That's it I've had it.. I'm done with concentrates forever!

Socks And Sandals said:

Hey guys.. I'm sorry but I'm at my wit's end and I have to vent..

Here's my story:
I recently got into vaping and bought a Plenty Vaporizer and love it.... but I've never gotten concentrates to work in it. Over the course of the past 6 months I've been trying out concentrates and it seems the only way I can get them to work is by dressing a bowl and combusting because NOTHING ELSE WORKS! I've tried vape pens with ego twist batteries and glass domes made for waxes.. and I've wasted EVERYTHING I HAVE PUT IN THERE! Hell I don't even think I ever got any kind of a feeling from it from a Pen period! Just a sick chemical burning coil taste! I probably wasted nearly $60 on this bullshit with my wax glass dome and ceramic atomizer over the last 6 months and I have never felt even a buzz from them.. YES REALLY I SHIT YOU NOT FC!

Then just this past friday, I decided to see what dabbing was like and I HATED IT! Well not really the high.. but the entire process itself. It just feels dirty doing it! I'm so glad I didn't waste money on a rig and only wasted nearly $70 on a conversion kit that looks like an elbow with a glass dome and a titanium nail and Scorch Torch... Lets just say what a waste of money!!! I wasted nearly 1/4 of my $30 .5gram just trying to get the shatter on the nail but instead ended up with most of it all over my glass dome??? WTF? Out of that.. I was only able to get one lack luster hit.. Not a cloud.. mind you but an average hit! My heart started to flutter and the high was over in nearly 30 minutes.. Lets just say this wasn't the "HIGH SCHOOL HIGH" or even on the same level as the first 10 times I got high as a kid!! First time I ever smoked weed I was 15 and me and 3 friends were on bikes.. and I literally felt as if I was inside of a dream!! Sorry to say.. my first dab didn't come close and if I wanted to replicate my first 10 smoke out sessions.. I'd have to get a hold of some Psilocybin or Peyote to get that back again and I'm sorry but my drug days are all over except for herb and alcohol!

Anyhow, the next day I try it again and again.. no thick cloud and same mediocre hit!!! Remember this is shatter I'm talking about.. So I got so fed up I decided to run out today and get a new glass globe and atomizer for my ego c twist battery so I can ATTEMPT concentrates from a pen again... Guess what happened?

I got home.. opened the wax paper or whatever it is they put it on and tried to cut off a small dab with my dab took and the sharp edge of a toothpick. The problem? Instead of staying a fat slab like the shatter.. I ended getting this gooey shit all over my dab tool, hands, battery and atomizer... (not to mention what was once a flat slab on wax paper was now a FUCKING DISTORTED GLOB OF GOOEY SWIRL THAT WAS ALL OVER THE WAX PAPER, MY DAB TOOL AND MY HANDS!) and in a severe rage of anger..I took my dab tool... what was left of whatever the fuck concentrate this was... my brand new glass globe and atomizer (that I just spent $20 dollars on (but now ended up covered in a gooey sticky mess that imo isn't worth the time and effort to clean any longer) and THREW THEM ALL IN THE FUCKING GARBAGE!

I'm sorry to be so Negative about this and before anyone says, "Hey pal, You're attitude sucks" Let me remind you that if you spent as much money as I have on different batteries, glass globe wax attachments, glass parts to convert my fucking bong into an oil rig and wasting over $130 experimenting with concentrates over the past 6 months.. You'd be pissed too.

Although my mind is made up.. concentrates are not worth the time, the money or the hassle to me.. especially after today.. This wax was IMPOSSIBLE TO GET OFF MY HANDS WITHOUT SOAKING THEM IN ISO and was so pissed about the fact that what once was a nice flat easy to cut off slab was now a gooey fucking ball of mess that I can no longer work with.. I DECIDED TO CHUCK IT ALL IN THE GARBAGE AND GIVE UP COMPLETELY! FUCK IT!

As I've mentioned.. I've never gotten any concentrates to work properly in my Plenty, My vape pens with glass domes, and now even using a titanium nail! If I can't even get the fucking dab off the paper and onto the coil of my vape pen without making an uncontrollable mess and wasting nearly all my shit.. and taking nearly an hour to clean up... it's just not worth the hassle.. Kinda reminds me of PC gaming back when I was really into video games.... just not worth the headaches involved at all to me PERIOD.

