Anyone with the pleasure of pre-roll production experience knows the frustration of poor grinder performance.
Find out why the right commercial cannabis grinder is essential for world-class pre-rolls.
The Surprising Secret to
World-Class Pre-Rolls:
An In-Depth Look at the Power of the Right Grinder
The Pre-Roll Grinder Machine: The Unsung Hero of Perfect Pre-Rolls
World-class pre roll joints don’t just happen by random chance. Anyone can shake some trim or gravity-feed cones to create a product that gets the consumer high, but calling it world-class feels wrong. My nearly two-decade-old Xterra gets me to work just fine, but arriving in a brand-new Audi Q7 would be a vastly different experience.
The same goes for commercial cannabis grinders – an unsung hero (or villain) in the quest for the perfect pre roll. In this blog post, we will examine what criteria to consider and why investing in one can unlock better quality pre rolls – a market segment currently seeing double-digit growth in North America.
Why the Right Industrial Grinder Matters for Pre-Roll Production
Recent data doesn’t lie: people like pre-rolls and infused joints. Smart money at the state level and MSOs are giving people what they want – a better joint for those without the time (or skill) to do it themselves.
The truth is that an inconsistent grind leaves you with an inconsistent product. Material from a grinder must have a tight tolerance. Randomly-sized particles lead to your classic pre-roll performance issues like an inconsistent draw and uneven burning. Some grinders damage the flower, dislodge precious trichomes and create an inconsistency between joints that leaves consumers high (mission accomplished) but did them no favors in getting there.
Quality commercial cannabis secret grinders can allow you to maintain the quality of the bud by milling a fluffy and consistent product that keeps customers loyal and boosts profitability.
The Pre-Roll Benefits of Using a Quality Cannabis Grinder
Some industrial cannabis grinders massacre your flower like they are attacking your bud with a pair of dull scissors. You exchange trichomes and terpenes for a dusty pile of clogged joint components.
A quality grinder can be a game-changer, regardless of your market position. Whether you operate in one state or multiple, it can help you ensure a consistent product across all locations and pull out the best effects of your strains. Here are some ways a commercial weed grinder can benefit your pre-roll joint production:
Provides a Consistent Pre-Roll Experience
Whether building a brand on the state level or running a multi-state operation, the pre-roll experience you sell should be consistent. Nobody wants to smoke a wonky joint. It’s like going to Chipotle and expecting a burrito, but instead, you get a sad salad. Whether you’re in LA or Oklahoma City, you know what you are getting.
Why Consistency Matters in Pre-Roll Production
In the world of pre rolls, consistency is king. Customers expect the same quality with every joint, and that’s where precision equipment like a commercial cannabis grinder makes all the difference. These grinders ensure a uniform grind, which leads to even burning, smoother pulls, and an overall more enjoyable experience. Precision in the grind directly impacts how the pre roll performs, making machinery an essential part of maintaining product quality across the board.
Improves Other Products as a Byproduct
I’ve always subscribed to fixing what you know is broken and seeing what else it fixes. Not only can selecting the right grinder help to ensure you improve your pre-rolls but that same fluffy and consistent flower should be uniform across the products consumers want now. Those products will also see an improvement by improvement in the grind.
The data from Headset below shows YoY segment growth in the US and Canadian markets for 2022. Vape and pre-roll products are seeing healthy double-digit growth up and to the right.
| Segment | YOY Growth Canada | YOY Growth US |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Roll – Connoisseur / Infused | 1426% | 22% |
| Pre-Roll – Mixed Strain | 440% | 63% |
| Vapor Pens – All-in-one Disposable | 160% | 60% |
| Edible – Gummies | 24% | 18% |
| Beverage – Iced Tea, Lemonated, and Fruit | 15% | 17% |
| Beverage – Carbonated | 14% | 15% |
It’s no secret that pre rolls, vapes, edibles, and tinctures all need a perfectly ground flower for top-of-class production. Still, as with any business, capital constraints often determine the final investment. Depending on which industrial grinder you choose, you can better fine-tune the quality and consistency of the joint by customizing the ideal size, density and humidity of ground material.
Reduces Waste & Labor Costs
Pre roll production can be highly labor intensive. A time sink that keeps key employees from focusing on the activities that drive revenue. The shorter it takes to create mixed strain joints and infused pre rolls, the faster it takes to get into the customer’s hands.
