A Li'l Dab'll Do Ya
July 28, 2013 1:15 PM Subscribe
A look at the phenomenon of "dabbing" and concentrated cannabis (butane hash oil, or BHO) - its potency, legality, and its exclusion from the 2013 Emerald Cup - from a Humboldt County perspective, courtesy of the Lost Coast Outpost. In pot-friendly towns like Arcata, it's got the streets on fire.
i heard a story back in the early 80s where a friend of a friend had a bottle of hash oil in his pants at a rod stewart concert, which broke, spread all over his junk and sent him off to lala land ...
so it's nothing new - neither is meth but it seems like some people are going all out to be captured by oblivion - even at the cost of explosions - it's like being just stoned isn't enough anymore
posted by pyramid termite at 1:29 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
so it's nothing new - neither is meth but it seems like some people are going all out to be captured by oblivion - even at the cost of explosions - it's like being just stoned isn't enough anymore
posted by pyramid termite at 1:29 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
"And it’s totes all the rage"
Sentence three. Does this stuff make you write like shit, or is it something that occurs before ingestion?
posted by nevercalm at 1:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [3 favorites]
Sentence three. Does this stuff make you write like shit, or is it something that occurs before ingestion?
posted by nevercalm at 1:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [3 favorites]
i heard a story back in the early 80s where a friend of a friend had a bottle of hash oil in his pants at a rod stewart concert, which broke, spread all over his junk and sent him off to lala land ...
its the specificity of the concert that makes that story so good.
posted by Ironmouth at 1:39 PM on July 28, 2013 [17 favorites]
its the specificity of the concert that makes that story so good.
posted by Ironmouth at 1:39 PM on July 28, 2013 [17 favorites]
Yeah, so I mean this is something I remember existing in the 90s, but it was sort of a specialty thing and not usually around and you had to go out of your way looking for it and so mostly people didn't bother.
It sounds like maybe it's just that the market has expanded to the point where there's a reliable supply and reliable demand and it's not just this weird sporadic novelty.
posted by Now there are two. There are two _______. at 1:44 PM on July 28, 2013
It sounds like maybe it's just that the market has expanded to the point where there's a reliable supply and reliable demand and it's not just this weird sporadic novelty.
posted by Now there are two. There are two _______. at 1:44 PM on July 28, 2013
This is currently pretty common around my small, west-coast college town. It was news to me when I first heard of it late last year.
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 1:58 PM on July 28, 2013
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 1:58 PM on July 28, 2013
Did someone say "Arcata"?
The Washington LCB has, I believe, made provisions for hash oil if it contains a minor amount of inert oil.
posted by humboldt32 at 2:02 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
The Washington LCB has, I believe, made provisions for hash oil if it contains a minor amount of inert oil.
posted by humboldt32 at 2:02 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
In SW Ontario around 1980, hash oil seemed to be pretty widely consumed. I think it was because the supply was much steadier than hash or weed, not that anybody preferred it.
posted by bonobothegreat at 2:05 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by bonobothegreat at 2:05 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
Pot oil was even cheaper than hash oil around that time; it came from Jamaica, where the solvent used was gasoline. The widespread use of butane is a new thing, perhaps its the best way to increase the potency of easy to find already high quality buds.
posted by not_that_epiphanius at 2:33 PM on July 28, 2013
posted by not_that_epiphanius at 2:33 PM on July 28, 2013
nevercalm: Sentence three. Does this stuff make you write like shit, or is it something that occurs before ingestion?
Looks like somebody's totes jelly.
posted by dr_dank at 2:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [11 favorites]
Looks like somebody's totes jelly.
posted by dr_dank at 2:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [11 favorites]
Spreading Rod Stewart over my junk just doesn't sound appealing.
posted by sutt at 2:52 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by sutt at 2:52 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
This article is rather limited in scope.
One reason that dabbing is gaining legs is because technically, and thus legally in Washington state, it is *not* smoking. The hash oil is heated until it evaporates, no combustion whatsoever. Since Washington state's anti-smoking law does not cover this, dabbing can be performed inside an enclosed business with employees.
To put it another way--private dabbing clubs within a bus ride's distance of cruise ships visiting Seattle. Or, virtually anywhere else so zoned.
One anomaly that hash oil has introduced in the Washington state law is infusions. An individual can possess up to 72 ounces of such. Thanks to a suggestion from the Washington State Liquor Board, an infusion can be one drop of olive oil to 71.9 ounces of hash oil. This is very likely to be amended during the next legislature sessions.
posted by Ardiril at 3:05 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
One reason that dabbing is gaining legs is because technically, and thus legally in Washington state, it is *not* smoking. The hash oil is heated until it evaporates, no combustion whatsoever. Since Washington state's anti-smoking law does not cover this, dabbing can be performed inside an enclosed business with employees.
To put it another way--private dabbing clubs within a bus ride's distance of cruise ships visiting Seattle. Or, virtually anywhere else so zoned.
One anomaly that hash oil has introduced in the Washington state law is infusions. An individual can possess up to 72 ounces of such. Thanks to a suggestion from the Washington State Liquor Board, an infusion can be one drop of olive oil to 71.9 ounces of hash oil. This is very likely to be amended during the next legislature sessions.
posted by Ardiril at 3:05 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
BTW, the city of Seattle is fully behind licensing private dabbing clubs and other enterprises that promote pot tourism. In just a few years, expect ads along the lines of "Weed, it does a body good."
