How to acquire your plant matter for blasting your concentrate

     This is what I have always done, and this cycle has allowed me to have my "medicine" consistently year-around. If I smoke a reasonable amount and don't way overdo it (way overdoing it is what I'm the best at) I don't have to buy anything THC products: dabs, flower, vape cartridges, extract or edibles at all. The only things I have to buy are butane, sometimes a new globe and nail or new banger, soil, nutrients, sometimes new pieces, just to simplify it I only have to ever buy equipment but never the product. This is by far WAY cheaper than making trips to the dispensary or to a local plug. It's the difference between spending about $200 in a whole year or $200 a month (maybe even a week).

     Alright so my year cycling begins in March because that's when I start ordering my seeds and decide what I'm going to grow that year. I'll use 2020 as my example: I was living at that time in Massachusetts, Cape Cod to be precise. It's a small town called Chatham and my ex-girlfriend, and I were in a winter rental. That year I ordered in September but only high yielding auto flowers. That year was the exception to the March start because it's freezing there and autos indoor is your only option until June when your plants can survive a night. I bought coco medium (3cu yds for about $40), and I bought 3 high efficiency, full spectrum, LED grow lights (they were approx. $25 each)(from Amazon), I did non-organic that time but even so I was running Fox Farm nutrients which I bought on Ebay (was a 3 bottle system veg, to flower, to ripen and cost under $33), I also bought colloidal silver, Super Thrive (under $12), sea kelp additive (about $14) , 1 digital PH tester ($11), a TDS tester($6), a digital scale($7), smart pots(five 10 gal bags for $30), and small desk fans (garage sale $2). (All of that up to the end ran me about $220, but much of that was either one time purchase or lasts a long time). Then the seeds I bought from 420 Fast Buds. I bought high yield, fast finish autoflowers. I would grow my plants, harvest, do a rough trim of fan leaves (while still wet) and discard those, trim the bigger sugar leaves and save them, dry out the herb and the trim in separately, do the more manicured trim (this is called a hybrid trim.), cure both my flower and my trim in separate containers, and then after a minimum cure of 2 weeks I would smoke the bud for the next 2 months or so. When that was almost gone, I would blast the trim. People think you need to use your buds for blasting your dabs but the trim works great. It also turns something that you have little use for into something incredible! You can also use it to make edibles, but I vote dabs are way better! I would blast 35g of trim and get back 5-7g of dabs. Then you just start the whole process again.    

     I'm not saying blasting trim is the only way to fill your extractor. You can also put big, beautiful totally smokable buds in there. It's just that I feel like that is a total waste. Because if you have great buds then you can have great rosin! I'll blog about that soon. 

    Those are your options for DIY BHO: trim or buds. If you're a mega baller, then just go to the dispensary and spend $3,000+ on tons of top shelf buds to put in there and your product will be fire af! But for the rest of us who arent pro athletes trim makes bomb budder or crumble. You can present your dabs that you made with trim to any serious stoner and he(she) will be blown away by how great it is especially after you tell them you used trim. 

Step by step guide to blasting your dabs if you are doing it on a budget

First read my other posts before you attempt this because don't you want it to come out perfect? Safety, checklist and acquiring plant materials for blasting

The important thing is to be prepared with EVERYTHING you need and have it right there with you so that when you start you don't have to risk messing it up because got up to get something and took too long getting back. Parts of the process are very time sensitive. If you've ever tried to learn how to do this by watching YouTube videos, then after doing it this way you will see that they all leave out one super critical step. I never found any videos that taught this. And it will make or break your product. I learned from YouTube and the help of friends with tons of experience. So, I'm going combine my text with videos I've made of me blasting bho. Enjoy and as always, my goal is primarily to teach and give back the knowledge freely as it was given to me.

1. Pack your extractor. If you don't know what an extractor is it is a glass tube that resembles a penis pump (click the link above on the word "extractor" and see). They range in size (like penis pumps) but we're going to focus on one that is 2" in diameter by 12" long and roughly hold about 35 grams of packed plant matter: There's not really any way to teach someone how hard to pack it in there. You just have to learn from trial and error. But if you weigh out 35 g's and you can get it to fit in there perfectly so that it is packed up to the open 2" side then you should be okay. BUT you also have to take into account how finely it was chopped up. Running your plant matter through a grinder first would make it too fine. If you're using sugar leaves then after they dry and cure you can put them in a blender/mixer and run it in quick bursts twice. Buds I would cut with scissors so that it's not as fine as you would put in a joint. Just slightly bigger than that. That's another trial-and-error thing. Make sure you remove the stems.

