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My Spice Toolkit Growing

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Tony6Strings

Tony6Strings

Esteemed member
I've been adding to my home science toolkit. Along with my trusty corningware casserole dishes which have been with me since my first pull, I now have a 1000 ml Pyrex Erlenmeyer. 25 ml Pyrex volumetric pipette (thanks pete666 for the advice) a 5000 gram scale (pictured) and an AWS Gemini 20 milligram scale (not pictured). The pipette makes my life so much easier! Thanks friends for teaching me and helping me grow.
 

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Good job!

I used erlenmeyers for extractions too, but now switched to a separatory funnel to get the last bit of solvent out - not so much to increase yield but to be more eco-friendly.
 
That volumetric pipette was not long for this world. I pulled solvent with it less than a dozen times before accidentally dropping on kitchen floor, it broke... Here is what I am getting instead, much cheaper and essentially the same thing...

 
Thats perfect, only thing i find a turkey baster usefull for is for adding fresh nps to soup, because it fits in the can, but even for that purpose its sloppy because some falls out along the way.
 
I've done many pulls with glass baster. There is a trick to keeping pressure/suction on the bulb in order to not have the solvent drop out... It can make for very quick work if you get the hang of it.

In any case I am happy to have my pipettes on the way.
 
Alrighty, thank you for the inspiration Mr. 6Strings :)

First pic is my extraction equipment. I have a bunch of those Ball jars in case one breaks, and to be used with other things.

Second pic is my box of herbs for making changa. Damiana, White Sage, Marshmallow Leaf, Mullein, Chaliponga Leaf, Blue Lotus, Passion Flower, Caledula, Skullcap, Pau d'Arco, and some harmala extract.

Last pic is the Spice box where my freebase spice is (some pre-weighed doses as well). The light colored jar typically stays in the box as it is very special, being a Chaliponga changa blend. The darker jar stays out, because that's my current go-to blend. I'm about to make a 2g of that same blend.

Thank you for humoring me. Hope it was enjoyed

:love:

One love
 

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I can recommend a 20-50 mL glass syringe (with a luer lock and long-enough needles) as an easier-to-control alternative to pipettes and basters. Just don't forget to wash it since lye slowly attacks glass.

Another convenient option is a pneumatic pipette controller like the one below - it lets you move liquids up and down your pipette by pushing the little knob in the middle up or down, respectively. Don't ruin it by sucking liquid into it.

Finally, even regular pipetting can benefit from better technique:
  • secure the flask (laboratory clamp, etc.)
  • get a good flashlight and make it shine it through the flask
  • get low so that your eye is at the same level as the separation line between the 2 layers
  • keep the tip of the pipette away from the separation line
  • once the liquid is sucked in, release the rubber end - hold it by the glass, not by the rubber to minimize pressure fluctuations
  • let the liquid settle in the pipette, then squirt the bottom bit back to get rid of some water droplets and dirt
  • keep the transfer distance as short as possible
 

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Voidmatrix, thank you for sharing! Love your kit. You and I have the same milligram scale. Hailstorm, thank you for the useful tips!!
 
I'm not sure if this counts, but I did get an impressive picture of my apparatus when I was refining my Bestine a couple months ago. Next time I get my extraction glassware out I'll have to get a picture of that.
 
Haha damn now I really wanna go break out my tote of goodies, share my tools and do an extract. Maybe next week I'll see about doing jt
 
Hailstorm said:
I can recommend a 20-50 mL glass syringe (with a luer lock and long-enough needles) as an easier-to-control alternative to pipettes and basters. Just don't forget to wash it since lye slowly attacks glass.

Another convenient option is a pneumatic pipette controller like the one below - it lets you move liquids up and down your pipette by pushing the little knob in the middle up or down, respectively. Don't ruin it by sucking liquid into it.

Finally, even regular pipetting can benefit from better technique:
  • secure the flask (laboratory clamp, etc.)
  • get a good flashlight and make it shine it through the flask
  • get low so that your eye is at the same level as the separation line between the 2 layers
  • keep the tip of the pipette away from the separation line
  • once the liquid is sucked in, release the rubber end - hold it by the glass, not by the rubber to minimize pressure fluctuations
  • let the liquid settle in the pipette, then squirt the bottom bit back to get rid of some water droplets and dirt
  • keep the transfer distance as short as possible
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info about what type of syringe & needles to use. I'd fumbled through my first couple extractions with a large plastic syringe & knew there had to be a better version for the job at hand.

Do you prefer the pipette, or do you use it in conjunction with the syringe? What type & size pipette would you recommend?
 
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