Low yield first STB

[Wax]

Well I've been putting this off for as long as possible but I've checked the wiki and read lots of posts but I still can't figure out what is going on with this extraction.

Nomans tek with 50g RB, 750ml water and 75g lye.

The first couple pulls I used about 30ml naphtha but for some dumb reason I only let it sit for about 5 minutes before pulling. Needless to say that didn't work out so I heated up 30ml and let it sit for about 12 hours. Ended up with yellow naphtha, repeated a few more pulls the same way and freeze preciped them all for about 24 hours.

When I pulled them out they had more yellow goop than crystals, the first pull yielded less than 10mg, I'm guessing 3mg maybe and the others didn't have much more than some tiny specks that I couldn't even scrape out.

I dried the yellow goo and it was even less, maybe 2mg. I'm currently evapping the leftover naphtha but have little faith in it. I also have about 50ml soaking which I will pull tomorrow ( 2 days in the jar).

Is there something I missed or did I just get bad bark?

 

[endlessness]

Does this not help:

FAQ - DMT Frequently Asked Questions and Troubleshooting Guide - DMT-Nexus Wiki

?

 

[*oneironaut*]

I just had the exact same outcome from a 1/4 lb extract.... same tek same results. First pull yielded about 20mg, and then evaped that down to a strong deem smelling oily goo which i added to some basil and dried. The second pull yielded only a few more crystals but nothing like what you would expect. I haven't tried it yet, but I'm guessing the leaf will be quite active from the smell of it. Seems to me like there's some bad bark out there....:x

 

[Wax]

Endlessness, I tried evapping down till I had about half to 1/3 of the original naphtha and then tried again, it became cloudy only when it was cold and I blew on it, which actually seemed to help precipitate a little but nothing like I expected.

I will pull the NP that I left sitting for 2 days today and see how it goes.

Would adding more lye help? I figured it was based enough since I did pull a few crystals. Also I woke up this morning to 90mg of mostly goo and a little crystal that came out of evapping the rest of the NP.

So if I divide 90mg by three pulls I'm getting roughly 30-35mg per pull...but I will wait to see if the goo dries out any more.

 

[*oneironaut*]

If you do add more lye and it helps i'd be interested to know as i still have the soup. But I would imagine a 1 to 1 ratio should do it. Mine turned nice and black, i did the same ratios and everything with two other batches from different vendors and they turned out great so i suspect the bark.. but if more lye does anything for ya, i'll follow suit.

 

[cassini]

Next time try an acid soak for a couple of days before basifying. Vinegar works, but I've been making a double strength acetic acid solution (so, 10%) with great results.

 

[endlessness]

Did you mix the pulls thoroughly many times before separating each pull?

Is the mimosa from reputabl supplier?

As for the goo, recrystallize it.

 

[Wax]

I let the pulls sit for 10-12 hours and mixed them probably 10 times each for at least 5 minutes.

I've never used this bark before but the supplier is hp and I've heard others having good experiences with it.

 

[EzekielCain]

I did my first STB using 100g and ended up pulling 833mg total from it.

First attempt was using 3 pint jars...I found out this wasn't big enough, and like you, I was too eager and didn't let the solvent sit long enough (slight yellow tint in otherwise clear naphtha) When I grouped everything together in a larger vessel and gave it more time after bumping up the pH with more lye, it was DARK yellow and super saturated....

With all good things, just give it more time. You'll get it! Don't lose hope.

This whole extraction process has been a rollercoaster of ups and downs for me personally. I've gotten great product so far but at the cost of being hasty in a large extraction, I completely phucked myself (which you can read about in my posting history)

Best of luck to you! Let us know what happens...

 

[Wax]

I am using a quart jar for 50g, how long do you let yours sit EK? I thought 30 minutes was the minimum any longer was just a plus?

 

[EzekielCain]

I let mine sit after 2 good agitations for 24 hours.

I've seen people say for STB that this is too long, but I'll include some pics here that are in another thread just for reference.

I never got this color from letting it sit for just a couple hours...

Even after messing up my big extraction I've got 5 of these little jars full of product and should have 4 more coming over the next 4-5 days. Next one I'll be more careful on.