<This is buds shake which is the correct size

The density of your packed in plant matter is actually very important. If it's too loose the butane will form pocketed areas and it will only travel down one path and not distribute the butane evenly. And if it's too tight pretty much the same problem, uneven distribution. As a rule of thumb, they say after its packed if you put your lips on the "pee hole" side and blow you should be able to feel it on the other side with your hand (I never tried that because... are you picturing that in your mind?). The extractor that I've linked is high quality and under $38. It's 5mm thick glass and will be able to handle the extreme cold you will be subjecting it to without cracking. I've used that exact one many times.

2. After your extractor packed you need to put it in the freezer along with your butane cans. It's important to get your plant materials and your solvents down to the same temperature.

[These are the two things you will need to purchase. (I've used a metal cup with a hole drilled in one side as an extractor but the bho distribution was terrible. I don't recommend this option). And you should never skimp on buying unsafe butane. Sure, they sell Ronson at Ace and Home Depot for under $5 a can but it's very unsafe for your lungs. It coats them in toxic oils. Just because a can says that it's safe to be used with food that doesn't mean it's safe to consume. Never go less that 11 times refined. The best that exists for this is Whip-it 400ml cans 14 times refined. You will need 2 of these cans. The second best is Vector 14 times refined 320ml and you will need 2.5 cans, but you have to obviously buy 3 because they don't sell half cans. You can also "safely" get away with Neon 11 times refined 300ml and you need 2.5 cans, but it has mystery oils in it, and you can for sure taste it. Neon is much cheaper, and they sell it sometimes at local smoke shops. If you are like me, you will start shopping around Amazon for better deals (I've already found you the best deals) and you will definitely come across the 7 times refined Neon for even cheaper. Are you gonna die the first time you try it? I'm not a doctor but I didn't die when I tried it. It was awful though. You will taste the mystery oil chemicals when you cough. Whatever you decide I definitely recommend Amazon and eBay for all of this because it will be the cheapest, most convenient, and most discreet.]

3. Bring everything OUTSIDE with you. (I'm just going to assume you chose the best option and bought whip-it butane). You take one of those natural coffee filters that are tan-ish brown (not white) and fit it over the 2" opening side of the extractor and secure it with the hose clamp (if you bought the one, I suggested, it comes with it) or rubber bands or zip ties. Just make sure its snug and there's no possible way it's going to come off (one of the worst things that can happen is your filter comes off and your plant matter goes into your butane that has already run through). Don't over tighten it though because you can shatter your extractor tube. Then what I do is I get a few rags and some duct tape and wrap them around the extractor tube then tape it all the way around. Just make sure it's not draping below the 2" opening side. You do that because when you're blasting you have to hold the extractor and it gets so cold that it can burn your skin. That's one way or you can just wear gloves.

4. Outside with you you need to have a glass pyrex baking dish and a metal baking pan that the glass one can fit into, a pitcher of hot af water, a razor blade, a metal dabber rod tool, and have the fan(s) already blowing away from you. Sit Indian style (Chris-cross-applesauce) so that the fan(s) is(are) to your side(s) and the pyrex dish is in front of you. Grab the extract and hover it over the dish with the 2" side facing down, take the butane and put the nasal into the "pee-hole" of the extractor and push the can and it towards each other. The cans nipple will depress and start to shoot butane into the extractor that is packed with your plant matter and when it goes through it is dripping into the pyrex dish. It gets kind of strenuous but hold it tight till the can is empty and then immediately start adding the second can. Rotate them clockwise and counterclockwise while you're blasting kind of like cyclone but always keeping it facing down so the drips land unobstructed in your dish. This is to aid you in distributing the butane throughout the extractor. After both have been run through hold the second empty can on there still holding a tight seal for an additional 20 seconds (or until it's not dripping out anymore).

5. As soon as you have completed that part carefully start adding the hot water to the metal dish under the glass one. Make sure you don't get any water into the pyrex dish. The butane in there will look mostly clear or amber tinted (unless your plant matter was chopped too fine. Then it will be green, and you can look forward to it tasting terrible) and will be vigorously bubbling. You will see it shrinking rapidly as the butane evaporates off. When it gets so that it stopped making big bubbles and you can tell it has almost all evaporated off take your metal dabber rod (this is the part you won't find anywhere else) and vigorously mix it up by stirring it. This will release even more butane that is trapped and will continue to bubble.

