The solventless concentrate known as rosin has taken the dab world by storm, eclipsing once more popular solvent products like live resins and waxes. Because rosin is made with heat and pressure alone — as opposed to being exposed to chemical solvents like butane and ethanol in the extraction process — it’s perceived as more pure, carries a much heftier price tag, and is favored by the wellness-branded side of the weed world.
The other upside to the concentrate du jour? You can make it yourself. All it takes is good weed, a little heat, and a lot of pressure. It’s so simple that you can even use a hair straightener and parchment paper with success, which I’ve done personally.
And while it’s cool to see your regular flower turn into a gram’s worth of terpene-rich concentrate, it’s no way to actually save money by producing your own rosin consistently. That’s what the NugSmasher OG is for.
What is the NugSmasher OG?
The NugSmasher OG is your own personal rosin press, producing a professional-grade experience in a pint-sized package. With its 12 tons of pressure and 4” smash plates with dual heating elements, the NugSmasher OG is capable of extracting 14 grams of flower with a single press.
The solid steel device comes with 3.5 gram, 7 gram, and 14 gram extraction bags, so even if you don’t have a ton of flower to play with, you can still make your own concentrate. Yield for seven grams of flower (two eighths) hovers around a gram to a gram and a half of rosin. Which is great, considering a gram of top quality rosin at the dispensary can set you back upwards of $100.
The NugSmasher OG also comes with a full-coverage lifetime warranty, meaning that if you grow your own flower, you could hypothetically have free rosin for life.
What you’ll need to start pressing
- Fresh flower
- Parchment paper
- Micron bag
- The NugSmasher OG
Note: The most important thing about the flower you’ll be pressing is the humidity level you are starting with. Ideally, you want it to be around 70% fresh. If you’re purchasing from the dispensary, ask your budtender what the most recent drop is, and don’t go too cheap. You want the weed to be high quality, with enough terpenes and cannabinoids still present to yield a good amount of extract.
Dried out flower has lost the majority of the chemical compounds you’re looking to extract, so flower quality and freshness are both key.
How to Use the NugSmasher OG
The NugSmasher OG shines with it’s simple design that’s both intuitive and easy to use. Instead of bogging you down with settings, bells and whistles, this device is fun because it’s easy.
The NugSmasher weighs over 60lbs and the plates get really hot, so safety is key, and so is a stable foundation — instead of the coffee table, you may want to keep it on an uncarpeted floor, or on top of a piece of sturdy plywood covering the carpet.
Take a peak at how to use the NugSmasher OG with their step-by-step video, or follow our directions below.
Quickstart guide:
- Before turning on your unit, make sure the plates are closed. Insert handle into the vertical opening on the right side of the unit and pump until the surface of the plates are pressed together. This allows the temperature sensor in the plates to get an accurate reading of each other and distribute the heat evenly.
- Keep the release valve in the closed, clockwise position when not in use, and never turn more than ½ turn counterclockwise.
- Set power switch to the “on” position. You will notice there are two rows of digits. The top is the current temperature of the heat plates. The bottom is the set temperature. The OG comes preset at 200°F and will take approximately 10 – 12 minutes to reach set temperature.
- Remove the plastic case around the control panel. Press the up or down arrows to select desired temperature setting, then the “enter” button to lock it in.
Ideal temperature:
Ideal temperature varies depending on strain and growing techniques, but 200°F is generally a good place to start. If you have large amounts of flower, you can start at 220°F, note results, then drop it 5 – 7°F per batch until you find the ideal temperature for your particular strain.
Micron bags
For optimal yield and purity, the NugSmasher contains extraction bags in sizes 3.5 grams, 7 grams, and 14 grams. Use 160 micron for fresh, sticky flower, 90 micron for dried-out flower, 120 for mid-level flower, and 25 micron for bubble hash. To press nugs that are one gram and less, no bag is necessary.
Push the corners of the micron bag inwards, and load the bag with whole nugs tight enough so that there are no air pockets, but not so tight you are crushing the material. Fold the top inwards as well, so you have a little package ready to go.
Pressure
Once your device has reached temperature, it’s time to press. Put the loaded micron bag between a folded piece of parchment paper and place it between the plates.
Start raising the plates by pumping the handle. The key is to slowly build heat into your material. The entire pressing process should be between 90 – 120 seconds depending on your strain.
Make sure not to over press the material. You should compress slowly, to the point that the weight of two fingers on the handle will not compress it any further. Return the handle back to the top and compress: 1/3 of full cycle for 3.5 grams, 2/3 of full cycle for 7 grams and one full cycle for 14 grams.
Remove and collect the rosin from the parchment paper.
What’s the appeal?
Whether you’re purchasing for novelty or for practicality, the NugSmasher OG offers a fun and easy way to make your own concentrates. With a price tag around $1,000, it’s definitely an investment. However, the machine is sturdy, made in America, and has a lifetime warranty, meaning it’s the kind of investment you won’t regret.
As far as my first pressing experience, it was great — easy, exciting, and rewarding. I pressed seven grams of Maven‘s gorgeous Tropicana Cookies flower and yielded about a gram of incredible rosin. It almost felt surreal to take a dab of it, and knowing I had just created it myself made it that much sweeter.
If you’re the type of person who buys 1/8ths from a dispensary at $60 a pop, it might make sense to just keep purchasing concentrates due to your high cost of flower. However, if you have access to a good amount of weed, either through friends or by growing it yourself, I can’t stress enough what a fabulous addition to your life this device will be. For $1,000, about the price of 10-12 grams of high-quality rosin at a dispensary, you could have free rosin for the rest of your life. What’s better than that?
Check out the NugSmasher OG on nugsmasher.com.
