Rosin.... Solventless Cannabis Oil

[Hackerman]

Not sure where the originator got the rosin name but it seems to have stuck (no pun intended) so I'll go with that name as well.

I'll try to sum up what I have learned in the thread at ICMag in just a few posts. You can go over there and read the entire thread but it's over 2000 posts and growing so it's a long catch-up if you want to join in over there.

A user called Hashmasta-Kut came up with the best (according to popular opinion) portable and inexpensive model. It is simply a hair straightener that he took apart and fastened the heating plates to a hand clamp. I'll post a pic of his and a few other members below.

There are various heads on the hair straighteners. I believe he said the ones they call titanium were the best. There are also many different ways to attach the heads to the clamp, depending on which model straightener you bought and the type of clamp. I imagine most of them are pretty similar. Your mileage may vary.

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[Hackerman]

My press (and a few others) is a little different. I used a Harbor Freight A-Frame shop press.

The heating elements I used are the same as what's is used in the hair straighteners. I bought mine direct from China for about $5 each. The platens are simply 5" x 5" x 0.25" aluminum plates.

Pretty simple stuff.

I added a Rock and Roll theme to mine (we were talking about commercial models and this was my joke). However, the basics are as shown.

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[Hackerman]

OK, now you have your equipment. Time to press.

We have found that pressed pucks make for the best yield and least amount of debris in the finished product.

Many people like to press "snakes". I like to press round pucks using my hash press and an arbor press. You can put popcorn buds in without pressing but we all found that we get better results by pressing the material (into whatever shape) before pressing it.

You will find what shape works best for your setup.

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[Hackerman]

Now, you simply put the puck between some parchment paper and press. Let the paper hang out the end so the rosin can flow out from between the heating platens. But, not so close to the edge that the material squeezes out.

The temperature should be between about 210F and 250F. At 210 the yield is a little less but at 250 the rosin gets burned and darker. Again, your mileage will vary depending on your setup.

Also, I got really bad results the first couple presses so don't get discouraged. It takes a little tweaking to get all the variables dialed in.

Humidity of the original material is a factor. Temperature of the platens is a variable. Duration of press is a variable. And amount of pressure is a variable. All these variables will be different depending on your situation and your setup.

I find that 30 seconds at 230F is just perfect for my setup.

Well, that's a REALLY brief summary. Fire away your questions and I'll do my best to answer.

 

[Hackerman]

Something else. I usually press between 1/2 gram and 1 gram at a time with my setup. Anything bigger squeezes out the sides.

 

[Rosebud]

Wow.

 

[Hushpuppy]

Wow you beat me to the punch So what does the end result look like? What do you catch it in and how do you contain and keep it? The end result sounds almost like "dab" to me.

BTW, very nice DIY

 

[sunakard2000]

you are spot on Hush... thats precisely what you end up with, just without any solvents, pretty much the same end result with less plant fats and other impurities, granted he setup he shows is quite large scale, a lot of people just use a hair straightening flat iron, its not as good as a system with a clamp since the clamp offers even pressure as opposed so less even pressure by hand... but in theory its the same...

Rosin is simply a solvent-less resin concentrate gained from heat and pressure for a short time... as opposed to chemical solvents where proper purging is mandatory and takes days... plus its much easier in the fact that one, no chance of explosions, and two, you can Rosin anything from small buds, to keif (sift), to hash, and even compressed pucks of shake (trim)... and the best part imo, even if you mess up a bit and basically cook it a tad too long or too short, the end product is a nice full melt dab... no impurities left behind, of course it all depends on how you do it and how well its done, sometimes with small nugs or trim you can get a little plant matter in the Rosin but all in all its supposed to be amazing especially in flavor.


i havnt tried it myself but the idea is pretty simple compaired to a BHO or solvent extraction, and equipment is like 50-60 bucks tops not hundreds for a proper setup... lol, when i have the chance and extra cash, most likely after my next harvest, ill try and give this Rosin thing a try...

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

The idea of solventless resin appeals to me. I have the same questions as hush...plus a few others. Does the hand clamp tighten down enough to do the job? I know that for woodworking projects, they can be lacking. Space-wise the hand clamp unit would be better for me. Or maybe work up something with a bench vise? I guess my question gets down to how much pressure you need.

Is the fan speed controller in the pic to control the temp of the plates? What about the thermometer--is this some kind of probe used for cooking?

Also curious what the final product looks like?

 

[sunakard2000]

look up Rosin tutorials on youtube, there are a TON of videos out there... here is a quick one with a far more basic setup then Hacker shows...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7tWlc3vBaE

 

[Hackerman]

Most people started out with a standard hair straightener and they simply stood on it or put it in a bench vise (as I did). However, the plastic covers break in real short order so people started taking the heating plates apart from the plastic and pressing those in a vise. Then Hashmasta-Kut came up with the hand clamp idea.

