Misc What tricks are there for making mg scale more accurate?

[Tieeurrrop]

I have cbd powder which is active for me in couple of mg doses. No naysaying please about placebo blah blah. It works better than any other otc thing I tried for inducing sleep and stopping racing thoughts and many others have had the same experience. If you think it is placebo then fine just keep it to yourself. I only say that as I noticed a lot of negativity on this forum regarding cbd and people here seem to be quite behind the curve here vs other places like reddit as to its benefits, rejecting it outright as snake-oil with having no first hand experience with it. Would you say the same of kratom before/after you tried it. To me they on a similar par in terms of effects (for therapeutic purposes, not talking about 'gettin high'). Cbd works way better for inducing sleep for me than kratom.

I got powder isolate cos I initially bought oil and fucking hate dealing with oil since it causes so much mess. You can't clean that crap off pipettes. So I found out that while you don't need to decarb cbd isolate it still needs oil rather than water to dissolve it (don't wanna use alcohol just cos I hate it and it's toxic). So I would be back to having to use oil again for volumetric dosing.

So the powder I found 5mg split in two is ok but it is rather fiddly to get 5mg and to even know accurately it is 5 because the scale (cheap 1mg ones accurate to about 5mg) jumps about from 0-5-7-9 etc. When it jumps from only 0-5 I kind of think it is around 5 mg because when I measured that out the other night and cut the pile in half and dabbed it it did about the same as a couple of mg drops of cbd oil I have had in the past. But I would like more accuracy if I can without buying new scales. Are there any other tricks?

I once read on here about adding extra weight on to a scale and then weighing as it is more accurate than weighing without anything else on it. Not sure of the voracity of that? Or are there any other methods like the volumetric method so I could weigh out a larger set amount and have it dosed equally but not dealing with oils which are required for cbd? I just read some guy who claimed to be a pharma student that you should put a set amount into filler powder and mix it but I don't trust that; how would there not be hotspots? since it isn't the same as a liquid suspension. Then again coke/speed etc street dealers cut with caffeine/novacaine and who knows what else and there aren't hot spots that I could tell from my past experience so is that method sound?

Sure taking a little much cbd is no big deal but it can make it hard to get up in the morn but I like accuracy for science's sake and finding the best therapeutic window. Plus it is a very useful thing to know for other substances.

 

[negrogesic]

Having fooled with it I'm in the snake oil camp unfortunately. Hey if it works for you, what can I say?

Additional weight does help. You'll get a more accurate read if you already have a few hundred milligrams on it (so use a little dish, etc). Sometimes ill make a little square tray from folded post-it notes.

Weighing 5mg is still questionable on a $30 milligram scale, so perhaps considering dissolving say 100mg of the CBD in everclear or high proof alcohol and dose volumetrically. I am not aware of its specific solubility in ethanol off hand. This will be far more accurate.

You could also dissolve it in an oil (canola, olive oil etc), but you will need to heat the two for the CBD to dissolve.

 

[Cream Gravy?]

I always start it up without the weighing tray and then factor in the weight of the tray. Mine is 2.681g, ask me how I know lol

Then I weigh the powder on it until it says the same thing at least 2-3 times in a row.

 

[negrogesic]

I always start it up without the weighing tray and then factor in the weight of the tray. Mine is 2.681g, ask me how I know lol

Then I weigh the powder on it until it says the same thing at least 2-3 times in a row.

You can also just press tare instead of creating a math problem for yourself (especially if you are drunk or on something when weighing your drugs).

At the very least get a piece of sandpaper and sand off that pesky last milligram from the 2.681 grams (2.680 seems like a much nicer number)...

 

[ChemicallyEnhanced]

Add something (anything) that weighs exactly 100mg (you do this easily with something like sugar or salt). KEEP IT SEPARATE from whatever you're weighing, but still on the scale. Scales that measure to the mg or much less accurate with very small amounts. Amounts over 100mg are much to accurate. Obviously then you just remember that what your measuring is 100mg less than the scale.

 

[ChemicallyEnhanced]

I always start it up without the weighing tray and then factor in the weight of the tray. Mine is 2.681g, ask me how I know lol

Then I weigh the powder on it until it says the same thing at least 2-3 times in a row.

Yeah, you can just reset the scale to 0 with the push of a button after you put the tray on...

 

[nznity]

y don't you mix it with water so you measure it in drops instead of powder.

 

[Cream Gravy?]

You can also just press tare instead of creating a math problem for yourself (especially if you are drunk or on something when weighing your drugs).

At the very least get a piece of sandpaper and sand off that pesky last milligram from the 2.681 grams (2.680 seems like a much nicer number)...

Yeah, you can just reset the scale to 0 with the push of a button after you put the tray on...

It's much less accurate that way. And it's simple addition, not like I'm trying to weigh these things out when I'm zonked. Xorkoth pioneered/told me this method and I think he's 100% on point with it. Plus when you reweigh it, how do you do so if you tared it? Then you have the added weight of the powder on there, how do you weigh that? Can't just pick it up and hold it for a second...

And negrogesic, lol, I mean, I'm a bit OCD but never felt the need to shave off the weight. I know that number by heart and I have no issue with it being that extra .001

 

[tired of crap]

All scales have a range, the range on most cheap mg scales is quite large. My gemini pro is +/- 10 mg iirc ... which is fine for some more forgiving compounds... substances with doses in the single mg become more difficult.

These cheaper scales also weigh best in the middle of their range, as youve alluded to. So not only do I use the tray but Ive glued on a nickle too

So back to your issue of weighing single digits...
Id add weight so its mroe to the middle of the range and then scale out 10x what you need ... so 50 mg ...then volumetrically dose by dissolving in something like ethanol ... solubility will depend on alcohol % ... and then divide the total solution by 10 to give your 5 mg .. then youll have reduced the variability in your dose from 5mg +/-10 to 5 +/-1... like negrogesic suggested

 

[negrogesic]

It's much less accurate that way. And it's simple addition, not like I'm trying to weigh these things out when I'm zonked.

Hmmm, from my experience there is no difference in pressing tare with a weight and doing the math over that weight without pressing tare. Maybe ill do some experiments tonight out of curiosity.

I use a cheap milligram scale for most things but I also have US Solid 200 analytical balance that weighs to 100ug (or .1mg) and those shitty Gemini's (or Gemini clones) used properly and replaced with some regularity are more like +/- 5mg. The .1mg scale I have isn't that expensive (they are like $400). Funny thing is I rarely use it. I rarely fuck with stuff where I need to be sure I am getting 3.5mg of something.

 

[Tranced]

I reckon I can get my £20 scales to within 2-3mg or so for 2c-b.

Weighing is an art. I know the weight of the weighing dish, so I turn them on and off until that weight is correct. They often take a bit of warming up, and then I re-weigh 1-2 times if necessary.

For anything with potency from say 0.1-10mg I would use PG/ethanol and dilute a large weighed amount in solution.

Edit: Also, make sure your desk is flat and there is no airflow (fan, open window). Check your batteries every now and then, and if you get chemicals on the weighing dish/etc, then carefully clean it all off with some isopropyl.

Edit 2: I bought £230 1mg scales and they were shit.

 

[tacodude]

Are you 100% sure it's cbd and not some synth noid? That said it's about how you use it. Make sure there's no wind. I have a 20$ scale that's worked great for years.