The
re-entrance of marijuana into the main stream consciousness has come on
the back of revelations that the herb has massive cancer curing
potential. The cannabinoids, molecules within the plant, enter the
human body on consumption and bind with receptors that are already in
place. Our bodies are made to handle this stuff.
The resulting endocannabinoids that are released by the human body perform a variety of
positive effects, including regulation of cell growth. The fact that
we have receptors for the chemical seems to indicate that we are evolved
to eat the plant and the positive impact the chemicals have on our
system further implies that.
One
of the most popular ways to consume the plant is by smoking it, but the
excess chemicals from the fire can cause unnecessary damage. Rick
Simpson, a pioneer in the medical cannabis field, has mastered the art
of cannabis oil production and released his technique to the world for
free.
You can support Rick on his website; here is a condensed version of the process of making hemp oil.
Start with one ounce of dried herb.
One ounce will typically produce 3-4 grams of oil, although the amount
of oil produced per ounce will vary strain to strain. A pound of dried
material will yield about two ounces of high quality oil.
IMPORTANT:
These instructions are directly summarized from Rick Simpson’s website.
Be VERY careful when boiling solvent off, the fumes are extremely
flammable. AVOID smoking, sparks, stove-tops and red hot heating
elements. Set up a fan to blow fumes away from the pot, and set up in a
well-ventilated area for whole process.
1. Place the completely dry material in a plastic bucket.
2.
Dampen the material with the solvent you are using. Many solvents can
be used. You can use pure naphtha, ether, butane, or 99% isopropyl
alcohol. Two gallons of solvent is required to extract the THC from one
pound, and 500 ml is enough for an ounce.
3.
Crush the plant material using a stick of clean, untreated wood or any
other similar device. Although the material will be damp, it will still
be relatively easy to crush up because it is so dry.
4.
Continue to crush the material with the stick, while adding solvent
until the plant material is completely covered and soaked. Remain
stirring the mixture for about three minutes. As you do this, the THC is
dissolved off the material into the solvent.
5.
Pour the solvent oil mixture off the plant material into another
bucket. At this point you have stripped the material of about 80% of its
THC.
6. Second wash: again add solvent to the mixture and work for another three minutes to extract the remaining THC.
7. Pour this solvent oil mix into the bucket containing the first mix that was previously poured out.
8. Discard the twice washed plant material.
9. Pour the solvent oil mixture through a coffee filter into a clean container.
10.
Boil the solvent off: a rice cooker will boil the solvent off nicely,
and will hold over a half gallon of solvent mixture. CAUTION: avoid
stove-tops, red hot elements, sparks, cigarettes and open flames as the
fumes are extremely flammable.
11.
Add solvent to rice cooker until it is about ¾ full and turn on HIGH
heat. Make sure you are in a well-ventilated area and set up a fan to
carry the solvent fumes away. Continue to add mixture to cooker as
solvent evaporates until you have added it all to the cooker.
12.
As the level in the rice cooker decreases for the last time, add a few
drops of water (about 10 drops of water for a pound of dry material).
This will help to release the solvent residue, and protect the oil from
too much heat.
13.
When there is about one inch of solvent-water mixture in the rice
cooker, put on your oven mitts and pick the unit up and swirl the
contents until the solvent has finished boiling off.
14.
When the solvent has been boiled off, turn the cooker to LOW heat. At
no point should the oil ever reach over 290 degrees F or 140 degrees C.
15.
Keep your oven mitts on and remove the pot containing the oil from the
rice cooker. Gently pour the oil into a stainless steel container
16.
Place the stainless steel container in a dehydrator, or put it on a
gentle heating device such as a coffee warmer. It may take a few hours
but the water and volatile terpenes will be evaporated from the oil.
When there is no longer any surface activity on the oil, it is ready for
use.
17.
Suck the oil up in a plastic syringe, or in any other container you see
fit. A syringe will make the oil easy to dispense. When the oil cools
completely it will have the consistency of thick grease.
For dosage information you can check out more on Rick's website. Article