I know I'm going to get at least some negative comments over this but the real reason behind this thread wasn't just to vent... I'd like to know.. WTF AM I FUCKING DOING WRONG? I promise you guys I'll listen to everything you have to say with an open mind even though my mind is made up.. I'm never handling any concentrates ever again after today.. So that means No dabbing, no more vape pens.. I'm absolutely giving up with one exception to the rule... something that doesn't get all over your fucking hands to the point that everything you touch needs to be rubbed down with iso..... DISPOSABLE CANNABIS OIL CARTRIDGES... like Eureka, Honey Vape, Pure Gold and absolute extracts! This is going to be my only concentrate fix from here on out now!

I'm sorry if my language offends anyone but I had to vent and I really wanted to know what I did wrong even though I'm never handling any of this shit again and absolutely will not be wasting any more money on pens or dabbing until technology gives me something that actually works and a concentrate with a texture that I can actually deal with besides crumble!

I'm not asking anyone to convince me otherwise.. my mind is made up.. I'm done with dabbing and pens for good.. (WELL BEFORE EVEN GETTING STARTED) I just wouldn't mind knowing how did I fuck things up? I researched all I could over the net, youtube etc and I just don't fucking understand !Is this bad luck or has anyone been just as frustrated as me?

It's all about that Flower and disposable cannabis oil cartridges from here on out for me...I already experimented and failed with concentrates and I'm not wasting any more money on Bullshit..

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HomeFree said:

I would say the majority of people here, including myself have gone down a similar path, which is why we are now on a site that discusses vaporizers, rather than paid for advertisments in high times magazine. At least you didn't waste $100 on a pen that could be put together for ~$20, which died 10 days after purchase.

If you have any sort of tolerance, the little wax pens will probably not get you high. They are essentially little one hitters. You need something more powerful. Also, hash oil sticks to EVERYTHING once it gets warm or is decarbed a bit. Dabbing takes some practice too. I would have saved all that wax to consume in edibles. Along with practice, you might want to try some different extracts.

Good luck! Enjoy your buds, too.

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herbivore21 said:

Whoa man, it sounds like frustration got the better of you here. I can relate, having lived with a lifelong mood disorder (ironically, I have found that this disorder is best treated with mmj concentrates lol).

If you do not get SKY HIGH from your first dab, I can unequivocally confirm that something has gone quite wrong! Either the concentrate was bad or your technique and/or equipment were.

Let me intimate my early experiences learning to produce shatter (where I live, there's no concentrates available, legally or illegally!). Over the first 3-6 months or so that I spent learning to make hydrocarbon extracted concentrates, I turned the best part of a pound of epic bud (where I live, this cost in excess of $400 an ounce) into varying degrees of awful black slop which tasted like garbage and was full of residual solvent and unwanted plant material. Believe me when I say that the funds you spent in your failed attempts to introducing yourself to concentrates could have been much worse!

However, for the thousands of dollars that I pissed away before I made anything even worth dabbing (let alone before I got to teaching myself to dab with a torch and nail - which as you learned is its own challenge at first), I eventually learned to make extracts of such a high quality (see my avatar pic to the left of my post) as to literally turn my life around - ending an extended absence from work due to illness and allowing me to return more prolific than ever. Flowers never, ever got me this, not from vaping, not from smoking. Flowers (especially when combusted) in fact made it harder for me to function during the day, exacerbating some aspects of my conditions and providing comparatively negligible relief for the majority of symptoms which I medicate for (with the exception of stimulating appetite).

I gotta ask: Did you ever try putting the concentrate you had into your plenty on top of a bowl of buds and vaping at high temp? This would have gotten you sky-high, unless the concentrate was seriously questionable shit.

Ironically, the entry level dab setup (like you got, a nail, a dome and a torch) is very finicky and takes a lot of learning to achieve good results with at first. Every torch/nail/setup has its idiosyncrasies which compounds the difficulty of dialling in the perfect dab technique.

E-nails however are simply the best cannabis delivery method period IME and IMO. I prefer a dab on my silicon carbide d-nail over hitting flowers in my Mighty, vapman or e-nano any day of the week - and all of these are fantastic vapes in their own right! They just don't compare to the flavor, ease of use and dramatically increased effect you get from concentrates dabbed on a perfectly heated, well considered dab setup.

Handling concentrates is very tricky at first, since especially non absolute shatters can become sticky and messy if handled in the wrong conditions or without the right tools (oil slick mats are MANDATORY for budding - pun intended - concentrate users, you need a solid non-stick surface to be able to manipulate oils easily especially while you learn!).