Also, more than a couple groups are already planning national chains of branded outlets as more states move toward legalization.
posted by Ardiril at 3:20 PM on July 28, 2013
Also, more than a couple groups are already planning national chains of branded outlets as more states move toward legalization.
posted by Ardiril at 3:20 PM on July 28, 2013
One time, at a Rod Stewart concert, I spilled hash oil all over my junk, and then Rod Stewart gave me a blowjob. After that, he had to have his stomach pumped.
posted by box at 3:22 PM on July 28, 2013 [21 favorites]
posted by box at 3:22 PM on July 28, 2013 [21 favorites]
Tonight's the night, gonna be alright high as a kite...
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:26 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:26 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
From the second link:
“Now we have lunchmeat and no tortillas,” said Long, who stood tearfully watching the Fire Department pump jets of water into her ruined van.
Bryn Robertson & Kevin L. Hoover: +1
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 3:52 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
“Now we have lunchmeat and no tortillas,” said Long, who stood tearfully watching the Fire Department pump jets of water into her ruined van.
Bryn Robertson & Kevin L. Hoover: +1
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 3:52 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
I heard that Rod Stewart once spilled so much hash oil on his pants that he had to get his junk pumped
posted by Teakettle at 4:14 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Teakettle at 4:14 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
No, no, when they pumped Rod Stewart's stomach, they found two liters of hash oil!
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 4:17 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 4:17 PM on July 28, 2013 [1 favorite]
In my circles, dabbing and vaporizing have merged in meaning. Hardly anyone does an actual dab on a nail or knife tip. You can get pocket vaporizers that look like a fat pen that can hold 50 doses or so. At this time, however, their quality is iffy, but that is sure to improve in a short time.
One reason Seattle backs the tourism angle is because for the first few years commercial weed's biggest competitor will be medical weed, which could sell for half as much. That cuts into the fees, etc. that Seattle hopes to rake in from commercial weed enterprises. Tourists don't have the incentive to bribe a doctor $100 for a letter, thus the appeal for private clubs. Playing its cards right, Seattle stands to rake in a fairly decent short-term windfall.
I expect a ton of announcements to come out of Hempfest in August.
posted by Ardiril at 4:22 PM on July 28, 2013
One reason Seattle backs the tourism angle is because for the first few years commercial weed's biggest competitor will be medical weed, which could sell for half as much. That cuts into the fees, etc. that Seattle hopes to rake in from commercial weed enterprises. Tourists don't have the incentive to bribe a doctor $100 for a letter, thus the appeal for private clubs. Playing its cards right, Seattle stands to rake in a fairly decent short-term windfall.
I expect a ton of announcements to come out of Hempfest in August.
posted by Ardiril at 4:22 PM on July 28, 2013
"that's a clear business opportunity."
I have been to one dabbing bar that is a stone's throw from Dick's. You buy your dose at the medical dispensary downstairs, and then go to a private room upstairs with various vaporizing setups. The only requirement is membership in the dispensary.
posted by Ardiril at 4:28 PM on July 28, 2013
I have been to one dabbing bar that is a stone's throw from Dick's. You buy your dose at the medical dispensary downstairs, and then go to a private room upstairs with various vaporizing setups. The only requirement is membership in the dispensary.
posted by Ardiril at 4:28 PM on July 28, 2013
The story I heard was Rod Stewart had to have his stomach pumped, and they found Richard Gere's oily hamster.
posted by darkstar at 4:33 PM on July 28, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by darkstar at 4:33 PM on July 28, 2013 [4 favorites]
Vice recently did a video feature on this.
posted by Drexen at 4:38 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Drexen at 4:38 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
> I doubt I'll ever smoke enough to justify a $500+ volcano
Shit man, stop smoking and get a Kia Rio of Vapes, not a BMW. As someone with lungs half-wrecked from years of tobacco use who hacks the morning after smoking mj, let me tell you that even this ugly soldering-iron looking bastard is better.
Don't break the glassware, though. New one costs 1/3 of the whole kit.
> it's like being just stoned isn't enough anymore
Yeah, what the fuck? I smoked "one hit" in the 90's, but the stuff from the dispensaries is one hit and you're not just stoned, but plowed. Two hits to hallucinations. At least for chronic pain users, someone's finally breeding cannabis for something other than just THC potency.
posted by morganw at 5:14 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
Shit man, stop smoking and get a Kia Rio of Vapes, not a BMW. As someone with lungs half-wrecked from years of tobacco use who hacks the morning after smoking mj, let me tell you that even this ugly soldering-iron looking bastard is better.
Don't break the glassware, though. New one costs 1/3 of the whole kit.
> it's like being just stoned isn't enough anymore
Yeah, what the fuck? I smoked "one hit" in the 90's, but the stuff from the dispensaries is one hit and you're not just stoned, but plowed. Two hits to hallucinations. At least for chronic pain users, someone's finally breeding cannabis for something other than just THC potency.
posted by morganw at 5:14 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
How high can one get on THC? Back in uni I remember smoking a ton of dope after eating a pot cake, and after a certain point I felt that I couldn't get any higher.
Do you mean to tell me I was doing it wrong, and I could have indeed gotten a lot higher?
posted by KokuRyu at 5:34 PM on July 28, 2013
Do you mean to tell me I was doing it wrong, and I could have indeed gotten a lot higher?
posted by KokuRyu at 5:34 PM on July 28, 2013
You know that it would be untrue.
posted by box at 5:36 PM on July 28, 2013 [10 favorites]
posted by box at 5:36 PM on July 28, 2013 [10 favorites]
I believe loquacious has a suitable answer to that, KokoRyu.
posted by CrystalDave at 5:45 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by CrystalDave at 5:45 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
It was called spotting back in my day (early '90s NZ). You'd heat up a couple of knives on the stove, smoosh a spot of the oil between them and suck it up with a sawn-off PET bottle. It was viewed as a way of processing low-quality weed.
