Written and Fact Checked by S. Zulfiqar
Rick Simpson Oil, commonly known as RSO, is a cannabis concentrate that gained popularity most significantly for its purported ability to relieve cancer symptoms.
If you haven’t heard of this thick, syrupy concentrate that can either be directly ingested via food or drinks or used as a topical formulation, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s a brief rundown about what RSO is, and how you can make it with a few simple instructions.
RSO: The Background
Let’s begin by going back to where it all began.
In 2003, Rick Simpson developed cannabis oil after he developed three alarming bumps on his arm. The bumps were diagnosed as basal cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer.
Since Simpson had previously used cannabis to treat his other medical ailments, he decided to develop oil from the plant that could potentially help treat his skin cancer topically. He started covering his cancerous bumps with a bandage soaked in the oil — and the procedure worked!
Within days, Simpson saw his cancerous growths disappear. Even though his healthcare provider refused to accept cannabis as an alternative treatment regime, Simpson became a staunch believer in its medicinal potential and started telling everyone about his cannabis oil, which later became Rick Simpson Oil.
Benefits of RSO
RSO is much easier to make, can be discreetly used, is odorless, and can be consumed orally or mixed with different foods and drinks. But, remember that there are presently no scientific studies that ascertain the efficacy of RSO.
However, it is being used in skin cancer treatment, and many people have reported it helped relieve the symptoms associated with the disease and its management.
How Do You Make Rick Simpson Oil (RSO)?
Before getting into the details of how to make RSO, remember that ideally cannabis extractions must always be prepared by a licensed professional.
If you want to try out this extraction for yourself, take extreme care when boiling solvents since the entire process is highly flammable. You should beware of smoking, stove-tops, sparks, any red hot heating elements, and heat guns. Work in a well-ventilated area and place a fan near your workstation to help blow away fumes from the brewing pot.
Having stated the precautions, let’s dive into the manufacturing process. Ingredients/Utensils required:
- One pound of dried cannabis Indica
- Two gallons of solvent – Rick endorses 99% isopropyl alcohol, but wood grain alcohol, pure naphtha, ether, butane, or even water can also be used.
- Five-gallon plastic buckets
- 60 mL plastic catheter tip syringe
- Big bowl
- Stainless steel container
- Oven mittens
- Wooden spoon
- Cheesecloth/Coffee filter
- Dehydrator/Coffee warmer
- Rice cooker
Procedure:
An ounce of dried cannabis will normally produce three to four grams of high-quality oil, whereas a pound of the dried herb will yield about two ounces of oil. However, these figures may vary from strain to strain. And now, here’s a step-by-step guide to producing RSO, condensed from Rick Simpson’s official website.
- Place the dried cannabis in the plastic bucket and dampen the material using the solvent of your choice. Just remember that two gallons of solvent are needed to extract THC from a pound of cannabis, and 500 mL will be enough for an ounce of THC.
- Using a clean stick or spoon of untreated wood, or a similar utensil, crush the dampened material. Keep crushing while adding more solvent until the material is completely soaked.
- Keep stirring the mixture for at least three minutes. This allows the THC from the plant material to dissolve into the solvent.
- Transfer the solvent oil mixture carefully into another bucket. At this stage, the plant is stripped of at least 80% of its THC.
- Once again, add more solvent to this bucket and mix for another three minutes. This facilitates the extraction of any remaining THC.
- Pour this solvent oil mix back into the bucket containing the first mixture. Remove the now twice-washed plant material, and pass the remaining solvent oil mixture through a coffee filter/cheesecloth and into a clean container.
- Boil the solvent using a rice cooker on high heat until about ¾th is remaining. The latter can hold up to more than half of the mixture and allows the solvent to boil evenly and nicely. Make sure your area is well-ventilated and equipped to carry the flammable solvent fumes away.
- Keep adding more solvent mixture to the cooker as it evaporates.
- Just before the level of solvent in the rice cooker approaches our desired amount, add about 10 drops of water (sufficient for one pound of dry material). This helps release solvent residue and protects the oil from excessive heat.
- When about an inch of the solvent-water mixture is remaining in the rice cooker, grab your oven mittens, pick the rice cooker up and swirl the contents to help the solvent boil off.
- Once the solvent has boiled off, place the cooker back on low heat for a few minutes, making sure it doesn’t reach temperatures above 290˚ F (140˚ C).
- Remove the pot containing the oil from the rice cooker and carefully pour its contents into a stainless steel container.
- Place the stainless steel container in a dehydrator or on a moderate heating device like a coffee warmer. It might take a few hours for all the water and volatile terpenes to evaporate from the oil.
- When no activity can be seen on the surface of the oil, it is ready for use. Suck up the oil using a syringe or into any clean container you see fit. A syringe is preferred since it makes dispensing the oil easier. Once the oil cools down completely, its final consistency will be that of thick grease.
- Since the oil has an extremely long shelf-life, it can be stored in a dark air-tight jar, bottle, or stainless steel container and kept in a cool, dark place for quite some time — years.
Bottom Line
From start to finish, the entire process of RSO production takes about three to four hours, after which the medicine is ready for use. The process might seem laborious and daunting, but in reality, it is straightforward.
Just carefully follow all the instructions and once you’ve made RSO a few times, you’ll find it to be as easy as making your daily cup of coffee. Want to try making RSO? Visit Weedsmart today for the required ingredients and tools you’ll need to get started.
Interesting Reads
4 Really Simple CBD Gummy Recipes You Have to Try This Month, How to Make Cannabis Budder, The Best Types of Containers for Keeping Your Weed Fresh
References
https://phoenixtears.ca/producing-the-oil/
https://www.medicaljane.com/question/how-do-you-make–rick–simpson-oil-rso-with-weed/
