Rosin Technique....Easy DIY Solventless

[hektik8625]

Mind sharing your source for the hand pump and cylinder? Is that Enerpac?

No its not ENERPAC, but if you can afford it, that would be the way to go in my opinion.... they have spring return built into them. Both the ones I got where purchased off eBay ....heres some similar listings: CYLINDER - PUMP (The original listings are gone, but I only paid 50 bucks for the pump.)

 

[Hyphy]

k heres my mini press I made using a 4ton pancake hydraulic ram

What's the sheer strength of those bolts? If one snapped from 4tons of force, you wouldn't want the compressed springs blowing the top off like a rocket.

Sick job on the setup, you planned it out well Are you happy with the yeilds or are you still tweaking it?

 

[hektik8625]

What's the sheer strength of those bolts? If one snapped from 4tons of force, you wouldn't want the compressed springs blowing the top off like a rocket.

Sick job on the setup, you planned it out well Are you happy with the yeilds or are you still tweaking it?

Would all four bolts go at once? now you got me thinking....... I "think" Its all good, those compression springs are barely compressed and 4 tons is overkill in my opinion. Im super stoked with it. slow, gradual pressure till you see it squirting, then wait a few seconds, then completely smash for a few more seconds! works best for me.... I 3d printed a puck press die to make perfect pill sized pucks for my round plates, seems to work for me when running nugs!!! Bubble hash yields a lot, I like using the rectangular plates for for that =) all material runs differently...

 

[thewhitelotus]

Been using my Dake 10 ton press with great results so far, however, im running into an issue with my parchment bleeding through on higher pressures.

I am trying to source some PTFE and was curious what you guys have tried? What thickness of PTFE works best and where have you sourced it? Thanks guys!

 

[shark sandwich]

@thewhitelotus

I believe the safest PTFE available is from Cookina, and is sold as cooking sheets. It's been discussed earlier in this thread- you can do a search for either PTFE or Cookina to find all the information.

I also had bleed through at high pressures when using only parchment paper. The Cookina sheet solved the problem perfectly. Pressing between two sheets of ptfe works, but collecting from ptfe sheet is very difficult and inefficient.

I found a solution that's the best of both worlds- first, cut a piece of ptfe the width of your press plates. Wrap a preformed puck with the piece of ptfe, enchilada style. Take that package and wrap it into the center of a wider piece of parchment, also enchilada style.

This way, the ptfe will contain everything between the plates. The rosin won't bleed through, but will be pushed out onto the parchment for easy collection. The piece of ptfe is very reusable, and should last for many presses.

This method will work best if you have a form which can press pucks that are just smaller that your plates. If you are already pressing enchilada style, this is a way to entirely eliminate blowouts and bleed through, regardless of the pressure used.

 

[dabsonthemountain]

I've finally read just about everything in this thread, I started with clamps and a straightener and moved up to a vise setup now, considering hydraulics.

I'm currently using the little 4 inch $30 irwin pony vise from lowes. It does the job but i've bent the handle back and forth to the point it's almost unusable. I've also ground some of the metal directly beneath the T handle on the last night I pressed, to the point the carpet beneath is black with shavings I just can't vacuum up. I cleaned out the shavings from in the vise and oiled er up, I'm guessing I could press another half but that's it. The vise is just about shot.
And now while looking at new vises, I'm now noticing for the same price as a new vise, I could set up a 2-6 ton press. What i'm wondering now, is whether or not the extra pressure is worth it. The vise I have now certaintly isn't putting out tons of pressure, but it's getting me 20% at 210 degrees, which i'm happy with. I'm wondering how much of a difference the extra pressure makes thugh should I upgrade as a "press as I dab" type person. I'm only pressing a half g to a g at a time.

And also, if you have a say 5 ton jack, in a little homebrew press like this press below, are you really generating 5 tons of force on the top plate?

I would assume that without a car sitting over the jack you're not. Then also, I made some homebrew plates with just a hacksaw, various steel and aluminum bar from home depot, and a straightener. I'll post them once they get redone, I'm wondering if they could handle a couple tons even. They finally busted the last day in my vise, but that was because the jb weld gave. So i'm wondering if they could handle the pressure of maybe a 4 ton jack, which would probably be what i'd be aiming for. I'll post them soon enough.

So, is the extra couple tons of pressure worth it, if you don't really plan to press any more at once? This question really hasn't had a final conclusion, or has this become like SUV's, bigger is better, but nobody really needs it to begin with...
And i guess if you're only pressing .5-1g at once, what's the ideal pressure? I've read over 3000 psi you're closing off the channels in the bud, but i've also read 6000 psi is the ideal pressure over all, and then that 2500 psi was the best on the page right before. No final conclusions. I'm aiming for 2500 psi, over a 4 square inch area, so i'd need a 4-6 ton jack... I guess. But considering my pucks are rarely over 1.5 inches in diameter, maybe 3-4 tons is enough?