Though, on looking at the article, ours was very dark green not gold. Possibly a different process?
posted by Sebmojo at 5:45 PM on July 28, 2013
Though, on looking at the article, ours was very dark green not gold. Possibly a different process?
posted by Sebmojo at 5:45 PM on July 28, 2013
I heard that david bowie did so many blade hits of rod stewart's junk oil that deep water horizon dunkirk dark days of war.
posted by Teakettle at 5:47 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by Teakettle at 5:47 PM on July 28, 2013 [5 favorites]
I been so high from weed I couldn't walk or even crawl only good thing is intellectually I knew I couldn't die.
The rigs for this are so cool I might give it a shot though.
posted by Ad hominem at 5:53 PM on July 28, 2013
The rigs for this are so cool I might give it a shot though.
posted by Ad hominem at 5:53 PM on July 28, 2013
Do you mean to tell me I was doing it wrong, and I could have indeed gotten a lot higher?
were you able to move? - if so, yes, you could have
posted by pyramid termite at 6:00 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
were you able to move? - if so, yes, you could have
posted by pyramid termite at 6:00 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
"were you able to..."
... raise your head? Then yes, you can get higher. I don't find it at all fun myself, but hey, I'm 54 with a heart condition.
posted by Ardiril at 6:04 PM on July 28, 2013
... raise your head? Then yes, you can get higher. I don't find it at all fun myself, but hey, I'm 54 with a heart condition.
posted by Ardiril at 6:04 PM on July 28, 2013
What's next? Absinthe flavored Pop Tarts?
posted by thelonius at 6:56 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by thelonius at 6:56 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
Remember that one time, when I passed out for 5 seconds after taking a knife hit?
posted by Brocktoon at 6:56 PM on July 28, 2013
posted by Brocktoon at 6:56 PM on July 28, 2013
"Absinthe flavored Pop Tarts?"
Oh, you'll be wantin' the edibles section.
posted by Ardiril at 7:02 PM on July 28, 2013
Oh, you'll be wantin' the edibles section.
posted by Ardiril at 7:02 PM on July 28, 2013
We used to paint cigarettes with hash oil when I was a kid (~20 years ago, in Australia). Smoke half a cigarette, goodnight Irene. We would be asleep very shortly after arguing who was going down to the shop to get the Tim Tams, if not during the argument. It was a waste of a good high, I'm sure I'd be much better able to appreciate it now if anyone can get some and get it to me ...
posted by goo at 7:03 PM on July 28, 2013
posted by goo at 7:03 PM on July 28, 2013
You'd heat up a couple of knives on the stove, smoosh a spot of the oil between them and suck it up with a sawn-off PET bottle.
Being from the West Coast (where there is a ton of bud) we never, ever mastered hot knives, and if I had known about the PET bottle trick, man, I would have done a lot more hash back then.
In fact, the first time I ever scored hash, I didn't know how to smoke it. So a wise old "professional undergrad" showed us how to do it... Take a lighter to soften the hash, pinch off some, and smoke it in a pipe. I still remember learning how to do it, where I was (outside of UVic Cinecenta).
That professional student is dead now, actually. He eventually graduated, moved to overseas to teach English, briefly blossomed, and keeled over dead at fifty.
posted by KokuRyu at 7:10 PM on July 28, 2013
Being from the West Coast (where there is a ton of bud) we never, ever mastered hot knives, and if I had known about the PET bottle trick, man, I would have done a lot more hash back then.
In fact, the first time I ever scored hash, I didn't know how to smoke it. So a wise old "professional undergrad" showed us how to do it... Take a lighter to soften the hash, pinch off some, and smoke it in a pipe. I still remember learning how to do it, where I was (outside of UVic Cinecenta).
That professional student is dead now, actually. He eventually graduated, moved to overseas to teach English, briefly blossomed, and keeled over dead at fifty.
posted by KokuRyu at 7:10 PM on July 28, 2013
Never mastered hot knives? I guess you didn't go to Esquimalt High!
posted by Lorin at 7:16 PM on July 28, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Lorin at 7:16 PM on July 28, 2013 [3 favorites]
Man. Now, amid more access to better shit than I've ever had before...I don't much enjoy it.
[TO CAMERA]
IT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 7:55 PM on July 28, 2013 [4 favorites]
[TO CAMERA]
IT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU
posted by sandettie light vessel automatic at 7:55 PM on July 28, 2013 [4 favorites]
It's odd, but due to those anti-smoking ads in the 80s (Kissing a smoker is like licking an ashtray, et al), I've never smoked anything. It always seemed to be irrevocably unclean to me. Now, with the vaporizers and such out there, I'm sort of curious. Then again, I'm not really in a position (or country) where satisfying my curiosity would be a good idea.
Damn.
posted by Ghidorah at 9:33 PM on July 28, 2013
Damn.
posted by Ghidorah at 9:33 PM on July 28, 2013
I vaporize regularly. Thankfully I'm a workaholic, because they are expensive, so let me help anyone out there looking for some non-biased advice. (Not saying I'm right, just that I'm not getting paid.)
Also, I don't know what's up with this dabbing thing... but then I again I don't enjoy being non-functional, unless I'm at a party and the general goal of the event is to be heroically out of it.
