Herb Grinders

[Stevenski]

Just sent through my warranty claim to the seller of the SC "Ti" but they won't be back until the new year.

On the flipside this does mean new grinder time & I am down to three contenders in two configurations & pricing is before any discounts. Not massively concerned when it comes to price as this will be a once a decade kind of purchase.

3 piece: SCS small or the Kannastor Vape GR8TR ($80, $100)
4 piece: SCS small, Compton medium or Kannastor GR8TR ($100, $100 & $140)

Any thoughts on what to get? Particularly keen to hear any Kannastor or Compton owners opinions as I know the SCS is held in high regard round here.

 

[MoltenTiger]

Any thoughts on what to get? Particularly keen to hear any Kannastor or Compton owners opinions as I know the SCS is held in high regard round here.

You're in Aus yeah? Check out SLX http://www.australianvaporizers.com.au/store/catalogsearch/result/?q=Slx
I recommended a mate get one, he did and has been happy with it. I'm yet to see it in person, but can report back once I have.

 

[Aimless Ryan]

I want to do a partial 180 on what I said about the mini 2-piece SCS a couple days ago. (For anyone who's not sure what I'm talking about, I indicated that the mini 2-piece SCS is basically useless.)

Since I have recently come to prefer a very fine grind (due to a profound modification of my Aromed), I have also been playing around with my grinders a bit more than usual, to see which of them may be able to provide a powdery fine grind.

If I do a preliminary grind with a different grinder, then transfer the grounds to a mini 2-piece SCS, the mini can turn it all into powder very easily. The trick to getting a nice powdery grind with the mini, I think, is to start off with at least 0.3 g. However, if you put that much bud in a mini 2-piece, you'll be lucky to be able to turn it. Which necessitates a preliminary grind in a different grinder.

Even though I suppose any SCS (and probably every other grinder) could provide the same powdery result with the right quantity of herbs and the right technique, you have to use a considerably larger quantity of herbs to produce powder with larger grinders. As much as I love small SCS, neither a small 4-piece nor a small 2-piece SCS will turn 0.3 g of bud into powder. To make powder, small seems to require about a gram.

I could not get the same powdery consistency by grinding upside down in a mini 4-piece.

 

[justcametomind]

I'd like to buy a Kannastor vape grinder but I still have to understand if it's anything better than S&B orange one.
I saw your mod @Aimless Ryan makes me want to buy an aromed and cook some dough! I'm all about instant convection & small bowls.

 

[Pyr0]

Just ordered myself a late Christmas present lol, a Kannastor GR8TR
Hopefully it should be here next week

Already have a Compton grinder, but with no accessories to buy for my vapes and nothing else interesting me, I figured why not

 

[Aimless Ryan]

I think I figured out something yesterday. I had noticed many times that my small Santa Cruz Shredders (orange and blue) both have a cylindrical extension reaching a few millimeters above the threading. As you can see, the mini and large don't have this.

I hadn't really given any thought to what this design difference might be for. I think I may have kind of assumed it was there to deflect errant grounds into the hopper instead of onto the threading, as the herbs fall from the holes. Seems reasonable.

Nope. I'm pretty sure this cylinder keeps the two middle parts aligned, to make it easier to engage the threads.

The only reason I ever thought about this is because I kept noticing that it's harder to engage the threads of the mini and the large than it is to engage the threads of the smalls. This is hard to explain but easy to understand when you have them in your hands for comparison.

 

[Stevenski]

Just ordered myself a late Christmas present lol, a Kannastor GR8TR
Hopefully it should be here next week

Already have a Compton grinder, but with no accessories to buy for my vapes and nothing else interesting me, I figured why not

What kind of GR8TR did you order @Pyr0? I think the smart money buys the premium GR8TR simply because it is then futureproof regarding grind. You are more likely to change vape than grinder if it performs well. What would be cool is if Kannastor released a solid screen so you could convert it into a 3 piece at will. It would cost them very little to do & is probably the only option left for the GR8TR. It does look a fantastic grinder though.

