I think this book should have been named 'aluminum hydrides I have known and loved'. I've bitched about that before, about how he loves using LAH so much it makes many of the syntheses in the books a little further out of reach for someone like me. But it occurred to me that I can get LAH, and it's not that expensive, really the only thing I lack is the experience. For the first time I thought about how awesome it would be to pick my way through this book (PiHKAL) and make some of the really obscure ones I've never even heard of. Just to do with my girl (she's a fledgling psychonaut) around the house. Not even to turn on any friends, which I don't have any irl anyway, just totally to be kept in the household and in tiny amounts. Any of you have that relationship with this book? I feel myself leaning that way more than any other way. I can't think of a better way to learn chemistry either. The two toughest obstacles I see are gonna be, taking the time to actually read the book more as well as step up my studying to the level it used to be so I can do the next biggest obstacle, which is pick syntheses that suit my experience level and I can reasonably get the shit to make it.

I bet everybody says this shit, don't they? It's probably one of those things were everybody wants to believe they can do that, but they never can quite commit and make it happen. I don't wanna do that, I really wanna do it, I think once I do one I'll be hooked. Does anybody have any ideas of what might be some interesting compounds to look at? Good synths for someone with very limited lab experience. The biggest criteria is really going to be how accessible the chemicals are, nothing to exotic.

Anything?

Why bother to synth DMT when it is so easily extracted from plants? A really fun one to try would be MET, n-methyl,n-ethyl-tryptamine.  or DET nn-diethyl-tryptamine

 Zn(BH4)2 can be substituted for LAH in many cases

 Vesp, I dont wish to tell you what to do, for you have already done SOOOO much in creating this great site, however if you have a look in TIHKAL, I am sure you will see just how MANY natural 'sources' of DMT and its homologues their ARE!!!

 Just recently AFOAF found a plant that he said "smelled just like DMT" sohe picked some and smoked it, said it tasted like plastic, and guess what....yep it worked JUST LIKE the real deal!!!

 It was one of the Acacia family, of which he had been 'steered towards'. I believe in your part of the world, Phalarsis genus grasses have a fair wack of accessible DMT to someone such as your fine self!

I am currently looking into a variety of methods of extraction, with several of these species, which will be posted indue course, but I must admit, this dudes "plastic experience" was completely reliable, and certainly worth exploring!

All the best with your endeavours, and I will be more than happy to share all and any results, unfortunately I am unsure
as to which Acacia it was, though I have a feeling it MAY have been A. longifolia.

   F1 

Hey Vesp - for sure MHRB is the best natural source, and it does need to be ordered. But to synth dmt, one would also need to order the tryptophan feedstock, which is a controlled substance where antibody comes from, and then they will also need to order several other reagents (can't think of any OTC LAH or diborane sources), deal with inert gases, have the correct glassware .  .  .

After going through all that effort, it struck antibody as redundant to synth DMT. Unless one is doing it for some academic reason. I mean in an afternoon one can extract a lifetimes supply of the stuff from MHRB. So having all the reagents and glass required, it makes sense to stalk a more elusive quarry, like MET or DET. The 1st of which is not specifically illegal, except perhaps as an analogue.

Antibody also finds DMT a little "over the top", MET and DET are a little less abrupt, while still being in the same ballpark. Although MET isn't in Tihkal all of the info required to synth it is.


Redeemed - I'm just reading your initial post and realize you are talking about Pihkal not Tihkal. To be honest all of Shulgins synths use reagents that are a bit of a challenge to source. If I were you, I would start even simpler, the easiest synth that I can think of as a starter would be to synth TMA2 starting from asarone, doing a pseudonitrosite RXN to give you the nitropropene, followed by an Al/Hg/HOAc Rdxn. Forming the pseudonitrosite and nitropropene is not high yielding, but you are only looking for some personal stash. The only thin you would need to order is the asarone, but it isn't watched as the EO of acorus calamus.