There are a few vaporizers I can recommend for four distinct situations that satisfy my main requirements: I can take it apart, clean the ever loving shit out of it, and it produces reliable vapor. (Minuscule chance of lung cancer is also a bonus.)
Super Portable Vape
The Magic Flight Launch Box ($130). Not including the batteries and the charger, the vaporizer itself is a bit bigger than three our four oversized and stacked dominos. The heating element is a very fine metal screen that cooks electrostatically and conventionally by shorting out a double A battery. (That's the claim... I think it makes sense, but I am not an electrical engineer.) Either way, it can be stowed pretty much anywhere, it's made out of wood, includes two rechargeable batteries, and it is manufactured in the US. It has a small glass pipe (optional, but you'll want to use it instead of staining the wood with the oil from your face). This is what I take with me when I travel, separating the individual pieces around my luggage.
Protips: your grind needs to be absolutely spot-on correct for this to work. It should look like very fine steel wool, in fact, and I have found only a few grinders that can meet that requirement. Learning how to use it takes some time, but the instructions are very good. Make sure you are depressing the battery hard enough to make contact.
Between hits you can slide the cover off, and pinch the material with your fingers to break it apart. Between reloads, use the included mini-brush to get all the bits out of the corners, and it will look brand new for a long time, as well as providing a taste free of any charred flavor.
Discreet Vape
iolite Whispr. Expensive, between $200-300, and a bit hard to clean. It makes the list because it is compact, butane powered, and it always produces good vapor unless you're aren't cleaning it correctly. After you "light" it (it doesn't combust, exactly) an orange light illuminates until it reaches the correct temperature. It's about the size of an overstuffed large wallet, but it looks like a small decorative object so leaving it out isn't a problem.
On the downside, I had one that died after a year and a half of heavy use, but that may have been luck.
Protips: grind still matters, but it should resemble drip coffee (think pre-ground Foldgers.) I usually let it cycle twice when before I take the first dose, and you must remember to fold over the rubber straw so the chamber gets up to temperature. Vaping is baking -- make sure the oven door is closed.
This is also a good model for a person that is ill, but still completely self-sufficient.
The Toyota Corolla
Alright, I will try not to gush about this, but it's tough. The Hotbox ($150) is just so perfectly designed and executed, for my tastes at least, and since this is the medicine that enables me to concentrate on work from home and get to sleep, it's my baby. I got the Rubik's cube model by chance a few years ago, but they have some other designs too. (Some are downright tacky, though.)
In any case, this is Old Reliable. I only has one simple rolling switch (like on a small lamp) and it uses an infrared light to heat up a glass (and metal?) mass on the inside of a cube that's about 5 inches square all the way around. Instead of placing the organic material close to the heating element, it uses a neat little glass container and includes a glass stirring tool that lets you lightly pack things down against a screen a good two inches away, and then slide the whole assembly into the heating element.
Protips: Properly ground and packed -- superfine, and just enough to hold the bowl together -- this can really stretch your dollar, as simply stirring and gently repacking can yield hit after hit. And, as with all vaporizers, you can save the leftover material for baking, which I use to make brownies for my dad (he suffers from arthritis).
What's really great about this one is that it is all glass and pyrex, so you can be sure that you are not inhaling toxins along with your medicine. Also, the length of the wand ensures that the vapor has cooled comfortably. I gently stir and pack between hits, brush everything out between reloads, and about twice a weak use isopropyl alcohol to clean everything to the bone. If you're into the flavor, this is the best choice for a sommelier-type consumer for recreational use.
The Volcano
This is the One, True Vape. It's down to $450 or so, but if you like to party, or if you have a serious illness, this is the one you should save up and buy for. It creates unreal amounts of vapor for what you put into it, and it is easy to share and thus easy to prepare. If you have a loved one who is suffering, buy this one, as you can purchase and prepare multiple bags for them to take later. The dosage method is similar to inhaling helium from an inflated balloon, and I have personally witnessed someone tearing up from the pain relief it can provide.
It uses a fan to force air through the organic material and allows you to control the temperature down to the degree. Now, I'm not super sold on high-temp versus low temp... I have seen it set most at 385, but you will find a bunch of opinions on the topic. If I had the time I'd love to come up with a methodology to measure production one way or the other, but I think what's stopping me is the hunch that it really doesn't matter between 370F and 400F. It needs to be ground and packed properly, but if you're buying this guy, I'm pretty sure you will know at least a little bit about that and you can afford to experiment.
A Personal Plea for Sanity
And while I'm here, regardless of your political or religious persuasion, I am beseeching you to end the war on this plant. Sure, there are lazy stoners out there. There are also lazy drunks, and lazy pill-popping addicts. But we don't make alcohol and opiates illegal for everyone, just like we don't make cars illegal just because some idiots like to drive drunk.
This is possibly the safest material a person can have in their medicine cabinet. And here's the thing: I'm not telling you to put it in yours! But I don't want to have to ask your permission to put it into mine, or into a joint while I am at a house party. Drug use is not a problem. Drinking a few beers is not a problem. Taking prescribed opiates for genuine pain is not a problem. Drug abuse is the issue, and I promise you as a user of a multitude of drugs, I would prohibit alcohol (if the social costs weren't so high) before I prohibited pot.
