11 Best Pollen Presses To Make Hash in 2024

Kief is what you get when you grind up your wed to smoke, most likely in a kief catch, which is a three-part grinder. The dust collected at the bottom is called kief, and it is high in THC. Kief is like gold.

You can collect a lot of kief and smoke it like it is or sprinkle it on your marijuana, or you could process it by using a pollen press to turn it into hash that can be smoked all by itself, or you can place it on top of your tobacco or marijuana. Pressing kief into hash pellets provides you with an amazing experience, and it allows you to use the most of your cannabis.

However, there are other ways to make hash, especially if you’re a grower or you know a grower.

Why Should You Make Hash?

Hash is made after kief has been compressed, heated, and concentrated. Kief is the tiny resin glands on marijuana buds that make most of the cannabinoids and terpenes that give the plant its psychoactive properties. Kief is great on its own, but it is hard to handle, especially in large quantities, and even harder to store it without losing or wasting a lot of it.

That is why it is made into hash. Heating and compressing kief changes the physical state and chemical structure. Hash has similar effects as kief and can be used In the same way, but it burns more slowly compared to kief. For thousands of years, people have been making and using hash. Hash is derived from the Arabic word hashish, meaning grass.

The first hash users, thousands of years ago, worked in the cannabis fields. After working all day, the workers would have resin all over their hands. They then collect the resin and form it into a ball of resin. They formed the ball of hash by rubbing their hands together, and this gave birth to the hand-rolled method, which some people still use to this day.

Even if you don’t own a cannabis field, it makes a lot of sense to make hash. It is a great and easy way to make a concentrate right in your home, and it allows you to save your resin for a long time after harvest.

How To Make Hash

You can separate mechanically separate trichomes from cannabis plant with water and ice, and then you can change the results into loose hash. If you like, you can use your hand to press it.

To produce a stronger hash, you can use machinery and control conditions. For instance, you can compress unrefined hash into small solid coins, pellets, pucks, balls, cakes, slabs, or bricks using a press with force and heat. It is better to use a press over hand method because it is easier to get a neater result.

It is best to use a pollen press to process small amounts of kief, and you can use it in conjunction with a handheld grinder that collects kief. Simply place the kief in a metal tube or chamber, set the piston in place, tension the pin or plate, then screw or hammer shut the press. After the set time has passed or hit for the hammer press, the kief would have been compressed into a solid and clean shape.

What Is A Pollen Press

The device used in making hash is known as a pollen press. The device works by using pressure to compress resin into little, solid units that can be stored. This device is usually small and hand-cranked or powered by mallets. However, they can also be hydronic or hydraulic. No matter what powers the pollen press, you will still get the same thing either a pellet, disk, coin, or puck of hash, or any plant material to put into the pollen press.

It is called a pollen press, much for legal reasons. Sometimes the kief’s light yellow color makes it look like pollen, but you won’t find any bees flying around this device, only hash makers. You can use a pollen press to press any kind of solid that has enough moisture content to self-adhere.

Use Of A Pollen Press

Pollen presses are used to compress the dusty kief that is collected at the bottom of an herb grinder into hash pellets or coins. Or you can also use it to compress loose leaved cannabis into cakes or pellets. This makes your product easier to store, handle and use; it also helps you reduce waste. There is no need for you to lose all your weed or kief to the wind.

Why It Is Called A Pollen Press

The same part of a cannabis plant can be called different names during the various stages of growth. For example, Trichomes are the yellow-white translucent hairs that grow on the leaves and buds of the cannabis plant.

After the trichomes have been removed from the plant, whether manually or mechanically, the trichomes are then called kief or pollen, it is the pollen that is then dried and turned into hash.

Manufacturers of pollen presses chose the term pollen over hash, kief, or hashish because they don’t sound as marketable as pollen press. And it makes it easier to bypass a lot of international laws that are concerned with drug paraphernalia.

FACTORS TO CONSIDER WHEN PURCHASING A POLLEN PRESS

There are many pollen presses available on the market, making it difficult to choose the right one, so it is important to know what factors you have to consider to get the best product. These factors include;

Weight And Size

Except you are a professional producer or grower, it is best to go for a compact, lightweight, and portable pollen press. A small pollen press will be made sturdy for far less money, and it will still be able to make your kief into the size of small solid coins.

Build Quality

This is an important factor to consider. You won’t want a pollen press that will lose pressure and fail to perform or even get stripped. Ensure you check the customer reviews, specifications, star ratings, and materials used in producing the pollen press. The pollen press you choose should be made from high-grade materials and heavy-duty metals such as aluminum or steel.

Ease Of Use

The pollen presses that are the best are known for how easy they are to use, easy to clean, and also easy to put back together after you’re done cleaning. You should also check the customer reviews and star ratings about the product’s ease of use.

Maintenance And Cleaning

When choosing a pollen press, ensure that you choose one that has parts that are easy to handle. It should be easy to use alcohol and other tools to reach into it and clean the device. Check to see if the pollen press manufacturer recommends and products for maintenance and cleaning and also how much they cost.