So, as a minimum, standing on it was sufficient weight to start. My press is 6 tons. I used a 1 ton arbor press and it worked fine but I got tired of holding the press down by hand so I got the A-Frame press. This setup is smaller than it looks.

The hand clamp seems nice over a bench vise because you can hold it at any angle. The press I use is nice because it's totally hands free.

Yes, the fan controller is used to control the temperature of my platens. I didn't use a hair straightener with a temperature adjustment so I had to add my own. And, yep, it's a standard thermometer probe. Under 10 bucks. It's a cheapo but it seems to be consistent.

The big thing that got me on rosin was the soventless aspect. As much as I smoke, BHO was out of the question. I don't care how clean it claims to be. I smoke way too much for any solvent extract (in my opinion). I really like this stuff.

Attached are a couple more pics to help explain.

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[sunakard2000]

lol dang looks like i need to invest in a small table top vise, im really itching to try this, like so bad, iv got this bud from a buddy that he calls "sticky" its one of those "grind up a 1/4 and almost fill the bottom keif catch area of a 3 inch wide grinder" its great stuff, soooo many crystals, ooh so many, i can break a bud by hand and out puffs a pile of trichomes lol so i really wanna try to Rosin that "sticky"

 

[ston-loc]

Bow chicka wow wow :48:

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[ston-loc]

Home made diy bench top press :aok:

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[my my]

I have tried the hand held method with Ice water hash i made, and have not been able to get the rosin hard enough to pick off the parchment paper... it stays gooey, even after being in the freezer for days....
Thanks for any insight on this...
My My

 

[Hackerman]

That is most likely caused by the temperature that you are pressing at. I'm not sure if it's too hot or not hot enough but it seems that 200 -220 is about optimum.

Try some different temperatures.

It definitely takes a little tweaking. I got about 5% return for the first few weeks I was playing with it. Now, I always get over 10% return.

Humidity in your room can also play a big roll. Too dry is not good.

Humidity of your herb will also play a role.

Like I said, It's a process that requires a little tweaking.

I found about 60% humidity of the flowers works pretty well. And my room went from about 10-15% humidity to 35-40% and that also improved my yield. And, about 200 -220F on the plate temperature.

 

[my my]

Thanks Hackerman.
I make my ice water hash like frenchy does, so it is a bit moist imo..
I have a thermal temp gun,, and the first couple times (using 1 gram ) each time. the plates were too hot,, but then i started to make sure it was right about 200F...
I have not yet tried a bud.. only the hash..
Again, thanks for the advise

 

[Hackerman]

I have not pressed much hash. Especially bubble. I love the taste of really good full melt bubble hash and I'm a 'smoker' more than I am a 'vaper' so if it can be smoked, rather than vaped, I'm smokin' it. LOL

I even tried to smoke rosin at first. In an old fashioned 'hash oil' pipe (little round ball at the end of a tube) but I wasn't real happy with the taste. It burnt it from the flame being too hot. Vaping rosin is an incredible taste.

I have pressed some dry sift hash and I didn't get great results. I'm sure I just don't have that tweaked in yet. I have some old trim I'm going to press soon. I'm curious what the yield will be. I have always pressed popcorn in the past.

Rosin is pretty awesome. If you like smoking full melt bubble hash for the taste and the aroma, rosin is the only thing I found that you can vape that also gives that full satisfaction of taste and flavor.

Oh, and I guess it gets you high, too. LOL

 

[umbra]

I have a press that I got on ebay. For flower pucks I use 240* F, for dry ice kief pucks I use 230* F. For taste and flavor live resin. It is a bho extraction done while the plant is still alive. It gives the most flower to oil terpenes and flavors of any of the extraction processes. Honestly, for all the effort in making a press, it is just easier and less expensive to buy a press. Mine was $400. While not cheap, it was worth the sheer aggravation of trial and error.

 

[Hackerman]

$400 is pretty reasonable if it works well. They started out really high priced. And, most of them didn't work very well. You might share what brand you have if you're happy with it.

Plus, I'm a 'DIY' kind of guy so it was fun running through the stages from hair straightener to what I have now. LOL

I did go though 3 presses, 4 or 5 sets of plates and assorted other changes so I probably have more than $400 into it anyway. Plus, I have a friend who has a mini machine shop who did a couple things from me that I just could never have done.

When I think of all the new methods that have come along, from rosin to bubble bags and screens, to BHO, to dry ice with micron rated screens, to vaps, to...... wow. Sure seems a long ways from my Zig-Zag Wheat Straw papers and bamboo bong (that always leaked) to the knowledge and tools we have today.

Awesome. I wish I could live another hundred years.