Canadian Gritweed

[Spiritu]

I made a post a couple days ago in the DANGER! GLASS WEED thread regarding some recent experiences with suspected gritweed from all over Ontario. It seems a majority of it is coming from the Toronto area as well.

The purpose of this thread is to confirm whether there is an epidemic of gritweed in southern ontario or simply a few isolated incidents. Either way one thing is for sure: GRIT WEED IS REAL.

I will be periodically adding pics of samples which are suspected to be contaminated as a good buddy of mine has been shooting some through his 30x microscope.

Here is what started the paranoia:

Confirmed Grit (iron fillings, possibly glass also).


The first pic shows a metal shaving, this one was apparently obvious and visible to naked eye upon closer inspection. What do you make of it? he thinks there could be glass too. The last pic is another metal shaving which was more evident after washing the bud for 24 hours and then drying. Real kicker is people were selling this for $15/g on the street.




The second set of pics he sent me are what seems to be easy to find right now, hopefully you won't think it looks suspicious, but we need better eyes. Looking up-close at trichs is new to the both of us and we are lacking confidence in our convictions. These may have a glass/silica contamination. What do you think???

Some of the pics are prior to a 24-hour wash, some after. These are the best pics so far, but there are more in my Grit album if you care to take the time to look.

Make sure you examine your herb closely before smoking, this stuff is not visible to the untrained naked eye. You DON'T WANT TO BE SMOKING THAT STUFF!

Hopefully we're just getting paranoid, but i need your feedback to be sure.

I look forward to hearing some experiences and conclusions on the pics above.

PEACE

 

[Buju09]

post some regular sized shots if its an obvious strain its easier to look out for, or atleast to be wary of purchase and or double checking before consumption

 

[HempHut]

The easiest way to tell if it is indeed grit weed is to eat a tiny bit. You don't need to swallow it but just chew it for 30 secs or so -- you'll know almost immediately because it will feel like you're chewing on sand -- you'll also be able to hear it grinding as you chew. It's just like going to the beach and getting some sand in your mouth and then chewing. If it's gritty spit it out and rinse your mouth out with some water.

When it was going around the U.K. you could also sometimes find a build up in the bottom of the baggie -- just stick some to your finger and rub between your finger and thumb to tell if it is actually gritty.

Also, the one time I ended up with some grit weed I noticed that the burnt ash from my one hitter glistened (sparkled) when I held a flame near it -- the light was reflecting off the glass beads left in the ash that were more exposed after the plant material was burnt off.

The above is for the glass bead variety -- I have no experience with lead/metal or other contaminants.

Hope this helps. Be careful.

 

[apartmentblower]

brix+ , metal, glass.... uurrghh just grow your own bro!!!

 

[amrad]

Gees this whole thing is new to me and probably others that dont buy but grow for their own use.
So why would some idiot add ground glass or iron filings to pot? Is it just to add a bit of weight? And what is brix ?

 

[billy_big_bud!]

dude. pm me. kush all day.

 

[jarff]

Brix+ maybe...seen it before and very similar to pics shown above.......
It leaves a black ash and burnt sugar smell
Dunno....some ppl. will do anything for money
jarff

 

[Beautiful BC]

Gees this whole thing is new to me and probably others that dont buy but grow for their own use.
So why would some idiot add ground glass or iron filings to pot? Is it just to add a bit of weight? And what is brix ?

Yep, to add weight. The glass powder looks like trichomes at first glance (but more sparkle-y) and can disguise buds that have been sifted for hash. Never seen any in person thankfully.
Brix+ is a sugary solution (100% organic ) sprayed on the outside of buds, and adds weight by leaving the sugar behind after the buds are dried.

It's unfortunate what people will do just to make a little more money..

 

[Spiritu]

post some regular sized shots if its an obvious strain its easier to look out for, or atleast to be wary of purchase and or double checking before consumption

First 2 are the confirmed grit with metal and possible glass. The last is a full bud shot from the 2nd set of pics in my first post.

The easiest way to tell if it is indeed grit weed is to eat a tiny bit...chew it for 30 secs or so -- you'll know almost immediately because it will feel like you're chewing on sand -- you'll also be able to hear it grinding as you chew.

When it was going around the U.K. you could also sometimes find a build up in the bottom of the baggie

Also, the one time I ended up with some grit weed I noticed that the burnt ash from my one hitter glistened (sparkled) when I held a flame near it -- the light was reflecting off the glass beads left in the ash that were more exposed after the plant material was burnt off.

Tried chewing the Skunky grit shown at the end of the post, didn't taste too good considering it was herb, but did not have what I would call a gritty texture. I haven't seen anything too suspicious at the bottom of a bag, BUT...my friend told me each time he takes some pics there will be small beads or trichomes left behind. You decide?


Haven't noticed shiny ash.

Brix+ maybe...seen it before and very similar to pics shown above.......
It leaves a black ash and burnt sugar smell
Dunno....some ppl. will do anything for money
jarff

I had heard of Brix+ a long ways back and figured I had run into from time to time. Hadn't seen anything suspicious in a long time before this "new grit weed", kinda figured the brix stuff was becoming uncommon. It is definitely a possibility. Most of these buds do leave a black ash, I'm not sure what burnt sugar smells like so I'll have to do some tests and get back.


This is some strange looking mid I saw a year or two back, this is what i figured might be a brix type contamination. Second pic is of some "china bud" for good measure.

dude. pm me. kush all day.

