Rosin Technique....Easy DIY Solventless

I definitely agree @poonman, rosin is my favorite for a few different reasons. That's why I want to make sure I'm getting the most out of my investment between the press and the flower itself. I tend to average around $60g on the yield one way or the other. If there's something technique wise I can be doing to make that better though, I'm all for it.

I've noticed that the legal rosin I've bought in WA State has no THCA. Is that what you guys find, that your rosin is decarboxylated because of the heat used in the pressing? Can you eat it and feel any psychoactive results?

Yea sadly I think any rec/med shop flower will suffer on yield, those trim machines really tear all the trich heads off ... If you look at the buds under a loupe you will probably see lots of stalks with no heads, giving that crystally look to the buds with the naked eye, but the heads are where all the good stuff happens and we want all of them.


I think a (honest lol) survey would show most guys who claim over 20% are growing it themselves, or getting from a friend who does, and hand-trims. Some of the best genetics in the world are only a mouse click away, and really great herb to start with is probably a big factor. Most really good stuff doesn't yield big enough to get onto store shelves for decent prices, and even the top shelf isn't usually hand-trimmed IME.

macbill said:

I've noticed that the legal rosin I've bought in WA State has no THCA. Is that what you guys find, that your rosin is decarboxylated because of the heat used in the pressing? Can you eat it and feel any psychoactive results?

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I think some decarb happens, but like vaping I'm not sure it's enough prolonged exposure to properly convert everything. If it can be done in a few seconds at 250f, why am I putting herb in the oven for 30mins lol?

I'll squish to that.

macbill said:

I've noticed that the legal rosin I've bought in WA State has no THCA. Is that what you guys find, that your rosin is decarboxylated because of the heat used in the pressing? Can you eat it and feel any psychoactive results?

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It's definitely a factor of how high a temp and how long the flower was exposed to that temp. However, on some of my older chip testing results, the decarb was only about 10% done. If the rosin is substantially more decarbed than that, I'd imagine it's too high a temp or too long of a press. The rosin itself would look pretty poor and sappy if it was fully decarbed also.

Four-Hundred-Twenty said:

I've done the flat parchment and burrito wrap and the burrito is hands down better for me. Pressing and collection wise. Yield seems to be very similar either way, about 24%, which seems a bit low to us. We have tried packing the bags with fine sift, packed down into the bag and also just filled the bag with clumpy material that left lots of free space, which my friend had heard was the hot ticket. Personally I don't like the clumped keif. My yield is better packing fine sift into the bag with only a small bit of expansion room. I've been sealing the open end of the bag with a few small dabs of rosin to hold it closed while in the parchment.

I've found the yield from 3-4g's raw material in a 2"x3" bag is better than 5-6g's in the same size bag. Blowout at the open end is also harder to control, obviously.

The end product is amazing regardless, lol, we'd just like to get a little more, Hahahaha.

So, what are your opinions on:

Packing your rosin bags?
Size of pressing plates in relation to bag size?
Optimum fill quantity for bag size?
Sealing the open end of the bag?
Sift Vs. clumps?
Should my yield be a bit higher?

Anything else we are missing? Never too proud to learn something new. Thanks.

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New member here, I'd love to hear more about these questions vis a vis packing materials (bags, parchment, ptfe, etc) and tech.

SS?
is it possible to use crimped coffee filter bags with 20 ton setup without blowing out (go slow?)?!
nylon/mesh bags seem industry standard ...
how to avoid product soaking into parchment
use of ptfe?

exciting times my friends

Klingerosin said:

New member here, I'd love to hear more about these questions vis a vis packing materials (bags, parchment, ptfe, etc) and tech.

SS?
is it possible to use crimped coffee filter bags with 20 ton setup without blowing out (go slow?)?!
nylon/mesh bags seem industry standard ...
how to avoid product soaking into parchment
use of ptfe?

exciting times my friends

Click to expand...

Idk about 20 tons, but i use tea bags with my 8 tonner. They're a lot thinner... and rip easier than cofffee filters. I use coffee filters too but they seem to soak up to much oil. With 20 tons i'm sure that won't be a problem though. Go slow, and don't pack the bags too much. You should be fine.

dabsonthemountain said:

Idk about 20 tons, but i use tea bags with my 8 tonner. They're a lot thinner... and rip easier than cofffee filters. I use coffee filters too but they seem to soak up to much oil. With 20 tons i'm sure that won't be a problem though. Go slow, and don't pack the bags too much. You should be fine.

