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Misc lets hear your best ways to de-clog your rig

I have a surefire , simple method to de-clog your rig. This almost always works, and if this doesn't , your rig probally won't get de-clogged any other way.

Take the plunger and pull the rubber part off of it. Then push the plunger with the rubber part off into the inside of the rig a few times, somewhat hard , so the pointy part of the rig hits the part inside behind the needle. Put the rubber part back on and push it through the rig. You should hear air come out and it should be de-clogged.

Almost always works for me and has saved my butt a few times.

Let me know how this works! :)

-lenses
 
Georgie25 said:
Oh, it's very possible! In the past I have regularly re-used rigs at least 70-90 times (shooting up small doses of suboxone 4-7 times a day using the same rig for a week or two or more). The numbers would be long gone by then and I'd usually only get a new one (hard to get back then) once the plunger would stop moving up and down nicely. The black rubber part would then constantly pop off and I'd have to switch. But that only happens when I've used a rig at least 50 or so times..The needle exchange here gives out "McKesson 27g 1/2 inch 1cc" syringes so maybe different brands last longer than others ? I've never really had any difficulty piercing the skin with re used rigs either, sure it gets a bit harder after awhile but it doesn't feel as bad as the "needle used 6 times picture" makes me think it is. Also I find new rigs a bit harder to register than slightly used rigs because they are easier to pierce through the vein and keep it there, where as a slightly used rig (between 3-10 uses) is ideal for me as you can kinda hear the vein makes a "pop" sound as it enters and it always stays in place. I don't advocate doing this for obvious harm reduction reasons as I have horrible scars from past track marks that have faded over time but will probably be visible forever. Not to mention I'm sure it did some vein damage as well. ;)%):\
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The fact it's a 27G might have to do with why it can be used that many times.

After two punctures, the 31G needles I use are very shitty. I think the larger gauges have more room for error since there is more to the overall bevel.

I reuse luer lock syringes until the numbers have rubbed off of them, but that's because you can always attach a new needle onto them.
 
i use 29 gauge and I can only use it maybe 15 to 20 times, and it does get harder and harder, but i agree a new one isn't always the best cause the plunger doesn't stick when you pull back, it slides back to the liquid so its harder to know when your in a vein, well it take more coordination cause you gotta hold the plunger back and concentrate on finding a vein at the same time.
 
Captain.Heroin said:
To say that the US has exchanges is like saying that Antarctica has a human population. Sure, there are probably some people who live in Antarctica, but it's a very disproportionate amount of people compared to the other, much more habitable continents of the Earth.
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And what about federal law? Is it that pharmacies sell needles and syringes in one state but they don't in some other one? $ 5-10 is a crazy price for 10 needles compared to prices here which would be like 10 cents for one needle. Anyway, I can't imagine registering with one needle and one syringe for a couple of times, each time getting rid of bacteria and whatever gets there. And with those things being made from plastic the only way to clean it is hot water after all but that doesn't make a used needle sterile and pyrogen free back again.
 
adder said:
And what about federal law? Is it that pharmacies sell needles and syringes in one state but they don't in some other one? $ 5-10 is a crazy price for 10 needles compared to prices here which would be like 10 cents for one needle. Anyway, I can't imagine registering with one needle and one syringe for a couple of times, each time getting rid of bacteria and whatever gets there. And with those things being made from plastic the only way to clean it is hot water after all but that doesn't make a used needle sterile and pyrogen free back again.
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I believe only New Jersey refuses to sell needles without a prescription due to state law, but pharmacists/ pharm techs all the time refuse to sell them due to their religious delusions.
 
adder said:
And what about federal law? Is it that pharmacies sell needles and syringes in one state but they don't in some other one? $ 5-10 is a crazy price for 10 needles compared to prices here which would be like 10 cents for one needle. Anyway, I can't imagine registering with one needle and one syringe for a couple of times, each time getting rid of bacteria and whatever gets there. And with those things being made from plastic the only way to clean it is hot water after all but that doesn't make a used needle sterile and pyrogen free back again.
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When I was re-using my rigs 50+ times I would just clean it by drawing up cold water to rinse out the blood a couple times until I felt it was all gone. Never got any sort of infection.
 
