Opinions On Spinpro?

[Highlander]

Posted in the CG forum because if I only grew for myself I'd have lots of time to trim.

 

I hate to think how many hours I have spent trimming in the past almost six years. As time passed, I left more and more leaf on the bud. As long as the leaf was covered in trichomes, I saw no need to trim it. Patients seemed to agree. After all, leaves weigh almost nothing, so you're really getting more for your money/effort if you keep the small trike-coated leaves on the finished, trimmed product = a greater ratio of the desired ingredients per unit of weight.

 

I've spent many hours reading reviews of various trimmers and watching youtube videos. I read as many good reviews as bad but really wanted to find an effective trimmer, so I decided to take the plunge. I finally settled for the basic manual spin pro - the 16 inch unit. They sell on ebay for about $250 on a good day, but I prefer to buy locally and don't like stuff like this shipped to my home or my office. So I paid about $302 out the door at my preferred local indoor garden center.

 

I was a bit skeptical but also hopeful that the unit would perform. I chopped down two sativas with fluffy buds (not the best for a mechanical trimmer). I usually snap off the fan leaves during the flush cycle, but it took a few minutes to snap off some of the remaining leaves without many crystals (as seen by the naked eye) before I was ready to use the new trimmer. I cut each bud off the stem - some about the diameter of a dime, and then ran them through the new machine. When finished, I figured it took me about an hour to trim what would have taken 5 hours using scissors. The trimmer did tend to mince-up the smaller buds and leave bud fragments in the waste. All told, I estimated maybe a 5% loss in final bud weight vs what I'd have using scissors. Seems like a fair trade.

 

One limitation I encountered is that the wire blades seems to snap off too easily. My unit came with multiple replacements, but I see the need to stock-up on blades as I burned through four blades on this one harvest. But that's maybe only $10 in blades, so to me it is still worth it.

 

Also, I found it advantageous to use a drill with a socket attachment to really spin the product well. Unfortunately, I fried my 3/8" drill so I used a 1/2" drill afterwards. When I ran the 1/2" drill for about 20 seconds clockwise and then 20 seconds counterclockwise, the buds were beautiful. Of course, the same results could be achieved with manually turning the crank for a while, but I'm generally kinda lazy and so I turned to power tools.

 

I'd be interested to hear any other feedback on trimmers.

[Restorium2]

Have you considered a shovel?

and a blindfold

 

If trimming is getting you down then consider only trimming the big buds thoroughly and using the rest for oil.  Nothing more sad than a poorly trimmed bud. Get yourself a cup of coffee and a trim table at the perfect height to help support your arms. Lighting is important. Have some entertainment like music or TV. Now hold your back straight and get to f in work you lazy bass turd!

[t-pain]

youd think someone would make a robot , like a robot surgeon to do super trimming, identifying stems and cutting them at the stalk or just cutting the bud off the stalk and leaving the leaf stems on the stalk haha. but that would cost mucho mucho all them servos and such.

 

the robot could then be sold to the medical industry for lots too

[Restorium2]

Robots are being developed to do things. So far it takes 4000 commands to make one scratch it's nose. Hand movements are very complicated. 

 

When I think about 10 grows supplying the state I think about trimming and I know they don't really want my job. They couldn't handle it so they would fake it and try to say their shake is better than anything someone could trim by hand.

[Highlander]

Have you considered a shovel?

 

Maybe just use a shovel to feed untrimmed product into a chipper/shredder?  Might even work better if I add some dirt.  I'll give it a try.

[flower pharm]

and a blindfold

 

If trimming is getting you down then consider only trimming the big buds thoroughly and using the rest for oil.  Nothing more sad than a poorly trimmed bud. Get yourself a cup of coffee and a trim table at the perfect height to help support your arms. Lighting is important. Have some entertainment like music or TV. Now hold your back straight and get to f in work you lazy bass turd!

I like to trim all the crap that I know I wont trim b4 I put in flower or the first week, plant puts more into buds I want to trim!

[Highlander]

Your comment on the other thread made me lol, so I carried it over here.

I figured as much. We learned back in the government bail-out days in 2008-9 what was meant by a "shovel-ready" project. So maybe this is what the Feds think "shovel-ready" means for cannabis production. Lol.

[Highlander]

I like to trim all the crap that I know I wont trim b4 I put in flower or the first week, plant puts more into buds I want to trim!

One thing I've learned...you can't trim too much off a flowering plant. I've regretted trimming less (and ending up with a ton of popcorn) but never once have I thought I trimmed my flowering plants too much.

[Kingdiamond]

I trim everything from top to bottom and after every harvest its like someone backed a mack truck over my hands I wish I could get one of my low income patients to lend a hand but Im not bringing anyone to my grows location its not a smart move.

[Highlander]

I trim everything from top to bottom and after every harvest its like someone backed a mack truck over my hands I wish I could get one of my low income patients to lend a hand but Im not bringing anyone to my grows location its not a smart move.

I feel your pain. Back in 2009 I met a patient with crohns. She was a single Mom in her mid 20s. We agreed to a price, and soon after she asked me to lower the cost as she was strapped for cash. I made a deal with her - helping trim in exchange for meds. I hate to sound sexist, but single moms, in my experience, are generally less likely to create/look for trouble than anyone else. So I was ok with her helping trim. It was a huge help. Unfortunately for me, she moved to CO. Since that time, I've never met any prospective patient who I'd feel comfortable making a similar arrangement with.