 

[Pyr0]

Hi @Stevenski Happy New Year!
I ordered the same full size one as @delloy here
Looking at the ebay listing now though, it seems they've updated it and increased the price by £20
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Kannastor-GR8TR-Jar-Grinder-Sifter/161905993546

The screen is removable, which would essentially turn it into a 3 piece

 

[Stevenski]

Hi @Stevenski Happy New Year!
I ordered the same full size one as @delloy here
Looking at the ebay listing now though, it seems they've updated it and increased the price by £20
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Kannastor-GR8TR-Jar-Grinder-Sifter/161905993546

The screen is removable, which would essentially turn it into a 3 piece

Happy New Year to you too Pyr0 . I will be sourcing it locally but it is now down to two contenders & the GR8TR is one of them although it is sitting in 2nd behind my top pick. When I was looking at the GR8TR it seems like the herb chamber has a chamfered edge & if you removed the screen that ledge was still inside the chamber & the kief collector has straight sides rather than a taper in the 3 piece GR8TR? That is the only reason I was thinking of a flush solid aluminum screen so you could keep the tapered weed bowl.

Also @Aimless Ryan are your SCS Small grinders newer than the Mini & Large? It may be a revision on the product to improve the client experience?

 

[Aimless Ryan]

@Stevenski I have to figure the small grinders were produced after the mini and large (partly because the mini has a very fine screen). I bought (or received) them all within the span of a month or so. To me it seems the extension on the smalls is a clear improvement, or evolution. It may not look like much, but it is a huge improvement on the ones that don't have this design feature. Especially if you have very unreliable hands, as I do.

 

[Aimless Ryan]

This is a big reason why I probably will no longer grind to powder consistency (until I forget or change my mind).

I'm really beginning to like a fine grind (powder), but not if I even might lose a significant amount of unvaped or partially-vaped herbage like this. I think I cleaned and refilled this water filter yesterday.

I know I can reclaim this, but reclaiming herbs that shouldn't need reclaimed simply is not something I'm interested in doing every day. Or once a week. Or at all.

 

[MinnBobber]

I'm really beginning to like a fine grind (powder), but not if I even might lose a significant amount of unvaped or partially-vaped herbage like this. I think I cleaned and refilled this water filter yesterday.

...................................
RE herb powder in your water piece:
I noticed this issue too, even on vapes where I used nugs (no grinding). The nugs would need a stir partway thru and would then turn to dust and it would end up in "downstream" in the water AND as little particles in the reclaim stuck on the glass.
I now usually use a "filtered" miniVAP basket where the thin layer of hemp fiber catches those fine particles----to be vaped out of the hemp fiber later
Picture below of assembled basket in Herbie and on left, the basket module in pieces. My final version hemp filter is much thinner than pictured---to not restrict draw.

This keeps glass and water MUCH cleaner. Reclaim on glass is now very clear where it previously had a lot of little herb particles embedded in it.

 

[whatitdew]

I have to be honest I love the tie dye Compton grinder ,but found customer service far from outstanding .there website is not compatible with ordering from another country and their PayPal is only setup for us transactions. .i explained this dilemma and received very little in the way of solution. There email response was brief and very late. Nice product ,difficult to purchase.

Yup, same experience. I had difficulties trying to order through their website. Contacted them and they said they would figure it out. They couldn't get it sorted and never got back after the initial response so I bought another companies grinder. How hard is it to setup a paypal transaction to Canada lol.

Some of the shipping costs from companies are insane as well. On SCS website Right now for some reason the only shipping option to Canada is $42 for one grinder LOL. Before it was 20 flat rate and that's even double the actual shipping costs to Canada. That shit pisses me off. Can hardly order online anymore since these damn costs are so high. At least I know I can buy a space case from Randy and be charged $8 shipping instead oh highway robbery!!

 

[HellsWindStaff]

I was a bit perplexed by something, I was checking out the SCS website, and was checking out some of their dabbing tools. Anything made of TI, they won't ship to PA because of State Laws....yet, I've gotten other Titanium products that ship from PA (as well as those that ship in other states), and I've never seen this anywhere. In fact, when I tried googling to find this law, the top links are from the SCS website. Anyone know why this is? Just seems strange is all.

