In order to enjoy good weed to the max, it is important that you know how to roll a doobie perfectly. In order to get a fine smoking experience, your joint must have a shape that ensures an even, slow burn. Rolling a joint is quite an art, but we are happy to explain how you can master it. In addition, we give some useful tips for rolling more advanced joints, using a rolling machine to make the process easier and lighting your joint correctly to get perfect draws. Follow our step-by-step guide below and you’ll be rolling a great joint in no time.
What You Need To Roll A Doobie
Before we dive into the instructions, here’s a list of what you’ll need:
- Your favorite weed strain
- Long rolling papers
- Tip/filter
- Pen or similar object to press the joint on
- Grinder
- Rolling tray
How To Roll A Doobie
Let’s quickly discuss how to turn a traditional joint.
Step 1: Grind Your Weed
If you are using high-quality hybrid strains like we do, you will already notice the sweet smell as soon as you hold the buds between your fingers. Although it is possible to crumble them by hand, we recommend grinding them into bite-sized pieces with a good grinder. First of all, this saves time. In addition, you avoid sticky fingers, which benefits you when you roll a doobie. The idea is that you break up your buds into smaller particles, but don’t grind them into powder. This optimizes airflow and burn rate.
Step 2: Make A Tip For Your Joint
A tip is actually a mouthpiece for your joint and is also known as a filter. Some smokers claim this is unnecessary or optional, but in our opinion it is highly recommended. A good tip does the following:
- Ensures that the end of the joint stays open;
- Prevents burning your fingers or lips while smoking;
- Prevents anything from falling out of the joint;
- Keeps the shape of the joint intact;
- Makes smoking easier by increasing the airflow in the joint.
You make a tip from thick paper or thin cardboard, like a business card. For long rolling papers a 5,5 x 1,7 cm piece is sufficient. It is also possible to buy a booklet with tips and you will often find these in packs of long smoking papers.
Many people simply roll the tip into a cylinder shape, but this leaves a hole in the middle. Weed may fall through or get clogged up while smoking. It is therefore better to fold it into an accordion shape before rolling the rest completely around it. Make as many folds as you like to reach the final desired diameter.
Step 3: Fill Your Joint
Blotting paper comes in many shapes and sizes, so choose whatever you like. We recommend organic hemp papers. This is because they are thin and sturdy and guarantee an even burn. They also do not affect the aroma of the weed. In addition, tips are included.
Take a piece of paper and hold it with the glue edge towards your feet and your eyes on the fold. Carefully fold the tissue paper in the opposite direction. Then gently roll it between your fingers until it turns into the desired shape.
Put your weed into your rolling papers with one hand. Spread it in such a way that there is less on the side where the tip will be. The goal is to end up with a cone-shaped joint. Straight joints, however, are easier to turn. So if this is your first attempt, that’s fine too. Ultimately, however, a cone-shaped joint offers a better smoking experience.
Step 4: Roll A Doobie
With the cigarette paper and weed in your hands, roll gently, moving your fingers from side to side to distribute everything evenly. Add your tip from Step 2 to and twist it in. Keep your fingers near the filter. The tighter you do this, the better.
Roll the paper back and forth to make sure the edge of the cigarette paper falls over the tip. You are now well on your way to making the perfect joint! To make rolling easier, you can also use a handy wooden rolling tray. It has the ideal size for rolling joints. It also catches any weed that might fall out of your joint. You don’t need a table either, because the tray just fits on your lap.
Step 5: Lick And Seal Your Joint
Once you have twisted long enough and created a good shape, it is time to seal your joint. Keep rolling until the paper is tight around the contents and you can easily seal the edge. Twist until the glue edge is well under the non-sticky side. Now lick the glue edge, seal the joint and leave the end open.
Seal your joint slowly and carefully along the length of the joint. To avoid smoking too much paper, you can burn off the excess material after sealing. Above all, do not roll too tightly, as this makes smoking more difficult. However, if you roll too loose, you run the risk of burning unevenly or too fast.
Step 6: Pressing Your Joint
To ensure an easy and even burn, you must now press your joint. Use the pen (or other object) to gently push the weed through the open end. You can now tuck back any crumbs that may have fallen out earlier, but you can also save them for later. Next, hold your joint vertically, with the filter in your hand. Tap the joint on a flat surface to press the cannabis more firmly. Push the tip in slightly to strengthen it.
Step 7: Twist The End Of Your Joint
Seal the open end by twisting the protruding tissue paper into a sort of wick. This way the weed can no longer fall out. This allows you to save your joint if you don’t plan to smoke right away. As soon as you start smoking, light it at the twisted end.
Step 8: Lighting And Enjoying
The moment of enjoyment has arrived. Now nothing stands between you and the joint you have just crafted. All that remains to be done is to light it up and relax. Your joint tastes best if you light it just once. So try to smoke everything immediately and avoid re-lighting. Re-lighting doesn’t improve the taste and we want you to enjoy every puff to get the most out of your weed.
Step 9: Share Your Joint
To improve your experience you can also share your joint with friends. First of all, this will prevent you from lighting up again. Secondly, it gives you the chance to fully enjoy the aroma while you wait your turn. Finally, it is much more fun to enjoy a high with your friends. A good time is guaranteed!
Roll A Doobie Without A Filter Tip
Rolling a joint without a filter tip is easy. Simply follow the steps above, but skip step 2 (make a filter tip). When you start rolling your joint, use your fingers to tuck the edge of the paper in neatly on the first stroke. This can be a little tricky. Filter tips actually contribute to the cylindrical shape of your joint and help the paper roll over itself.