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I use a 20 ton and completely agree that coffee filters soak up too much. I'm going to try muslin soon.

Cleverly folded parchment alone is doable on a 20-ton if you pre-press your puck and don't have massive amounts in each pressing. Directional flow too, its all about path of least resistance.

Anybody ever tried using thicker ptfe sheets to press? I am thinking if they might work better then the oil slick ones that seem to get stretched rapidly and when collecting a lot of times the ptfe will rip apart.

Anybody tried like a 10mm thick ptfe sheet? I have no idea if it might just tare apart or get dented and squashed...

for those who dry sift, what micron size is the best?

Hey there guys,

Just finished the thread and boy do I feel educated!!! 127 pages of pure rosin has me bouncing off the walls for when my joel plates and 12 ton press finally arrive.

Anyway, question time. Has anyone experimented with boveda packs higher than 62? If so speak up otherwise I will be doing full tests soon.

Also about ~50 pages ago there was quite the talk about D-Nail and Oil Slick coming out with a new kind of parchment. Whatever happened to that!

Anyway, big thanks to everyone in this thread for helping me get up and ready to squish!

Peace everyone!

Sigh, well here goes. Not trying to peeve anybody off, okay?

Could the FC admins? moderators? overlords? and the thread-originators? Beats me who, actually...

Maybe move MOST of this thread into a permanent sticky under Concentrates called something like "Rosin Pressing"?

I can't see the method going away, but the stronger reason I am asking is to separate it from "DIY".

Just imo, we are wayyyyy away from a good spread of "DIY" about rosin pressing here - diy shouldn't include a comma in the price. It is starting to seem like DIY simply starts on Amazon with $400 or more.

Just like with QWET, I started with a double boiler and some 80 proof alcohol and moved up.

But the most "available" DIY that was started with here - curling irons, flat irons, etc. - stuff someone might actually already have to start - don't seem to get discussed after a certain point once full-on presses were being used, so did they (non-true presses) fail? Do low-end devices only accidentally and kinda work? Is the general consensus that you need at least a $200 press for example? If so, cool but that's pretty high-end DIY. It's just a miniature dispensary press. But still it would be good to know.

I have a gram of kief for instance, my wife's ceramic 30-heat settting flat iron, regular parchment, and some 1" ss screens from my Arizer. Will it work? Can I get enough pressure? What is the best target heat? How long? Etc. I was more confused after re-reading the 100+ pages we have although I love it since it took me back to when I first saw "diy" and "rosin", but now seems low-end DIY pressing might have been something akin to alchemy... (I don't believe that - just saying, people seemed unhappy and just bought presses - don't misunderstand, so is OldOyler come 2017!)

And the science hasn't been clear - what temp needs to be applied to what thickness puck for...what to happen? Are the cannabinoids evaporating and reconstituting (doubt it)? Or are they just being made more viscous than the main plant materials, so they flow as a result of heat and pressure out and through the plant material (I read almost all the pages here again, that's my impression)?

And I am happy to actually contribute here - I have plenty of low-end stuff I can trash (like I thought about how to get more pressure on the plastic casing to the flat iron, but worried I will break it - I mean hey, it's plugged in while pressing I assume). But I don't want to do it if everyone generally feels anything but a "true press" is a waste.

In that case, I'm just saying maybe that can be made clear by making a perma-link (I am soooo out of touch with lingo) for "Rosin Pressing" right under "Concentrates for Noobs" sticky in the "Concentrates" forum, and maybe leave the "diy" version only if it really *can* meet that criteria, and if it *does* work - since I think we're giving that impression (you can use low-end devices). Hate to see anyone (including myself) waste weed unnecessarily. Otherwise, we should just call the thread "How to Buy a Rosin Press".

And I hope the tone came across well here (peace, peace, and more peace)!

Just .

Good things to all!