Excuse the page i typed...
rosin dabs got me typing... ya know...

And also, does anyone know the actual clamping force the 4 1/2 inch vise from lowes actually puts out? It says 300, but I know that isn't true because it's putting out much more force than my 300 pound clamps... And it says that for every vise on the site... so how can I do this math?

 

[elmomuzz]

You would need to know the thread pitch of the jack screw and the handle length to determine how much force you are applying.

 

[hektik8625]

6 days later after posting my press with a mini ram I see this ........ It's very similar to mine but they are trying to capitalize on it........ Must be a very common idea.....what took them a year to come up with, I thought it up and built it within a month.

 

[poonman]

6 days later after posting my press with a mini ram I see this ........ It's very similar to mine but they are trying to capitalize on it........ Must be a very common idea.....what took them a year to come up with, I thought it up and built it within a month.

It is a common idea , you've built yourself a good one .
What I like about this one , is that you can put it horizontally
and allow the rosin to flow vertically downwards . Which is what we
all do basically with our DIY hair straightener for better yields .

I'd pay aprox.$300 to $400 for that set-up .
Hopefully even less with more economical innovations to come .
And I still think the convex/concave plates with the divoted dent
in the middle may offer better return . Just like those old hand orange
pulp squishers we used to have ...

 

[hektik8625]

It is a common idea , you've built yourself a good one .
What I like about this one , is that you can put it horizontally
and allow the rosin to flow vertically downwards . Which is what we
all do basically with our DIY hair straightener for better yields .

I'd pay aprox.$300 to $400 for that set-up .
Hopefully even less with more economical innovations to come .
And I still think the convex/concave plates with the divoted dent
in the middle may offer better return . Just like those old hand orange
pulp squishers we used to have ...

I agree common.....
Also 300-400 sounds good too me but he's going for 4k..... Fuck man!
For sure the horizontal drip solution is coming up.....
I also agree on concave plates, or upside down v shaped plates, I might work on those after this semester of school ends......
That Bva ram and pump are around 5-6 hundred dollars or more all by themselves, I know cause I looked into them, they have the spring return built into them.......
But I gotta thank the guy for the "g10 thermal insulator" idea, cause right now I just use wood

 

[Cannabis-Hardware-Ed]

PSI @ various tonnages on various plate sizes:

Plate size will dictate your available PSI. While looking at this, we realized that what's far more important is considering the area of the bag (or flower) being pressed. Plate PSI is largely irrelevant when the object being pressed is taking all the force. Assuming full bags/flower pucks:

With 3000 lbs being a moderate level of extraction (less force leaves too much behind) You really need to bring the pressure, especially as you use bigger bags/pucks.

 

[1DMF]

Is there such a thing as too much pressure when making rosin?

Or is it only too much heat?

 

[Quetzalcoatl]

Is there such a thing as too much pressure when making rosin?

Or is it only too much heat?

Yeah, either tears the paper underneath the nug and you get oil seeping out, or blows out pouches if you use them (or both). I've torn parchment paper from too much pressure before.

 

[1DMF]

Yeah, either tears the paper underneath the nug and you get oil seeping out, or blows out pouches if you use them (or both). I've torn parchment paper from too much pressure before.

So this 20 ton press is a bad idea then?

I've been eying up a 10 ton (14000PSI) press, but the shipping doubles the price so don't want to waste my money on the wrong tech.

There are a lot of 1.4 ton (2800/3000 PSI) t-shirt presses for a lot less money, but some comments on this thread seem unhappy with the results?

 

[Cannabis-Hardware-Ed]

Yeah, either tears the paper underneath the nug and you get oil seeping out, or blows out pouches if you use them (or both). I've torn parchment paper from too much pressure before.

We've found that turning the silk bags inside out dramatically reduces blow out, if not eliminating it. How full you pack them also plays a part.

On the parchment side, we've never had an issue @ 20 tons. Testing 30 tons today.

 

[StonedCold]

how much should adding a 600lb (the typical one) clamp to my settup (versus stepping on the straightener) increase yields typically? Highest so far I've gotten was like 18.4% off very nice starting material. However with only barely different technique other material of similar quality (when vaped) produced 1g from a half-o. I realize it is all very strain dependent but for any given strain, how much should the clamp help?

