Joint 101 - Everything you need to know about joints and their effects
Like the big 1x1 in third grade, only this one is a lot more fun - we promise!
Cannabis legalization in Germany is just around the corner. Reason enough to delve a little deeper into the world of joints, don't you think? We not only shed light on what lies behind the pure terminology, but also clear up general prejudices and work with you to find the answers to typical questions.
How to roll the perfect joint, what you should keep in mind when using cannabis for the first time and what every long-time user has definitely done wrong? We at Medusafilters have summarized this and much more for you below and peppered it with numerous tips and tricks. So what are we waiting for, fire away.
Key facts at a glance
1. Definition of the joint and distinction between blunt and spliff
What is behind these terms and where do they originate? A journey through the colorful history of the joint that will definitely surprise you.
2. Get the perfect joint in 7 easy steps
With these instructions, not only will every beginner become a professional, but your rolling skills will reach international peaks.
3. How do you smoke a joint? influence effect
You can find out here how you can optimize your smoking experience and what effect you can expect.
4. What joint variations are there and how can you easily recreate them?
What do tulips, crosses and windmills have in common? Correct! They all represent the most creative joint enjoyment. We'll tell you exclusively here how you can enjoy this.
1. Definition of the joint and distinction from a blunt to a spliff
There are now an incredible number of terms in circulation that ultimately all describe the same thing, right? A usually hand-rolled "cigarette" that consists at least partially of finely ground cannabis. Rolled into a thin paper and combined with a twisted TIP or an activated carbon filter , "it" represents the world's most common way of consuming cannabis. The joint!
Depending on the region and culture, the joint has now been given many names, and it is not uncommon for people to say “bag”, “dowel” and “torpedo” to it. They define the umbrella term and are merely synonyms in the respective slang language. The blunt, however, is probably the most common variant of the joint. Especially in the USA, it is typically smoked in tobacco paper intended for this purpose and no filters or mouthpieces are used. What Americans rarely use is the subtype of joint that we clearly prefer here in Europe. The spliff! This defines a joint with a mixing ratio of around 50% tobacco and 50% marijuana. People usually smoke with a filter or mouthpiece made of paper.
Renegade Piranha, Snoop Dogg's official blunt roller, recently reported that he smokes up to 150 blunts a day.
You can find out which joint is right for you in our article “What is a joint?” detailed.
2. The colorful history of the joint and a hopeful foresight
Every story has its beginnings somewhere. For example, did you know that cannabis and therefore joints are directly related to Christopher Columbus? In 1492, he was the first person to transport cannabis seeds from Cuba to America. So a historical drug smuggler?
Not quite. These were increasingly used to grow industrial hemp, which was used, for example, for ropes or to obtain hemp oil. However, other reports assume that the calming effects of THC and CBD cannabis after smoking were already known and practiced back then. Later passed through the hands of the hippie movement, the joint gained new fame. However, it will probably take a few years before it becomes socially acceptable. Or maybe not?
What Columbus obviously appreciated back then is probably more popular with us today than ever before. According to a study from 2014/15, Americans now smoke more marijuana than tobacco.
Historian this way. What is behind it and where does the journey lead? The full history of the joint.
3. 7 easy steps to the perfect joint
But how do you roll the perfect joint? You're probably really excited when you can finally hold your specially built joint in your hands. That's why let's get started.
Preparation is half the battle
Prepare what you will need down the road. This includes a grinder, rolling paper, a Medusa filter and of course your cannabis.
Crush the weed
To do this, place it in the cutting area of your grinder. Close it again and carefully start turning it alternately in both directions. The finer your hemp plant, the better.
Add the weed and filter to the paper
Place the filter on your preferred outer edge with the cannabis in front of it. Make sure it is evenly distributed. Make sure that the adhesive strip is on top and on the inside!
This is how you roll the perfect joint
Pick up the joint kit and start rotating it between your thumb and forefinger so that the cannabis begins to curl and form a kind of sausage.