 

[Psyren]

I feel like a lot of people let it sit way to long, use way to much water, and way to much naptha.

I use quart jars, add 650-700ml of distilled water, mix in 80g food grade NaOh, wait for it to be warm to the touch not hot. then add 80g of (powdered)root bark, shake every now and then for 30-45 min. It should still be warm, add 60-70ml or naptha(less the better,you want it super saturated) Turn and roll the jars for a few minutes 3X (with these ratios i can shake the shit out of it and have no emulsions)
remove naptha and repeat. Combine all naptha pulls and toss in a freezer over night.

If you follow that word for word and dont get maximum yields and white spice i dont know what to tell ya.


I think a lot of people use to much water and let the lye and RB sit way to long. Using distilled water and the purest chemicals help too i think.

 

[EzekielCain]

I agree psy...

I get yellow spice as a result of the way I do my extraction. I pound the bejeezus out of it with lye and I use more naphtha than I probably need to because I extract with a glass Turkey baster, not an eye dropper so I need more solvent as to not pull up gunk.

But boy oh boy, that yellow is some fantastically potent stuff!

 

[Psyren]

I agree psy...

I get yellow spice as a result of the way I do my extraction. I pound the bejeezus out of it with lye and I use more naphtha than I probably need to because I extract with a glass Turkey baster, not an eye dropper so I need more solvent as to not pull up gunk.

But boy oh boy, that yellow is some fantastically potent stuff!

Truth. I use a plastic turkey baster.. that i have to replace every other extraction because the lye and naptha destroy it lol

A lot of people on here go thru extra steps to remove the yellow but all that can be avoided as long as you pull with a solvent asap. I mean i could be totally missing something here but the AB extrations and multiple re-x just seem like a wast of time

 

[EzekielCain]

Which is why my spice remains yellow....lol.

The first one I tried just wasn't saturated enough and my spice just melted.

The color above is just 24 hours of saturation time. If it were half the time I'd probably have "whiter" spice but I look at the color I have on my solvent above and I just know my final product will pack a punch!

 

[Wax]

My NP looks identical to that there just isn't much spice...

 

[*oneironaut*]

Truth. I use a plastic turkey baster.. that i have to replace every other extraction because the lye and naptha destroy it lol

I found a stainless steel baster that comes with an injection tip attachment (used to inject juices and stuff into meats) and i cut the angled tip off so the needle had a flat end like a straw... it works awsome. I do the first seperation with almost no lye getting into the baster and then do a second one from that. The attachment keeps the solvent from spilling out and all i do when i know im picking up the soup is hold the baster vertically and then slowly squeeze the bulb, the lye comes out first and when it turns to the clear the rest of the contents is clean solvent... then for good measure i do a sodium carbonate wash.

With this I don't even use a sep funnel anymore! Cost me 15 bucks at a kitchen shop..

 

[EzekielCain]

My NP looks identical to that there just isn't much spice...

Are you sure that you've used enough lye? Some people are hesitant to use too much but it honestly doesn't really hurt anything to add some more.

This was a problem for me in the past and when I added more lye I ended up with 1.5g off my first pull. You've just got to find the system that works for you. Do things slowly, take notes of what you do different from the last time and then compare the results until you're happy with what you're getting.

This whole thing is a craps shoot at first. There will come a time where both of us can do this blindfolded in our sleep and help guide others along the road we've been down before.

First and foremost: Patience is a virtue with this.

 

[pridvtec]

Thank you for this article. That’s all I can say. You most definitely have made this post into something special. You clearly know what you are doing, you’ve covered so many bases.Thanks!

 

[Wax]

I added 75g lye to 50g bark so it should have been enough, also it is so black I cannot see the light of a flashlight through it. I may try adding more seeing as it is really the only option I have right now other than tossing it.

It seems that I am pulling more fats than anything, I tried freeze precip on the pull I had sitting for two days and just ended up with a bunch of floaty goo again, I poured it off and evapped it and it certainly doesn't look like spice even the gooey spice, it is a different consistency so I'm sure its fats. I also tested out a little of what I could get last night and it doesn't seem to be very potent, I tried about 30mg on top of some caapi leaves and only got mild OEV's.

I think I'm going to try a dry A/B on another batch and see if I get better results or if it is just my bark.