Advantages of a Commercial Cannabis Grinder
Using a commercial cannabis grinder doesn’t just improve grind consistency; it also enhances the entire production process. These grinders handle larger volumes and produce even particles, which ensures each pre-roll has a smooth burn and doesn’t canoe. For high-volume operations, commercial grinders are indispensable as they help streamline production, reduce waste, and maintain a standard of quality that’s difficult to achieve manually.
The Role of the Pre-Roll Cone Filling Machine
While pre-roll cone filling machines are often praised for increasing production speed, they come with certain trade-offs. These machines are built for high-speed output but often sacrifice the personal touch and attention to detail that hand rolling (or machine-rolled) operations can provide. Because the grind required to operate these machines is so small, many consumers find that cone-filling machines lack the precision and quality that truly tailored pre-rolls offer. They may speed up the process, but they can also lead to inconsistencies in packing density, which can affect the smoking experience.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Pre-Roll Grinder
Cannabis ops are often like herding cats, so who’s got time to learn the ins and outs of industrial grinders? Fear not, for we’ve got your back. Here are three critical criteria when choosing a commercial cannabis grinder:
Throughput Capacity
On a commercial scale, machine processing is the king of the hill. Automated commercial grinders are ideal for the volume seen at multi-location operations. Whether you have one location or fifteen, commercial herb grinders can help get the product on the shelves faster, with some giving you the ability to process up to 150 lbs of material per hour. Human power just can’t keep up with the capacity needed to scale.
Quality & Consistency of Grind
Uneven grinds from sub-par machine grinders often leave you with a dusty particulate that subjects the flower to terpene evaporation. Commercial cannabis grinders can have various-sized screens that allow you to get your grind right for your flagship strain’s properties to shine through.
Durability and Maintenance
Let’s face it, as your business grows, the ol’ hand grinder won’t be able to handle the type of volume it takes to move high-quality pre-rolls and extracts at scale. An industrial herb grinder will hold up better to the stresses of constant use than a hand grinder.
When switching to a commercial cannabis grinder, one should also factor in maintenance time. One of the critical business drivers is reducing expenses, so you don’t need to exchange one time sink for another. Whatever commercial cannabis grinder you choose should be easy-to-clean and maintain for your production staff.
The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Idea of Using Food Grinders for Cannabis
Look, we get it. You’re running a business and want to invest in things other than capital expenditures on equipment. You’re probably thinking, “What’s the big deal? A grinder’s a grinder, right?”
Wrong.
Food-grade grinders may seem like a frugal fix, but cannabis is not food. Believe me, the Ninja Professional XL is a beast, but it’s better suited for Guacamole Ranchero than your densest dank nugs.
The truth is that commercial food processors put off a lot of heat, which can prematurely degrade your flower by burning off terpenes. Investing in a cannabis-specific machine will ensure you don’t waste time, money, and product creating a sub-par consumer pre-roll experience. In the long run, investing in a grinder specifically for cannabis will produce better results and a higher-quality product. Puree smoothies, not your Cherry Diesel.
The Best Commercial Cannabis Grinders for Perfect Pre-Rolls
Complexity is the enemy of execution, so we’ve made this recommendation of the best commercial cannabis grinders as simple as possible. The recommendations fall into two types of businesses:
1. Small to medium cultivators who need a better throughput option
2. Large-scale cultivators that need massive capacity for processing
Who knows cannabis processing better than processors themselves? Enter The Sensi Shredder. Made by cannabis processors for the cannabis industry, the Sensi Shredder has a reputation for producing a consistent fluffy grind. It has three screens to dial in the consistency of the pre-roll flower. Here’s what we like about it:
Makes Cleaning Simple: Stainless steel blades are simple to disassemble, clean, and move on to your next task.
Handle Dense Nugs with Ease: For those dense nugs that just don’t seem to end, the Sensi Shredder has high torque and low RPMs to ensure you preserve the integrity of the buds.
Ensures precision: Using food-grade aluminum blades, you can tailor the size and speed of your end material by choosing two or four blades.