If you’re rolling a joint without a tip, also consider adding some spice to the beginning of your joint. This will prevent you from wasting weed, as this piece will likely become too hot to hold.
Sometimes a regular joint simply won’t do. There are those times when only a large cone will do. Twisting a cone seems quite intimidating, but the process is actually fairly similar to twisting a regular joint. However, a few subtle tweaks will help you turn a thick, fat joint instead of a regular one.
For starters, at step 3 (fill your joint) pay extra attention to the distribution of the weed across the paper. To get the shape of a large cone, you need to put more weed at the end of the joint and less on the side of the filter. For this, it helps to lay your rolling paper on a flat surface and spread your ground buds over it.
In step 4 of our instructions (rolling your joint), twist your rolling papers so that the joint is thinner at the tip. This is how you get that big, cone-like appearance. To achieve this, start by rolling on the side of the filter and make sure the rolling papers roll neatly over themselves. Then, as you continue to roll, move your hands along the joint toward the end. To create that cone shape, the rolling paper must roll diagonally over itself. Think of how you would roll a regular piece of paper into a cone or trumpet-like shape.
Note: When rolling a cone joint, it is extra important to use a rolling tray. This is because there is a good chance that quite a few buds will fall off as you practice. A rolling tray helps to catch the weed. You can then use this to fill your joint, as described in step 6.
Turning A Cross Joint
Twisting a cross joint may seem like a daunting task. Yet you can make this classic creation fairly quickly at home as long as you have mastered the right technique.
The easiest way to make a cross joint is to roll two separate joints. You make a thick cone joint and a thinner standard joint.
Use the instructions in this article to roll them both.
Next, use a wooden toothpick and poke a hole through the cone joint, about a third from the tip. Once you have pricked through the cone joint, gently move the toothpick back and forth to make the hole bigger. The hole should be wide enough to push the thinner joint through.
Next, make a hole halfway through the regular joint. This will ensure that the air flows evenly through the intersection.
Finally, you push the thin joint through the hole in the cone joint to make a cross. Once you are satisfied with the position, use strips of adhesive-backed rolling paper to seal the two joints.
Turning A Doobie With A Rolling Machine
Rolling machines take a lot of the work out of your hands. To roll a doobie with a jointroller, start by preparing your weed according to step 1 (grind your weed). Then you perform step 2 (make a tip for your joint). Place your rolling machine on a flat surface, preferably on a piece of paper. This way you will catch excess buds.
Separate the rollers from the machine, place your tip at one end and fill the machine with your ground buds. We recommend using between 0.5 and 1g of weed to keep the joint from becoming too tight. Once filled, close the rollers of the device and roll them against each other to compress your weed.
Finally, take your rolling papers, slide them between the two rollers and give the top roller a twist to feed the paper into the machine. Keep spinning until only the sticky edge of the rolling paper sticks out. Lick the gum, give the rollers one last spin and open the machine. You should now have a perfectly rolled joint!
Lighting A Joint
You now know exactly how to roll a great joint. It’s time to light it up! For the best smoking experience, we recommend that you follow these simple but important instructions for lighting your joint:
- With your dominant hand, light a match or lighter and bring it to the end of your joint.
- Do not hold the flame directly at the end of the joint but keep it about 2cm away.
- While holding the lighter/lighter in place with one hand, use your other hand to gently turn the joint. This is how you get an even burn.
- Now you can bring your rolled joint to your mouth. Don’t take large puffs but small, short ones as you continue to turn the joint. This will ensure a nice, even burn.
- Inspect the fire cone at the end of your joint, if you like. You want the entire perimeter to glow evenly while smoking.
For the best experience, use a hemp wick or cedar matches to light your joint. The latter are specifically designed for smokers of cigars and tobacco. They may be a little more expensive but help preserve the natural flavors of tobacco and marijuana. If you light a cedar match, let the tip of it burn away before you use it to light your joint. This will preserve the flavors.
Hemp wick works with a similar principle. Just light the wick and keep the flame near your joint. With this option, you also keep the whole smoking process within the hemp family!
Using Silk Paper For Rolling A Doobie
No, you cannot use silk paper or any other paper when you roll a doobie; it is not designed for it. High-quality papers are usually made from natural fibers such as hemp. This is not exposed to harsh bleaching and other treatments used to make regular paper.
Silk paper, toilet paper and kitchen paper are all bleached. They often contain odors you don’t want to breathe in. Standard printer paper is also bleached and probably treated with a long list of chemicals.
Don’t have rolling papers in the house? Then use other smoking accessories. If you have nothing else available, you can also choose alternative objects such as an apple or corn cob.
Roll A Doobie | Frequently Asked Questions
Should I roll a doobie in a cone shape?
This is better, but if you are a beginner you might want to roll it in a cylinder shape first.
Is it better to roll a doobie with a rolling machine or without it?
It is easier to use a rolling machine, but it’s up to you whether you use it or not.
After I roll a doobie, can I just light it?
There is a way to light it to preserve the taste which we described in the article above.
Should I use a tip when I roll a doobie?
It is advised, but you can also choose to roll a doobie without a tip.
Can I roll a doobie without proper rolling paper?
Yes, you can but you shouldn’t use any other paper. If you have no rolling paper, you should use an apple.