Grind or not grind?

When using bubble bags, should I grind my weed and trimmings first???

Or should I just break them up???

Thanks,

ILL

just break them up

work with a scissor and yes just break it up....

I wonder about that too, for my vaporizer. I hate the idea of damaging or losing even a single trichome. I'd use scissors more often but it's such a pain in the ass. I try to rest assured that I can scrape the grinder later and get back some of what I've lost.

Actually I've tried it both ways.

It seems like I get a lighter color when I throw the buds in a blender first.

But I don't know if thats a good thing or not.

I haven't smoked the hash I've made yet. I'm on a hiatus from smoking right now.

I like to take breaks from smoking from time to time.

But you guys say to just break it up, so I'll do it that way.

Thanks,

ILL

ILIKETOLEARN said:

Actually I've tried it both ways.

It seems like I get a lighter color when I throw the buds in a blender first.

But I don't know if thats a good thing or not.

I haven't smoked the hash I've made yet. I'm on a hiatus from smoking right now.

I like to take breaks from smoking from time to time.

But you guys say to just break it up, so I'll do it that way.

Thanks,

ILL

Click to expand...

Hard freeze first, then crumble while still cold.
Because frozen trichs are more durable.

Tried a blender once.
Bad idea!
Overdo it just a little bit and you dilute your hash with trash.
Used an ice cream maker. Too gentle.

Now I use a large, ol' kine, potato masher by hand.
Higher and cleaner yield than the paint stirring wands an' power drill method.
Getting 11% resin by weight in a couple hours.

And it's very clean, yah?

Aloha,
Weezard

wow. ok.

so you just load ur trim/ice/water in your bucket and use the masher as you would make mashed potatoes with it?

Just up, down, up, down, up, down?


Also,

I have the 1 gallon bubble bag set and I find it hard to mix in such a small container so...

I put my ICE/WATER/BUD in a 5 gallon.

Mix it up in the 5 gallon.

Then strain it through the bags.

Is this a bad idea??

Would I get more yield if I was to mix inside the bags???

Thanks,

ILL

Wanker hash.

Wanker hash.

ILIKETOLEARN said:

wow. ok.

so you just load ur trim/ice/water in your bucket and use the masher as you would make mashed potatoes with it?

Just up, down, up, down, up, down?

Like churning butter.

The switchback design of da ol' kine wire masher is perfect for pulling buds open and knocking off resin globs.


Also,

I have the 1 gallon bubble bag set and I find it hard to mix in such a small container so...

I put my ICE/WATER/BUD in a 5 gallon.

Mix it up in the 5 gallon.

Then strain it through the bags.

Is this a bad idea??

Good idea, saves wear and tear on the bags.

Would I get more yield if I was to mix inside the bags???

I doubt it.

Thanks,

No charge, brah.
I was already in the neighborhood.

ILL

Click to expand...

I mix in a 5g. bucket with a spigot in the bottom.
Put a 220 bag in that bucket, then crushed ice n water and let it chill for an hour.
Then toss in the buds/sugar leaf.

Mash 'till ya stop gettin' hash.

To keep it at the ideal "mushiness", I let it gravity drain continuously to another 5g. bucket with the rest of the bags in it.
Under the bags is a pond pump with a 3/8" hose attached.
It pumps the icewater back up to the top bucket.

By adjusting the spigot, you can keep the mashing ice, "momma bear" kine.
(Not too watery, not too chunky.)

The 220 bag, keeps the spigot clear of debris and the rest of the bags grab all the resin, which keeps the pump clean.
A lot simpler than it sounds.
It's actually the easiest way to do it and still have a decent yield.
(Trust me on that, I'm a very lazy 'zard.)

Get's almost all the capitate trichomes.
The rest of the active ingredient is still useable as well.

After the hashing, you can throw the dross in a saucepan of water with a cup or two of butter.
Boil for a few hours, strain through a nylon stocking and put the liquid in the fridge.
The butter rises to the surface, turns a lovely shade of green and makes extremely potent p-nutbutter cookies with no grit.

But, I digress.
What was the question again?

Aloha
Weezard

Stir as lightly as you can for the first run because 1st run is about quality not quantity.

For the 2nd run, come back do a longer and harder mix for quantity

Also, never grind material for making bubble hash, fine plant matter will get through. If your bubble winds up green, you probably either mixed too long, mixed too hard, or the material was ground up or too fine to begin with. Hope this helps!