The beauty of cannabis is that it is like an orange: there is no dangerous chemical process to make it, and according to many scientific studies, it is probably good for you. The chance that you will lose your shit like you could on an acid trip is zero, and it's even safer than taking ibuprofen, since it does no damage to your liver. Yes, we need to do some research and find out if it is safe for developing brains between the ages of 16 and 25. But I'll bet you that it's not worse than drinking for those young minds. The bottom line is that the path to sane drug policy is science and research, not tropes dug up for anti-immigration attitudes of the 1930s.
Since I have starting using this medicine regularly, I have lost 20% of my body weight, finally kept a good job for more than 3 months, and made a career for myself because I was able to concentrate instead of going from anxiety attack to anxiety attack. Perhaps there is some prescription drug that can do that for me, but I don't think anyone knows how our bodies fully react to the recent explosion of mood stabilizers and anti-depressants. In fact, my uncle was a financially successful hardline Christian, and even he killed himself just after they tried to move him to another cocktail of pills. (I'm still convinced he would have done it, but my father blames the drugs.) And sure enough, they have recently been discovered to increase suicide risk in teens.
This week I had to travel for work, and so I haven't had any of the medicine I normally take every day for two years. I've had a few anxiety attacks, but not as bad as I remember. Most importantly, I didn't have any physical withdrawals. I've been less happy, less engaged, and less productive, but I never thought about engaging in criminal activity to get a "fix". I would just like access to my medicine. (In fact, the message you're reading would probably be more coherent and concise if I did. Save yourself from furor loquendi!)
So, you can call me psychologically addicted if you like. I don't actually mind. But if I'm paying for my medicine as much as you might pay for your coffee, and I'm hurting no one else (since I source my stuff from people that I know), why are you trying to take this medicine away from me?
Once the hysteria around cannabis is removed, I think you may see it for what it is: a useful plant, just as any other. I have bought vaporizers and ounces of weed for critically sick friends, and instead of staring at me with dead eyes as they do in opiate comas, a good vaporizer and a decent amount cannabis brings them back. We can talk. We can watch movies. They feel like eating, and laughing, and maybe writing a letter.
It's not the solution to all of the world's problems; I'm not that delusional. And it doesn't work for everyone, just like certain antipsychotics don't work for everyone. But, it is the solution to quite a few problems in our society. If you free all of the young men and women currently costing you $60k a year to sit in a jail, and put them to work cultivating, processing, and selling cannabis to adults -- and that word means a person with the right to do whatever they want as long as they aren't hurting anyone else -- you will be saving tax dollars, creating an additional revenue stream for governments, and depriving gangs of a huge source of their income.
And even if your worst nightmare comes true, and your child decided to be a junky at age 16, which drug would you want them to be hopelessly addicted to? Hydrocodone? Vodka? Spice? Meth? Or cannabis? I think our entire society would benefit from the idea that if you want to escape, as so many of us do, from the daily grind of work and relationships, cannabis is a healthy alternative to heavy abuse of alcohol or other drugs.
I am not telling you to think a certain way. That's against my first principles. But I am asking you to at least consider something besides this cycle of imprisonment and oppression. There are millions of people who could choose to benefit from this medicinal plant, and hundreds of thousands of non-violent offenders who could be freed who have been unjustly imprisoned for being associated with it.
Society won't fall apart, but pizza delivery sales will go up. You won't get carjacked by a stoner, but somewhat annoying enclaves of dreadlocked hippies may spring up in your neighborhood and try to serve you organic black bean cakes with quinoa salad. Your teenager may get into Pink Floyd. But when you consider the alternatives -- dangerous synthetic drugs, underage drinking, drunk driving, and alcoholism -- legalizing cannabis is just common sense.
posted by tripping daisy at 10:08 PM on July 28, 2013 [30 favorites]
Also, I don't know what's up with this dabbing thing... but then I again I don't enjoy being non-functional, unless I'm at a party and the general goal of the event is to be heroically out of it.
There are a few vaporizers I can recommend for four distinct situations that satisfy my main requirements: I can take it apart, clean the ever loving shit out of it, and it produces reliable vapor. (Minuscule chance of lung cancer is also a bonus.)
Super Portable Vape
The Magic Flight Launch Box ($130). Not including the batteries and the charger, the vaporizer itself is a bit bigger than three our four oversized and stacked dominos. The heating element is a very fine metal screen that cooks electrostatically and conventionally by shorting out a double A battery. (That's the claim... I think it makes sense, but I am not an electrical engineer.) Either way, it can be stowed pretty much anywhere, it's made out of wood, includes two rechargeable batteries, and it is manufactured in the US. It has a small glass pipe (optional, but you'll want to use it instead of staining the wood with the oil from your face). This is what I take with me when I travel, separating the individual pieces around my luggage.
Protips: your grind needs to be absolutely spot-on correct for this to work. It should look like very fine steel wool, in fact, and I have found only a few grinders that can meet that requirement. Learning how to use it takes some time, but the instructions are very good. Make sure you are depressing the battery hard enough to make contact.
Between hits you can slide the cover off, and pinch the material with your fingers to break it apart. Between reloads, use the included mini-brush to get all the bits out of the corners, and it will look brand new for a long time, as well as providing a taste free of any charred flavor.
Discreet Vape
iolite Whispr. Expensive, between $200-300, and a bit hard to clean. It makes the list because it is compact, butane powered, and it always produces good vapor unless you're aren't cleaning it correctly. After you "light" it (it doesn't combust, exactly) an orange light illuminates until it reaches the correct temperature. It's about the size of an overstuffed large wallet, but it looks like a small decorative object so leaving it out isn't a problem.
On the downside, I had one that died after a year and a half of heavy use, but that may have been luck.