This is how you lick and seal the joint properly
Now lick the adhesive strip. Sometimes less is more! Then twist the paper and wrap it into a cone-shaped joint.
Stuff and close
Carefully stuff your herb mixture using a stuffing tool (in the bong lighter), then twist the excess paper to seal your joint.
Yikes! If you counted correctly, there are only 6 steps. Have you noticed? You can get perhaps the most important step, as well as detailed information, in our “Roll the perfect joint with these 7 simple steps” blog post.
4. How do you smoke a joint? influence effect
You're probably thinking "light it up and go". But stop!
In order to give you a perfect first or next smoking experience, you should definitely read our tips beforehand. Some factors play a crucial role when consuming cannabis. The place where you smoke has just as much influence as the people you surround yourself with. Enough liquid in the immediate area? And no, I don't mean alcohol. Mixed consumption can increase the psychoactive effects of hemp and often leads to palpitations, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Side effects that you are happy to avoid.
Suitable for experienced and beginners alike - our slim activated carbon filters with a diameter of 6 mm.
Here you can find out what else you should pay attention to and what the perfect dosage is all about so that your experience is unforgettable in our article.
5. How long does the effect last, so how long are you high?
The intoxicating effect of cannabis (high) can be completely different, but why is that? On the one hand, the high depends on the active ingredient in the hemp. Here it is important to first differentiate between CBD and THC. While the THC content has been proven, is responsible for the psychoactive effects and is consumed for this purpose, cannabis with a high CBD content has a more calming effect. Basically, the more cannabinoids the plant has, the more potent it is. In addition, the dose smoked is clearly crucial in order to answer this question.
How long you are high also depends on the following factors:
- The type of consumption (the effect of edibles is delayed, but often stronger than is the case with smoking weed)
→ When consumed orally, the effects often only appear after 2 to 3 hours, while when inhaling cannabis it only takes seconds to minutes.
- Which variety is consumed. Strains that contain a lot of the active ingredient THC often make you high longer and stronger.
- Your body's own preferences and your general condition also need to be taken into account.
You can find out more factors that can influence the effect and how they ultimately interact or how you can actively shorten your high in our article “ How long does the high last? ”.
6. How do you roll a tulip joint?
As quickly as it “grows”, it also disappears again quickly. But who can blame you? This joint not only looks very close to nature, but is also easy to smoke. You can find out from us how you can easily recreate this Amsterdam Classic.
Build the funnel for your tulip
Make a larger square out of at least 2 pieces of long paper glued together and fold it over once so that you get a triangle. Leave the top edge of the adhesive exposed. Moisten it and fold it over so that you get a closed triangle, which you can now unfold into a funnel. Fill it with your favorite mixture so that you can close it easily later.
Building the (best) style for your tulip
For this you can either use a longer tube or a classic joint that you make as long, thin and tight as possible. In our example we use a tube as this usually ensures more stability.
The marriage between funnel and style
Place the joint in your funnel with the opening first and wrap the rest of the funnel paper around it. Using the remaining adhesive strips, stick the joint to the bud. Using a few pieces of tape from other papers, secure the two components together by pressing them firmly together at the point where the funnel and joint come together.
That happened too quickly? Then we have summarized in detail how you can get your perfect tulip.
7. How do you twist a cross joint?
We continue with a very special joint variant. The cross joint. In 5 simple steps we will show you the secrets behind it and get you to your goal with ease.
Create the foundation
With 2 standard joints. Please note that one of the two should be significantly smaller than the other. The smaller of the two should be built without a filter, the larger one may taper and become wider towards the tip.
Poke a hole
In the larger of the two joints so that you can "cross" the two later. The best way to do this is with a toothpick, which you first pierce in the upper third and then start to rotate gently. By rotating, you enlarge the hole until the diameter of the small joint fits through.
It needs another hole
In the smaller joint! Pierce the toothpick completely through the middle here. This guarantees you the perfect draw later and makes your cross joint smokeable.
