Rosin press on the cheap

[Aloner]

I had been considering trying my luck with a d.i.y. hair straightener rosin press. Today saw a deal online for (what looks like) a nice straightener with digital temp readout for only $17.25 so I pulled the trigger.

In case anyone is on the fence, here's the link:
Remington Pro 2" Flat Iron at Amazon

[Canuck147]

Cool - 2 inches wide seems ideal - way cheaper in USA - checked amazon in Canada and the same iron is $59.60 Canadian.

[DoctorJohnson]

Have fun squishing!
I'm still learning about no-solvent extraction, but here are some things that I have learned so far:

1. Best preparation and selection

a) Do not grind

b) Do pick out bigger sticks from buds.

c) This method only works with sticky, quality (high THC) material.

d) Material should be at 62% to 70% relative humidity. (I like 70%.) This is important. Too dry and the solids can soak up the rosin like a dry sponge, too wet and it just squishes like wet sponge.


2. Best substrate

a) Silicone-coated parchment (PTFE--Teflon, "OilSlick"--seems to soften too much and rosin sticks to it.) I use RAW brand parchment, and it works great, but I suspect that grocery store parchment, which is cheaper, might work just as well.


3. Best filter material

a) None at all, just pick out the green bits and get higher yield. If you squish it right, you shouldn't get much solid matter in your rosin at all. Some people use muslin (gauze, I think).


3. Best temperature

a) As a rule, the lower the better.

b) About 115C/240F max

c) About 90C/194 F min

d) Varies with material (flower, hash) and strain.


4. Best time

a) Varies with pressure

b) Probably a minimum of 30 seconds (I am currently using about 2 minutes)

c) Long and slow is better than hot and fast.


5. Best pressure

a) As a rule, the higher the better.
b) For hair straighteners, as much as you can get (stand on that thing! )
c) Taking the plates out hair straighteners and installing them in a vice will give better results
d) Some people adjust the pressure with time--gradually increasing and then backing off. I just crank the straightener plates between the jaws of a vice with as much pressure as I can get.

Finally, there is a significant amount of resin left in the squished pucks, so save them and throw them in alcohol or put them in coconut oil to extract what's left.

** Practice definitely helps. **

[Canuck147]

That kind of info is great DoctorJohnson - just what I wanted to know - Thanks.

[DoctorJohnson]

I'm just figuring it out for myself.

[Aloner]

All very helpful. Thanks!

[NebulaHaze]

I've never tried this myself, I hope you let us see how it goes!

[Aloner]

Will do!

[DoctorJohnson]

Here are some shots of squishing a quarter gram of White Widow just now.

* Flowers were harvested just six days ago so are very fresh and at 63% humidity, having just gone in the jar today after six days of open-air drying. (I think fresh buds might work better with this technique because the water and other volatiles haven't evaporated from the flower and the rosin leaving it hardened. It's still hydrated and extracts easily. That's just my working hypothesis.)

* I squeezed with as much pressure as I could get for 2 minutes 15 seconds at 220 F. That seems to work well but I'm still experimenting and may try 10 degrees cooler. I certainly wouldn't go any hotter.

In the center photo you can see the rosin squishes out from the bud like a halo. It never looks like there's very much until you scrape it up onto a dab tool.

The rosin is beautiful and clear without using any kind of filtering wrap around the bud (which reduces yield). The last photo is from just one squeeze.

*I fold the pancake over on itself two times after each squeeze and squeeze again for a total of three times. I save the spent pancakes to extract the last of the THC with solvent (and there is still some in there). You can see a bunch of pancakes in the medicine bottle in the first photo.

* The straightener is a KIPOZI Professional Titanium Flat Iron Hair Straightener with Digital LCD Display, which is a high quality (e.g. nice, long silicone rubber cord and high quality controls and display) unit for $37 at Amazon (and very easy to disassemble if you want to vice-mount the plates).

* The parchment paper is RAW Unrefined Parchment Paper Squares 5" x 5" squares, which are kind of spendy, but work great.

[alltatup]

PERFECT color on the rosin: your pressing method is working quite well!

[DoctorJohnson]

I was really happy with the color, but you know, I suspect that the age of the buds (or lack thereof) was a big factor.

Using the exact same conditions on some store-bought bud I got a deep brown rosin.