Which Extraction Method Tastes Better?

T.C. Bosby said:

I've been reading up on Rosin, BHO, QWISO, QWET, etc. But my concern isn't necessarily yield. I want to make a concentrate that preserves terpenes and taste. In this case I'd be using whole buds from a soil grown, organic Tangie crop.

Are there any opinions or feedback on which extraction method will produce the best tasting concentrate?

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OP, out of all my micro craft extractions, I personally enjoy a “live resin“ butane extract of a choice fresh frozen aromatic plant. That is a mature flowered plant harvested and flowers clipped and packed fresh in their extraction vessel.
I am careful of over-purging this specific product as the volatile terpene content is the goal. An oily variety is important, terpene content will be higher.

I dab a personal arsenal of live resin, love it. In my eyes it’s a smooth, tasty and potent product that boasts an efficiency from early extraction of short chain aromas

swedsteven said:

Rosin from my leaf i just shake it on top off my table with a 5 gallon buble bags 220 dry then i collect kief stuuff it in 90micron squeezh bag and o fuck that to much14 g 15 min et voila !View attachment 4411421View attachment 4411422View attachment 4411423View attachment 4411424

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It’s like an ink blot test. A nice butterfly

Devil's cabbage said:

I have a slug 33, but I don't use it much, I can't seem to be able to get the temp right, how do you know when to stop heating it? Also it blows out the bottom as I'm finishing, got any advice?

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I have found it it very sensitive to RH% if less than 62% weed can soak up the oil. Not sure what size you are using but on the Fat Mac, it's best to preheat with two torches for a couple of minutes and let it cool down a bit. I have made a mod with a valve spring, but to avoid the blow out it needs to be heated for 3 mins all the while slowly pushing the plunger down. It does take a few practice goes. You can make a mod with a coat hanger wire in order to keep the top part pushed down. But the valve spring works best. Also I use some metal disks on each side of the silicon sealer plug.

I have found that ethanol extraction will retain flavorful terps if evaporation done at low temps.

I have done sub-zero QW batches and batches with several combined washes at room temp. Evaporation always done in a rotovap under vacuum.

Sub-zero extraction typically yielded lower in quantity, but quality much higher than room temp extraction. It comes down to what you want for a final product.

For a Full Spectrum Oil, I would do the extraction at room temp and combine several washes. This will yield the most cannabinoids. Other than filtering the solution down to 1.5um, I dont process it further.

If I want mind bending dabs, I do sub-zero extractions and some processing with Carbon and DE. I have never had my concentrates sent to a lab and tested for potency. I can say I prefer my dabs over an 87% THC Diamond I bought from the Pot Store. In my opinion, my concentrate wins with flavor and potency. THC diamond the only thing I have ever bought from a Pot Shop.

The sub-zero QW extractions are easier to clean up for final product. Room temp extractions pull more garbage and require a little more work.

Temperature is key to retain terpenes. The quality of the flower will also determine a pleasant flavor or not. Garbage In - Garbage Out.

A Source Turbo is a good start if you want to do ethanol/ISO extraction. Low temp and under vacuum. Great for 1oz-2oz batches. Very simple to use. It is what I started with when I got half-assed serious making concentrate. I still use mine now and then even though I have a rotovap.

yummy fur said:

I just started a sub reddit, /r/slug33 there's nothing there yet as I was just waiting for my testing plant to be ready which it now is. View attachment 4403266
and I'll soon be doing a lot of controlled testing.

I discovered that the blowout thing is a problem where the slug pops up, because it releases the pressure and it also allow some weed to creep under the edge which further reduces the pressure. I addressed this problem with a bent piece of metal to hold it down. I went through various permutations. Originally instead of having a hole in the centre it was a single strip that just went on one side. See it working in this clip...

Don't focus so much on times that other people use. It is important to know that it's almost impossible to overheat the slug. I've tried to purposely ruin the rosin to see where the limit was and I didn't find one.

It's important to use a seal in the plunger for the Fat Mac, and it would be a good idea for the smaller ones too. I found some silicone O rings on eBay and also some little metal disks 15mm in diameter, I sandwich the o ring between two of them. In fact I use 3 on the end that hits the puck.View attachment 4403268

Without a pressure wing I think the best way is while heating it, only turn the vice as you feel it loosen up, when you have about a centimetre to go before the slug has popped up, just keep heating, do not worry about over heating it won't happen. Keep heating till you see a bit of rosin, then keep turning as slowly as you like.

Once you put an o ring and some metal disks in, it's much easier.

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How do I watch your video? It says it is private.

CronicOldGuy said:

How do I watch your video? It says it is private.

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I've moved on from the 'wing' idea, to using a spring that is the perfect dimensions. So all there is between the plunger and the body of the slug is a spring. Let me know if there are other details you want to know.

doublejj said:

You have a beautiful crop of organic meds, why would add ANY chemicals?.......Rosin is as clean as your organic material.....Rosin for the win

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T.C. asked about a method for terpenes and taste. Doesn't the high heat used in Rosin pressing lose a ton of terpenes?
The best taste and effect I have made was from BHO. As Fadedawg says, you need low heat to avoid losing the terpenes. Butane boils off at room temperature.
In many cases, Rosin is inconvenient, such as in vape pens. Vape pens are ideal where I live because cannabis is still illegal and vape pens are discrete. Rosin can't be used in vape pens without adding adjuncts anyway, so for vape pens, it's a no-brainer to extract with solvent. But whenever possible I much prefer a herb vape with real organic bud... and Rosin is already detracting from that organic experience.
Vape pens maintain an incredibly full flavour, but also the smell remains subtle.

mistertea said:

T.C. asked about a method for terpenes and taste. Doesn't the high heat used in Rosin pressing lose a ton of terpenes?
The best taste and effect I have made was from BHO. As Fadedawg says, you need low heat to avoid losing the terpenes. Butane boils off at room temperature.
In many cases, Rosin is inconvenient, such as in vape pens. Vape pens are ideal where I live because cannabis is still illegal and vape pens are discrete. Rosin can't be used in vape pens without adding adjuncts anyway, so for vape pens, it's a no-brainer to extract with solvent. But whenever possible I much prefer a herb vape with real organic bud... and Rosin is already detracting from that organic experience.
Vape pens maintain an incredibly full flavour, but also the smell remains subtle.

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It is easy to experiment with temp and time when squishing rosin. Also different strains produce rosin at lower temps and less time. I prefer a good clean rosin to any extract dissolved in a solvent.
I vape rosin all the time in my Yocan EVOLVE Plus dab pen.

It's the refilling in a public place, such as a bar or restaurant, that I find awkward. I have a cheap Yocan herb vape that is incredibly good for the price!

mistertea said:

It's the refilling in a public place, such as a bar or restaurant, that I find awkward. I have a cheap Yocan herb vape that is incredibly good for the price!

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You can purchase extra heat coil cups and caps and pre load them, carry several in your pocket at any time. Its easy to just unscrew them and swap in another, you can even switch back and forth with different strains between hits.

That's not a bad idea. How long does a loaded coil last?

mistertea said:

That's not a bad idea. How long does a loaded coil last?

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You don't want to overfill them, but ive had them last for a couple of hrs. depends a lot on strain and how many hits you take per hr.

Oh and I prefer the quarts cups to the wire coils....