Protips: grind still matters, but it should resemble drip coffee (think pre-ground Foldgers.) I usually let it cycle twice when before I take the first dose, and you must remember to fold over the rubber straw so the chamber gets up to temperature. Vaping is baking -- make sure the oven door is closed.
This is also a good model for a person that is ill, but still completely self-sufficient.
The Toyota Corolla
Alright, I will try not to gush about this, but it's tough. The Hotbox ($150) is just so perfectly designed and executed, for my tastes at least, and since this is the medicine that enables me to concentrate on work from home and get to sleep, it's my baby. I got the Rubik's cube model by chance a few years ago, but they have some other designs too. (Some are downright tacky, though.)
In any case, this is Old Reliable. I only has one simple rolling switch (like on a small lamp) and it uses an infrared light to heat up a glass (and metal?) mass on the inside of a cube that's about 5 inches square all the way around. Instead of placing the organic material close to the heating element, it uses a neat little glass container and includes a glass stirring tool that lets you lightly pack things down against a screen a good two inches away, and then slide the whole assembly into the heating element.
Protips: Properly ground and packed -- superfine, and just enough to hold the bowl together -- this can really stretch your dollar, as simply stirring and gently repacking can yield hit after hit. And, as with all vaporizers, you can save the leftover material for baking, which I use to make brownies for my dad (he suffers from arthritis).
What's really great about this one is that it is all glass and pyrex, so you can be sure that you are not inhaling toxins along with your medicine. Also, the length of the wand ensures that the vapor has cooled comfortably. I gently stir and pack between hits, brush everything out between reloads, and about twice a weak use isopropyl alcohol to clean everything to the bone. If you're into the flavor, this is the best choice for a sommelier-type consumer for recreational use.
The Volcano
This is the One, True Vape. It's down to $450 or so, but if you like to party, or if you have a serious illness, this is the one you should save up and buy for. It creates unreal amounts of vapor for what you put into it, and it is easy to share and thus easy to prepare. If you have a loved one who is suffering, buy this one, as you can purchase and prepare multiple bags for them to take later. The dosage method is similar to inhaling helium from an inflated balloon, and I have personally witnessed someone tearing up from the pain relief it can provide.
It uses a fan to force air through the organic material and allows you to control the temperature down to the degree. Now, I'm not super sold on high-temp versus low temp... I have seen it set most at 385, but you will find a bunch of opinions on the topic. If I had the time I'd love to come up with a methodology to measure production one way or the other, but I think what's stopping me is the hunch that it really doesn't matter between 370F and 400F. It needs to be ground and packed properly, but if you're buying this guy, I'm pretty sure you will know at least a little bit about that and you can afford to experiment.
A Personal Plea for Sanity
And while I'm here, regardless of your political or religious persuasion, I am beseeching you to end the war on this plant. Sure, there are lazy stoners out there. There are also lazy drunks, and lazy pill-popping addicts. But we don't make alcohol and opiates illegal for everyone, just like we don't make cars illegal just because some idiots like to drive drunk.
This is possibly the safest material a person can have in their medicine cabinet. And here's the thing: I'm not telling you to put it in yours! But I don't want to have to ask your permission to put it into mine, or into a joint while I am at a house party. Drug use is not a problem. Drinking a few beers is not a problem. Taking prescribed opiates for genuine pain is not a problem. Drug abuse is the issue, and I promise you as a user of a multitude of drugs, I would prohibit alcohol (if the social costs weren't so high) before I prohibited pot.
The beauty of cannabis is that it is like an orange: there is no dangerous chemical process to make it, and according to many scientific studies, it is probably good for you. The chance that you will lose your shit like you could on an acid trip is zero, and it's even safer than taking ibuprofen, since it does no damage to your liver. Yes, we need to do some research and find out if it is safe for developing brains between the ages of 16 and 25. But I'll bet you that it's not worse than drinking for those young minds. The bottom line is that the path to sane drug policy is science and research, not tropes dug up for anti-immigration attitudes of the 1930s.
Since I have starting using this medicine regularly, I have lost 20% of my body weight, finally kept a good job for more than 3 months, and made a career for myself because I was able to concentrate instead of going from anxiety attack to anxiety attack. Perhaps there is some prescription drug that can do that for me, but I don't think anyone knows how our bodies fully react to the recent explosion of mood stabilizers and anti-depressants. In fact, my uncle was a financially successful hardline Christian, and even he killed himself just after they tried to move him to another cocktail of pills. (I'm still convinced he would have done it, but my father blames the drugs.) And sure enough, they have recently been discovered to increase suicide risk in teens.
This week I had to travel for work, and so I haven't had any of the medicine I normally take every day for two years. I've had a few anxiety attacks, but not as bad as I remember. Most importantly, I didn't have any physical withdrawals. I've been less happy, less engaged, and less productive, but I never thought about engaging in criminal activity to get a "fix". I would just like access to my medicine. (In fact, the message you're reading would probably be more coherent and concise if I did. Save yourself from furor loquendi!)
So, you can call me psychologically addicted if you like. I don't actually mind. But if I'm paying for my medicine as much as you might pay for your coffee, and I'm hurting no one else (since I source my stuff from people that I know), why are you trying to take this medicine away from me?
Once the hysteria around cannabis is removed, I think you may see it for what it is: a useful plant, just as any other. I have bought vaporizers and ounces of weed for critically sick friends, and instead of staring at me with dead eyes as they do in opiate comas, a good vaporizer and a decent amount cannabis brings them back. We can talk. We can watch movies. They feel like eating, and laughing, and maybe writing a letter.
