How To Make Hashish (Hash)

Hashish (more commonly called hash) is a potent form of cannabis produced by collecting and processing the most potent material found in marijuana plants. After being collected, the material (mainly trichomes) is usually pressed into a solid mass called hashish.

Plant trichomes are fine outgrowths or appendages that can produce sticky resin. Hashish is primarily a compressed collection of certain trichomes that are found on the female marijuana plant. They are a rich source of THC, a type of cannabinoid.

Due to the low quality of hashish being sold in most parts of the world, the only way to get high quality hashish for some smokers is to make hashish themselves (by growing marijuana and converting some or all of the crop into hashish).

Other people, with access to smaller amounts of marijuana, use a pollenator to collect hashish powder. When enough powder is collected in the pollenator, it is pressed into hashish with a pollen press.

Using A Pollenator To Make Hashish

A pollenator is a type of herb grinder with an added section that allows it to collect hashish powder from dry marijuana. When enough hashish powder has accumulated in the pollenator, it is pressed into hashish with a pollen press or by some other means.

The main function of a pollenator is to break up marijuana buds into smaller sized particles that can be rolled into a joint or used in some other way (like in a pipe or vaporizer). In addition, there is a screen that allows hashish powder to be collected.

The screen a pollenator uses is based on the same principles as the sieving process (discussed further down this page). But instead of collecting most of the active material in the marijuana, a pollenator extracts a small amount.

Because most of the THC and other active chemicals are not removed from the marijuana, there is almost no decrease in potency. So the marijuana that remains can still be consumed as it normally would be.

If marijuana were sieved, there would be very little active material remaining. What did remain would not be suitable for smoking. By using a pollenator you are able to both prepare marijuana for consumption, and collect a small amount of potent hashish powder at the same time. When enough powder has accumulated it is pressed into hashish.

For someone with access to small amounts of marijuana, a pollenator and pollen press are the easiest and most cost effective means of producing real hashish. After the production of a few grams, the pollenator and pollen press will pay for themselves. Find out more about pollenators here and pollen presses here.

For a marijuana grower or someone with access to large amounts of marijuana, there are methods of producing hashish on a larger scale. If you do have a large amount of marijuana and wish to make your own hashish, you can try one of the following methods.

Sieving Process To Make Hashish

Sieving marijuana is done by placing dry ground up marijuana on a screen and collecting the powder that passes through. This method separates hash powder from plant material based on its size. Large size particles (primarily plant material) stay on top of the screen while the smaller hash powder passes through.

This is the same way hash powder is collected with a pollenator (described above), but when sieving, the marijuana is continually kept in motion until almost all the available hash powder has been extracted. In contrast to using a pollenator, the resulting marijuana (leftover after sieving) is not worth smoking.

If you want to sieve marijuana and make hashish, you will need a minimum of about 2 ounces of marijuana buds. Good marijuana should provide you with a 10%-20% return when using a 125 micron mesh. Starting with 56 grams (2 ounces) of marijuana buds should yield about 6-11 grams of hashish powder. If you start with leaves or low quality marijuana you will get a smaller return.

A section of screen will be required, and to make things easier, a screen that is attached to a frame works very well. Printing supply and art stores often sell wood and aluminum frames with silk screens already attached for under $50. These are very good for sieving with.

The size of the frame doesn't matter, as long as you are comfortable using it. The larger it is, the more material you will be able to process at a time. 10 inch by 14 inch or something similar is a good place to start.

What does matter is the size of particle that the mesh on the screen will let pass through. The size of the particles will determine the potency of the hash powder collected. Screen mesh can be rated according to several standards, including microns. For converting microns to line per inch, see the silk screen mesh conversion chart located here

When working with mesh rated in microns, the larger the number of microns, the larger size of particles that will pass through.
under 65 microns (smaller holes): medium potency
66-125 microns: high potency
over 126 microns (larger holes): mild potency

You can vary the mesh size from about 65-125 microns. A 10-20% return is based on using a 125 micron mesh. Particles in the 65-125 micron range are best. If they are larger than 125 microns, they are not very potent. As the particle size decreases down to 125 microns, the potency increases.

At about 125 microns, the powder is what most people would consider good hash. The potency increases as the particle size decreases down to 65 microns. At 65 microns, the trichome particles are at a point that most consider optimal. Particles smaller than 65 microns tend be broken or immature trichomes (medium potency).

The first time you try to use sieve process, you should use about 2 ounces of marijuana and a single screen with a mesh that is about 125 microns. It is very important to choose a day when the humidity of the area you are going to work in will be under 40% relative humidity.