Also, a few things to keep in mind during the whole process:

1. Be careful with the trichomes! Touch them with your hands only if necessary, but try not to at all. Also, DO NOT press the hash or apply pressure to it in any way until it is COMPLETELY dry, this can ruin your hash and cause mold later on because the water bonds with the hash on a molecular level making it almost impossible to dry completely!

2. Heat, pressure, and light are all bad for hash! (Light to a lesser degree than the other 2)

3. The drying stage is just as important as the extraction stage! Proper drying technique can also make or break your stash. I break mine up to dry on thick cardboard after it leaves the "drying" screen. I use a credit card to lightly break it up. If its to difficult to break up, you probably left it on the drying screen too long. Remember, do it with the least amount of pressure as possible!

i have only bubbled leaf and popcorn. i leave them whole to minimize organic contamination. wooden spoon hash is the best tasting in my opinion. second choice being hash worked with a dough hook (professional answer to a wooden spoon) to minimize fracturing the leaf and releasing green contaminants.

yummmmm....

eloquentsoution said:

i have only bubbled leaf and popcorn. i leave them whole to minimize organic contamination. wooden spoon hash is the best tasting in my opinion. second choice being hash worked with a dough hook (professional answer to a wooden spoon) to minimize fracturing the leaf and releasing green contaminants.

yummmmm....

Click to expand...

Ever tried the washing machine or Bubblenow method? In my opinion it produces quality that at least rivals hand stirring if not surpasses it. I think it has to do with the fact that nothing is beating against the material besides ice and other material so seems like there would be even less contamination you know? Just my opinion, what do you think?

TheMadHasher said:

Ever tried the washing machine or Bubblenow method? In my opinion it produces quality that at least rivals hand stirring if not surpasses it. I think it has to do with the fact that nothing is beating against the material besides ice and other material so seems like there would be even less contamination you know? Just my opinion, what do you think?

Click to expand...

i will be borrowing one to refine the process as i was not impressed with the results achieved with this appliance the first time.

most of the actual separation happens at the melting point and has less to do with abrasion then most think. you are right with that.

i was thinking about a hobart using a dough hook. one would retrofit for this purpose, putting a drain in the bottom.

i do love the taste of bubble. just can't handle the cold.

straight sativa bud not crushed produced a cleared 1st grade wash that was transparent as hot glue. The second wash broken up nugs had a more yellow tint. The more degraded and stoney the hash became the darker.

if one were to filter with say a .25 micron filter, it will make no difference if one grinds as all organic matter would be removed. yes?

i, however, sieve rather then grind for a cleaner finished product.

NEVER GRIND!!

but i do things that would make most people cringe!!!

In my setup I use one 50 gal drum to mix in, the bubble bag, or just the one bag is in a 30 gal garbage can with no bottom, and I have another 50 gal drum to collect all the hash/water mix that has been filtered. I never ever mix inside the bubble bags. I now always use fresh, frozen trim, and I use about the equivilant of 20 bags of ice. I have a 8 amp drill with a triangle mixing head. I agitate for 20 minutes. I never break up buds, I let the drill do that.

I have access to an oil pit to do oil changes on your car so it makes this very easy. The work barrel is on a table over the pit. The other 50 gal collection drum is in the bottom of the pit, and the garbage can with no bottom that holds the bubble bag sits onto of the collection drum. Can you picture this?

I have a 3 inch ball valve that I use to release the mix from the 1st 50 gal mixing drum into the garbage can with no bottom and the bubble bag.. I have the 30 gal bubble bags. I have the "work"bag, the blue bag that catches all the leaf and material only inside a 30 gal garbage can. The bottom of the garage can is cut off and it is ballanced on another 50 gal drum. In the bottom 50 gal drum there is a 1 inch valve at the very bottom, and another 1 inch valve 8 inches off the bottom. I let all the water from the work bag fall into this last drum with the two 1 inch valves. I let the water has mix settle. After about 20 minutes I drain the barrel down to the top valve(the one 8 inches from the bottom) only. All the hash begins to settle at the bottom of this last barrel. After about 10-15 washes, yes I have checked with a microscope and I keep getting fresh tricomb heads, I use a little giant pump to pump all the stuff from the barrel through the last bag (purple). I then press between the orange screens they give you and wring the hash out. I sprinkle it out on cardboard for a few days before I press.

I'll take some pics of my contraption and setup on the weekend. I will be doing a few runs maybe I'll take a video!!