Too much flavoring = harsh?

So I just got into DIY. I successfully made a few good juices, but the rest aren't turning out too well. I started out with 20% flavoring (pg based), and the rest VG. Those juices were okay, but I could barely taste them, even after steeping. So I started mixing between 25 and 30% flavoring, and now I can't even vape the juices. The throat hit is unbearable and I end up wheezing.
Do flavors add a lot of throat hit or something? Keep in mind, this happened with each of my flavors, including mellow things like berries. And this isn't about PG/VG ratio, because I was a max PG person before I started DIY.
What's going on?

rj9923 said:

So I just got into DIY. I successfully made a few good juices, but the rest aren't turning out too well. I started out with 20% flavoring (pg based), and the rest VG. Those juices were okay, but I could barely taste them, even after steeping. So I started mixing between 25 and 30% flavoring, and now I can't even vape the juices. The throat hit is unbearable and I end up wheezing.
Do flavors add a lot of throat hit or something? Keep in mind, this happened with each of my flavors, including mellow things like berries. And this isn't about PG/VG ratio, because I was a max PG person before I started DIY.
What's going on?

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I know this kinda sounds crazy but if you use to much flavoring it has the opposite effect. Flavorings kinda have a ceiling idk why it is but... Also depending on what flavors your useing most tfa flavors are good at 15% while inw flavors are 2.5%. So what flavoring are you useing?

skiball said:

I know this kinda sounds crazy but if you use to much flavoring it has the opposite effect. Flavorings kinda have a ceiling idk why it is but... Also depending on what flavors your useing most tfa flavors are good at 15% while inw flavors are 2.5%. So what flavoring are you useing?

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I spent a long time doing this. Start low. You can always work your way up. Much more difficult to "rescue" a juice by diluting. The biggest thing is not to get discouraged. I think we've all been through the "higher % is more flavor" blues. Just go back to the drawing board, that's all. It's not a failure.

If you look at many of the recipes posted here as examples it will help to get a feel for things better.
Most berries and fruits are pretty strong flavors so 20% is way to high IMO.
As an example: 2% Blackberry vs 5% Blueberry Wild, revised.
Each flavor is different in strength and also varies between different brands.

I think everyone said it. Just depends on what vendor your using for juices. FA really likes 5 to 7 percent on a lot of mixes. When I hit 10-15 on my first few attempt the flavors just became muted or just out of wack. Cap I think the average total mix ratios are around 10-15% depending on the flavor....this one I am not sure about...FA I am sure.

Chrispdx said:

I think everyone said it. Just depends on what vendor your using for juices. FA really likes 5 to 7 percent on a lot of mixes. When I hit 10-15 on my first few attempt the flavors just became muted or just out of wack. Cap I think the average total mix ratios are around 10-15% depending on the flavor....this one I am not sure about...FA I am sure.

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Cap can be a wide range from 5-12

It would be best if you listed the flavors you have by mfg's. This way people can comment on what percentages work for them or if a particular flavor your using also causes them coughing or throat irritation.

I have mixes that are 6% total flavoring and taste great and full of flavor. I recently tried this recipe just out of curiosity as I have never made a mix with this much flavoring: http://vapingunderground.com/threads/my-take-on-unicorn-milk.163768/
37% is a crazy amount of flavoring and I figured it would be harsh and taste like crap but to my surprise it is pretty good.

It also helps to smell a flavor, if it smells real strong then less is needed and vice versa. If you mix a strong flavor at the same percentage as a weak flavor then don't expect to taste much of the weaker flavor. A good example is FA Fuji Apple, with this flavor .25 to .5% is enough to make it stand out in a mix, any more and that is all you will taste.

Citizen said:

"Just go back to the drawing board, that's all. It's not a failure."

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I'm going to get that printed out and stick it up over my mixing station.

I buy 100% VG and then factor in my PG with my extracts and flavor mixes. I mainly use TFA Flavorings and most of my mixes are 20% flavor.
My favorite is TFA Summer fruits and I mix at 20% with 100%vg so I'm getting a 80/20 mix high VG and it's great and I love it. It's not too strong and I can really taste it. I usually mix at 3-6mg NIC. I use strictly an RDA so the flavor really pops. I used to use RDTA's but have put them away and only drip now cause it's so much better to me. I will admit that 6mg NIC is too harsh on some flavors so I go down to 3mg with those or use them in my eGo AIO.
I always start low and add flavor as I agree with Citizen that it's difficult to dilute to fix a failed mix. I use menthol but will add only after I have a good mix.
I only use one drop of TFA Menthol for 30mls mix as it's pretty strong. I used too much in the beginning and it was like vaping a cement mix with vicks vapor rub, the stuff is strong to me. For me, my standard vape is a 2mm dual micro coil running at 0.28 ohms total at 27-40 watts. I use 26ga A1 Kanthal and organic cotton for my wicks. Whenever I make a 2.5mm or 3mm coils it just seems too harsh even at lower wattage's. Just my 2 cents. I'm really enjoying DIY and saving a lot of money doing so.