Dabpress Rosin Plates

[psychonaut]

I just ran another 1/8th using those 2x2.5" filters, only put 3.5g in, used 3 tons pressure max, no tearing of the parchment or the filter, and no blowout. Think my last effort that blew out was too much in that filter and when it expanded it just ripped open and that's how the rosin flowed out towards the edge of the plates.

So, the yield was about 20% (0.68g), which I think is a little less than my last effort of the truth's sister cultivar, with less pressure, but these were also really tiny popcorn buds and I think some of that weight was stems.

I did dissect the puck out of the filter straight away, about 10% of the puck was stuck/infused into the filter, but I got the rest out. I plan to put those pressed pucks in with bovedas (if that even helps?), and do a repress on those later.

EDIT: The filter had no oil on it at all, so anything left will have to be in the puck.

 

[Hackerman]

What do you mean by this when you say "ruined the run" ?
I figure if it squeezes out the back it got away from the degradation of the hot plates?

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant when the PUCK squeezes out of the edge of the plates, the run is ruined.

And, this is what happened almost every time. I can't get bottle tek to work at all for me.

How can 2 people get such different results? LMAO

 

[psychonaut]

Try putting your buds about 1/3" in from the edge of the plates, you may even want to try 1/2". You could actually try several positions with 1" diameter pucks and find out where the best placement is.

 

[Hackerman]

I usually try to get them right in the center. Anything else and the puck squirts right out the edge. Wait until you see the vid. In one press the weed comes squirting out like water. LOL

Back soon

 

[MinnBobber]

I am going to press some Lemon OG tomorrow so I'll try some experiments. Any suggestions? Requests?

...................................................................................................
I'd really like to see what happens with a slow "pre-heat" cycle, similar in concept to a "pre-press".
Something like 10 minutes at 140F plate temp, to bring the entire puck (all the way to the center) to a temp that is
close to "rosin running temp". Probably done with the slightest amount of pressure.

Then when we're sure it is all at 140 F, turn temp up to 170 F and up pressure to appropriate amount.
A low and slow squish

Can't wait to see your video.....

 

[Hackerman]

The video is really shitty. I had to edit the crap out of it and then when I was done, I realized YT does not allow vids over 15 min so I edited more and it's all goofy.

Still, you can see about half way in where the puck just oozes out from between the plates like a fast turd.

I'll do better next time. I do believe this helped to determine the proper puck size (1x4). The next tests will be with 1x4 pucks with 2, 4, 6 and 8 gram loads.

I like the idea of pre-heating loads and I do that most of the time. I let the plates sit on the puck for a short time before I actually apply full pressure. I do feel that helps a little.

Even on the first press you can see 2 little turds escaping that I pick off with tweezers.

Bottle tek starts about 8:30. The big poop comes about 10:20

Here is the vid...

 

[MinnBobber]

@Hackerman

video is blocked

 

[MonkeyTime]

Blocked here too...

My first thought was you were hitting it hard and fast, timeline says ?Maybe ?

All my first attempts have been home grown that I purposely trimmed and left leaves that were covered, and it's only been two strains, but 10% sounds low.

Could it be strains or technique? Certainly not pointing, just asking and trying to learn.

 

[Hackerman]

I had Beatles music in the background. That's why it was blocked. WTF is going on in the world. LMAO

I'll try again tomorrow without music.

 

[Hackerman]

Hey gang, I would love to hear ideas on how you make pre-press pucks. The ones that are available for sale are nice but they are very expensive and , more importantly, none are the size I want.

At this time, I think a 1" x 4" puck about 1/4" thick is what I need. That's about 5 or 6 grams. I think 5 gram presses are about right for these 3x5 plates. Any more just poops out the edges. And, at about 10%, that produces about a half a gram per press. I like round numbers. LOL

I made the temp jig out of wood and I guess I could clean that up and make wood an acceptable materiel. It is easy to work with and size. Albeit, I would rather use metal.

I am also thinking of taking a small diameter tube. Maybe 1/2" and packing it into the tube so that I end up with a cylinder 1/2" in diameter and about 4" long. I don't know if this will work as well as a flat puck but, we'll see.