Cooler temperatures are preferable to warmer. Make sure the marijuana is as dry as possible (keep temp below 90 degrees F when drying it). When the buds are as dry as possible, grind them up with an herb grinder, a pair of scissors, a coffee grinder, or something similar.

Because the size of the particles is the determining factor when sieving, make sure not to grind the marijuana into fine powder. If you do, plant material will be reduced in size and more of it will pass through the screen. This will decrease the potency of the powder you collect.

You want the marijuana to be broken up into pieces similar in size to those you would use to roll a joint with (fairly small but not as fine as flour). You have to be especially careful if you choose to grind with a coffee grinder. A few seconds in a coffee grinder can reduce marijuana into powder that is too fine to be sieved.

Scissors will do a good job when grinding a few ounces of marijuana, but an herb grinder (a tool for grinding marijuana) is best when working with larger quantities of marijuana.

Any size herb grinder will do, but a 3 inch or 4 inch model (like the 3 inch shown here) is recommended for larger jobs. Get one if you plan on grinding over 4 ounces of marijuana at a time, or if you will be sieving marijuana to produce hashish repeatedly over an extended period of time.

After grinding, some people like to freeze the marijuana before it is sieved. They say it causes more of the potent material pass through the screen. Based on personal observation this does not decrease the yield size, but I've yet to see a noticeable increase by freezing it.

For anyone wishing to try, put the ground up marijuana in some kind of container and store it in a freezer 1-8 hours (until it is frozen solid) before you are going to sieve it. Put a cap or some plastic wrap over the top of the container (to minimize the amount of air that comes into contact with the marijuana). Grinding should be done no more than 8 hours before sieving, because ground up marijuana will degrade and lose potency quicker than buds.

You will be passing marijuana over a screen and collecting the material that passes though the screen. Your work area should be clean, flat, smooth, and preferably light in color. This will make it easier to see and collect the material that passes through the screen.

When you are ready, put your screen on your work area. Then place the marijuana in the center of the screen. Frozen marijuana should be placed directly onto the screen while frozen, if it clumps together, break it apart (over the screen) with your hands.

Now lift the screen and tilt it so the marijuana moves around (without falling off) the screen. At this point you should notice a dark yellow-brown powder starting to collect under the screen, that is the hashish powder.

Keep moving the marijuana around until there is absolutely no more powder coming through the screen. At this point, start to shake the screen as roughly as possible without causing any marijuana to fall off.

When moving the marijuana fails to cause any more powder to accumulate, you can extract more powder from the marijuana by using agitation to cause more powder to pass through the screen. This can be accomplished by using your hand to gently tap the screen itself.

This tapping will vibrate the marijuana and cause more hash powder to pass through the screen than just gently tilting it would. You are done when tapping the screen fails to cause any more material to pass through.

You can stop here or you can apply light hand pressure directly upon the marijuana that is on the screen (while moving it around with your hand), this will force more material through.

It should be noted that using more pressure will force more plant matter through with the hash powder. This will decrease the potency of the powder but it will increase the size of the yield, so the choice is up to you. The more material you force through, the greener (less potent) the powder will get.

When you are done you can collect the hashish powder and press it into hashish or use it in some other manner. Don't forget to use any leftover marijuana to make honey oil, this will ensure that all the active ingredients are extracted and nothing goes to waste.

There is a free video (about 4 minutes 25 seconds) entitled how to make hashish that can be found at youtube (among other places). It's a pretty good introduction to sieving but disregard the information about pressing. Heat should only be used as a last resort to press low quality powder that will not otherwise stick together.

Quantities of marijuana larger than a pound should be sieved with several different sized screens. Using more than one size allows the collection of different grades of powder. The number of different sized screens it should go through is 2-5. The larger the quantity of marijuana, the more screens it should be sieved through.

If you are using more than one size of screen, the mesh size should range from 65-125 microns. Using a single 125 micron screen is ok for small quantities (a few ounces) of marijuana, but when working with larger amounts, using several screens will allow the collection of enough high quality material to make it worthwhile.

Start with the screen with the largest size holes (highest micron number) and work it down to the smallest (lowest micron number). Each time the powder is screened through a smaller mesh, it gets more potent.

Different strains of marijuana produce different size resin glands and different amounts of THC (and other cannabinoids that affect the high). Do not assume that because you liked the quantity and potency of a particular strain that all marijuana strains will provide the exact same results.