6. Once the bubbling has mostly finished you take the razor blade and scrape it out of the dish and onto a silicone mat or parchment paper. This is what it will look like if you follow my instructions precisely and didn't skip anything.

Once you've completed that task you will have safely preformed a BHO dabs extraction! Congratulations! I sure as hell wouldn't smoke it yet though... Read on, to Purging

Also checkout this other badass website that focuses on dabs and hot chicks. 2 things I love.

Safety Precautions

 These safety precautions are to insure that you can enjoy a fun, scientific hobby that yields you high quality rewards for minimal effort and cost but you get to live to do it again. If this is not done with the utmost safety you could be injured with 3rd degree burns, your house could burn down, you and perhaps multiple people could be killed. Always check local laws regarding this and only do it in areas that it is legal. 

1. You want to find somewhere OUTSIDE where you are hidden from the view of your neighbors but is well ventilated. Like inside a storage shed is a terrible place. A mildly windy day is best. If can put your back to a fence away from your house that's perfect if you aren't confined in any way. If you're near a sensor light make sure you don't do it at a time in the day where it could turn on because it could cause an explosion.  

2. The most dangerous parts of this are when you are filling your extractor with butane and when its evaporating out of your Pyrex dish. So before you do anything retrieve a small desk fan, an extension cord, and duct tape. You want to plus the extension cord in somewhere inside your house, have a closed door separating you from where you plugged in, and run it outside to where you will be. If that's not an option find an outside outlet that is at least 50 feet away to plug into and run your cord to your blasting station.

3. Plug your fan into the cord and wrap the connection of the two cords in duct tape so that its sealed from any possible chance of butane getting inside. If there are any exterior outlets that are live and exposed cover them with duct tape.

4. Position your fan so that it is just to the left or right of you and facing up and away from you on full blast directly over the Pyrex dish. Two fans is way better but you can manage with one. 

5. Use way overly cautious common sense. (I've blasted over 20 times and nothing has ever happened and that's because I'm extremely anal about safety).

6. Make sure everyone around you who could possibly ruin it knows what you're doing and read this to them so that they fully understand that this is no joke and could be life threatening if these precautions aren't followed exactly. Ways that other people could "f@@k" you over include: coming out and lighting a cigarette, turn an exterior light on, open the door leading into the house.

7. If you have dogs or toddlers definitely don't let them be able to be around you at all because they could step in it, distract you, or just cause unnecessary mayhem.

8. This maybe is over the top but your body carries static electricity and it potentially could cause a tiny arc that could ignite the butane gas. So its super easy to discharge yourself. You just touch something that is grounded out. Like before you begin hold a coin and touch it to a metal bucket or whatever metal object is near you. Also don't wear rubber soled shoes and wear cotton clothes. It definitely is something that could happen. At some gas stations there is a warning that says to discharge first if you have to grab the pump handle before it shuts itself off.

If you go over safety two or three times and you are thorough about it you will have nothing to worry about. I want people to enjoy this awesome hobby as I have and not get hurt in the process.  

 

Introduction checklist

I've made BHO dabs on different budgets and had great success no matter what as long as I followed a few basic rules.  

1. Safety first because if you aren't careful this can result in serious injury, massive damage to your residence, or even death. So before you start always make sure you have double checked everything. And most importantly make sure everyone in your direct vicinity knows what you are doing (unless they are unsupportive narcs) and you tell them not to come near you, not to light a flame, or spark of any kind. Including turning on a light near you. 

2. Having the "must have" equipment: extractor, butane, at least one fan, duct tape, double boiler pan, Pyrex baking dish, a metal scaping rod, a razor blade, parchment paper, and flower or trim. 

3. Having the "not as critical" equipment: vacuum purge, heat pad, temperature gauge, heat gun, and silicone pad.

4. Always try to learn as much as you can so you can improve your quality/yield. For example lets say you decide that you are going to chop your plant material super fine because you think the butane is going to be more equally distributed while you're blasting (I thought that and tried it once). Yes, that is true but too much chlorophyll gets extracted as well and it comes out super green colored and tastes terrible.