It's not the solution to all of the world's problems; I'm not that delusional. And it doesn't work for everyone, just like certain antipsychotics don't work for everyone. But, it is the solution to quite a few problems in our society. If you free all of the young men and women currently costing you $60k a year to sit in a jail, and put them to work cultivating, processing, and selling cannabis to adults -- and that word means a person with the right to do whatever they want as long as they aren't hurting anyone else -- you will be saving tax dollars, creating an additional revenue stream for governments, and depriving gangs of a huge source of their income.
And even if your worst nightmare comes true, and your child decided to be a junky at age 16, which drug would you want them to be hopelessly addicted to? Hydrocodone? Vodka? Spice? Meth? Or cannabis? I think our entire society would benefit from the idea that if you want to escape, as so many of us do, from the daily grind of work and relationships, cannabis is a healthy alternative to heavy abuse of alcohol or other drugs.
I am not telling you to think a certain way. That's against my first principles. But I am asking you to at least consider something besides this cycle of imprisonment and oppression. There are millions of people who could choose to benefit from this medicinal plant, and hundreds of thousands of non-violent offenders who could be freed who have been unjustly imprisoned for being associated with it.
Society won't fall apart, but pizza delivery sales will go up. You won't get carjacked by a stoner, but somewhat annoying enclaves of dreadlocked hippies may spring up in your neighborhood and try to serve you organic black bean cakes with quinoa salad. Your teenager may get into Pink Floyd. But when you consider the alternatives -- dangerous synthetic drugs, underage drinking, drunk driving, and alcoholism -- legalizing cannabis is just common sense.
posted by tripping daisy at 10:08 PM on July 28, 2013 [30 favorites]
It's not the solution to all of the world's problems; I'm not that delusional.
I am!
posted by Meatbomb at 10:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
I am!
posted by Meatbomb at 10:34 PM on July 28, 2013 [2 favorites]
Arizer makes nice units. They pay for themselves quickly if you have to buy your weed.
posted by five fresh fish at 12:47 AM on July 29, 2013
posted by five fresh fish at 12:47 AM on July 29, 2013
The "hotbox" is not the Toyota Corolla of vaporizers. It's an obvious knock-off of the tried-and-true Vapor Brothers model that was the standard for comparison before the Volcano showed up. For years. And people used to think the Vapor Brother's model was expensive until nonsense like the Volcano showed up.
The Volcano is overpriced, overcomplicated and part of the hype-laden consumerist downside of the medical/regulated marijuana trade. It's like a tarted up kitchen appliance that has a bunch of superficial accents to disguise the fact that its a poorly manufactured, poorly performing novelty people like because it makes them think they're being fancy. Which is the same attitude they bring to concentrates themselves, which suffer from low/no quality control, and can't be evaluated at purchase by close inspection like flowers can.
But you can't tell its devotees anything, and they will continue to blithely insist there's nothing better than using a motorized air pump to blow vapor into a refillable metallicized plastic bag. That most users like to hand around, and never replace. Until they replace the whole Volcano, which will happen soon enough when something plastic breaks, or the air pump dies.
Bleh and feh. Buy a good box vape, and keep the whip clean.
posted by snuffleupagus at 4:56 AM on July 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
The Volcano is overpriced, overcomplicated and part of the hype-laden consumerist downside of the medical/regulated marijuana trade. It's like a tarted up kitchen appliance that has a bunch of superficial accents to disguise the fact that its a poorly manufactured, poorly performing novelty people like because it makes them think they're being fancy. Which is the same attitude they bring to concentrates themselves, which suffer from low/no quality control, and can't be evaluated at purchase by close inspection like flowers can.
But you can't tell its devotees anything, and they will continue to blithely insist there's nothing better than using a motorized air pump to blow vapor into a refillable metallicized plastic bag. That most users like to hand around, and never replace. Until they replace the whole Volcano, which will happen soon enough when something plastic breaks, or the air pump dies.
Bleh and feh. Buy a good box vape, and keep the whip clean.
posted by snuffleupagus at 4:56 AM on July 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
snuff... you know if you had suggested I check out the Vapor Brothers instead of being self-righteous about it, I may have checked it out. (I probably will anyway, but I'm a curious person by nature.)
And just because some people don't replace the bags, doesn't mean that I don't replace the bags, or that it hasn't been a lifesaver when my friend couldn't sleep for shit until I filled up two four footers and placed them beside her bed. She didn't have to turn anything on, wait for an element, or grind and pack anything. She could just inhale and get back to bed without fumbling around with nervous, frightened fingers.
Toke up, bro. U mad.
posted by tripping daisy at 9:09 AM on July 29, 2013
And just because some people don't replace the bags, doesn't mean that I don't replace the bags, or that it hasn't been a lifesaver when my friend couldn't sleep for shit until I filled up two four footers and placed them beside her bed. She didn't have to turn anything on, wait for an element, or grind and pack anything. She could just inhale and get back to bed without fumbling around with nervous, frightened fingers.
Toke up, bro. U mad.
posted by tripping daisy at 9:09 AM on July 29, 2013
Self-righteous? I have no idea what that means in this context.
You can extol the virtues of the Volcano until the sun goes out, for all I care. But, If you do it here, you'll have to endure the opinion of those who disagree. Including those about materials, reliability, maintenance and hygiene issues inherent to its design, regardless of how you happen to use it.
Nor do I care if you ever try any other particular brand. But I do object to you damning another, simpler and widely preferred design with faint praise based on a knock off, lacking familiarity with the original and overreaching based on your anecdotal experiences.