 

[Cannabis-Hardware-Ed]

Depends on how much you weigh - divide 600lbs by your weight to get the % increase factor. The actual yield increase has to be measured by your different outputs.

One thing we notice that with 6 tons, the silk packet still clearly contains a bit of oil. @ 20 tons and higher, this residual oil is greatly diminished in the packet.

Eliminating the bag is vital, as its holding on to so much goodness. Its all about the bagless pucks.

Apples to apples test is underway using 1g per different press, to see what yields increases are.

1g from a half/Oscar is a fraction of what you could be getting with extra tonnage. You should be approaching 3g.

 

[poonman]

Depends on how much you weigh - divide 600lbs by your weight to get the % increase factor. The actual yield increase has to be measured by your different outputs.

One thing we notice that with 6 tons, the silk packet still clearly contains a bit of oil. @ 20 tons and higher, this residual oil is greatly diminished in the packet.

Eliminating the bag is vital, as its holding on to so much goodness. Its all about the bagless pucks.

Apples to apples test is underway using 1g per different press, to see what yields increases are.

1g from a half/Oscar is a fraction of what you could be getting with extra tonnage. You should be approaching 3g.

Have you experimented with ,
too much heat time ' may ' cause some oils
to evaporate away altogether ?

I've been trying to place my bud at the edge of the straightener , so
the rosin oozes out onto the colder part of the parchment paper , away from the
straightener . To see if I can get more yield , of course the back end of the bud
will still be heated tho .

ime
I get better yields with Indicas , rather than Sativas .
Dense compact buds over light fluffy buds .
idk why ....

 

[Foamform]

To me the 6-ton is the sweet-spot for affordability, ample pressure/tonnage, and usability. If the 1-ton (or even the half) had the same hydraulic system as the 6 I would even try that out, but trying to put downward pressure on that lever/crank is not worth the effort and possible long-term injury when you can spend $30 more and get a hydraulic that holds the pressure down for you after you crank it down. That way you can just let it sit for 10 seconds or so after you crank it instead of turning red in the face trying to exert your total force and then some on a stupid lever for 30 seconds while trying to keep the press still (if not bolted down).

 

[Cannabis-Hardware-Ed]

I get better yields with Indicas , rather than Sativas .
Dense compact buds over light fluffy buds .
idk why ....

Density wins! Always. I don't think its a hard and fast rule that indicas are denser in general, its just the particular strains you have.

Have you experimented with ,
too much heat time ' may ' cause some oils
to evaporate away altogether ?

The amount of heat required to evap the oils...well its approaching the same level of heat that one would dab/atomize at. For pressing, we never go above 230°F, and with 30 tons of pressure can go as low as 200°F, so evaporation isn't something to worry about.

Lower temps mean better terpene preservation! And thus more flavor capacity.

 

[StonedCold]

Depends on how much you weigh - divide 600lbs by your weight to get the % increase factor. The actual yield increase has to be measured by your different outputs.

One thing we notice that with 6 tons, the silk packet still clearly contains a bit of oil. @ 20 tons and higher, this residual oil is greatly diminished in the packet.

Eliminating the bag is vital, as its holding on to so much goodness. Its all about the bagless pucks.

Apples to apples test is underway using 1g per different press, to see what yields increases are.

1g from a half/Oscar is a fraction of what you could be getting with extra tonnage. You should be approaching 3g.

Well yeah I know how to calculate a simple ratio, I was asking more wondering how yield behaves as a function of pressure. And I was asking others who had in the past transitioned from straightener to straightener+600Lb what their experience was. I know more pressure would lead to more yield in my case, its more about how big a difference the clamp makes and whether its worth getting or just skipping it and waiting till I can transition to something a step up from a straightener.

If I could get or make a larger setup right now, I would, believe me, but life has its constraints. It was my understanding that the 600lb was ideal for a straightener, since it can only take so much pressure, it's not just a heated metal plate. Haven't people been taking apart the straighteners and using stronger clamps directly on the plates though?

I know I should be getting more like 3g from a half, this is why Im asking.. it just seemed odd. I think maybe it was just that strain not squirting well. I squished 3g of GSC last night and got a little over a .5, i think a .52 so it was about an 18% yield there. And I used nearly exactly the same technique. The low-yielder vaped and looked like some top shelf stuff too, so I'm really hoping the missing yield is in those rosin chips!

BUT it doesn't stop there lol. I was all giddy about my 18% but a friend was saying he was getting about 28% using just bodyweight and straightener (like me) on the same starting material. The difference in our procedures being him weighing about 60-70% more than I do, and that he said he did 4 second presses at 300 while I have been letting it cool off from 300 for 5-6 seconds, then pressing for 5-6 seconds. We both use nuggets that are on average .4g, do 2 presses, and just do a finger presquish. WTF? Am i burning off oil in that 1-2 seconds? Is the extra bodyweight that big a deal? Is my friend just full of shit?