I think john berflo still squishes with his handy Remington straightener. Granted he is a grower so his supply can handle waste. He did do some testing on his pucks and found plenty of meds left that he turns into edibles I believe. Seems if you want the most out of your squishes you need a lot of pressure and the right amount of heat. I am going the bud>dry sift>rosin path as it seems to me that dry sift or kief will be easier to squish using cheaper tools. I am still building my sift screens at the moment.

psychonaut said:

I think john berflo still squishes with his handy Remington straightener. Granted he is a grower so his supply can handle waste. He did do some testing on his pucks and found plenty of meds left that he turns into edibles I believe. Seems if you want the most out of your squishes you need a lot of pressure and the right amount of heat. I am going the bud>dry sift>rosin path as it seems to me that dry sift or kief will be easier to squish using cheaper tools. I am still building my sift screens at the moment.

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Makes sense, and I have wife's old Remington "Wet 2 Dry" straightener so similar model.

I am going to give my kief a shot later with ceramic hair straightener on lowest setting, 1" round ss fine mesh screens with maybe .2g kief at a time into parchment.

Thanks psychonaut, about the millionth time you've done me a solid...

Peace!

OldOyler said:

Makes sense, and I have wife's old Remington "Wet 2 Dry" straightener so similar model.

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I use this exact model in a clamp-on vise, and I feel like I get full enough extraction. If I crank down as tight as I can I get oil seeping through the paper on to the heating irons, so it seems like enough for my small personal use.

A key for me is pre-pucking, I think you get more use out of your pressure if the material is already somewhat compressed (and it keeps it way cleaner). I take a piece of parchment and fold it in the middle, then up one side so I have a square "pocket" to pack a gram of flower into. Once it's tight in the corner I fold the other side up so I have a rectangle with an open top, then press my thumb in the top and fold it over, leaving a nice tight bundle sealed on all sides. I take that and smash it with a lighter or the like to get it flat, and that's one perfect puck ready to give up the goods


I don't do too much parchment origami, but I do like a simple double fold. I put my rectangle puck in the crease of of bi-folded sheet then fold up to make another crease above the puck so the oil shoots (mostly) out the sides, away from the heat.


Edit: Re temp, my iron's lowest setting is 300f, so to work lower sometimes I use a meat thermometer to pre-heat, but mostly I just clamp the puck cold and keep my ear close to the iron as it warms (hits 300f in 30s or so). When I hear the first light sizzle I cut the heat and give it another half turn on the vise. You can let it heat more for slightly more yield, but IME it often gives runnier, darker oil that isn't as nice.

I'm still using my hair straightener and C-clamp .
It does the job for me , very well .

But I've changed my method somewhat as suggested
previously by other experts .

No more sizzling sound , I prefer low temp presses now .
It gives it the shattery consistency and easier to collect .
It doesn't bleed into the parchment .I just use 2 sheets of
parchment paper , folded once . And I swear , more potent too .
Maybe not all the actives are heated off and same for the terps .

No pucks either , I like to pre-squish .3 g bud with my palm
on a hard surface . Just so it doesn't roll off position while sitting
on the parchment . For my diy set-up , I find too big of a bud , will
be a waste . It'll just bleed leftover rosin into the flatten chip .

poonman said:

I'm still using my hair straightener and C-clamp .
It does the job for me , very well .

But I've changed my method somewhat as suggested
previously by other experts .

No more sizzling sound , I prefer low temp presses now .
It gives it the shattery consistency and easier to collect .
It doesn't bleed into the parchment .I just use 2 sheets of
parchment paper , folded once . And I swear , more potent too .
Maybe not all the actives are heated off and same for the terps .

No pucks either , I like to pre-squish .3 g bud with my palm
on a hard surface . Just so it doesn't roll off position while sitting
on the parchment . For my diy set-up , I find too big of a bud , will
be a waste . It'll just bleed leftover rosin into the flatten chip .

Click to expand...

You all are SO rocking the answers to "easy", "diy", and "solventless" and very, very clearly.

I can't thank you enough - this is exactly what I was hoping for, so I'm humbled.

Going at it all with a fresh mind and a hair straightener tomorrow.

(Plus gives me time to get a clamp from a friend of mine to try as suggested by @GuyLeDuche , and I like we're running the same model)

And @poonman , for how long do you press with those amounts (almost spot on what I would be running at any given time)?