 

But I gotta say, the spinpro has far-exceeded my expectations. Last night I chopped down my first Cali-O -a big plant with lots of airy sativa buds. I spent a half hour processing it with the spinpro, where scissors probably would have taken four hours to do a similar job. I figure I lost about a quarter ounce in buds trimmed to the scarp pile that I would have normally kept had I used scissors. Still, I'm happy with the spinpro and I'm kinda surprised at how closely it trims the leaves. The buds look much like the premiere bag appeal buds you might see as examples on a Cali dispensary website.

 

I'd be happy to meet with you or any other solid MMMA member to take the spinpro for a test drive.

[Highlander]

and a blindfold

 

If trimming is getting you down then consider only trimming the big buds thoroughly and using the rest for oil.  Nothing more sad than a poorly trimmed bud. Get yourself a cup of coffee and a trim table at the perfect height to help support your arms. Lighting is important. Have some entertainment like music or TV. Now hold your back straight and get to f in work you lazy bass turd!

Yes I'm a lazy bass turd but it is a good thing I live in another dimension where making oil is legal. If I lived in Michigan I sure as H E double hockey sticks would never talk about making oil. Based on my experience with the trimmer I think I'll proceed as follows:

 

- Hand-trim big buds

- trim small buds in the trimmer. Use resulting product for high-potency extracts and edibles

- use the rest of the trim for other edibles, maybe give it away to a patient who wishes to process it, maybe compost it.

[Kingdiamond]

Just watched a video on the spinpro I must admit it looks like a time saver and exactly what I need looking into getting one off of ebay tonight.

[Highlander]

Just watched a video on the spinpro I must admit it looks like a time saver and exactly what I need looking into getting one off of ebay tonight.

I was going to buy one off ebay. About $260 including shipping and it came with a set of drying nets and titanium scissors. But between privacy concerns and the need for instant gratification, I opted to drop by my favorite local grow store. The 16-inch unit has an MSRP of $699. The local store offered it for $399. I showed them the ebay listings, and they countered at $285, which came to about $302 out the door with tax. I got to thinking about how I used to be able to work on my car in the dead of winter with no gloves, but nowadays how even after 10 minutes in the cold, my hands cramp-up. Kinda the same reaction using scissors. So, with a harvest looming, I decided it was better to spend an extra $50 and get a trimmer right away.

 

I'm really pleased with the spinpro. And I hate to sound like spinpro's biyoutch, but I've wasted a lot of money on grow gimmicks over the years, so when I say I'm pleased with a purchase, it means something.

 

The best advice I can give from experience is to run batches of buds about the same size.

 

Good luck. I'm sure you'll be pleased with the investment.

[zachw]

This video is interesting from the perspective of what is lost with these trimmers.

 

 

 

 

[Kingdiamond]

Id take that screen off and soak it once every 3 harvests to reclaim that lost resin and the lighter trim would be good for butter  considering the pain I suffer weeks after in my hands it might be the way I have to go regardless of its bad points.

[t-pain]

losing 5-15% bud and gaining 4 hours plus hand cramps is worth it. every time.

[Highlander]

This video is interesting from the perspective of what is lost with these trimmers.

 

No argument here. But I'd rather scrape a stainless steel bowl with a razor blade instead of trying to peel goo off rubber gloves.

[rockinlespaul]

I'll stick to hand trimming...as much as I hate doing it.

 

Those bowl trimmers beat up the buds too much, and the trim job is poor.

 

I would still have to hand trim them.

[JB420]

if you clean it often when you see trich build up blades won't snap. Top bottom and blade. Paper towel and ISO works well, we have a trim reaper somewhere, Prefer to finish trim dry myself, never got the flavor right and still had to trim fan leaves and do a finish trim. The workstation style without the fingers works well too, and you can leave it on the stem to dry. They are pretty cheap too.

[Restorium2]

I'll stick to hand trimming...as much as I hate doing it.

 

Those bowl trimmers beat up the buds too much, and the trim job is poor.

 

I would still have to hand trim them.

That's obvious to me.  I take my scissors and clip the leaves way up inside the buds. There's no way a machine without eyes is going to do that. It's just going to trim the buds like they are a Christmas tree. I can't believe anyone would grow with pride for months then trash the buds they grew with a Christmas tree trimmer. I'm really disgusted to hear about it. 

[trichcycler]

a local store rents the spinpro to customers. I checked it out once. meh..

I grow smaller plants, and more variety. trimming is small part of my timeclock punches.

Mexicans use machetes, I never complained about the trim job back then......

[Restorium2]

a local store rents the spinpro to customers. I checked it out once. meh..

I grow smaller plants, and more variety. trimming is small part of my timeclock punches.

Mexicans use machetes, I never complained about the trim job back then......

LOL You never complained about the mexican trim job? Are you real? 

[trichcycler]

nope, and nobody I knew complained either. I laughed out loud when I found a petrified toad in a sack, another time an old handmade knife, a necklace, etc. the added weight was not even a concern for this consumer. the prices were cheap, the quality was acceptable, and the supply flowed like a river.

[Restorium2]

nope, and nobody I knew complained either. I laughed out loud when I found a petrified toad in a sack, another time an old handmade knife, a necklace, etc. the added weight was not even a concern for this consumer. the prices were cheap, the quality was acceptable, and the supply flowed like a river.

Everyone I know complained. But that's because I showed them how it was supposed to look. 

[Wild Bill]

That's obvious to me.  I take my scissors and clip the leaves way up inside the buds. There's no way a machine without eyes is going to do that. It's just going to trim the buds like they are a Christmas tree. I can't believe anyone would grow with pride for months then trash the buds they grew with a Christmas tree trimmer. I'm really disgusted to hear about it. 

 

Never fails.