 

[dabsonthemountain]

Well yeah I know how to calculate a simple ratio, I was asking more wondering how yield behaves as a function of pressure. And I was asking others who had in the past transitioned from straightener to straightener+600Lb what their experience was. I know more pressure would lead to more yield in my case, its more about how big a difference the clamp makes and whether its worth getting or just skipping it and waiting till I can transition to something a step up from a straightener.

If I could get or make a larger setup right now, I would, believe me, but life has its constraints. It was my understanding that the 600lb was ideal for a straightener, since it can only take so much pressure, it's not just a heated metal plate. Haven't people been taking apart the straighteners and using stronger clamps directly on the plates though?

I know I should be getting more like 3g from a half, this is why Im asking.. it just seemed odd. I think maybe it was just that strain not squirting well. I squished 3g of GSC last night and got a little over a .5, i think a .52 so it was about an 18% yield there. And I used nearly exactly the same technique. The low-yielder vaped and looked like some top shelf stuff too, so I'm really hoping the missing yield is in those rosin chips!

BUT it doesn't stop there lol. I was all giddy about my 18% but a friend was saying he was getting about 28% using just bodyweight and straightener (like me) on the same starting material. The difference in our procedures being him weighing about 60-70% more than I do, and that he said he did 4 second presses at 300 while I have been letting it cool off from 300 for 5-6 seconds, then pressing for 5-6 seconds. We both use nuggets that are on average .4g, do 2 presses, and just do a finger presquish. WTF? Am i burning off oil in that 1-2 seconds? Is the extra bodyweight that big a deal? Is my friend just full of shit?

He's probably bullshitting you..
It's pretty hard to get yields like that. Especially when you're just standing on the straightener, he'd need to weigh quite a bit to really make that much of a difference.

So when it comes to bottle jack presses...

If i'm only pressing 1g on average, with a puck about 1.5 inches wide post press, 2 tons should be enough? That should put you in the right range based on the charts a few posts back. But i'm asking if the jack will actually be enough. Say you make a press with a 2 ton bottle jack, are you putting out 2 tons with it? even on a 1 square inch area, in a perfect world situation? Is it really possible to put out 4000 pounds of pressure with a 2 ton bottle jack press?

I'm asking because If I planned for about 3000 psi, with a 1.77 square inch post squish puck, in a perfect world i'd need only a 3 ton jack to get me the right pressure spread out. 2 tons might even be better with a smaller press size, although the pressure would be more around 2500 psi

But will a bottle jack press ever do that? When the plates are touching and you pump down a few more times, is it actually pushing with the force it says it has on the jack?
Or do I really need a 4, or 6, or even 8 ton jack to get the pressure i'm after? Or maybe a little 2 ton bottle jack would really be enough. My vise is done, the handle is useless how bent it is and I just can't get any pressure with it. I'm stuck with the clamps until i go hydraulics. I can't justify going through vises when a couple ton press may cost less. So do i need to make a press that can hold an 8 ton jack, or is a desktop 2 ton press all i'd need..? And then is that even enough pressure still? Should I be aiming for much more pressure anyway?

 

[Cannabis-Hardware-Ed]

WTF? Am i burning off oil in that 1-2 seconds? Is the extra bodyweight that big a deal? Is my friend just full of shit?

Impossible to tell unless you can watch and verify, but 28% seems a bit high, as the flower would have to have contained 28% at least to begin with. Thats a crazy high % for a strain. Cup winners occasionally go higher...but that's really rarified air. If its true...WANT.

But will a bottle jack press ever do that? When the plates are touching and you pump down a few more times, is it actually pushing with the force it says it has on the jack?

A pressure gauge is the only way to know. Hopefully manufacturers are hedging the numbers, so a 2 ton jack in reality can produce 2.1 tons...but they list it as 2 to ensure you can get there.

 

[shark sandwich]

It sounds like the friend may be calculating yield using pre- and post- press chip weights, rather than measuring the weight the rosin itself. This will give inflated results, because there is always a decent amount of mass lost to the atmosphere, even at lower temperatures. A 30% reduction in chip weight is possible with good material and a thorough press, but about 15-20% of that lost mass will dissipate into the atmosphere, and the actual collected yield will only be around 25%.

 

[peterpiper]

Only been pressing rosin for a couple of weeks now
Have only done Lebanese pollom and Nepalese black but I have got 37% return from the pollom and 35% from the black
Happy days