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As Easy as Pie
Methcathinone & 1,4-butanediol
by Dirk
Citation:   Dirk. "As Easy as Pie: An Experience with Methcathinone & 1,4-butanediol (exp45533)". Erowid.org. Oct 8, 2010. erowid.org/exp/45533

 
DOSE:
T+ 0:00
  oral Methcathinone (tar / resin)
  T+ 0:20 2 ml oral 1,4-Butanediol (liquid)
BODY WEIGHT: 185 lb
I understand that this forum is to discuss the effects as well as preparation of psychoactives. However, given the simplicity of methcathinone (cat from here on) synthesis, I will include my “recipe,” as well as effects.

Cat is ephedrine (or pseudoephedrine) whose -OH group has been oxidized to a =O group. Simple. So is the preparation of the latter. Here’s my (very illegal) story.

In my room next to my computer while chatting on instant messenger, I mixed roughly 1g of pure (-) ephedrine, about 1g of KMnO4, 700 mL tap water, and about 4 mL of glacial acetic acid in a Nalgene bottle. None of these ingredients so far are too difficult to come up with. With gentle stirring, the ephedrine dissolved completely in the water/GAA solution. The KMnO4 turned the solution a brilliant dark purple color. I stirred the contents every minute or so for 30 minutes by swirling the bottle.

After about 10 minutes, the solution was precipitating a brownish substance and was purple-brown. Yay! A reaction! (Easiest reaction ever.) The solid was presumably MnO2. At t=30 minutes, sodium sulfite (NOT sulfate) was added and stirred until the solution turned almost completely clear (this is where the excess manganese oxides are reduced, where they will reenter the aqueous solution.) Next, concentrated NaOH was added to precipitate the product. A yellowish white substance crashed out.

I then added some dichloromethane (DCM), about 100 mL. Stirred, sucked off the water layer with a turkey baster, and put aside the DCM, not being too careful about mixing. Extracted the aqueous phase 3 times more, and combined all DCM. I washed it with concentrated sodium bicarbonate, making sure to remove all visible brownish gunk (which appeared after I added the NaOH initially). The mostly clear DCM was sucked away from any remaining water and poured into a pyrex baking dish. Yay for a well stocked kitchen!

I added a couple drops of glacial acetic acid to neutralize any bicarbonate and theoretically make the acetate salt of the Cat.

OK. Next I used a blow dryer to evaporate all DCM and bit of water. Left with a bright yellow paste that tastes like acetic acid and bitterness, and smelled strangely sweet (this smell is an indication of Cat).

At 9:00 pm I swallowed a piece of the crystalline yellowish stuff about half the size of a pea (note: eyeballing dosages is dangerous! I got lucky and didn’t die). At 20 minutes, I felt stimulated. My dreary day was finally picking up, and I felt like talking to my roommate and friends who were online. I also consumed 2 mL of 1,4-butanediol at this point so I would not get too gittery, just in case.

At about t+30 minutes I started walking to a friend’s apartment. I felt light, energetic, and slightly euphoric. I was not familiar with the effect of any illicit stimulants, so I would describe the feeling as that of ephedrine without the nervousness and with euphoria. I could have danced, gone running, read a book, or watched a movie, all with ease. Talking to my friend I found myself stumbling over my words because I was trying to get out too many words at once. Though my mind was very alert, I didn’t feel like I would have an “edge” if I tried to study, like I hear about Adderall or Ritalin.

It is now t+4 hours and I am still quite awake though it is 2 hours past my regular bed time. I am not feeling so euphoric anymore. The unpleasant feeling in my limbs tells me I could imagine the use of this drug becoming a compulsion. I will avoid using it again. Mostly I feel stupid for taking an amphetamine on a night I know I should spend sleeping. Oh well; all in the name of fun and pseudo-science! Cheers!

Exp Year: 2005ExpID: 45533
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Oct 8, 2010Views: 29,299
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Methcathinone (81), 1,4-Butanediol (51) : Preparation / Recipes (30), Alone (16)

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