Thanks for this detailed walkthrough, can’t wait to tackle this beast next, haha wanna sell one of those extra vac pumps?
The problem I see with American glass is they think it’s made of solid gold and sell it as such…
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Isnt he silly?
Good run, and nice write up. It definatly sounds like you learned alot. Now time for the 2nd pass!
You will want to wipe out any ground glass joints that had grease with hexanes, not too much cuts that grease.
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I lost count of the times I had to deal with this sort of thing. For me I really make sure the decarbing is done if at all possible before it goes under vacuum. I also have a vent valve that will not break vacuum if the pump is running. The valve is electronic and if the switch is momentarily pressed the valve just bumps open briefly. What a great asset when dealing with first run stuff that can bump up like that.
The trick is all in attitude really. This stuff pisses me off when I have to deal with it but honestly it does not take that much to restart. Having any sort of leakback valve for initial pull down sure has helped me but my stuff is obviously coping with a bit different scenario.
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I find a variac gives me the best temperature control and the most even heating, far above a PID which is above a dimmer. A guy from california is selling a good variac for 38$ shipped, I got his 46$ version (10amp).
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thats cheap for a variac, got a link? I wouldent mind picking up one. The advantage of the pid is the automation, if you walked away from a variac you could have a run away distillation.
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You made my day…
Yes, a 10 amp Variac will do, but I still recommend splurging on a 20 amp because sooner or later you or someone else will use it to control a motor, and for that purpose you should have one rated for double the device power you’re trying to control.
Variac page at eBay:
Brand new 20 amp Variac for $72.95 with free shipping:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Auto-Variac-Transformer-AC-Metered-Variable-Voltage-Regulator-0-130v-20Amp-2KVA/323013011922?hash=item4b351369d2:g:cegAAOSwZFdaYWnj:rk:2:pf:1
For smooth boiling/distilling you should have precise power regulation, but to just hold a liquid beneath it’s boiling point a PID controller rules.
I’m dumping for free all my stuff, controllers, solvent stash, everything related to cannabis down to my Mobius Matrix bubbler due to my big brother kicking me out of the house that was supposed to be mine to live in until I die, and I can’t afford the rent somewhere on my measly Social Security check. If someone with a lab in Southern California would take all of my stuff, AND offer me either a little something each month under the table for whatever services I can offer, just enough so I can afford rent, or provide me a room, I would greatly appreciate it. I have until January 1st to get out, or the cops will be at my door, and I’ll be on the street or in a board and care. I’m old, but responsible when called upon, surely someone could use me to monitor an SPD unit during a night shift, wash the glassware or do something no one wants to do for cheap. I made tentative arrangements with some youngsters from Orange County a couple of days ago to take everything, but I don’t think they are a perfect match for what I’ve got, and I’ll still be homeless. I’ve contributed every resource I have for free for the last six years until I’m broke, anyone who’s followed me at Toke City and ICMAG Forums knows of my work, please, I’m begging to go on contributing and have a little life until I really need to be cared for. Thanks brothers and sisters for the friendship, much love, John Schuyler in Sun City (I’m from LA → Orange County and absolutely would like to return to one or the other) Picture of me being served a HUGE masala dosa in Little India Cerritos, yes I’ve been ‘dosed,’ many a time… I’ve let my hair grow out since that pic, I’m back to looking like a hippie.
Here’s a list of some of the stuff I’ve got:
My cache of solvents that I bought to prove they were readily available to anyone, they’re untouched since I posted up about each purchase, my mom’s hope chest is full of the liter bottles and four liter jugs, nifty stuff.
Solvent list:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=7933632&postcount=162
Cases of surplus butane refills I purchased doing the mystery oil testing - includes a full tank of butane minus what I used for the test.
Stock pot vac chamber, silicone heat mats and controllers, the distillation equipment and controllers I’ve been experimenting with etc…
Iso 3, never unpacked
Authentic Pyrex scientific glassware containers, other glassware… test tubes/watch glasses/pipettes etc. - all new.
Cannabis and lab science reference books.
A classic Mobius Matrix bubbler in perfect condition with accessories, nails etc…
Soldering iron dab station (heavily used but functional) with extra replacement pieces.
I have a lot of tools, digital variable speed Dremel tool with all the accessories to make it into a drill press, miller, etc., mechanic’s tools, electronics equipment, soldering irons, heat gun, nice selection of 3M heat shrink tubing etc. but I’ve yet to decide whether to somehow hang on to these or give them away - if someone would really would appreciate them- it’s theirs.
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Do you turn the mantle temp all the way up, then use the variac yo adjust temp at desired spot?
And wtf is that in the last pic? Looks like an epic taquito
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This is really sad @SkyHighLer. I really hope someone in the southern california area can find something for you to do in this industry.
Never been on Tokecity but ive followed your work for a very long time on Icmag. I believe your work on butane alone should warrant you a place in this industry.
Really saddens me to hear of this. I think we need to move this to its own thread so it can get more eyes from the members here. Maybe we can create a gofund me page for you cause it seems like you need a hand and its even shittier that your considering giving away all your stuff. This kinda reminds me of a situation i went threw 15 years ago. My son’s mother just passed away in a car accident, i was in my late 20’s finishing up 2 masters degrees, raising a kid by myself. I had to make a choice…i had a certain amount of money; no job. I had to pay off my last semester of college or pay the rest of my house lease off. Could dont both… I literally had to sell every last possession of mine to be able to rent a room and finish of grad school. Me and my son lived in this rented room for 6 months before i could find a job. It was a big turning point in the way i lived my life.
i know what its like to lose every single possession in order to make it one more month. It was the most depresing time in my life. In one hand i was trying to better myself with education…the other i was going broke and homeless.
