[Mescaline Cactus Subthread] Drying Cactus

[StonedNative]

What's the best method to dry fresh T. Pachanoi cacti?

I heard if you freeze and thaw them a few times is ruptures cells and makes all the alkaloids easier to extract.

 

[Survived Abortion]

If you're going to do the freeze and thaw right away for an extraction you don't need to dry it out. You can start your A/B extraction from an aqueous solution. Check out this tek: http://www.erowid.org/archive/rhodium/chemistry/mescaline.extraction.html

 

[dg420]

sliced thin on a screen in the sun, in a food dehydrator, in the oven set to 220*

the thinner the slices, the faster it dries- dont consume moldy cacti

 

[rouss]

doing an A/b extraction from fresh san pedro is a wast. there is way to much fat and emulsion. A/b extractions from dry powder (which you can purchase buy the way) is excellent. Unfortunatly its hard to dry without a food dehydrator. Its a very slimy plant . I would cut it into thin star slices then quarter them . Put in a food dehydrator on most heat. It can still take a couple of days. Every time I tried to dry a san pedro in the summer sun it took to long and it rott. THE key is thin slices.

 

[artic]

Here's a video that includes instructions for constructing a food dehydrator out of cellulose furnace filters, a box fan, and bungees. Tech starts at about +4:30 and runs to about +6:30. Using this method of dehydrating, I would think that cutting the cactus into strips or "spears" might work better than stars. Could be wrong, though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfI0NKl-Kq0

 

[rouss]

Cool video buT I dont think it would work with cacti. I have a food dehydrater that works with heat and fans . I bought it specificaly for san pedros. Even with the heat it can take 2 days to really dehydrate them to the point where you can put them in a coffie grinder and powder them . there not that $$$$ and worth it . Cacti are a bitch to dehydrate. good luck

 

[StonedNative]

Thanks guys. I wasn't planning on extracting from fresh cacti. The best method I heard of was using the powder.
Also @ rouss: How much was the dehydrator?

 

[HigherAwareness]

Just dry them in thin peices on a plate with a fan blowing on them.Also I find little bags of desecents from vitamin bottles and new clothes help them dry quicker.

 

[rouss]

Around 80 bucks. If you just gooogle food dehydtater they will pop up . They can range from 45 to 300 bucks. Look around there are plenty to choose from . I dont think you would need to spend more than 100 bucks .you will have it for ever . Let us know how it goes

 

[ech0s85]

when i did the foodsafe extraction i blended the cactus like i normally would to boil it for drinking, but then dumped the sludge onto cookie sheets and put them in the oven on low heat til it was all dry and scraped it all off.

everything went alright but the trip was weird compared to previous ones. I only did the extract once so far so idk if the problem was the extraction, the cactus, or if the heat somehow damaged some alkaloids.

 

[rouss]

I have done this , I am not a big fan of it

 

[artic]

I've heard that the conventional food dehydrators don't work as well BECAUSE of the heating element, which tends to increase humidity in the dehydration chamber and "cook" a little more than "dry". It might go a little faster, but for people in warm, dry climates (yo) ain't nothing wrong with the box fan and filter method, and it will only cost you about 10 bucks. If you live in a humid area, it might be best to go with the store-bought dehydrator, though. Just make sure you slice the cactus thin enough. Let us know what you do and how it turns out!

 

[rouss]

Unless the dehydrator is malfunctioning it shouldnt cook the cactus .. By the way this cooking problem Is why I dont recomend ovens to dehydrate the cactus. I made that mistake . I suppose a fan could work if it is a hot dry climate. In New England (where Im from) It didnt work even on 90degree summer day . I still say food hydratotor is the way to go ....... What would work best is a food freeze dryer they cost around $5,000 to $12,000 if your really devoded LOL

 

[Fallen Boy]

I know this might be a silly question , but if your gonna add the dry powder to the water and hcl acid mix , why can't you blend the cactus instead of drying it then add the acid and water to the blend ?

 

[Solipsis]

@Fallen Boy:

not sure if you are responding to the erowid recipe from post #2 or to post #4, but in the erowid recipe it says:

First, you need to prepare a "tea" from your cacti. If using dried cactus, powder it. If using fresh cactus, chop it to small pieces and then puree it in a blender.

Heed the warning from post #4: either blending or adding dry cactus powder to water yields a gel-like material that is quite tricky to reduce. The texture slows down normal drying which leaves enough time for it to rot, and heating it over a stove can very well cause it to burn. Which is something that happens when not enough free water is present to readily absorb the heat and boil off, and something I know from experience.

Drying, as with mushrooms, is a method for preservation. It enables you to store long-term without risk of rotting (as long as it is properly dehydrated). If you have fresh cactus, then if you want to prepare it for consumption drying may be a waste of energy like you seem to suggest; although it is mentioned it is this thread that A/B extraction from fresh cactus is messy (I doubt it is much easier if you dry first, I mean you wouldn't lose your fatty phase that way... right?).
If you are interested in straight up preparation then this subthread may be more appropriate for you:
http://www.bluelight.ru/vb/threads/...escaline-Dosage-amp-Methods-of-Administration

An alcoholic extraction I tried didn't give me the slime problem, but I was not motivated enough to proceed further from a crude extract. My Peruvian Torch cactus powder was of low potency anyway and later I found pure mescaline which was a huge relief.

I'm turning this into a B&D subthread.

 

[Fallen Boy]

Thanks for the reply , I will continue absorbing all this info , Wat a great site .
Ps finding pure mescaline !!!!!!! You make it sound like you was just walkin down the street and noticed some at the bottom of a hedge lol