So I offered my alternative view of the utility and value of the Volcano, and provided information about the VB original re: the box design.
If you can't handle that, I'm not the one with a grandiosity issue here.
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:29 AM on July 29, 2013
You can extol the virtues of the Volcano until the sun goes out, for all I care. But, If you do it here, you'll have to endure the opinion of those who disagree. Including those about materials, reliability, maintenance and hygiene issues inherent to its design, regardless of how you happen to use it.
Nor do I care if you ever try any other particular brand. But I do object to you damning another, simpler and widely preferred design with faint praise based on a knock off, lacking familiarity with the original and overreaching based on your anecdotal experiences.
So I offered my alternative view of the utility and value of the Volcano, and provided information about the VB original re: the box design.
If you can't handle that, I'm not the one with a grandiosity issue here.
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:29 AM on July 29, 2013
In all fairness, however, I should concede that it's pretty clearly the most hassle-free delivery device for a truly physically debilitated person, such as the example of someone bedridden. That wasn't really the premise of the thread, though. That kind of person is already in a world of expensive medical treatments and devices, and probably isn't employing the device in a semi-anonymous social setting.That was, however, your suggested use as "the one true vape" for "those who like to party." I disagree with that. I dislike being handed an opaque bag and valve that have been handled, lipped and breathed through by countless strangers before me. You can tell if a whip is gross. It's clear pyrex, or should be. You can clean it and sterlize it quickly, with a lighter if need. be...
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:38 AM on July 29, 2013
posted by snuffleupagus at 10:38 AM on July 29, 2013
Man, this got pretty intense. If only there was a way to relax, quickly and within the comforts of one's home.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 12:15 PM on July 29, 2013 [7 favorites]
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 12:15 PM on July 29, 2013 [7 favorites]
No shit. This is the first time I have met a fundamentalist stoner. What happened to live and let live?
Maybe the future wars will be fought over vaporizer choice. But only via team deathmatch, and the loser has to buy dinner.
posted by tripping daisy at 4:34 PM on July 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
Maybe the future wars will be fought over vaporizer choice. But only via team deathmatch, and the loser has to buy dinner.
posted by tripping daisy at 4:34 PM on July 29, 2013 [2 favorites]
No love for Ploom [pax]?
I like my Ploom Pax. Love might be too strong a word. I think it's overpriced, but it's small and gets the job done.
posted by JimInLoganSquare at 5:26 PM on July 29, 2013
I like my Ploom Pax. Love might be too strong a word. I think it's overpriced, but it's small and gets the job done.
posted by JimInLoganSquare at 5:26 PM on July 29, 2013
This is the first time I've heard the Volcano called a "poorly manufactured" and "poorly performing novelty." The things have a 3 year warranty, and in the 7 years I've owned mine, I've never had a single problem with any of the parts. The workmanship on the thing is amazing, and it is obvious a lot of care went into its design and manufacture. Maybe the new ones suck or something? I have the one with the knob, not the digital display.
posted by hellphish at 5:54 PM on July 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by hellphish at 5:54 PM on July 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
This is the first time I've had another stoner call me a fundamentalist or self-righteous simply because I had a strong opinion about something weed related. Apparently the feeling is mutual, if you care enough to use that language in response.
As it happens, it was the earlier (earliest?) production runs that I saw developing problems about a year or so in. Problems with the pump, and problems with temp control (or maybe with the heating element). Sometime problems with the valve or bag, but that could be due to careless use or storage.
I do think it's pretty clear that a lot of thought went into it, the elaborate design being in part the source of my reservations. Admittedly, I didn't know the various owners of cranky Volcanoes well enough to find out if they got warranty service -- if the manufacturer provide hassle free warranty service for that long, and it doesn't cost too much to get it back and forth, then that does speak to most of my concerns. FWIW, the one I still know moved on to pen vapes. And those can develop problems too.
At any rate, I suspect I'll never find a plastic and mylar bag to be a pleasing way to indulge.
Maybe the future wars will be fought over vaporizer choice. But only via team deathmatch, and the loser has to buy dinner.
The more disputes resolved this way, the better!
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:23 PM on July 29, 2013
As it happens, it was the earlier (earliest?) production runs that I saw developing problems about a year or so in. Problems with the pump, and problems with temp control (or maybe with the heating element). Sometime problems with the valve or bag, but that could be due to careless use or storage.
I do think it's pretty clear that a lot of thought went into it, the elaborate design being in part the source of my reservations. Admittedly, I didn't know the various owners of cranky Volcanoes well enough to find out if they got warranty service -- if the manufacturer provide hassle free warranty service for that long, and it doesn't cost too much to get it back and forth, then that does speak to most of my concerns. FWIW, the one I still know moved on to pen vapes. And those can develop problems too.
At any rate, I suspect I'll never find a plastic and mylar bag to be a pleasing way to indulge.
Maybe the future wars will be fought over vaporizer choice. But only via team deathmatch, and the loser has to buy dinner.
The more disputes resolved this way, the better!
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:23 PM on July 29, 2013
And regarding hellphish's comment, 7 years is pretty strong. So maybe things are not the same now. The cost of the Volcano amortized over 7 years doesn't sting so much. I know VB changed their heating element at a certain point, for better reliability, as have others, so perhaps Volcano too.
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:27 PM on July 29, 2013
posted by snuffleupagus at 6:27 PM on July 29, 2013
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posted by jokeefe at 1:25 PM on July 28, 2013