was there prior to vaping and may be exacerbated somewhat by the vaping--it's not really clear at the moment. It's manageable with drinking water and doesn't last more than a couple minutes.
9) I don't know if this is recommended or not, but I have also been smoking three cigarettes per day. I do this primarily because, if I remember correctly, the C's do not recommend stopping smoking due to the damage to the lungs doing so may cause. I don't know if that cessation issue applies if smoking is replaced by vaping or not.
10) Regarding coughing, I think it has come down due to what appears to be reduced phlegm. Although I will say that drawing too much vaper in one shot will produce a cough when, in contrast, smoking rarely, if ever, did so when drawing.

All in all, I'm optimistic about the results so far and will continue vaping...
 
Well, the retarded Aus governement is changing the laws regarding vaping again on the 1st of July .. sigh ... here's a video from a local decscribing the new laws if anyone is interested -

Basically it's plain packaaging for all devices (and you have to get them tested and certified before you can sell them here), have to be black, or grey, no see thorough parts, so you can't see the liquid.. aparently even the internal partsd (coils) will be subject to new certification laws!? good thing I stocked up a little but really!!!??? NANNY STATE, and BTW, we (AUSTRALIA) startred the plain packaging for cigs too so expect this to happen in your part of the world at some point ... nicotine bad, coz science 🤮😡🙃
 
Scottie said:
Note that most stuff you find on the net says 1 cig = 2.5mg nicotine, so not sure where the C's got their number of 5mg, but whatever! I'll just go with it.
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I asked the chinese gpt about this and it says even less 1 to 1.8mg per cig. (normal commercial cigarette)
It says the reasons it is this low are :
- because of filters and ventillation holes in the filter (absorbs 30 to 60% of nicotine)
- letting the cig burn for too long between puffs (wastes nicotine in smoke)
- Short, shallow puffs instead of Deep inhalation

Then it goes on to says, if you want max absorbtion you should :
- discard the filter,
- Fast, continuous puffing (or 1 puff every 10–15 seconds)
- Deep inhalation + 3–5 sec hold to maximise
And you could get up to 3–4 mg.
It's pretty close to C's number.
I've been already smoking rolled cig that way so I think it can be higher than that.

so ideally if you are lookin
g for maximum nicotine absorbtion, you should discard the filter and smoke continuously without letting the cig burn away



Yes, if your goal is maximizing nicotine absorption from a cigarette, the most effective methods (based on combustion dynamics and bioavailability) would be:

1. Remove the Filter​

  • Filters trap ~30–60% of nicotine before it reaches your mouth.
  • Smoking unfiltered cigarettes (or removing the filter) increases nicotine intake by ~50%, potentially raising absorption to ~2–3 mg per cigarette instead of 1–1.8 mg.

2. Smoke Continuously ("Chaining")​

  • Letting a cigarette burn between puffs wastes nicotine in sidestream smoke (~80% of total smoke produced).
  • Fast, continuous puffing (e.g., 1 puff every 10–15 seconds) minimizes waste and keeps the cherry hot, ensuring more nicotine vaporizes into mainstream smoke.

3. Inhale Deeply and Hold​

  • Nicotine absorption in the lungs is ~90% efficient when smoke reaches the alveoli.
  • Short, shallow puffs (like cigar smoking) absorb nicotine mostly through oral mucosa (~40% efficiency).
  • Deep inhalation + 3–5 sec hold maximizes transfer to blood.

4. Avoid "Light" or Ventilated Cigarettes​

  • "Light" cigarettes have tiny holes in the filter that dilute smoke with air, reducing nicotine intake.
  • Blocking these holes (e.g., with fingers or tape) can increase nicotine delivery by up to 50%.

5. Smoke the Entire Cigarette​

  • Nicotine concentration increases toward the butt as the filter saturates and the tobacco burns hotter.
  • Smokers who extinguish cigarettes early miss the most potent puffs.

Theoretical Max Nicotine Absorption per Cigarette​

  • Standard smoking: ~1–1.8 mg absorbed.
  • Unfiltered + deep inhale + fast smoking: Up to 3–4 mg (though this would be harsh and inefficient compared to other methods like vaping or smokeless tobacco).

Caveats​

  • Toxicity trade-off: Maximizing nicotine absorption also increases exposure to tar, CO, and carcinogens (e.g., benzene, formaldehyde).
  • Diminishing returns: The body rapidly develops tolerance, so extreme measures (like smoking 2 cigarettes back-to-back) won’t linearly increase effects.
  • Alternatives: If nicotine is the sole goal, snus, nicotine pouches, or vaping deliver more nicotine with far fewer toxins.
Would you like data on how these methods compare to non-combustible nicotine sources?
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hi, noob vaper here. I was a rollup smoker for about 25 years and switched to vaping a month ago to save money else I'd have to quit. I now save about £60 a week. I am aware what has been said about what you vape and distilled water and stuff, but I bought a refillable vape and some consumer vape juice just to see if I could do it, if I liked it first and could actually replace tobacco with it. I managed to switch suprisingly well and never had to roll a smoke again, but last few days, vaping just makes me cough as soon as I inhale, like a bad irritant it causes an instant reaction, its 10mg fruit falvoured, but as soon as I puff I cough and just now I coughed so hard I puked loads of clear phlegm but I think it came from my lungs rather than stomach, I feel a lot better now that its out. Would a more natural flavourless vape juice help or should I just quit? I can't afford tobacco.
 
mugatea said:
hi, noob vaper here. I was a rollup smoker for about 25 years and switched to vaping a month ago to save money else I'd have to quit. I now save about £60 a week. I am aware what has been said about what you vape and distilled water and stuff, but I bought a refillable vape and some consumer vape juice just to see if I could do it, if I liked it first and could actually replace tobacco with it. I managed to switch suprisingly well and never had to roll a smoke again, but last few days, vaping just makes me cough as soon as I inhale, like a bad irritant it causes an instant reaction, its 10mg fruit falvoured, but as soon as I puff I cough and just now I coughed so hard I puked loads of clear phlegm but I think it came from my lungs rather than stomach, I feel a lot better now that its out. Would a more natural flavourless vape juice help or should I just quit? I can't afford tobacco.
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In my experience there is a huge difference between different vape juices. Some are way too harsh for me. I experimented until I found a locally produced (New Zealand) juice that I can vape without the irritants. Might be worth trying different brands to see if you too can find something that works
 
You might also try making your own, that way you can dial in exactly how you like it. And know what’s in it.

Another thought I had was, have you changed any settings on your device? Does it have an auto function, have you changed coils or pods lately? These can all make a difference taste and harshness .. just fyi
 
mugacoffee said:
hi, noob vaper here. I was a rollup smoker for about 25 years and switched to vaping a month ago to save money else I'd have to quit. I now save about £60 a week. I am aware what has been said about what you vape and distilled water and stuff, but I bought a refillable vape and some consumer vape juice just to see if I could do it, if I liked it first and could actually replace tobacco with it. I managed to switch suprisingly well and never had to roll a smoke again, but last few days, vaping just makes me cough as soon as I inhale, like a bad irritant it causes an instant reaction, its 10mg fruit falvoured, but as soon as I puff I cough and just now I coughed so hard I puked loads of clear phlegm but I think it came from my lungs rather than stomach, I feel a lot better now that its out. Would a more natural flavourless vape juice help or should I just quit? I can't afford tobacco.
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Have you tried nicotine salts?
 
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