Most pens IMO are shit, tend to overheat concentrates and/or use unsafe/poor materials and are janky to control. This leads to dreadful taste alongside potential negative health consequences. IMO only the w9tech pens are even worth considering (and I've used VB's latest offering and a few other pens from miscellaneous manufacturers, mostly cheap ones that friends have had). But honestly, dabbing is so, so much better. If you ever get past your initial unfortunate experiences, I really recommend that you find a decent e-nail setup.

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HomeFree said:

I would say the majority of people here, including myself have gone down a similar path, which is why we are now on a site that discusses vaporizers, rather than paid for advertisments in high times magazine. At least you didn't waste $100 on a pen that could be put together for ~$20, which died 10 days after purchase.

If you have any sort of tolerance, the little wax pens will probably not get you high. They are essentially little one hitters. You need something more powerful. Also, hash oil sticks to EVERYTHING once it gets warm or is decarbed a bit. Dabbing takes some practice too. I would have saved all that wax to consume in edibles. Along with practice, you might want to try some different extracts.

Good luck! Enjoy your buds, too.

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Socks And Sandals said:

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that responded. Compared to other communities I've been a part of you guys are not only very mature, and very knowledgeable but you are very understanding. If I left a comment like this over on youtube.. I would have been hounded with hate and "You're a dumbass" comments. I really appreciate the empathy and the understanding as well as this community's ability to accept the live and let live attitude. I know it sounds corny guys.. but thank you for your understanding and not flaming me on just giving up!


I appreciate the honesty here. You're right I have to have done something wrong because never went to the moon.. I instead I just shot up above the earth's atmosphere and fell back to earth again. Hows that for an analogy? I have some pics but I have no clue how to post them so I'll just provide the links. If you could tell me how to post pics here that would be great but here is my setup and I wanted to show everyone the nail and dome.

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNGE3hVyO21M4e4bFO3AQRpAfrzFTEmJk0eR-Gz
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPwueu89KOUN7q5JM9rP2jNmv1jFaPGmSRp-ihs
https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPcPnXCL7_brnLrYggwaLHaKTAyjwsfg5kEyYRC

I still have the other shatter that I didn't throw away and I don't know if I should even try it again on the nail or just combust and dress a bowl with it.. I'm aiming for the later. Could it have been my set up?

It absolutely sucks none of this is legal where you are at and I sympathize with you on doing what you have to do making your own shatter. I on the other hand don't think I have the patience for it but you're right I could have went through a lot more which Is why the buck stops here. However for you.. it's good to hear that you were able to improve your condition... especially if flowers didn't work for you. Glad to hear you are feeling and doing so much better due to your research, money and hard work actually paying off!

I never tried putting wax on the bowl underneath and on top of the herb in the chamber and was afraid to because I was worried about it dripping into the heating unit. The instructions to the plenty are pretty vague but they do say concentrates belong on top of the liquid pad so that's what I did. I was surprised there was no resin on the top screen.. very surprised. I've read through most of the Plenty thread (still not finished) and apparently it has worked for some people to just dress the bowl and put the liquid pad on the top. Maybe I will give it a try with a spec of what I have remaining. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

I'm just so put off from losing almost half my shatter on the dab tool, the glass globe and all over anything I touch and I can honestly say.. I have more of a problem handling and cutting off dabs than I probably would If I got the heating of the nail right.

As of this point I agree.. pens never worked for me for store bought concentrates you need to put on the coil yourself. Those disposable vape carts I mentioned work great with no mess, pleasant taste and a very relaxing high.. especially that Eureka Girl Scout Cookies indica.. oh.. how I loved that!

Like I said I have maybe a .5 left of shatter.. let me know if you think I should sell it, try dabbing it again or just putting it in my plenty. I'm not expecting different results but now that you see the kind of nail and dome I have maybe you can tell me if my setup is wrong?

Also is it ok to put the shatter in the freezer for 5 or 10 minutes or does this affect the concentrate in a negative way? Thanks for the insight!




Yeah I hear you. I wasn't about to buy an expensive pen like the Dr. Dabber until I was comfortable with loading concentrates and making sure I was getting any effect from them. I'm glad I decided on only getting a battery, an ejuice tank for quitting smoking and a glass dome with atomizer.

As far as my tolerance goes.. I did consider that because I do smoke every evening around bedtime but you would at least think I would catch some kind of a buzz? Maybe you're right.. I've been planning on attempting to cut back my herb use to just the weekends if it wasn't for my insomnia but I need it almost every night. If I do cut back my use to the weekends, I'm sure that would lessen my tolerance over a month's time. I have one friend that dabs.. and even though I'm giving up on it.. I'm still open to going over there and him hooking me up proper on a nice rig and his E Nail!

