Live rosin / fresh frozen & rosin press
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ondoogyob
Well-Known Member
I have some fresh-frozen b-buds in my freezer that I intend to press into rosin. I allowed my material to dry for a day or two before freezing, chiefly to reduce the likelihood of cell rupture on freezing. I figured, this may reduce the amount of cellular mush being released on pressing. But, I'll let you know how well that served me, once I press it out.
Now, that said, if I had a freeze-dryer, I'd be inclined to freeze it as soon after harvest as possible.
Now, that said, if I had a freeze-dryer, I'd be inclined to freeze it as soon after harvest as possible.
TheTomFool
Member
I've been wondering about this for quite some time. What kind of press are you using?
igothydrotoneverywhere
Well-Known Member
have you thought about crushing up dry ice into a fine powder and sprinkling it in with your bud into the freezer? Ive had some pretty stellar results doing this and you can find the stuff at the grocery.
also neat to way to preserve bud is to carbonate it. put a tiny nugget of dry ice in a mason jar of bud and let it sublimate. It will keep it from oxidizing by pressurizing the can with co2. even pops when u open the can.
ondoogyob
Well-Known Member
Since my comment back in January, I've run 4 or 5 batches of fresh flower, using dry ice, along with a couple of runs of un-dried frozen flower (what is oxymoronically called "fresh frozen"), to produce what some refer to as "live" rosin. My basic process and findings are below.
First, I load my fresh flower and powdered dry ice into my Pollenmaster tumbler (150u screen). I then harvest the kief yield after 5 mins and then after 20 mins, moving it immediately into the freezer, until I'm ready to press it to rosin. Two of the three chemovars I've run yielded (at the 5 min mark) what, under a microscope, appears to be 90% glandular heads. The third chemovar contained closer to 70% glandular heads, with the usual contaminant (capitate stalks, non-glandular trichomes, pistils, etc.). This technique is fast and very efficient in extracting cannabis trichomes. Under a scope, the plant material that was left was slightly beat-up and completely devoid of glandular heads.
Pressing kief that still contains water can be messy and frustrating, esp. given the dramatically increased likelihood of a blowout. It's very difficult to pre-press this fresh/un-cured kief in a mold, as it squishes between the gaps in the mold, making a real mess. So, I fill the bags with about 15 g of powder. Once bagged, I find I have to press this fresh kief very very slowly, in most cases never putting more than 285 p.s.i. on it (i.e. less than 1 t of force over a 2x3.5" bag surface area) at 140F. After some time, the rosin flow naturally stops. At this point, more pressure can usually be applied, without the same risk of the bag splitting. My assumption is that sufficient water has been lost...in addition to the kief being fully heated. During this second phase, I can usually increase the pressure to approx. 3 t of force (i.e. 857 p.s.i.), producing a new stream of very nice rosin. Increasing the temp. to 160F seems to reduce blowouts and mobilise the rosin a little better during the second phase.
The rosin produced using the above tech. still contains a little water, which you can hear sizzle as you smoke it. For this reason, I'll put the rosin in a silicone tub and stir it periodically over the next couple of days, to ensure the excess water is lost. It will butter-up a little during this period, but not to the same extent the same material butters, if the pressed flower is dried/cured.
Does this tech. produce a rosin that is unique in any substantial way? IMO, it produces a very nice rosin that produces a very strong high (confirmed by multiple third-parties). One thing I love about the fresh/green rosin this approach produces is that it has lots of taste...with the chemovars I've run giving off a very nice green apple aroma.
First, I load my fresh flower and powdered dry ice into my Pollenmaster tumbler (150u screen). I then harvest the kief yield after 5 mins and then after 20 mins, moving it immediately into the freezer, until I'm ready to press it to rosin. Two of the three chemovars I've run yielded (at the 5 min mark) what, under a microscope, appears to be 90% glandular heads. The third chemovar contained closer to 70% glandular heads, with the usual contaminant (capitate stalks, non-glandular trichomes, pistils, etc.). This technique is fast and very efficient in extracting cannabis trichomes. Under a scope, the plant material that was left was slightly beat-up and completely devoid of glandular heads.
Pressing kief that still contains water can be messy and frustrating, esp. given the dramatically increased likelihood of a blowout. It's very difficult to pre-press this fresh/un-cured kief in a mold, as it squishes between the gaps in the mold, making a real mess. So, I fill the bags with about 15 g of powder. Once bagged, I find I have to press this fresh kief very very slowly, in most cases never putting more than 285 p.s.i. on it (i.e. less than 1 t of force over a 2x3.5" bag surface area) at 140F. After some time, the rosin flow naturally stops. At this point, more pressure can usually be applied, without the same risk of the bag splitting. My assumption is that sufficient water has been lost...in addition to the kief being fully heated. During this second phase, I can usually increase the pressure to approx. 3 t of force (i.e. 857 p.s.i.), producing a new stream of very nice rosin. Increasing the temp. to 160F seems to reduce blowouts and mobilise the rosin a little better during the second phase.
The rosin produced using the above tech. still contains a little water, which you can hear sizzle as you smoke it. For this reason, I'll put the rosin in a silicone tub and stir it periodically over the next couple of days, to ensure the excess water is lost. It will butter-up a little during this period, but not to the same extent the same material butters, if the pressed flower is dried/cured.
Does this tech. produce a rosin that is unique in any substantial way? IMO, it produces a very nice rosin that produces a very strong high (confirmed by multiple third-parties). One thing I love about the fresh/green rosin this approach produces is that it has lots of taste...with the chemovars I've run giving off a very nice green apple aroma.
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ondoogyob
Well-Known Member
Yeah, recently dried material is a much better way to go than trying to press fresh flower. I've pressed fresh flowers a couple of times now and what you get is lots of sizzling between the plates...and release of what might best be described as a "sauce" of water, minor plant pigments, and rosin. After letting the excess water evaporate, the rosin can be harvested.