Hi everyone
I'm relatively new to OBEs, i had a few lucid dreams and even fewer short spontaneous obe's over the last few years, but i haven't projected consciously yet. a few moths ago i started going trough astral dynamics and some more of RB material and began working on energy-work silencing mind etc. i started trancework about 6 weeks ago and am still a bit confused. after about 10 - 15 mins i get the heaviness in arm & legs but after that nothing changes even when i use various deepening techniques like smoke-rings, elevator,etc. i tried some energy-loosening but (while very enjoyable) didn't make any changes either. so my questions:

1 how long,on average, of trance-deepening does it take for a newbie to reach the vibration-state?(my sessions usually last for about 50 mins)
2 besides silencing the mind and deepening is there anything else needed to get there?
3 are there any signs on how far or close you are?

i realize i still have a lot to learn so any helpful comment appreciated

Thanks in advance
James