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seaofgreens said:

Was reading through your experiences, found it funny and also something I identify with.

Few months back, I made a big batch of butter with trim I had saved for maybe a year, so enough to make maybe 10 grams of shatter. Anyways, I used some, gave away lots of cookies etc. and then the rest just sits there as always, likely to go bad and then I will throw it away. So, this time, I was thinking I was tired of making butter, easy and potent as it is, simply because the shelf life isn't what I want, and I really don't enjoy ingesting as much as inhaling.

Round this time I had been starting to get into this site, and was/am still lurking, reading everything I can/could find about vaporization when I started browsing peoples concentrate stashes, and reading about peoples homemade experiences, so I wanted to give it a shot. Tried 91 iso and some ABV, just strained it through a fine mesh cooking strainer and ended up with, something disgusting. So I tried the same method with 91 iso and some trim, again through fine mesh filter, and ended up with some tarry black sap that I could hold and break apart if I left it in the freezer, but would stick to my hands at room temp.

Next, I start reading more, and invest forty bucks into a gallon of everclear, and a few extra bucks on a little 4x4 10 micron ss screen. I run the gallon with some strawberry kush trim/popcorn and end up with roughly 3 grams of this amber pancake which I can easily hold in my hand at room temp, breaks apart like rock-candy and tastes incredible.

Alright, now I have some concentrate! So how the fuck should I consume it? I have an herbalaire, tried it out, and although I get "something," its just not enough, I want to actually taste the concentrate itself. So I go out and put together a w9tech pen, go to checkout and realize that I still have my credit card sending statements to my parents house, as I had been moving too often for me to bother sending it elsewhere. But unfortunately the website's dumb policy would have sent the pen to my parents house, so I just went into town and bought the cheapest one I could find. First time with an atomizer coil, it works great for a week or so, when I start dicking around with the coils, trying to clean up the cores a bit and I break the atty. Alright, well let me just order a new one... doesn't work on my vv pen. Ok, lets try a different one... also doesn't work. Starting to get pissed, go into town with the unit and just buy some crappy overpriced atty set that works, but I have to use a safety pin to push the concentrate onto the coils almost every time I want to take a small rip. So, here I am, about $60 into just making a bit of concentrate and about $60 on essentially disposable gear I'd rather not have invested in, but am using regardless.

Now I am at a point where I really dig concentrates, but even making them is a fairly cost intensive endeavor, and "good" equipment (as in, can be used for longer than a few days-weeks before becoming trash) is super expensive, as is every freaking vapor related thing.

Now I'm browsing the persei thread, debating on a nectar collector... that bubbler it comes with looks like it would be awesome with my HA or any other vape and.... suddenly I have this VAS everyone is talking about with a strong likelihood of GAS developing in my future... So my advice to you is... escape!

Nah, sorry I went off on a... lengthy tangent. I really meant to just come in to this thread and suggest you make your own concentrate, as I believe you will end up with some stuff that doesn't stick all over your hands, and will truly be amazed/happy that you produced something so tasty. Just make sure you use the information here as resource, and you will not be disappointed.

Good luck regardless

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Likes2vape said:

Idk maybe your not dabbing right.

If you have a dome and nail set up like this

Here is how to dab.
1st load your dab onto your dab tool, paper clip, etc. and set aside
2nd remove the glass dome and heat the nail until it is red hot I mean glowing red hot
Replace the dome and place your dab on the top of the nail while hitting it.

Cough your ass off and repeat!!

Sorry if you already know this but it took me a bit to figure out how to dab. I don't hang out with youngins anymore so dabbing was totally foreign to me, I had no idea how to use a dome and nail and it took me a couple goes to get it right. The 1st time I heated the nail I left the globe on!! I also wasn't heating the nail enough at first.

One thing I've figured out is I can use my hand to cover the hole in the dome and use it like a carb cap. It really helps vape everything off the nail.

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Likes2vape said:

By the time I place the dome on and grab the dab the nail is no longer red hot. I found if I didn't get the nail glowing red by the time I went to dab the nail wasn't hot enough. Even now if I stall for 5-10 seconds the nail isn't hot enough and wax just runs over the sides of the nail instead of vaping off. This is a glass nail btw ti nails are probably different but idk.

Edit: here's a pic of the nail this thing just does not hold heat.

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