Nope....no more isomerizers, and this was the only one that really worked. It's basically a sealable stainless steel coffee pot with a pressure release system. The spun aluminum top is a slightly inverted cone on the bottom. You put Ice in the bottom of the aluminum top and when the hot alcohol (gas) rises up, it cools a little (turns into liquid) and immediately runs down to the center, and drips into the product in a basket....just like a coffee pot
It's entirely safe to use as long as you don't smoke around it.....duh. You can find 1 or 2 a year on ebay listed as "essential oil extractors".
The quote above is from a link where the author states that there is only about 3% unconverted CBDs and CNBs in "average" low to mid-grade pot. Isomerization is supposed to change these and THC into delta-9 THC (the "trippy" THC), so his theory is that there is not much there to convert, and that hemp actually has a higher percentage of these unconverted chemicals, so would produce better oil. Back in the 70's, we were told that there was like 15-20% unconverted CBN's etc, so there would be a vast improvement from the crappy pot to the oil quality.
I'll have to say this interests me to the point that I am going to try 2 batches the next time I fire it up. I'll leech, then use the acid, neutralize and separate as usual. The second batch, I'll just leech and separate and see if there is appreciable difference.
I've also toyed with the idea of using 100% strength citric acid (VERY EXPENSIVE) to see if it would do anything or maybe improve the taste.........I'll let you know if I ever get around to it.
Like scooter said though......I can add 1 gram of clean oil to a pizza paste, cook a medium pizza and share it with 6 people, and we get so high we don't even want to move. It's a different kind of buzz. Really "Slyder".......type buzz. (Your feet "slide" when you walk.....
)
You see, this machine does 2 things: it removes/leeches EVERYTHING out.....then you go about your "isomerization" process. Key here is the Toluene process for removal of what I call "the green slime".....it is just contaminants...mostl y chlorophyll that makes the oil harsh which was it's downfall as a consumer product.....along with some really outlandish statements as to what you could do with the machine. It was sold as a machine you could put the crappiest pot in and get excellent oil and/or make hash which just isn't true.
WHile I've never been able to make great hash with it, I can add 1 gram of this oil to 4-5 grams of the low- midgrade bubble hash - I smash it in with a mortar & pestle, then put it all in a hash press, and wow.....it really kicks it up a notch and it's not messy...........
You have to remember that this thing came out in the mid 1970's and the only really applicable reference book you could readily get back then was "Cannabis Alchemy" which is still a good reference. There was no internet or other readily available good reference materials. Only a very few people ever stuck with this machine, and finally figured out how to use it and then
clean the oil up just a few years back. You can now google up isomerizer and there is a picture of a lab setup as this process was invented/discovered back in the late 1800's!
If you just followed the instructions that came with the machine, you ended up with this dark green/brownish goo that would get you high, but it was unattractive and harsh. And oil is a bit messy anyway.....you have to prepare a place....I use a newspaper on a coffee table, dip a large paper clip into the oil, then hold it over some ashes in a pipe or bong, while holding the opposite end of the paper clip, heat it with a lighter closer to the end with the oil. IN a few seconds, the paper clip heats up, and a drop of oil falls onto your ashes, ready to smoke and is one nice sized hit. Hint: leave a bottle of rubbing alcohol close, it will clean any oil off your hands or pipe...whatever
It's gonna be a few months, but I'm getting ready to also make a run with some high grade trimmings AFTER making bubble hash....just to see what I get....because this process leeches EVERYTHING out of the leaves....nothing but brown hay left
Funny story.....back in the 70's, I showed this to a guy who liked the oil...he talked me out of some of the "hay" leftover leaves. I'm sure he was gonna add it as an "extender" to some crap he was selling.........anyw ay, he got pulled over on the way home and the cops found those leaves. They cuffed him and got him for a dui, but had to drop all drug charges against him because there was NO thc in the sample....nada....th ere are a half dozen cops still scratching their heads about that one after 30 years.........
ANyway, I'm not a chemist, but I know this machine works to make great oil. I've never been able to get it to do anything else. You can, however make up to about 20 grams of nice stuff in a long day if you stay with it. I do it while I'm doing chores around the house...you only gotta screw with it every couple of hours and 1/2of that time is waiting for it to cool so you don't lose your expensive alcohol when you open it...........
FYI, years ago (before bubble hash), I started just placing nice trimmings in a mason jar full of "freezing" alcohol for 10-15 minutes, shaking 3-4 times, then put it in a shallow dish on low on electric stove with a fan close by until alcohol evaporated. The cold alcohol would remove the trichromes etc, but not have time to leech into the plant and bring the chlorophyll with it. It's good, but you don't get much and it is wasteful of the alcohol.
ps. I only use everclear which is 190 proof = 95% alcohol. Before I ever start a run, I simply use the isomerizer to separate the alcohol from the 5% water. You just set a glass in the basket, put it on low and the alcohol comes out first, so then I start my run with 100% pure and "safe" alcohol. It tastes a lot better after isomerization than isopropyll, and I've never had the balls to try wood alcohol or acetone, though I've heard others do it to save a buck or 2 (shudder)..........
Anyway, it is a cool relic that actually does work, ya just need a little common sense. It is a high quality, sturdy machine. The damned thing cost me almost $200 34 years ago! Mine still has the ORIGINAL light bulb (heat source) in it and IT STILL WORKS!!!!! so good luck. I've rambled enough, but if anyone has questions, I'll be glad to answer them to the best of my ability.