The wedding
Between the two! To do this, push the smaller joint with the hole vertically into the main joint. Air must be able to flow through here later. Be particularly careful here and turn it in carefully so that air can flow through later.
The finishing touches
Finally, isolate the remaining open areas of the join with adhesive strips from other pieces of paper. Here too, special caution is required!
Done! All that's left for me to do is wish you a lot of fun smoking your cross joint. For the best enjoyment, we recommend Medusafilters slim violet.
You can also find detailed instructions for building your perfect cross joint here.
The longest joint ever built is an impressive 50.6 m long and was built in 2019 by Ignacio Rodrigues and around 20 helpers. This was on display at the Mary Jane Fair in Berlin.
8. How do you turn a windmill joint?
Welcome to the supreme discipline of joint building. I hope you have your crafting skills from days gone by and a crown ready to hand. You really deserve it after these step-by-step instructions for the perfect windmill joint. This is the last post on this blog for now. So there's only one thing left for me to say: Thank you for being and staying curious. We'll see each other again soon, until then: stay active!
You will need 4 joints without a filter to put your windmill into operation later. You can prepare these in advance. If you don't know how to roll these, I advise you to read our blog post on the topic "7 steps to the perfect joint" beforehand.
We have to make a sleeve
The first step is to twist sufficiently strong cardboard paper into a tapered “joint” and glue the overlaps together. Scotch tape is best suited here. The size of the sleeve is irrelevant; in the end it should only be able to be sealed with endless paper from “Medusafilters”.
The casing
You place the endless paper at the top of your sleeve so that it goes around it and stick it to the cardboard paper using the adhesive strip. Make sure that about 50% of the paper should extend beyond the top edge. This will be important for closing later.
Every good sleeve needs holes
Using a sharp object, poke 2 opposite holes in the upper third of your sleeve. These should be roughly the diameter of your joints. Be careful here!
Sleeves for the sleeve
Still have all your fingers on it? Very good! Then make 2 more sleeves, this time with the diameter of your holes and the length of twice the diameter of the large sleeve at the thickest point. Math was good for something. Yiiihaaa
Wedding, the first
Now cut out half of the middle third of both small sleeves so that they would fit together as a “rotor”. Then push them one after the other into the large sleeve so that they surround each other in the middle. You can help a little from above.
Wedding, the second
It'll be done soon, I promise. In the last step, you twist the excess paper together in the middle and close your sleeve with it. To fix it, you should ideally use a piece of dental floss, which you wrap once around the paper fastener and tie tightly. A triple fisherman's knot should do the trick. Put in the joints and you're done! Fireee
Full wind power ahead. You can find the detailed construction instructions here.
Try it now and never want to be without it again: our best!
Frequently asked questions about the effects of joints
The difference between Sativa and Indica lies primarily in their physiological effects. Sativa strains are known to have a stimulating effect and are often consumed during the day. They can help increase creativity and productivity and may even have antidepressant properties. On the other hand, indica strains have a relaxing and calming effect that often leads to physical clumsiness. Indica is therefore better suited for the evening and can help with sleep disorders.
Weed, also known as marijuana, is the dried and crushed flower of the plant. Hashish, on the other hand, is the resin that is extracted from the trichomes (small hairs) of the plant and then pressed into a block. Hashish tends to be more concentrated and therefore stronger than weed.
Smoking weed dates back thousands of years. Historical records show that the use of cannabis as an intoxicating substance originated in Asia and was used for both medicinal and religious or spiritual purposes. Smoking cannabis as a psychoactive substance is believed to have begun with the discovery of fire, when our ancestors accidentally discovered that burning cannabis plants caused an altered state of consciousness.
A blunt is a method of smoking weed by rolling it into a cigar leaf. The name "Blunt" originally comes from a brand of cigars called "Blunts" that were often used to roll cannabis. Blunts are typically smoked with pure cannabis.
A spliff is a cigarette that combines both tobacco and marijuana. The term is particularly widespread in Europe and is often used to mark the difference between a pure marijuana cigarette (also known as a blunt) and a mixture of tobacco and marijuana.
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