The Mobius M210 commercial weed grinder is the best option for large-scale cultivators who need massive capacity. Designed to handle the most resinous flower you can throw at it, the M210 delivers a consistent grind while avoiding potency loss. Here’s what we like about it:
Preserve market value: The M210 operates in cryogenic conditions, so you never have to worry about losing market value due to raised flower temperature.
Eliminates Downstream Inefficiencies: With a precise grind across all screen sizes, the M210 helps ensure you don’t run into inefficiencies and operational debt later by using high-quality feedstock from the start.
Simplifies Cleaning: Designed to operate at GMP-certified food and pharmaceutical environments, the MBX features stainless panels, cleaning guards, and a pressure-washable design for safe, fast, and frequent cleaning.
The Greenbroz Model G is designed for those who have the dream of creating top-shelf pre-rolls in mind. This bad boy is hand-assembled and boasts a unique milling function that deconstructs buds versus rendering them into a fine powder. Here’s what we like about it:
Feed continuous low-heat technology: This unique feature minimizes heat transfer during the grinding process, preserving the potency of the flower.
Keep stems intact: The Model G has a milling function that leaves stems intact for easy removal, streamlining the process and reducing labor costs.
Customize your screen sizes: The machine comes with three different screen sizes. You can insert any standard stainless steel perforated metal sheet to create customized final products
- The Sensi Shredder
-
Who knows cannabis processing better than processors themselves? Enter The Sensi Shredder. Made by cannabis processors for the cannabis industry, the Sensi Shredder has a reputation for producing a consistent fluffy grind. It has three screens to dial in the consistency of the pre-roll flower. Here’s what we like about it:
Makes Cleaning Simple: Stainless steel blades are simple to disassemble, clean, and move on to your next task.
Handle Dense Nugs with Ease: For those dense nugs that just don’t seem to end, the Sensi Shredder has high torque and low RPMs to ensure you preserve the integrity of the buds.
Ensures precision: Using food-grade aluminum blades, you can tailor the size and speed of your end material by choosing two or four blades.
- The Mobius M210 Cannabis Mill
-
The Mobius M210 commercial weed grinder is the best option for large-scale cultivators who need massive capacity. Designed to handle the most resinous flower you can throw at it, the M210 delivers a consistent grind while avoiding potency loss. Here’s what we like about it:
Preserve market value: The M210 operates in cryogenic conditions, so you never have to worry about losing market value due to raised flower temperature.
Eliminates Downstream Inefficiencies: With a precise grind across all screen sizes, the M210 helps ensure you don’t run into inefficiencies and operational debt later by using high-quality feedstock from the start.
Simplifies Cleaning: Designed to operate at GMP-certified food and pharmaceutical environments, the MBX features stainless panels, cleaning guards, and a pressure-washable design for safe, fast, and frequent cleaning.
- The Greenbroz Model G
-
The Greenbroz Model G is designed for those who have the dream of creating top-shelf pre-rolls in mind. This bad boy is hand-assembled and boasts a unique milling function that deconstructs buds versus rendering them into a fine powder. Here’s what we like about it:
Feed continuous low-heat technology: This unique feature minimizes heat transfer during the grinding process, preserving the potency of the flower.
Keep stems intact: The Model G has a milling function that leaves stems intact for easy removal, streamlining the process and reducing labor costs.
Customize your screen sizes: The machine comes with three different screen sizes. You can insert any standard stainless steel perforated metal sheet to create customized final products
Don’t Forget Cannabis Pre-Roll Packaging for Maintaining Freshness and Quality
Once the pre rolls are crafted, proper cannabis pre roll packaging is key to preserving freshness and quality. Ideal options include vacuum-sealed or air-tight containers and light-proof bags to prevent degradation from light and air exposure. Additionally, as the industry becomes more eco-conscious, using sustainable packaging alternatives, such as recyclable or biodegradable materials, can further appeal to consumers who prioritize environmental responsibility.
Elevate Pre-Roll Production with the Right Commercial Cannabis Grinder.
You know what they say – world-class pre-rolls aren’t just created out of thin air. As we’ve seen, the right commercial cannabis grinder is critical in achieving that perfect rolled-up stoner sacrament. From capacity to grind quality to durability, we’ve covered the vital criteria to consider when selecting a commercial cannabis grinder and which ones are worth the investment capital.
Want to find out how to pair these grinders with the RollPros Blackbird?