BENEFITS OF USING A POLLEN PRESS

The benefits of using a pollen press depend on what you intend on using the press for and the amount of kief you intend on pressing. There are various benefits of using a pollen press to make hash, and these benefits include;

• it reduces the amount of kief that is wasted to wind or other elements
• it reduces the storage space you’ll need for the same amount of product
• it makes it easy to portion, package, and ship the pressed pellets
• for marketing reasons, you can emboss pucks with a brand
• kief that has been compressed is stronger and denser, and this gives you a stronger high
• you are able to store hash pucks in cool, airtight, and dry locations away from the sun, and this allows you to store it for longer, even up to several months

The majority of these benefits also apply to using a pollen press to press loose-leaf cannabis. Ground loose-leaf marijuana also has its own benefits of being pressed into hash coins. These benefits include;

• Pressing the loose-leaf cannabis into pellets or cakes reduces the size of the stash
• The presses cakes are easier to store and cleaner to handle
• The cannabis pellets are easier to freeze than the entire leaf
• The denser packed cakes can be stored in small airtight containers
• The pressed cannabis can be packaged in boxes, sleeves, tubs, and paper wraps
• Combining and pressing the loose-leaf cannabis allows you to maintain a quality mix of various blended strains

How To Use A Pollen Press

Use our pollen press to only press dry kief. Your kief should be stored in a place with low humidity levels and have a relative humidity of below 40 percent before you can use your pollen press to compress it and turn it into hash. If it is needed, use a liner or oil for your press. Ensure that you use a funnel to put the kief in the pollen press.

Apply pressure to the hash by screwing the caps tightly as you can go and leave it for about eight hours in order to achieve the best press. If it is a flat cap press or a Tbar press, you can continue to tighten it during that period.

It is important that you avoid using tools to apply pressure to your press. Majority of pollen presses are made to be tightened by hand. Using pliers, grip bars, or wrenches could cause the pollen press to crack or seize up. If you need extra pressure, then it is best if you get a bigger pollen press.

As the kief cures, the disk will harden and solidify into shape; that is why it is important not to leave it under pressure for more than two days, or it will become hard to remove.

If your pollen press uses the flat cap design, then you have to apply pressure from the two sides. It will be difficult to screw in the second cap if the other cap is screwed in all the way in first, so it is important to gradually tighten both caps at the same time.

The majority of pollen users who own short pistons usually keep plastic tools or wooden dowels close by to push in the stuck pellets from the press.

HOW TO USE THE DIFFERENT STYLES OF POLLEN PRESSES

Pollen presses come in manual and hydraulic form. There are different models of hydraulic systems. So we will be going over how to use the two types of pollen presses for simplicity.

How To Use The T-Bar Pollen Press

This pollen press style uses a T style handgrip that applies pressure to the material inside the press, thereby squeezing out the air pockets and pressing it into a dense coin. The majority of these models are made to apply pressure in only one direction by extending the shaft down into the material and pressing it against the bottom plate.

First Step

Position the pin plate, which is the small insert that comes with the press across the inside of the opening at the bottom of the cap. Fix the base cap in place at the tube’s base.

[BOLS](Second Step)

Place your dried hash or loose-leaf inside the tube, ensure you are careful to prevent spillage.

Third Step

Wind the T bar into place and attach the cap to the top of the tube. After that, give the press a light tap before turning the T handle clockwise. Continue to do this until it becomes tight.

Fourth Step

Hold the tube in one hand and use the other hand to keep turning the T-Bar. Once the T-Bar feels like it’s not moving again, you can keep the press somewhere that is out of the way. Leave the press for about eight hours, and to achieve the best results, try to give the T-Bar a turn every one to two hours.

Fifth Step

As the coin cures, it will become harder and take shape. Ensure that you do not leave the material under pressure for more than two days; if not, it will harden to the point where it will be difficult to remove. Unscrew the cap and pull it until the shaft comes out of the tube. Check to see if the puck is stuck to the shaft or if it’s still inside the tube.

Sixth Step

If the puck is left inside the tube, you’ll have to undo the base cap and remove the tube. If, after doing that, the puck is still stuck to the T-Bar shaft or pin plate insert, then use a plastic knife or a flat object to remove it.

Seventh Step

After getting your uck out, you can set it aside to be used later, or you could enjoy your freshly pressed marijuana coin or pressed hash.

HOW TO USE FLAT CAP POLLEN PRESS TYPE

This is the most common type of pollen press. It comes with two pin inserts and two end caps. Each of these inserts are long, almost half the length of the tube, if not more. As you tighten the end caps, the pins’ tips get closer together, squeezing out the air and compressing the material into a dense coin.

Unlike the T-Bar design, this pollen press needs to be tightened from both ends. If one is screwed in before the other, it will become harder to attach the second cap.

First Step

Position one of the pins on the internal openings of the caps. Fix the cap into the bottom of the tube but make sure that you do not tighten it too much. After doing this, take your loose-leaf cannabis or dried hash and carefully place it inside the tube to prevent any spillage.

Second Step

Place the second pin inside the tube and place the second cap over the pin and screw it. Ensure you turn both caps at the same time until they are both tight enough.

Third Step

Hold the tube in one hand while using the second hand to turn the caps as tightly as you can. When you can’t turn it anymore, set the pollen press somewhere safe and out of the way.

Fourth Step

Leave the kief or loose-leaf under pressure for about eight hours, keep turning both caps every hour or two for the best results.

Fifth Step

As the disk cures inside the press, it will harden and take shape. However, please do not leave the material under pressure for more than two days so that it doesn’t become too hard to remove.

Sixth Step

Unscrew the caps and remove the pin and check to see if the puck is stuck to the pin. If the puck s still inside the tube, then use a flat tool to remove the puck.

[BLD](Seventh Step)

After removing the puck, you can decide to save it for later or enjoy your pressed hash or loose-leaf disk.

There are numerous pollen presses available on the market, and some of them are a waste of money. That is why we have done our research and created a list of our favorite pollen presses for your kief. Let’s take a look at the list.

We will provide you with all the details you need to know about pollen presses, their specifications, key features, and their pros and cons. Below you find the list of some of the best pollen presses for making hash.