Peace everyone!

Depending on which strain , 30 to 60 seconds .
But you might want to experiment for yourself .
I think you'll like it , report back .

poonman said:

Depending on which strain , 30 to 60 seconds .
But you might want to experiment for yourself .
I think you'll like it , report back .

Click to expand...

Hmmmm...

Explains why the one time I tried for 7 seconds a month or so ago didn't work...

Will be doing a squish attempt later today.

Peace!!!

OldOyler said:

Hmmmm...

Explains why the one time I tried for 7 seconds a month or so ago didn't work...

Will be doing a squish attempt later today.

Peace!!!

Click to expand...

That could be your problem there, once you get to lower temps you really gotta wait a bit before it's all been squeezed out.

at 210 with 2,200 psi i still need to wait about 30 seconds to get everything.

And i'll be honest, i havn't pressed recently. It's a little sad, the press hasn't been getting any love. My buddy got sugared oil from out west so until thats gone il be rebuilding my press.

Does anyone know of heating elements that a complete idiot could assemble and use for cheap? Everything i've seen so far looks a little "advanced"... Hair straightener parts have worked so far, but the flimsy wires hanging around have me worried about fires and shocks too... the plug from the wall came out of the straightener the other day and basically exploded when it touched the metal frame on the press... I already got a light shock by it once, but the fire i almost had yesterday is over the line.

poonman said:

I'm still using my hair straightener and C-clamp .
It does the job for me , very well .

But I've changed my method somewhat as suggested
previously by other experts .

No more sizzling sound , I prefer low temp presses now .
It gives it the shattery consistency and easier to collect .
It doesn't bleed into the parchment .I just use 2 sheets of
parchment paper , folded once . And I swear , more potent too .
Maybe not all the actives are heated off and same for the terps .

No pucks either , I like to pre-squish .3 g bud with my palm
on a hard surface . Just so it doesn't roll off position while sitting
on the parchment . For my diy set-up , I find too big of a bud , will
be a waste . It'll just bleed leftover rosin into the flatten chip .

Click to expand...

Still using the original straightener and c-clamp here also, with no real reason to change that I can see in the near future. I flatten about .5 or so as hard as I can between the tip of my thumb and the second knuckle of my forefinger just before dropping in the parchment and squishing for about 25-30 seconds. I fold my parchment in half then make a fold up the edge that will face my hand when squishing. If I position the bud so it is in the middle of the plates about an inch from the end and clamp on top of it, I seem to get the best results. The doubled up parchment has me curious though, I think I will see what I can do with that on an upcoming squish.

matthend said:

Still using the original straightener and c-clamp here also, with no real reason to change that I can see in the near future. I flatten about .5 or so as hard as I can between the tip of my thumb and the second knuckle of my forefinger just before dropping in the parchment and squishing for about 25-30 seconds. I fold my parchment in half then make a fold up the edge that will face my hand when squishing. If I position the bud so it is in the middle of the plates about an inch from the end and clamp on top of it, I seem to get the best results. The doubled up parchment has me curious though, I think I will see what I can do with that on an upcoming squish.

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Thanks, beautifully written out there yet again.

Question then I guess for you, @poonman , @dabsonthemountain etc. What should I expect on return, and do you simply lightly scrape the parchment when done? (I assume that is one reason for trying to get it to channel somewhat).

Like I will probably be using .5g of flower, or .2 of kief (between two round 1" fine ss mesh screens). I assume I am looking for a dab at a time, so to speak, as a result?

And hey thanks everybody (don't want to forget my buddy @herbivore21 ), I am excited about this again! Wanted the experience like this so that come the new year and a $400 press budget from the wife, I'll be seriously grateful.

Peace everyone!

so if I have a vice grip, and I get the hair straightener what else do I need? I only need to put it in parchment paper and squish it around 215degrees for 30-50 seconds?

TboneToker said:

so if I have a vice grip, and I get the hair straightener what else do I need? I only need to put it in parchment paper and squish it around 215degrees for 30-50 seconds?

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You need these vise grips, and the last 10 posts or so above this give a pretty accurate description of the basic steps needed.