Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Fisher Scientific & Restricted Chemicals

myristicinaldehyde - 9-10-2017 at 07:13

While the common wisdom is that Fisher Scientific does not sell to individuals, this is not completely true- for example, you can order triphenylphosphine from them without a hassle, but not ethyl acetate.

Does anyone know the rationale for that? Is there a rule for restricted/unrestricted, or is it just an oversight on the website?

Also (bit of a stretch), does anyone have an account with them, that I can order through? All the reagents I need I can get through other sources, for the most part, but being able to get them in reasonable amounts from one source would save A LOT on shipping...

Chemvironment - 9-10-2017 at 07:30

It was my understanding that you need a business address to even create an account with them before ordering anything. You might do a search for Mario on here. The prices probably won't be the cheapest but he has an amazing track record of supplying the to hard to find/acquire. I haven't seen a post mentioning him for awhile come to think of it....

myristicinaldehyde - 9-10-2017 at 09:29

Mario is still active- I'll send him an email, but I'd rather stay local- the shipping from PL to the US is prohibitive.



[Edited on 2017-10-9 by myristicinaldehyde]

Dr.Bob - 10-10-2017 at 15:18

You won't save on shipping with any vendor like Fisher, they usually charge a fee per chemical, and often ship each item in a separate box, due to hazmat regs. Just post what you are looking for, and people may be able to help you find it OTC or nearby. There are a few people here that sell small amounts, Tom Holm and his company, Elemental Scientific, and others.

Melgar - 10-10-2017 at 15:27

If anyone's near NYC, it's possible to get OTC nitric acid ($60/gallon) NaCN ($20/lb) KCN ($20/lb) 30% H2O2, 28% NH3, (also quite cheap) and probably a few more I'm forgetting. B&H photo has a lot of inorganic chemicals that are meant for use in photography too. Thanks New Jersey for covering yourself in pollution so New York can have cheap OTC reagents!

Reboot - 21-10-2017 at 17:02

There's a laundry list of chemicals that are regulated in some way:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEA_list_of_chemicals

As I understand it, it's not outright illegal to sell Joe Public a 'hot' chemical like lysergic acid, but there's paperwork to be completed. Most chem companies won't sell listed precursors to individuals just because it's a hassle for them.

A chemical supply house may have it's own personal restrictions based on concerns about safety or misuse beyond the actual gov. regulated stuff.

There are a lot of smaller supply houses out there, it shouldn't be a problem to find somebody happy to sell you some hydrides.

JJay - 21-10-2017 at 17:49

Lysergic acid is a controlled substance as well as a listed one. Joe Public can't buy it without a DEA permit; less paperwork is required to sell a tank.

Hydrides are hard to find sometimes but seem to be pretty widely available right now if you're willing to pay the high prices that people are asking for them.

Melgar - 22-10-2017 at 18:51

By the way, if anyone is interested in acquiring sodium bis-2-methoxyethoxy aluminum dihydride (nobody say any of its better-known names, or we'll attract you-know-who) I can acquire it for perhaps a dollar a gram (70% in toluene) if ordered in quantities of half a kilogram or more. I'm not THAT personally interested in it, but this is the first time I've seen it available from someone besides Sigma Aldrich et al., so I thought I might put that out there.

gatosgr - 23-10-2017 at 09:01

What do you use this hydride for reduction of what?

[Edited on 23-10-2017 by gatosgr]

Melgar - 23-10-2017 at 10:48

Quote: Originally posted by gatosgr  
What do you use this hydride for reduction of what?

[Edited on 23-10-2017 by gatosgr]

Reduction of just about anything that can be reduced, to either an amine or an alcohol.

Price is less than $1/gram, probably between $0.75 and $1.00 after shipping.

Rhodanide - 24-10-2017 at 09:29

Quote: Originally posted by myristicinaldehyde  
Mario is still active- I'll send him an email, but I'd rather stay local- the shipping from PL to the US is prohibitive.



[Edited on 2017-10-9 by myristicinaldehyde]


You also need to pay in Bitcoin or MoneyGram, both of which are sorta hard to get to work correctly. That's the only thing that prevented me from buying HNO3.

Tsjerk - 25-10-2017 at 07:41

Bitcoin payments are quite easy to do ones you make an account on kraken.com

myristicinaldehyde - 28-10-2017 at 11:13

As an update on what, exactly, I wanted to buy (I wrote a nice, long post but then lost it)

Many of these I can buy off Amazon/Ebay or an online store- but this splits up shipping costs and I don't need 500g of TsCl, for example.

- Hydroquinone
- Tosyl chloride
- Ethyl acetate
- Dimethylformamide
- Bis(pinacolato)diboron
- Triphenylphosphine
- Zinc dust
- Potassium tert-butoxide
- A reducing hydride
- a-pinene

Sodium bis-2-methoxyethoxy aluminum dihydride is tempting, but half a kilo for a few hundred $ is beyond my means :(

Deathunter88 - 28-10-2017 at 17:26

Quote: Originally posted by myristicinaldehyde  
As an update on what, exactly, I wanted to buy (I wrote a nice, long post but then lost it)

Many of these I can buy off Amazon/Ebay or an online store- but this splits up shipping costs and I don't need 500g of TsCl, for example.

- Hydroquinone
- Tosyl chloride
- Ethyl acetate
- Dimethylformamide
- Bis(pinacolato)diboron
- Triphenylphosphine
- Zinc dust
- Potassium tert-butoxide
- A reducing hydride
- a-pinene

Sodium bis-2-methoxyethoxy aluminum dihydride is tempting, but half a kilo for a few hundred $ is beyond my means :(


I suggest you get the common ones from OTC sources. For example, ethyl acetate from nail polish remover or paint thinner, and a-pinene from distilling turpentine.

unfrozen - 5-11-2017 at 17:42

Quote: Originally posted by myristicinaldehyde  

- Hydroquinone

How much do you want? I still have some from my photography days.