Hand Rubbing To Make Hashish

Hand rubbing live marijuana plants will allow you to collect the trichome resin that can be pressed into hashish or smoked as is. This method relies on the stickiness of the resin to separate it from the plant material.

Hand rubbing requires access to as many live marijuana plants as possible. A large crop grown outdoors is the only real option. It is not worth trying indoors unless you have a very large crop. The number of plants grown indoors is limited so the amount of hash collected will be very small.

The only time it is really worth hand rubbing indoor plants is when they are harvested and manicured (see this). Your hands are going to come into contact with the plants when you manicure. Simply put on a pair on non-powdered latex gloves when you manicure, and collect any resin that sticks to them (using the method described below).

Outdoor growers should note that sativa plants can grow up to 20-25 feet in height when cultivated outdoors. Hand rubbing tall plants is not recommended, so indica plants (they don't get as tall and they produce more branches) are usually used to produce hand rubbed hashish outdoors.

The most commonly utilized marijuana strain for the production of hashish is afghan. It will usually not grow much taller than 6 feet, even when grown outdoors. It is also a bushy plant (lots of branches) so it will produce a large yield of rubbed, sieved, or water hash.

You can hand rub sativa plants but it might be best to just work on areas of the plant that can be accessed at an easy to manage height. Working with your hands over your head for extended periods of time is not easy.

Marijuana plants produce the most THC (primary active chemical in marijuana and hashish) when the plants are in the flowering stage of growth.

So hand rubbing should be attempted when the plants are flowering. 2-3 weeks prior to harvest is usually the best time to hand rub for hashish production, but rubbing anytime during the flowering phase should produce some trichome resin.

You will need a pair of powder free latex exam gloves. Packages of 10 pairs can be purchased for under $20. They do a very good job, but make sure the package says they are powder free. I'm not sure if non-latex gloves cause problems so stick to powder free latex gloves, they will work.

Before starting you should take care of any business that might interrupt you while performing the task. The trichome resin collected on the gloves is very sticky. Any small items (hairs, dust, etc) that come into contact with the gloves will stick, and get mixed in with the hashish you produce.

It is best to start a few hours (3-6) after the sun has risen. This is to allow water (that has accumulated on the plants overnight) to dry. If hashish is collected while the plants are damp, the quality of the hashish will be less potent than it should be.

Start by putting the gloves on. Then pick a branch of a marijuana plant that has flower clusters (buds). With both hands, start at the bottom of the bud and rub firmly against any part of the bud that your hands touch, as you slowly work your way to the top of the bud.

When you reach the top, start working your way back down in the same manner as you worked your way up. Apply as much pressure as you can without forcing vegetable matter off the plant.

The trichome resin that sticks to the gloves will be dark gold to brown in color. If you notice a lot of green (from leaves) or if the material seems to be more of a liquid than a solid, you are probably pressing too hard.

Do not touch anything other than the plants once you have started. If you have to do something, remove the gloves you are wearing prior to doing whatever it is that has to be done. When finished, put on a pair of new gloves. Material on the first pair can be collected later.

When you are finished rubbing all the plants in your garden, remove the gloves and place them in a plastic bag (to catch any trichome resin that might drop off). Put the plastic bag with the gloves in a freezer for 2-3 hours.

The trichome resin can easily be peeled from the frozen latex gloves and consumed the way it is. Pressing is only necessary with hand rubbed hashish if the hash will be stored for a year or longer. Pressing rubbed hash is not recommended unless you know what you are doing.

It should be kneaded like bread (by hand or with a tool) for hours before it is pressed, this is to evenly distribute the active ingredients and prepare the hash for pressing. The actual pressing should be done with a hydraulic jack or another method that can deliver over 10 tons of pressure.

You can rub the plants as often as new trichome resin is produced in quantities large enough to make collecting it worthwhile. However, marijuana that is produced from any buds that were rubbed will be less potent than buds that were not.

Cold Water Extraction To Make Hashish

The cold water extraction method of making hashish causes THC laden trichomes to sink while the vegetable matter floats. After being separated, the vegetable matter is removed and the trichomes are collected, dried, and pressed into hashish.

The amount of marijuana you should convert to hashish on your first attempt should be less than an ounce. That way you can see if the cold water extraction method works for you, without using much weed. If you like the method, use larger amounts for a larger yield.

If you use good marijuana you should get a 20%-25% return when using the cold water extraction method. Starting with 28 grams (1 ounce) of marijuana buds should yield about 5-7 grams of hashish powder. If you start with leaves or low quality marijuana you will get less.