Captain.Heroin said:
I believe only New Jersey refuses to sell needles without a prescription due to state law, but pharmacists/ pharm techs all the time refuse to sell them due to their religious delusions.
Click to expand...

i live in columbus, ohio, and there are DEFINITELY no needle exchanges here. a particular organization has repeatedly opened one up in cincinatti? i think? or maybe cleveland, but either way, the city keeps shutting them down every time they open up.

ohio sucks in the way of helping addicts and promoting harm prevention. its more like zero tolerance...

in the past year almost all the places i would usually go to in order to buy my rigs have adopted a new "store policy": no rigs without a prescription.

you can con buying a 10pk outta the pharmacy once per location, and they take down your name. so it's really just the one time...

i find it extremely difficult to get new rigs in this city. it's been a constant irritation, and the pharmacists used to be douchey about it even before the new "store policy"... bleh.

not that id recommend it to ANYbody, but dude i've used some reeeeaaaaally bad rigs before. rigs that the plunger broke on because theyve been used too much, that i glued the rubber part back to the plastic part with superglue...

yeah. also, my blood clots like a mofo. it takes about 2 minutes to clot in the rig if i register and lose the vein. i can actually pour the shot back out the end of the rig into something and fish out the clump of clotted blood. it's disgusting.

but my blood always clotted waaay a lot and super fast. i used to shoot up with my ex whom i lived with for a couple years, and he always had trouble hitting himself. so i used to shoot him up, and his blood would NEVER clot. i always used to get frustrated because id shoot him up before myself, otherwise i'd be nodding out trying to stab him in the arm... but then id go to fix myself up, and in less time than it took for me to give him his shot, mine would already be clotting.
 
2 minutes!?! Damn. That must suck.. do you just get rid of the shot once that happens? I'm a lucky one whose blood never clots either, and I've had a blood/dope filled syringe for about 2 hours one time jabbing away and was finally able to hit and it was still all liquid and was fine. I would be so fuckin pissed if I was dopesick and had spent the very last bit of my money on a shot and have the blood clot up on me...
 
Whenever I've had a clog I normally just pull plunger all out, put a little water in, lighty head needle while lightly pushing plunger down, viola
:)
NSFW:
Just remember to point into sink / bin or you're ceilings will look like a smack pollack painting!
 
Captain.Heroin said:
but pharmacists/ pharm techs all the time refuse to sell them due to their religious delusions.
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That's weird. Here I've noticed that in areas where it is known that heroin is present and there are a lot of addicts who need equipment there are pharmacies with 0.45mm needles (0.5mm are everywhere but 0.45mm are sometimes hard to get) and insulin syringe with detachable 0.3mm or 0.4mm needle (well, addicts mostly make balls from pieces of cigarette filters, they put them in cooked solution, hold syringe end to a soaked ball and pull, so it must be detachable and pharmacists know that). It seems to me they prefer to have good equipment so there are less HIV and/or HCV infections. Nevertheless junkies are stupid and despite the fact a syringe and a needle cost as much as matches, they share syringes in this heroin amok...
 
Captain.Heroin said:
As I posted in the IV Complications Mega Thread, I once tried to clean clotted blood out of an insulin syringe.

It truly is a better idea to buy new ones.

However, like Georgie made a note of, it wouldn't pull water into it, and the plunger would snap back due to the pressure and lack of anything coming in.

So, I back-loaded isopropanol and tried pushing the plunger in. It was impossible with a full barrel of isopropanol, so I tried with 5 units (it was a 1/2 CC syringe). I put so much pressure on the plunger hoping to clean out the syringe, that the needle and the tip holding the needle flew off! It ricochet off the wall a few times.

I still haven't found it either...

So, if your needle is clogged, really, just get a new one. There's no need in potentially launching a needle into the air, only to end up who know's where.

This could have very easily ended up much worse than it did, so if you are going to try to unclog a rig, do it by yourself, and please wear some protective eye covering (lab goggles would be a big plus if you're determined on doing this).

But, as other people have said, buying a new 10-pack is the way to go.
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LOL, Im with him on this one, my exp. was that i had $50 of heroin in the rig and i had a clog in the tip my anxious sick ass said fuck it and pressurized the rig to blow it out and the tip flew off squirting liquid tar in my face eyes and all over the bathroom walls. it burns like shit too in the eyes and the buzz didnt make me nod much, lol I have noticed that clogging i would like ot say is more from fatty tissues that get into the needle tips and blood clots of course the fatty tissues part i noticed with my girlfriend it happens to her mostly never em really and she also like to dig around hose searching i think that makes scares worse....GET A NEW RIG!!!
 