I also found standard C-channel and flat bar at Lowes that makes a nice 2 piece mold.

Also..... has anyone ever tried grinding the flowers before pressing? I usually just pack full buds into the pre-press but I wonder if grinding it first would have any effect. That's another experiment that's on my list for next press.

@dabpress.com Hey Rog, how are you guys coming on those pre-presses?

Any thoughts from your engineers on making an "adjustable" press? Something that might make 3 or 4 different sizes of pucks for the different sizes of presses you offer. If you can keep your manufacturing costs reasonable, you could carry 1 pre-press instead of several different sizes for all your plate sizes. Just tossing that out.

 

[psychonaut]

My upcoming efforts are going to be focused on isolation. I am continuing the vertical filter builds for initial rosin as it seems to be yielding averaging about 20% on caregiver flowers. I am trying to force nucleation and buddering to gain a step up on the isolation process but I would also like to try and isolate the THC-A off of sappy rosin if possible.

There is a lot that goes into this, and my last effort I lost about 15% of my rosin testing the method but what was recovered still had terpenes and the same level of meds the original press had.

I do want to eliminate the filters for these isolations so I can get as much as possible from the intiial press. Just waiting on the dabpress cylinder mold to be finished.

What I purchased for the isolation process is some 3x3 25u stainless mesh, and some 25u nylon rosin filters.

This is the next stage in producing rosin at home, isolating the THC-A into it's purest form. Anyone care for some 93% rosin?

 

[skube]

This is what I use with my 3x5 cage. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07B938QLJ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 It went up $10 in the past week.I haven't had any flower poop out the edge.The internal dimensions of the pre press are 1.62" wide x 3.5" length x 1" height.

 

[Hackerman]

Hey guys, looks like the pre-press is ready.....

https://www.dabpress.com/products/dp-pm3080r

And the filters.. https://www.dabpress.com/products/dp-rb160ns

This also explains why my bottle tek has always been a failure. I am using paper filters and they failed under the slightest pressure. I will order some of these and see what they are like.

Hey @psychonaut , just so I can get an idea of how much you press your bottle tek loads, can you tell me or show me what your puck looks like after the press. I am thinking that I shouldn't use full pressure with bottle tek.

 

[psychonaut]

Hey @psychonaut , just so I can get an idea of how much you press your bottle tek loads, can you tell me or show me what your puck looks like after the press. I am thinking that I shouldn't use full pressure with bottle tek.

Here's my pressed puck with measurements plus the original filter below - 2.75 tons of pressure, 3.5g loaded into filter. Approx. 2300 PSI. Very high!

 

[Hackerman]

OK, so that baby is nowhere near flat.

So, I have been doing 2 things wrong. Paper filters that were garbage and I was pressing wayyyyy too hard.

I can't wait. I need to try this right now. LOL Plates are heating up.

How thick is that puck after pressing?

 

[psychonaut]

OK, so that baby is nowhere near flat.

So, I have been doing 2 things wrong. Paper filters that were garbage and I was pressing wayyyyy too hard.

I can't wait. I need to try this right now. LOL Plates are heating up.

How thick is that puck after pressing?

I dont have any digital calipers, but I'd wager 1-1.5mm. I'll see if I can get a better measurement on a fresh press next time using my cheap calipers.

Nylon filters do good to stretch out and expand, they also crumple well as you can see the accordian effect on the filter. The build was a little lopsided which is why is spread out some, but that may just be due to how much I am filling in the filter too. I'm still trying to make mistakes to learn from, so far it's working out pretty well and my only questions at this point is "how much is left in those pucks?". I plan to try and figure that out soon with some filterless presses so I can just fold the puck over and press it again at higher temps.

 

[Hackerman]

No need to measure it. I get the jist. I'm going too flat.

I tried way less pressure this time but the filter ruptured anyway. Couple pics on my silkscreen filter and this press.

Still, in spite of the blowout, I got my usual 10%. Just can't seem to get over 10 - 12% from any strain I have pressed. Plus, I always use popcorn. Maybe I should try some cola buds just to find out.

I am going to buy some of the DabPress filters. What filter are you using?

Silkscreen cloth...