Prior to extraction it is very important to make sure the marijuana is as dry (keep the temp below 90 degrees F when drying it). When the buds are as dry as possible, crush them up with an herb grinder, a pair of scissors, a coffee grinder, or something similar.

Crushing the marijuana directly over the blender is a good idea if possible. When ready, add water and ice to the blender (with the marijuana). A 50-50 water-ice mix works good. If you are using under an ounce of marijuana, try 6 ounces of cold water mixed with approximately the same amount of ice.

Set the blender to medium-high and blend for 1-4 minutes. Pour the blended mixture into container 1 as soon as you finish, then place the container in a fridge.

See-through containers allow you to see when the plant matter has floated to the top and the water is clear and a wide mouth container (about 6 inches wide) makes it easier to remove plant material.

After about 30 minutes in the fridge, a lot of the plant material will have floated to the top of the container, while the heavier trichomes will have sunk to the bottom.

When the water between the trichomes and plant material is very clear, keeping the container as still as possible, remove the plant matter floating on the top (with a slotted spoon, if available). Put the material you remove in container 2.

Now take container 1 (with the trichomes on the bottom) and syphon off the water into the same container that holds the plant material (container 2). Stop siphoning when the water is within 1 inch of the trichomes. The material at the bottom of container 1 is the hash powder.

Fill the container that contains the hash powder with some very cold water one more time. Add enough water to cover the hash powder under 6 inches of water. Shake or stir the container for a minute or two.

Then put the container back in the fridge and let the mixture settle for a minimum of 15 minutes. When all the hash has settled back to the bottom and the water towards the top of the jar is clear, remove any plant material and then carefully syphon off the water to within 1 inch of the material at the bottom of the container. Later, repeat this process with the contents of container 2.

To separate the water from the hash powder, strain it through a coffee filter. Make sure you get it all, it is potent. After the water has drained through the coffee filter, use a spoon to push the hash powder to an edge of the coffee filter.

Then roll the hash up in the filter, and gently squeeze out more water. After that wrap a towel (or something like paper towels or toilet paper) around the filter to absorb more moisture. Then scrape all the hash powder out of the filter.

Until the hash powder is pressed, you don't have hash, you have hash powder. Pressing means using some form of pressure to force the powder into a cohesive mass. The easiest way to do this with a small amount of hash powder is to use a pollen press.

Prior to pressing, hash powder that has been collected using the cold water extraction must be dried. Wet powder won't press properly and is prone to mold. After collecting it, store in a dark dry area where there will be no strong breezes (or it will blow away).

A cup or some other container will do. Stir the powder occasionally so it dries faster. Keep the temperature between 65-80F and the humidity low. It will usually take a week or more in an environment like this to dry the powder for pressing.

Pressing Hashish

After being collected, trichome resin (hashish powder) is usually pressed into a solid mass called hashish. Hashish that has been rubbed by hand from live plants does not have to be pressed unless it will be stored for a long period.

Collecting hashish powder via methods other than rubbing will require pressing. Powder that has been sieved, collected with a pollenator, or with water will need to be pressed.

Pressing alters the chemistry and taste of the powder in a positive way, it also helps the burning characteristics (makes the produced hashish burn more evenly when smoked).

When done properly, it also makes the powder easier to transport (if dealing with large quantities) and allows the hashish to be stored for long periods (several years if stored in a dark, cold, airtight environment).

Among other things, pressing ruptures the resin glands and warms the resin. This enhances the distinctive taste of quality hashish. If you've gone through the trouble of collecting hashish powder, you should press it.

Some hashish powder can be pressed as is, but a small amount of alcohol (high percentage alcohol works best but you can use vodka) can be added to help powder stick together better.

When working with small quantities of powder, only add a few drops (use an eyedropper) of alcohol to help the powder stick together. Lower quality powders have to be heated (not recommended) in order to stick together.

It is not recommended, but the cheapest way to press hashish powder is to put a small amount (1-2 grams) in the palm of your hand and press it together with the fingers and/or thumb of your other hand. Keep doing this for about 30 minutes.

If the powder doesn't seem to be sticking together at all after about 5 minutes, add a few drops of alcohol (just a few drops of high percentage alcohol or vodka).

Another inexpensive method of pressing is placing the powder in your shoe and applying pressure by walking. Place about 3-4 grams of powder in a plastic or cellophane wrapper. Seal the wrapper with a bit of tape (if necessary) to prevent any spills.

