disclaimer: i do not know if this is actually harm reducing. it's just based on my personal experience and observation, however should i be wrong about this, feel free to close/delete this thread. again, this is solely based on my subjective experience.
everyone on BL should know by now the importance of micron filters for safe shooting, however, i've often found myself without one and still had the profound desire to iv. now, if you take your harm reduction seriously, you'll just choose a different ROA. i know though that if i want to shoot i'll probably go ahead with it regardless, and i'm assuming alot of people on these forums have a similar attitude.
now, i know it's common to use cotton to filter an injection solution. i've done this, and found it to be a pretty shitty method of filtering a shot, an old drug acquaintance of mine showed me an alternative: using cigarette filters. not the filters out of cigarettes, but the kind you buy for roll-ups. i don't know if this actually makes a difference, but he claimed that they were finer and thus better. anyway, how i do it when i don't have a micron: prepare shot of whatever substance. have your hands wiped down with isopropyl, as well as whatever place you'll place your shot. put a filter onto needle, draw injection solution through it into syringe. when most of the solution is in the syringe, mash down the filter into your cooking receptacle (i use a thimble to cook up, where this works excellent). i use the plastic casing over the needle for this. rub with isopropyl beforehand. take second filter, mash into the first. draw whatever little liquid is left into the syringe. now, i've often injected the solution at this point, however, for the best result prep a second syringe by removing the plunger, putting yet another cigarette filter (it should be rubbed between your fingers to roughen it up, don't forget the isopropyl) into the second syringe, replace plunger . transfer liquid into second syringe, strain liquid through the filter back into the first syringe.
this, in my experience, produces a solution superior to one simply filtered through cotton. it's a bit more work but i've never had any adverse reactions using this method. again: no substitute for a micron, and only my personal experience. may not actually be harm reducing, and i just typed a load of bullshit. i cannot say for sure.
i debated quite a while whether to post this. in the end i figured if it actually is harm reducing, as i believe it to be, than it's probably okay to share. if someone here with more knowledge on the subjects sees any flaws in my methodology or if cigarette filters actually are worse than cotton for some reason, well, i did post this with the best intentions.
everyone on BL should know by now the importance of micron filters for safe shooting, however, i've often found myself without one and still had the profound desire to iv. now, if you take your harm reduction seriously, you'll just choose a different ROA. i know though that if i want to shoot i'll probably go ahead with it regardless, and i'm assuming alot of people on these forums have a similar attitude.
now, i know it's common to use cotton to filter an injection solution. i've done this, and found it to be a pretty shitty method of filtering a shot, an old drug acquaintance of mine showed me an alternative: using cigarette filters. not the filters out of cigarettes, but the kind you buy for roll-ups. i don't know if this actually makes a difference, but he claimed that they were finer and thus better. anyway, how i do it when i don't have a micron: prepare shot of whatever substance. have your hands wiped down with isopropyl, as well as whatever place you'll place your shot. put a filter onto needle, draw injection solution through it into syringe. when most of the solution is in the syringe, mash down the filter into your cooking receptacle (i use a thimble to cook up, where this works excellent). i use the plastic casing over the needle for this. rub with isopropyl beforehand. take second filter, mash into the first. draw whatever little liquid is left into the syringe. now, i've often injected the solution at this point, however, for the best result prep a second syringe by removing the plunger, putting yet another cigarette filter (it should be rubbed between your fingers to roughen it up, don't forget the isopropyl) into the second syringe, replace plunger . transfer liquid into second syringe, strain liquid through the filter back into the first syringe.
this, in my experience, produces a solution superior to one simply filtered through cotton. it's a bit more work but i've never had any adverse reactions using this method. again: no substitute for a micron, and only my personal experience. may not actually be harm reducing, and i just typed a load of bullshit. i cannot say for sure.
i debated quite a while whether to post this. in the end i figured if it actually is harm reducing, as i believe it to be, than it's probably okay to share. if someone here with more knowledge on the subjects sees any flaws in my methodology or if cigarette filters actually are worse than cotton for some reason, well, i did post this with the best intentions.