Ran into some kush a couple weeks ago, looked, smelled, tasted like kush...Had more obvious grit than the pics i'm showing you, yet delivered a strong buzz from what i was told. Couldn't figure out why on earth someone would want to mess with that herb.

Anyhow good lookin BBB, if there's one thing that seems to be consistent quality around it's kush, however paying an extra 25%+ for a kush name doesn't excite me too much. If everything else is fucked tho...I guess you can't put a price on quality

Yep, to add weight. The glass powder looks like trichomes at first glance (but more sparkle-y) and can disguise buds that have been sifted for hash. Never seen any in person thankfully.
Brix+ is a sugary solution (100% organic ) sprayed on the outside of buds, and adds weight by leaving the sugar behind after the buds are dried.

It's unfortunate what people will do just to make a little more money..

This is what caught my eye with these buds. They sparkle in a funny way that even very experienced smokers won't notice until you get into deeper detail and examination with them. Many of the pics' focus was selected by pinpointing with the naked eye which individual trichome looked suspicious, then looking close-up with the microscope. I don't ever remember seeing buds where I could individually identify trichs with my eye. For example, take a look at the 2nd picture of grit at the top of this post. It would be easier to show you in person, but if you look at the bud in the foreground, close to the center of the pic, you will notice one individual trichome outshining all the others. This may look innocuous but I can assure you in person it looks suspicious.

Here is some suspected skunk grit:



THANKS FOR ALL THE GOOD FEEDBACK GUYS! I finally feel like i'm starting to work this situation out...getting less paranoid.
Keep the replies coming.

 

[bigghead]

the quality of canadian weed in general has sunk greatly in the past couple years. great genetics grown by not so great growers. never ripe anymore especially the lui. and now this . oh canada? at least the beer and ballet are still good.

 

[EuroToker]

jesus christ, i thought that was an urban rumor?

is it certain groups doing it?

 

[Hashmasta-Kut]

i have heard of it in europe. those closeups show nothing odd though. maybe the metal shard in one, but thats it. most of them are just crystals.

 

[Spiritu]

i have heard of it in europe. those closeups show nothing odd though. maybe the metal shard in one, but thats it. most of them are just crystals.

so you think its more likely light tricks, and handling/damage that are causing any "odd" visuals up-close? i guess that would mean the pic of just "beads" are actually broken trichome heads? i hope this is true

i'm very interested to hear more experience with brix+ as well. regardless of the results we determined here, most of these buds look fantastic. Unforuntately, they all are mediocre smoke. I know once you can't always judge a book by its cover, but typically it will give you a good idea of what's in store. This stuff is very misleading.

Maybe my tolerance is getting a little high... and maybe i need a break to clear my head of all the paranoia lol

regardless the metal contamination is definitely something to watch out for.

 

[.clunk]

I was going to say that everything looks pretty normal to me, aside from the metal filing. who knows, maybe the trimmers scissors (or trim machine) puked out a little chunk of steel..
This is the first time I've even heard the term "gritweed"..must suck to live out east hahaha!
I have smoked quite a bit of bud which was hammered with the Bryx+ stuff, I've been smoking daily for the last 14 years or so and I really didn't notice much change in flavour, just the ash burnt a little differently. Maybe it tastes like sugar if they don't flush too well or if they over-apply, I don't know.

 

[Kalicokitty]

I think we have a little more Canadian paranoia here then Canadian grit.
The metal shaving could have come from anything, and I don't see someone coming up with a master plan to make their fortune by putting one tiny speck of metal per bud.

Hell, even at ten pounds with one speck that size per bud, what are we talking about in extra weight here? An oz maybe? Not exactly a major score for your trouble.

 

[Spiritu]

I think we have a little more Canadian paranoia here then Canadian grit.
The metal shaving could have come from anything, and I don't see someone coming up with a master plan to make their fortune by putting one tiny speck of metal per bud.

Hell, even at ten pounds with one speck that size per bud, what are we talking about in extra weight here? An oz maybe? Not exactly a major score for your trouble.

I know what you mean. I definitely feel like I have overreacted a bit and freaked myself out. The metal still seems odd to me but they have seen it in the UK. Like you say its hard to understand the "master plan" here but metal was found throughout a large batch of bud and was very difficult to pinpoint.

If there's one thing i know, it's that people will do anything to turn a buck. People shake down their bags to make an extra $20-50 a bag. The buds with metal do look more impressive, maybe it allowed them to charge more on the pound?

I'm curious how common you guys think Brix is and looking to develop an eye for it; so i can avoid it. This goes for out west too, since a large amount of bud around does come from bc.

The more people who tell me i'm crazy the better i will feel. So please keep the replies coming.

 

[Skip]

It would seem that the way to know for sure is just to BURN the weed and see what's left!

If you have a vaporizer you can use that. Metal and glass won't vaporize so you're safe using it. Then just take a look at what's left over. If there's shiny glass particles or metal shavings, you know it's bad. Otherwise, it's just your imagination.

 

[Dr Dog]

easily fixed by doing what I do

I will not smoke anything that I do not know who grew it..

That includes freebies and pass arounds handed out at festivals etc, I just pass them along, I do not partake..

The days of being freewheelin and free are long gone. It is not just glass and dirt you should be worried about. Chemicals, bacteria, viruses, etc all can be gotten by passing around joints or smoking suspect buds

Take care of "yourself"

 

[dmt]

grow your own, stop supporting currpt gangs/dealers, d