have you taken spice with it as well ?

thanks for replying, yes i tried two pharma attempts. 60mg dmt first attempt then 100mg 2nd attempt, both consuming 200+mg caapi extract. i did vape a bit as well and had quite a unique experience but i cant go by that because most of the time it's a different experience. i tripped hard for about 15 to 20 minutes which is slightly longer than usual.

wow I have not done pharma yet but If I have taken 200mg extract with 100mg spice I think I would have probably the most scary experience in my life I am quite sensitive to caapi I have to say. I think with that amount you should trip much longer than 20 minutes. It looks like cappi does not work for you or something went wrong during extraction

How much did you yield from 65g ? By the way my alks were much darker than gibran2's as well but he is the master its hard to beat him

i cant remember for sure i didnt log my results, but i believe it was around 1.6 grams

that is very nice yield man unless some more than just alkaloids slipped through. would that be a case ? did you separate all the plant stuff and dirt from alkaloids ? sorry for asking this but it is possible if you did not do the extraction properly, maybe in those 200mg you had only 50mg of real alkaloids. Its just a thought.

yes i performed that step. perhaps some plant matter was left behind though. good point

I'm finishing my first caapi alks extraction and I can give a little tip : use vibrations to speed up the decantation, it works wonder, especially on the last step (Remove Excess NaOH, Salts, Etc.).
I used a subwoofer but I guess any other source of vibration (electric razor for instance) would work fine.

I've just finished an extraction on 200g caapi and the resulting alks are a beautiful light-tan color however
my yield is quite crappy, I only got 750mg (0,375%), could that be due to boiling down too hard
in the reduction phase ? Or maybe using too much lye in the initial basification step (15g NaOH on
a brew reduced to 250ml) ?

Thank you for your suggestions

this pictorial is great thx!!

If I remember it right gibran2 reduced his lot to 400ml so according to it you should reduce it to about 1.2l I guess maybe 1l. And you should have used as much NaOH as needed for alkaloids precipitation you did not need to use all of it at least I did not have to use all 5g for my lot.

Also you have to consider option that maybe there really was not much more alkaloids in your caapi than that. The percentage varies from maybe yours and up to over 2% ( I guess gibran2 mentioned that) I would suggest next time to work with less material and make sure it is from good source.

My first extraction was from yellow caapi and it was very bad. Than I used black and it was much better but I also know that I made lots of mistakes in the first extraction. We all learn on our mistakes and it is always wise to start with less , specially when its our first try.

And one more thing Gibran2 is master in this so I would not expect to get similar yields as him if I were you I takes lots of hard work and precision to get there where he is BUT I HOPE WE GET THERE ONE DAY

Sorry I haven’t been able to respond lately – I don’t have an internet connection at home until next week Tuesday, so I haven’t been online much.

Anyhow, boiling caapi shouldn’t reduce yield. If anything, longer, more vigorous boiling will increase yield. If you boil your solution to dryness during reduction, you might burn and destroy alkaloids.

I think the main reason for varying alkaloid yields is the caapi itself. Different batches of caapi yield different quantities of alkaloids. I’ve had yields as low as 0.3% and as high as 3%, so there’s quite a bit of variation.

Is the resulting solution from the boils safe to use for extraction after one or two weeks of storing? would it be recommended to keep it in the refrigerator during that period?

And is it safe to use 1-2mm thick normal tall glass for this extraction? As I've heard that lye can cause pressure build up with glass but does it matter with these amounts involved? As I definately wouldn't want to break any glass

Not sure about the first question. If the solution isn't obviously moldy or otherwise degraded, it should be OK. In the future, I'd keep it refrigerated.

Mix your lye solution in a safe container (I use a small beaker) then add it to the caapi solution. Since heat is dissipated during the initial mixing, any glass should be safe. If in doubt, keep the glass in a pan, bucket or other container to contain potential breakage and spillage.

Thanks. So after the initial pouring there should be no risk of breaking the glass? I was wondering if pressure build up is possible during the settling.

How does one know that one has added enough lye? I'm doing 100g extraction, so should I use the same 5g/50ml? I heard one has added enough lye when the solution turns black. However, when does one know it's enough during the second lye step?

The only time pressure build-up is a concern is when a reaction is taking place in a closed container. None of the steps in this TEK take place in a closed container.

Regarding amount of lye – yes, add more if you’re working with a large batch. Color changes don’t tell you much with caapi – different varieties, strengths, etc. can all produce different colors.

During the second basification, add the NaOH solution gradually. As you add it, you’ll notice freebase forming (solution gets cloudy) then immediately going back into solution (solution becomes clear). When it no longer goes back into solution (becomes clear), you’ve added just enough. Add a bit more for good measure. None of this is high-precision chemistry.

OK thanks. Does this concern also the first basifying step when one adds lye to the boiled solution? Or should I during first one just pour it all in(the below mentioned amount in this case)?

If I mix 10 grams of lye in 100ml of water and gradually pour it during the second basification, it should be enough for about 100 grams of caapi?

I've never worked with lye before but as with sodium carbonate wasn't ideal for working with this tek(altough good product in the end), I've decided to try lye.

It’s harder to see the alkaloids coming out of solution during the first basification, so it’s best to add it all at once.

You can add 10g of NaOH to 100ml of water, or to 50ml of water. What’s most important is that you have enough NaOH to neutralize all of the acid and then freebase the harmalas.

NaOH is an excellent base, and with sensible precautions, you shouldn’t have any problems using it.

The amount of useful information on here is just amazing. I have been reading/searching for quite a while to find exactly this information, from a reliable source.

On a related note, are the harmalas only going to be active for a certain period of time or do they get "used" up by the DMT and therefore I need to take them again before I attempt another go with DMT?

Thank you very much!

How long the harmalas last depends on your personal physiology, metabolism, etc., but for me they last several hours. You can re-dose DMT over that period without having to re-dose the harmalas.

Hey Gibran.

Just want to say thanks for this, I did 3x30 min bolis today. Added the NaOH thought that maybe i had nothing since it didn't really look like it did in your photo. But stirred left for 5 mintues, decanted and washed as per the tek. I thought that I had mostly plant material.

Still followed the tek, and now have a nice off white precipitate, will leave that overnight and then wash and dry!

Thanks!