 

[Stevenski]

Well I bit the bullet & purchased a replacement grinder for my defective SC . Good thing I submitted a warranty claim as I received a full credit for the SC & they applied the 30% Black Friday grinder discount to my new purchase . I hope I chose well but it just beat out the Kannastor GR8TR for my money with the SCS 3 piece coming in 3rd. I ordered a 63mm charcoal one.

http://www.slxherbgrinders.com/

 

[Aimless Ryan]

I think it's interesting that they put a threadless kief compartment into production, to keep kief from falling back into the hopper while emptying herbs, first of all because that doesn't happen. To me this feature is an unnecessary complication (and a red flag).

I know there are a lot of people who are afraid to turn grinders upside down without first removing the kief catcher because they think kief will fall when the grinder is upside down, but that doesn't happen. (That's kinda like being afraid to ride a looping roller coaster because you think you'll fall out. Doesn't happen. Consequently, I think they still make a few looping roller coasters.)

This is me holding the kief compartment of a small Santa Cruz Shredder upside down over my phone (camera), which is sitting on a table beside an Aromed (to help show direction of gravity). Notice how it's all still there. (The empty spot is from where I have scooped some of it.) Since you can't really tell, there is at least 2 mm of kief here

Same kief catcher. I took the next picture after taking the above picture. Again, the empty spot is from me spooning out some of the kief recently.

The SLX looks nice, but complicating a grinder based on a false assumption brings up some red flags for me. Seems like I remember reading about some other company doing this and pissing everybody off because the kief compartment kept falling off the grinder body, which does cause kief loss.

Also, I find grinder hoppers to be an excellent place to store ground herbs. Consequently, I rarely dump herbs from any grinder (excluding 2-piece grinders). Still, my grinders are upside down all the time. I never lose kief by turning grinders upside down.

 

[Pyr0]

Well I bit the bullet & purchased a replacement grinder for my defective SC . Good thing I submitted a warranty claim as I received a full credit for the SC & they applied the 30% Black Friday grinder discount to my new purchase . I hope I chose well but it just beat out the Kannastor GR8TR for my money with the SCS 3 piece coming in 3rd. I ordered a 63mm charcoal one.

http://www.slxherbgrinders.com/

I liked the idea of the original SLX grinders because of the coating but couldn't find any available over here.
The new ones look even better. Look forward to your thoughts when it arrives mate

@Aimless Ryan that kief looks more like finely ground herb.
How big are the holes in the SCS screens?

 

[Derrrpp]

That SLX 2.0 grinder looks intriguing. I like the threadless screen stage. Seems like it would easily switch from a 4-piece to a 3-piece by simply removing the screen. And the teeth look to be shaped similarly to SCS. And a ceramic non-stick coating that (supposedly) won't chip or wear off? I'm interested. Please let us know how you like it once you've had a chance to play with it a little bit, @Stevenski.

@Aimless Ryan, maybe the kief slides around in the SLX grinder more than usual because of the non-stick coating? Generally my kief stays put like you describe in my SharpStone, however I have had chunks come loose before.

 

[DabDiva]

i saw an earlier post about the difference in the Kannastor Gr8tr and the Kannastor "Vape" Grinder.

But i am still having trouble figuring out the difference in the "Kannastor Gr8tr Solid Body" vs the "Kannastor Gr8tr Jar" grinders

they look the same and are the same price http://www.kannastor.com/products/gr8tr.html

 

[Pyr0]

As far as I can tell, the only difference between the "Kannastor Gr8tr Solid Body" and the "Kannastor Gr8tr Jar" grinders is that the jar one has a clear section

 

[DabDiva]

As far as I can tell, the only difference between the "Kannastor Gr8tr Solid Body" and the "Kannastor Gr8tr Jar" grinders is that the jar one has a clear section

Thanks dude! Gonna go with the jar style then

If anyone knows of a coupon code available to use on it please let me know

 

[Aimless Ryan]

@Aimless Ryan that kief looks more like finely ground herb.
How big are the holes in the SCS screens?

Yeah, you're right. The holes in the screen are too big, and my kief probably is mostly flower particles. My Diamond Grind has a finer screen, yet the kief is just as green. I've said before that I don't really know anything about kief (except that it doesn't fall if you turn the grinder upside down).