This is a 5 gram puck....

 

[psychonaut]

I am using some of the older discontinued dabpress filters. 2x2.5" 90u I believe. Love this size, but the sleeve filter that roger has designed will be way better since I can just cut then down to size.

Definitely give Nylon a shot. I dont have any blowouts except if I put too much in the filter and use way too much pressure way too quickly. I like to take about 30-45 seconds to squish the filter before applying pressure to preheat the puck. Not sure how much of that is necessary but the buds seem to mold better when they're warm compared to ambient temps.

 

[MinnBobber]

Any thoughts from your engineers on making an "adjustable" press?

..............................................................................
I have this on order, small diameter cylinder, 2.5" tall and 1" inner diam, so kind of bottle tech shape and adjustable by how much you add/ how tall of a puck.
They include diff length inner cylinders/pistons for different size loads.

Long, narrow pucks (rectangles)are best for shortest route for rosin to exit BUT it appears a round cylinder ( a thick coin shape) stays together better with no filter and cylinders should work good with proper sized cylinder rosin bags.
So the shape is a dilemma ---maybe round cylinder for small press and long and narrow rectangle for bigger capacity??

I'd like a pre-press like below BUT with wider covers at both ends---to use in the hydraulic press (or arbor press or vice) with slightly more pressure than hand pressure--to try a really firm puck when you add temp and big pressure....

 

[mixchu69]

..............................................................................
I have this on order, small diameter cylinder, 2.5" tall and 1" inner diam, so kind of bottle tech shape and adjustable by how much you add/ how tall of a puck.
They include diff length inner cylinders/pistons for different size loads.

Long, narrow pucks (rectangles)are best for shortest route for rosin to exit BUT it appears a round cylinder ( a thick coin shape) stays together better with no filter and cylinders should work good with proper sized cylinder rosin bags.
So the shape is a dilemma ---maybe round cylinder for small press and long and narrow rectangle for bigger capacity??

I'd like a pre-press like below BUT with wider covers at both ends---to use in the hydraulic press (or arbor press or vice) with slightly more pressure than hand pressure--to try a really firm puck when you add temp and big pressure....

was looking at the exact same thing on Amazon....looking for the best pollen press, but may just pick up the prepress quoted above by @Hackerman

 

[MinnBobber]

was looking at the exact same thing on Amazon....looking for the best pollen press, but may just pick up the prepress quoted above by @Hackerman

..............................................................................
FYI,

I just PM'd dabpress as there is no pic of new press but description is confusing:

Specifications:

• Item No.: dp-pm3015r
• Material: Anodized Aluminum
• Inner Diameter: 1.18"
• Recommend Thickness: 0.5-0.6"
• Shape: Round

Tags:

• Press Buds into Square-Shaped Puck
• Recommend Rosin Sleeve dp-bt160n & dp-bt160ns to Pair with

I think tag is incorrect--that it makes a round puck but no picture??? I asked for Roger to post pic too.

 

[Hackerman]

Here is a vid on the new press (at least, I think this is the new one)....

 

[psychonaut]

Here's the new isolation filters I got off ebay for fairly reasonable price. 2x4" 25u nylon filters and 3x3 25u stainless mesh. Hoping dabpress has these 25u filters eventually so we can get them from amazon prime store 2-day shipping.

 

[MinnBobber]

5u nylon filters and 3x3 25u stainless mesh.

.............................................................
Do you press hash? Isn't 25u too small for flowers?
Hope dabpress posts pics soon of their new pre-presses

 

[psychonaut]

.............................................................
Do you press hash? Isn't 25u too small for flowers?
Hope dabpress posts pics soon of their new pre-presses

It's probably too small for flowers, I havent actually tried it yet. It's for hash, but in this particular case it's for rosin. When you re-press it at lower temps in a 25u filter, you can isolate the THC-A from the rest of the rosin. Very pure meds are when you are left with, and the juicy byproduct, which I am not sure if that's mostly terpenes and more homogonized rosin and meds? I'm just starting to get in on this method of extraction but hope to share some results sometime this week or early next. I'm waiting for my rosin to budder up so it's a step closer to isolation.