How To Roll A Joint: The Ultimate Guide

Learning how to roll a joint is a rite of passage for some, but for us it’s a way to get our daily serving of CBD or CBG. Many people think that smoking a joint means smoking marijuana, but this is not always the case. CBD is legal nationwide, making hemp, which contains less than 0.3% THC legal to smoke in most states. 

This guide is pretty fool-proof, but if you decide to give up on rolling your own joint, you can cheat and buy our CBD pre-rolls. 

Before You Begin To Roll 

Before you roll a joint, there are a couple things you need to do.

1) Grind your cannabis

You likely have cannabis flower, like our CBG flower or other hemp flower, that you’d like to roll into a joint. The flower will have to be broken down first. The best way to do this is with an herb grinder, but if you don’t have one you can break it down by hand. The goal is to end up with tiny pieces of ground cannabis so that the joint will smoke smoothly and evenly.

2) Make a filter

A joint filter, or crutch, acts as a mouthpiece for the joint. It is usually made of thick paper, like a business card. Some joint rolling papers come with filters that you just have to roll up, but if you don’t have pre-cut filters you can just cut a strip off a business card or other piece of cardstock. Roll the strip of thick paper tightly into a small spiral. This will act as a solid mouthpiece to make smoking easier, while also stopping pieces of ground cannabis from reaching your mouth.

Now You’re Ready To Roll

Now that you have your ground cannabis and your filter ready, it’s time to roll up that joint! Refer to the image at the top of this page for visuals for each step. 

Step 1: Open your rolling paper and place the small, rolled filter at one end.

Open the paper wide and establish which end will be the filter. Place the tightly rolled filter at the very end of the rolling paper. This will be the end that you will smoke from, and the rest of the paper will be the cone filled with ground cannabis.

Step 2: Carefully fill the rest of the length of paper evenly with ground cannabis. Fill to the same height as the filter.

Holding the filter in place with your thumb, place ground cannabis throughout the rest of the paper. Try to fill the paper evenly and with enough cannabis to be the same height as the filter. Keep the desired shape and size of the joint in mind when determining how much ground cannabis to use.

Step 3: Shape the joint with your fingers by guiding the cannabis into a tight snake shape.

Hold the joint between your index finger and thumb with both hands, and gently roll the ground cannabis back and forth slightly to form it into a tight snake shape. Move your fingers along the length of the paper to make a cohesive snake of ground cannabis that will smoke smooth and even. 

Step 4: Tuck the unglued edge of the paper over the cannabis and under the other side. 

One edge of the rolling paper will have glue on it, which you should be able to see. Hold the joint with that edge away from you. Roll the unglued edge over the cannabis and tuck it tightly under the edge with glue. Try to tuck it as snug as you can so that the joint will be tight and won’t fall apart.

Step 5: Lick the glued edge and roll the joint up, sealing with the glue. 

Now that the joint is half-rolled, lick the glue to make it sticky then roll the rest of the paper around the joint and seal it with the glue. It’s important to roll the joint snug and tight so that it will smoke properly.

Step 6: Pack the cannabis by poking it down from the open end of the joint.

Now the joint is rolled, but open on the end. Use a pencil or other object to gently poke the cannabis down, away from the edge of the joint. This provides space in the paper to close the end, and packing the cannabis down will add to the cone shape of the joint. 

Step 7: Twist the open end closed.

After packing the cannabis down into the joint, pinch the end of the paper and twist it to seal the end closed. Take a moment to admire your accomplishment. And if you didn’t get it quite right this time, keep practicing!

Step 8: Light and smoke!

There are a couple ways to light a joint. Some people light their joints the same way they light a cigarette, which is by putting the joint in your mouth, holding the flame up to it, and breathing in. But that’s a little bit of an aggressive way to light a joint, which may result in an uneven burn. The best way to get a nice smooth-burning cherry is to hold the joint in your hand with the end slightly in the flame, and turn it in circles until it is burning on its own. 

Enjoy smoking your nicely rolled joint and all the benefits that come with the type of cannabis you chose to smoke.

Pros And Cons Of Smoking Joints

Cannabinoids, such as CBD or CBG, have wellness benefits such as increased relaxation or improved energy levels, relief from discomfort, positive mental and mood support, and more. 

For cannabinoid consumers, smoking the hemp flower is the quickest way to get the cannabinoids into your bloodstream. However, inhaling smoke is hard on the lungs, so many people opt for other methods of consumption such as CBD edibles, sublingual CBD oil extracts, or water solubles. 

But some people do find that the benefits they personally experience from smoking CBD outweigh the costs of breathing in smoke. 

What’s The Difference Between Hemp Joints And Marijuana?

When most people think of a joint, they think of marijuana, the intoxicating type of cannabis that contains high levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC is the cannabinoid that is famous for its psychotropic properties. But THC is only one of the over 100 cannabinoids found in cannabis plants, making marijuana only one of the types of cannabis available to smoke. 

At CBD American Shaman, we sell other types of cannabis that are called hemp. They contain only trace amounts of THC, less than 0.3%, which is not nearly enough to cause any sort of intoxication or psychotropic effects. Hemp flower is a great way for CBD users who enjoy smoking to get their daily serving of CBD. We carry products such as CBD pre-rolled joints and CBG flower. 

CBD is cannabidiol, which is known for its wide range of wellness benefits, including increased relaxation, relief from discomfort, positive mental and mood support, immune system function support, and much more. CBG, or cannabigerol, is known for its energizing effects and has been called the “mother cannabinoid.” 

Neither CBD nor CBG will get users “high” or intoxicated, but simply provide support for health and wellness.

How Does Smoking Hemp Affect The Body?

Hemp and other types of cannabis contain cannabinoids, which interact with the body’s Endocannabinoid System (ECS). The human body is equipped with an intricate system that only interacts with cannabinoids. This is because our bodies produce their own cannabinoids, called endocannabinoids, that work with the ECS to maintain a state of homeostasis, or balance, within the body.

The ECS supports everything from the nervous system, to the immune system, to skin health. And it’s pretty magical that the ECS can interact with chemicals from only two different sources in the world: the human body and cannabis plants. The cannabinoids in cannabis plants are structured similarly to the endocannabinoids that our bodies create, allowing them to work together to regulate important systems throughout the body.

Smoke safely

CBD American Shaman provides high-quality CBD and CBG products so that you can smoke safely and legally. All of our products are lab tested to ensure that they are compliant with the legal limits of THC and contain the stated levels of CBD or CBG. Always remember to follow your local laws when smoking, such as making sure to smoke away from doors, vents, or other building intakes. We want you to enjoy the wellness benefits of hemp in a responsible manner.

The content on this site is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. While research has shown that CBD has the potential to help provide beneficial outcomes for several complaints, it is advisable to seek the advice of a physician or other qualified healthcare provider when you have questions regarding any medical condition and when starting, augmenting or discontinuing any existing health routine. 

Recommended Reading

CBD vs. THC: What Are the Differences?

The History of Cannabis and Hemp

What Is The Endocannabinoid System?