Picture: Diamond Grind (chrome, fine screen); Small SCS (orange, very coarse screen; Mini SCS (black, ridiculously fine screen).

EDIT: And here are the screens from those grinders.

 

[Pablo13]

Wow, that's quite a difference! Was thinking to go for a larger grinder but maybe small is better!

I have been using scissors most of my smoking life, my girlfriend has always used grinders. Recently, I have seen the light, especially for vaping. I recently got a Crafty that came with the S&B orange plastic grinder which isn't too bad at all, but got me wondering how much better these expensive ones could be. I like the sound of a keif catcher, so a 4 piece was on the cards, and something a bit bigger would be nice too.

So, armed with my initial requirements I most likely did what a lot of you did, and spend a fair bit of time reading the reviews online. I had decided that I would be happy with either a Jumbo Santa Cruz Shedder or a large Spacecase, both 4pc. Shortly after that I found out that the SCS jumbo was out of stock on their website and most web shops, and I could not find the large spacecase shipped to the UK for a reasonable price, I lowered my sights a bit more and decided to go for a 4pc Cali Crusher (original not Homgrown).

I will give it a go as a stop gap and hand it down to my GF unless I'm exceptionally impressed and most likely order one of my top two choices, or possibly try the aeropaced or black tie instead?

Has anyone had more than one of the brands mentioned? How did they compare to each other in your eyes?

 

[Aimless Ryan]

@Pablo13 I have Santa Cruz Shredder (2-pieces and 4-pieces) and Space Case (2-pieces only). Since I don't have any Space Case 4-pieces, it's hard to compare. But I prefer SCS 4-piece to Space Case 2-piece, and I think I would prefer SCS 4-piece to Space Case 4-piece.

Still, Space Case is very nice, and they seem to put out a considerably more consistent product than SCS (because SCS clearly has tried a lot of different design combinations, as SCS has only been around for four or five years).

You didn't ask, but Diamond Grind is not bad, either, and costs considerably less than both Santa Cruz Shredder and Space Case.

Also, don't go buying a mini SCS just because mine has a tight screen. If you buy one, I doubt that it'll come with a fine screen like mine (which I think is older, even though I bought it last summer). I suppose you could ask vendors if they have any SCShredders with fine screens, regardless of size. Because they might.

 

[Stevenski]

I think it's interesting that they put a threadless kief compartment into production, to keep kief from falling back into the hopper while emptying herbs, first of all because that doesn't happen. To me this feature is an unnecessary complication (and a red flag).

The SLX looks nice, but complicating a grinder based on a false assumption brings up some red flags for me. Seems like I remember reading about some other company doing this and pissing everybody off because the kief compartment kept falling off the grinder body, which does cause kief loss.

Also, I find grinder hoppers to be an excellent place to store ground herbs. Consequently, I rarely dump herbs from any grinder (excluding 2-piece grinders). Still, my grinders are upside down all the time. I never lose kief by turning grinders upside down.

I cannot see how removing a threaded component adds complexity to the product. It actually removes needless complexity & reduces spaces that can gum up. The grinder hopper is only a transitional home for my herb before it gets transferred to my bowl or if I am travelling a puck so storage is a moot point to me.

I liked the idea of the original SLX grinders because of the coating but couldn't find any available over here.
The new ones look even better. Look forward to your thoughts when it arrives mate

Seems like they are only available in the USA & AU right now but they are getting new distributors daily.

That SLX 2.0 grinder looks intriguing. I like the threadless screen stage. Seems like it would easily switch from a 4-piece to a 3-piece by simply removing the screen. And the teeth look to be shaped similarly to SCS. And a ceramic non-stick coating that (supposedly) won't chip or wear off? I'm interested. Please let us know how you like it once you've had a chance to play with it a little bit, @Stevenski.

The switching between a 3 or 4 piece appeals to me as well but I am particularly sold on the slip in hopper design. It is worth a gamble to me & worst case is I buy a SCS or GR8TR to replace it.

Here is a video of the SLX & it just makes me want mine more.