I try heating the tip first, then trying to pull up extremely hot water. Sometimes that will melt bits of pill wax or otherwise dislodge whatever is causing the problem.

Yeah, then throw it against the wall haha
 
dntcheckthtbxdoc said:
LOL, Im with him on this one, my exp. was that i had $50 of heroin in the rig and i had a clog in the tip my anxious sick ass said fuck it and pressurized the rig to blow it out and the tip flew off squirting liquid tar in my face eyes and all over the bathroom walls. it burns like shit too in the eyes and the buzz didnt make me nod much, lol I have noticed that clogging i would like ot say is more from fatty tissues that get into the needle tips and blood clots of course the fatty tissues part i noticed with my girlfriend it happens to her mostly never em really and she also like to dig around hose searching i think that makes scares worse....GET A NEW RIG!!!
Click to expand...

Yeah, It would be better to shake it out of the other end after removing the plunger, and capping the needle with the orange cap to be on the safe side.

This way you can re-draw the solution back up with another needle.
 
dustback said:
Oh, here in SPRINGFIELD, OHIO we have a pharmacy that sells half-inch 50 unit insulin syringes to ANYONE without I.D.(most of the time) and 50% of the time you don't even have to sign for them. =D HOWEVER, :\ they reap the benifits, they are happy to help "junkies" (like myself) but they charge a pretty penny...
$10 a bag (10 to a bag) :X
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It is the same way where I live as far as pharmacists/pharmacies goes, for better or for worse. I don't live in a major city, but rather a tri-city area; there are 3 cities which are basically connected, each with about 50-60k people each. Including the in between neighborhoods, there are about 325k people here. And this is in Appalachia, where opiate use is EXTREMELY prevalent. Despite this, there are no exchanges, and almost ALL pharmacists apparently do not believe in harm reduction. There is literally ONE pharmacy in the entire area that will sell rigs to people who are not diabetic, with no questions asked. At every pharmacy that sells them to diabetics, they usually run around $3 for a 10 pack.

But like I said, there is one pharmacy in the area that will sell 10 packs to anyone. They don't keep a list, they don't ask any questions, and they don't hassle you or give you a hard time. Just walk in, ask for what kind of rigs you want, and they are happy to help you out. But unfortunately, they charge $10 for a 10 pack. They are not naive, and I am glad they help people out as far as harm prevention goes, but they definitely take advantage of the fact that NO other pharmacies will sell to those without diabetes.

So I guess I'm glad I can always get clean rigs, but it kinda sucks that they charge so much. But still, better than having to deal with dull, clogged rigs. It certainly makes using them much easier, and does much less damage to my body as far as scars, etc are concerned.

Now I'm not saying I throw away after a single use, but I generally don't use a rig more than 5-10 times. Any more than that, and they start getting too dull for my preferences, and prone to clogging. But back when I did have to worry about keeping a rig working as long as possible, I had a couple ways of combating clogging.

The first, and most important and effective way I have found, is to clean your rigs AS SOON AS you are done with your shot. I have found that 99% of the time, clogging usually occurs from dried blood. I would simply draw up some water in the rig, around half full, then pull the plunger to the end, filling the other half with air. I would then shake it real good, and expel the water. Would usually do this 2-3 times after every use. This seemed to keep my rigs from ever clogging. Using this method, they would usually go dull beyond any practical use long before they started clogging.

But if I did forget to clean it out right after use for whatever reason, usually just a couple seconds of flame on the tip would do the trick. This was followed again by drawing water into it to remove whatever was causing the clogging.

But really, just cleaning your rigs right after use is the best way to avoid clogging. Proactive prevention of clogging really is the best way to deal with it.
 
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One way that works for me; fill the back of the point with hot water, place my finger on the back to close it off and shake it, then remove finger and (with force) dump it out. Doing this will sometimes keep it from clogging further in the needle. After that, I use hot water to fill it through the back and push the plunger through. It depends on how it's clogged I guess. Never tried heating the needle with a lighter
 
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