After an hour of walking (or until walking is too uncomfortable) check and see if the powder is sticking together. If it is, you can keep it in your show for another hour or more. If the powder isn't sticking together, add a few drops of alcohol and continue walking on it.

For a better quality product or if pressing large amounts, a mechanical device is recommended. A mechanical device will allow you to press the powder for a longer time under more pressure.

You can leave the powder in a mechanical press for as little as about 8 hours (overnight) if you are in a rush. But for better results, a week or two will improve the finished product. It will also last longer (when pressed for a longer amount of time).

A small pollen press will handle up to about 4 grams of hashish at a time. They are fairly cheap (under $50) and do a very good job of pressing small quantities of powder. For more info about pollen presses see this.

When working with large amounts of hashish powder, a larger machine is needed. If you have access to a hydraulic press (a hydraulic jack works good) you can use it to press a large quantity of powder under extreme pressure.

The amount of pressure required is dependant on the quantity and quality of powder. Larger amounts need more pressure to be applied. Lower quality powder will require a larger amount of pressure to be used, in order to be effective.

Start by placing the powder in some plastic or cellophane. Seal the bag and poke several small pin holes in the bag to allow trapped air to escape. Place the bag into a heavy-duty steel mold and apply pressure via the hydraulic press.

Hydraulic jacks allow to vary the pressure. Start at lower pressures and work your way up. Hashish can be pressed with 10-20 tons of pressure if necessary.

If you have enough hash powder (100 grams or more is recommended) to consider using a commercial press, you can rent one for a reasonable price at most local tool rental stores.

--- Marijuana that was grown indoors (by someone that knows what they are doing) will always produce a larger yield of more potent hashish than a similar amount of the same marijuana strain that was grown outdoors, with the possible exception of greenhouses.

--- Prior to pressing, hashish powder must be dry. This is usually only a problem with water hash. If water hash is not dry prior to pressing, moisture will be trapped inside. This will mean the hash won't press properly, it can also cause mold to develop and destroy the hash.

--- Sieved hashish will develop mold fairly quickly if it is not pressed. If you plan on storing hashish powder produced by sieving for any amount of time, you have to press it into hashish prior to storage.

--- Hashish will lose flavor and potency over time. To minimize degradation you should press the hashish powder into hashish. Then put the resulting hashish in a dark, air-tight container and store it in a freezer or some other cool place. Under the best of conditions hashish will last about 5 years.

--- After using marijuana to produce hashish, most of the potent material has been removed and what is left is not worth smoking (using a pollenator and hand rubbing excluded). If you have a few ounces of leftover material, rather than throw it away, it can be used to produce honey oil.

--- Most parts of the marijuana plant contain some psychoactive material. However, the greatest concentration of cannabinoids are found in the buds (flower tops). Using other parts of the plant will produce some hashish, but buds are recommended.

--- Use any stems and leaves to make honey oil instead of hashish. Seeds may contain small amounts of THC and other cannabinoids, but it is best to avoid using seeds for producing hashish or hashish oil.

--- If you were to take 3 equal amounts of marijuana from the same plant and rub 1 part, sieve 1 part, and use water with 1 part:
The rubbed hash would be the darkest in color, most potent, and produce the smallest yield.
The sieved hash would be lighter in color, slightly less potent, and produce a yield slightly smaller than water hash.
The water hash would have a green tinge, be the least potent, and produce the largest yield.

--- The potency of the hash powder you collect by sieving will vary depending on the screen that was used. If the hash powder you collect using water, sieving, or a pollenator seems mild, it can be improved as long as it is dry powder (this will not work for rubbed hashish).

Simply filter the hashish powder through a piece of silk screen with a mesh that is 120-130 (or more) lines per inch. The pollen that passes through a mesh of that size can be used to make a good grade of potent hashish. Any pollen that doesn't pass through the silk screen will be less potent (in comparison) but can still be pressed into hashish.

Silk screen is available at most printing supply and art stores. A large piece (12x16 inch) of silk screen fabric will cost a few dollars. A 5x5 inch piece of silk screen fabric without a frame will do a good job, when working with small amounts of powder.

Hashish

Over 350 very well researched pages about the history, consumption, production, and other aspects of the substance known as hashish. The book is easy to read and the only book to get if you are interested in making, using, or learning about hashish.

The first 300 pages thoroughly trace hash history, methods of consumption, pressing, storing, and cultures. The last 50 pages go into great detail about traditional and modern methods of making, hashish.

Well illustrated with dozens if not hundreds of black and white images and graphs, with 16 full page, full color images. Appealing to hashish and marijuana users and history lovers.

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