@sidco and @Future is there anyway we can move these last few post to its own thread with hopes of getting our brother @SkyHighLer some help! maybe the brain collective can think of something better than my gofund me idea??
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Wish I could fly you out to detroit for a day or 2. I’d prefer to pay for experience vs me stressing running my spd.
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Here’s a picture of the inside of a Chinese stirrer/mantle someone sent me with a similar question.
The first obvious problem is the circuitry for the stirrer and mantle so co-joined you can’t simply go in and separate them. My suggestion was to disconnect the leads to the mantle, and bring out a new pair you can plug directly into the Variac.
If you have a built in PID controller, you can’t go in and bring leads to the outside to insert the Variac between the controller output and the mantle, the solid state output device(s) of the controller will go crazy trying to rapidly throw the Variac impedance. I tried it, fortunately my SS relay recovered, this lead me to the PID or ON/OFF or Limit controller firing a mechanical relay I could feed the output from the Variac through.
Here’s a few pics, Kill-A-Watt power meter → Variac → Auber SYL-1512A controller with mechanical relay → heater
The Variac connected directly to the mantle will work just fine as gonzo stated, having a ON/OFF or Limit control to ensure the temperature doesn’t creep up while you’re not looking is the point of the temp controller.
The best way to go is with a Auber DSPR220 or DSPR400 distillation controller that drives the mantle at whatever wattage you choose, and then drops the wattage to a level of your choosing at a temperature of your choosing to start the actual distillation and maintain the speed (level of boil) just where you want it. At that point, you can step in if you want and set up the controller to lock the temp in like a rock with the trick I came up with that is posted up in the Advanced Distillation thread I have up.
(A dosa is a giant crepe made with rice and urad dal flour, a South Indian form of bread, it is rolled/filled something like a burrito with a spicy potato mash - always served whether plain or with stuffing with a thin dipping soup called sambar, personally I prefer North Indian dishes served with fried bread called puris. Find your local Indian community and look for what is called an all vegetarian sweet shop, they’ll also have salty savories and quick snacks like dosas, go in stoned with an empty stomach and eat like you’re the Chief)
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Skyhighler beat me to it 
I was thinking about using the Variac with the PID but it is so easy to dial in a temp with the Variac that runaway doesn’t really seem like an issue. I guess I could use the PID in on/off mode as a ‘fail safe.’
I’m thinking about ordering a bigger heating mantle liner from deschem and then making my own heating mantle that is big enough to cover more of my reaction chamber. I hate how the top of the damn thing is always cooler.
@SkyHighLer Don’t give all your stuff up, yet, things can change quickly and you never know what opportunities might come up. Sell some of it if you need to or trade it around to take care of business but no need to make hasty decisions in the face of tough news.
As for the chinese mantle I would cut the leads that go into the heating mantle liner and run new leads to the variac personally. As mentioned you cannot simply plug it in because it would mess up the circuit and the stirrer. The problem with PID is that it is lazy and the programming tends to prefer shorter but stronger bursts of heat (minimal input) in order to maintain the temperature. I prefer lower but longer (more gentle) heat. On my first run I noticed some carmelized something or some residue on the bottom of the RBF that I was sure probably came from hot spots or high intensity heat when the mantle was working to keep up with vacuum coldness. After that I used the PID with a dimmer and burnt out the dimmer on my 2nd run Now I use the variac and it is killer!
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Thanks for this writeup, I’m trying to get my SPD system up and running and this has been a huge help.
What is the product name for the apparatus that the vacuum gauge is inserted into?
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It’s a kf25 to 1/8” female npt adapter.
And glad it’s been a help. Feel free to ask any questions needed and I’ll try to get back with you as soon as possible.
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Is there a reason you went with the 4 way KF25 fitting as opposed to something like this Pipe Fittings for sale | eBay
Also what type of rubber tubing is that?
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That was the exact adapter I originally wanted but they were outta stock at the time. But after I set everything up I’m kinda glad I set it up with the 4way kf25.
I wanted a way to break vacuum because I had planned to move to a single cow system eventually and knew I needed a way to break vacuum to switch cows and receiving flasks.
I really spent a lot of time thinking about the vacuum setup. It was very expensive this way but it left me future expansion.
I knew I wanted a close off valve for the pump, vacuum vent valve, spot for my bullseye. This was how I configured it to meet my needs. I’m sure people can improve on my layout.
The rubber hose is a high vacuum rubber hose. Here is the link.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F161095505315
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I had some rubber hose similar to that and my vacuum pump didn’t collapse it but did compress it in a few spots. Deschem sells the 15mm OD which is what I used but I am switching to some stuff from ideal vac that is really thick (seems much more thick then they said).
The little one is the deschem and the big one is ideal vac.
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Need to go full bore . Those hoses IMO don’t work
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I didn’t notice the collapsing but I really wasn’t looking for it either. I just looked at the vacuum level. I might looking into this next run
Thanks @gonzo for the heads up on the thicker tubing. I might just call across international cause the stuff they sent with my vacuum oven is seriously thick too.
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That’s very soon. I just wanted to learn the basics before attempting full wide bore but the reason I got the bellow hose and all the kf25 fittings and stuff cause that’s the end goal.
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It doesn’t look it but the ideal one is 3/8" ID. The phat edge plays tricks on your mind. If I went to 1/2" I would have needed new glass and such but eventually I want to have my longer run be all kf style tubing.
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