The Rosin Technique has been picking up steam thanks to the ease with which it can be employed at home, with limited materials, without hazards, and getting some good results. It is a practice that can prove particularly valuable to those patients who need cannabis concentrates to feel better.
Normally cannabis extractions are produced using elements like fats, ethanol, butane or alcohol. However, new techniques that are equally effective and do not employ dissolvent products are appearing, little by little. One of them is the Rosin Technique, notable for its use of a hair iron, pressure and heat. Those who have tried it report that, with a little practice, it is possible to obtain results in less than five minutes.
The process is gaining popularity lately thanks to the social networks. The key to it is salvaging the plant's volatile terpenes, to make them evaporate; they later turn liquid and, finally, solidify. It is crucial that the grass used not be damp, but neither can it be totally dry, in which case it will have lost much of its quality and a large portion of its terpenes.
It is recommended that the iron used feature digital temperature control, although this is not an essential requirement either. One also needs non-stick parchment paper, or the kind of white paper regularly used in ovens, placed on the trays. The most important thing is that it be impermeable, as it cannot absorb the resin.
It is advisable for the buds used not to be very big, or at least adapted to the thickness of the device (the wider, the better). The temperature should be between 160 and 180 degrees; if exceeded the resulting product will be much darker and of lower quality.
Once the iron is hot the process begins. Cut some sheets of parchment paper and fold them in half. Place some of the raw material in the centre of the fold and press to compact it.
Then iron each paper where the buds were left. The aroma of the strain used will emit a strong smell. The heat should not be applied more than 3 to 5 seconds, although everything depends on the result you are after. Less time means you won't get all the substance you wanted, but more time means a good proportion will evaporate.
Quickly but carefully, open the paper, without breaking it. In it you'll be able to observe the hot concentrate produced, taking the form of small drops, as well as the squashed bud. This can be gathered and placed in another piece of paper, applying heat once again to obtain more extract, thereby getting everything the cannabis can deliver, until it is completely flat and without any substance.
Use a small tool, like tweezers, to clear away the small particles of grass that remain in the liquid. Then you will need to let it cool off (the paper can be frozen) so that you can easily remove it and obtain a solid resin in form of a “dab”: transparent, shiny and featuring an attractive colour somewhere between yellow and amber (the amounts are limited).
With approximately two grams of grass you can obtain quite high yields: between 10 to 15%, very similar to those achieved with other types of techniques, although it depends on the variety used (Haze Amnesia tends to allow for high yields). However, if the amount of marijuana ironed is reduced, the yield will increase.
As can be seen, this is a technique that is quite doable at home, does not require the use of dangerous products, and does not make a mess of your working space. In fact, the tools needed for the process are very few in comparison with others that call for special bags, liquids, buckets, strainers, ovens and other lab material.
One of this practice's few drawbacks is that hair irons do not tend to be very wide, which considerably limits the size of the paper that can be heated each time. Other alternatives are already being tried out to produce more hashish by using larger irons, like those used to silkscreen t-shirts.
This is one of the safest forms of cannabis extraction ever discovered, as it does not involve flammable products or seriously hazardous tools. You just need to be careful with the hot part of the iron; the use of thermal gloves is advisable. In addition, this technique is highly valuable in that it facilitates access to medical cannabis by patients who need it in a way that is clean, of high quality, and very fast.
Due to its novelty, until just a few months ago few trusted it, many unable to believe that such good results could be obtained using such a simple technique. Nevertheless, the experts state that it all depends on the quality of the marijuana you use, and not just your method: using the best grass is always a fundamental requirement.