From grinders, to scissors, or even your bare hands, every cannabis consumer has their own version of “grinding.” But while many love the rustic feel of scissors, the intimacy of picking a bud apart with your fingers, or the convenience of a grinder, few realize the extent to which the tools you choose will affect the experience you have.

In fact, most cannabis consumers probably don’t even realize that the grinding method will impact your cannabis’ potency, and the way that it burns. 

So what is the best way to prepare your cannabis so that you can maximize the potency and smoking experience of your flower? Scroll to the last section of this article to see the only grinder on the market that can currently preserve your cannabis’ potency, making your ground cannabis stronger than ever.

In the meantime, let’s take a look at your other options: finger-busted, scissor-cut, or ground.

Grinders are the most popular tools for getting your flower from bud-form to a more fine, smokable consistency. They’re fast and efficient, and have the advantage of finely grinding your cannabis flower, making it easier to roll and creating a more even burn. But what most cannabis consumers don’t realize is that all grinders are not created equally.

We’re not just talking about the number of chambers they have, or if they include a “kief collector” or not, either. While those are certainly factors to consider, the most important thing to take into account when buying a grinder is how the teeth of the grinder actually chop up the cannabis.

Check out our guide with the best weed grinders on the market to see which one works best for you.

Cannabis flower that’s ground into a mulched consistency is what most cannabis consumers who use a grinder are likely used to producing. Mulched flower has a more granular appearance, in which the flower is broken into tiny little misshapen pieces. Cannabis flower that’s sliced, on the other-hand, are shaped more like little strips. Flower ground in this way is much more uniform, and fluffy.

The reason why most cannabis consumers are likely used to consuming mulched flower is that the majority of grinders on the market are designed to produce this consistency. The teeth of the grinder resemble a bed of spikes that almost interlock with each other. When twisted, the cannabis bud is crushed into little pieces between the teeth.

While these types of traditional grinders can be useful for getting your cannabis to a super fine consistency, all of that grinding and crushing also disturbs your flower’s trichomes. This means that you end up ingesting more plant matter, and less of the trichomes and other components of cannabis that are responsible for its positive effects. By damaging these trichomes, you’re also losing some of the potency of your cannabis flower.

The ability to precisely slice your cannabis flower to maximize its effects can be difficult, as it requires a specialized grinder. But if you’re looking to get the most out of your flower, it’s worth the investment. Grinders built to slice produce a consistency that is fluffier and more aerated. This allows for an ideal airflow, and increases trichome exposure. Instead of pulverizing your flower into little mulched pieces, these more precisely sliced strips preserve the integrity of the cannabis flower and its trichomes. As a result, the flower retains more of its potency.

Currently, one of the only grinders on the market that can achieve this type of grinding method is HØJ’s KLIP grinder.

Aside from grinding your cannabis with a professional grinder, the next best method would be chopping it with scissors. Many cannabis lovers prefer this method because it has a more intimate feel, and gives you greater control over the consistency of your cannabis. Normally, scissors are used to chop cannabis in one of two ways: with your fingers, or with a shot-glass. 

Using your fingers and a pair of scissors to chop cannabis typically entails holding the cannabis flower in bud form between your index finger and thumb over a flat surface, then repeatedly snipping the bud at its centre, while applying pressure with your finger and thumb.

Normally, you’ll need to repeat the process a few times, chopping the cannabis flower ever more finely. This method gives you a lot of control, but also has the downside of transferring a lot of the flower’s resin onto your fingers, meaning it won’t end up in your joint. 

Another popular method of chopping your cannabis flower using scissors is with a shot-glass. This method is simple: place your cannabis flower in a shot glass, and start chopping it with the tips of your scissors until it becomes the desired consistency.

The benefit of this method is that it keeps the cannabis well contained in the shot-glass, and you’re not transferring any resinous material onto your fingers. The downside is that you have much less control, making it a more difficult process. 

While using scissors to cut your cannabis can get the job done, it has the same downside that a standard grinder presents: unless you have a very specialized pair of scissors, you’ll likely end up damaging the trichomes on your cannabis flower

This is likely the least popular method of preparing cannabis flower to be consumed. Most cannabis consumers will only use this method if they have no other options, or perhaps if they enjoy the intimacy of using nothing but their fingers to prepare their cannabis for consumption. 

Finger-busting is exactly what it sounds like: using your fingers to rip your cannabis flower into little pieces. The problem with this method is that it’s very difficult to get your cannabis flower to the proper consistency to produce an even burning smoke. This method also transfers a significant amount of your flower’s resinous material onto your fingers, instead of into your joint.

This is the least recommended way of preparing cannabis flower for consumption.

If you want to best preserve the integrity of your cannabis flower, its trichomes, and as a result its potency, we recommend grinding it using a specialty product that can get it to the right consistency. This will not only let you experience your cannabis in its truest, most potent, and well-preserved form, but will also ensure the smoothest burn. In other words, this is the way to experience your cannabis flower at its very best. 

The grinder that can best achieve this consistency is the KLIP grinder from HØJ. 

The KLIP is a re-imagined, more modern version of the traditional cannabis grinder, representing the first time it’s undergone a major redesign in over 110 years. Needless to say, it’s an impressive product that is essential for true cannabis connoisseurs who want to get the full experience of their premium flower. 

Engineered and hand-crafted by the creators of HØJ, this grinder is not only extraordinary in terms of its function, but is also produced and packaged with natural materials that are either grown from the ground, or recyclable. The company is so confident in the quality of their grinder that they even offer a lifetime warranty with every purchase. 

While traditional grinders crush the plant material in their jagged jaws, the KLIP uses a patent-pending, custom “cutter” that carefully slices through the herb. This results in a much more fluffy product, the ideal consistency for a smooth and even burn. As mentioned earlier, this also protects the physical integrity of the flower and its trichomes, preserving the potency of the cannabis.

HØJ also goes a step further, realizing that many medicinal cannabis consumers are afflicted with conditions that limit their dexterity. That’s why they’ve incorporated a magnetic design into the body of their grinder, that levitates the varied angle blades, drastically reducing resistance while grinding.

As a result, this grinder operates with virtually zero friction, for an effortless experience with even with the most dense, or sticky flower.

This is further aided by a patent-pending magnetic system that allows it to be spun in I-degree increments, instead of the typical quarter-turn system. This ingenious system also allows all of the grinder’s individual parts to effortlessly snap together magnetically, rather than connecting the various chambers with the screw-on threading you would find in a typical grinder.

This magnetic snap-system makes cleaning the grinder extremely easy and helps cannabis consumers avoid one of the biggest problems with traditional grinders: kief-clogged threading that makes the grinder almost impossible to open and close. This not only saves users a headache but is also essential for many medical cannabis consumers with limited dexterity. 

HØJ’s snap-system is so powerful that you only need to hold the top compartment of the grinder over the lower chambers, and they’ll hop right off the table, magnetically snapping into place, without so much as lifting a finger.

Watch the KLIP’s snap-system in action: