Tips on How Best to Use a Leaf Trimming Machine
// July 16th, 2009 // 4 Comments » // The Twister, tips
We have noticed there is lack of information regarding expectations and procedures for running a leaf trimming machine. Best practices are outlined in detail in documentation packaged with every Twister, but we thought it was time to share some of that info with others.
There are two things you should do before running your product through your machine. First, you need to prune all the big fan leaves off. Experienced gardeners usually already do this days or sometimes weeks before, but it can just as easily be done during the bucking process. This really helps with trimmer speed and, more importantly, it removes the leaf stem that can ruin the final appearance. Second, you need to make sure the plants have been given a good drink of water within the last day. This will ensure they are perky and happy and will keep the leaves from curling or wilting quickly.
Now it’s time to start bucking. Proper bucking is important because it is what really helps determine the end result. Yet this is where a lot of new users can get frustrated because, as with anything new, there is a learning curve. But don’t worry, you’ll get the hang of it. Most people who use scissors to trim get progressively faster from their days as a rookie, and bucking is the same. One problem many scissor ninjas encounter is that they’re so accustomed to using scissors in a particularly gentle way that they have trouble converting to the more aggressive looking method of bucking. These scissor ninjas can still be very effective using their scissors to buck (and quite honestly it can be better in some situations, yet still slower) but it’s also very common to find them reverting back to old habits of manicuring (which is the machine’s job).
The plants should be cut down, bucked, and run through the machine from start to finish in as short a time as possible. Cutting down multiple plants that aren’t run through the machine for hours will greatly reduce efficiency. Another tip when bucking is to remove very large top flowers and do them by hand. Yes, the machine can handle those, but very large flowers are quick and easy to trim by hand, and the machine can plow through the smaller stuff 10-20 times faster than by hand (The smaller the flowers, the faster by machine. A 5 gallon pail of popcorn would take hours to trim by hand but only a couple minutes by machine). Once a plant is bucked it should be put into the hopper as soon as possible. Sitting in bins for long periods, especially in warm or hot air, will reduce efficiency (That’s another tip: the cooler the air/environment the better).
In the beginning, a crew of 10 people may be needed to keep the machine constantly full. But with some experience, 4-5 good buckers is usually adequate to stay ahead of the machine. The machine should be turned on and left on until either it needs to be cleaned or the work is done. Every minute the machine isn’t running is a minute longer the job will take. Ensuring the machine is constantly being fed is the top priority. This job requires a small deal of concentration. Depending on the product and if you have a second machine inline, a rate of one handful every 5 seconds is average. Every time the operator day dreams, gets on a cell phone or does something other than feed the machine, the length of the job increases. If the operator has something to do, get a new operator to replace him/her so you’re not wasting any time. The hopper not being constantly fed is one of the primary reasons for slower than expected results.
A perfect situation would look like this: A cool environment with 4 experienced people bucking, one person feeding the hopper, and another person doing quality control at the machine’s output. The person doing QC can send any deficient flowers back to the hopper or quickly touch them up by hand if needed. We should point out that the latest generation of Twister leaf trimming machines do not have an adjustment for tumbler angle, whereas early models did. It has been repeatedly shown that putting the tumbler on an angle reduces quality of the final output. The reason is that gravity tends to pull the material out of the machine too fast and so it doesn’t get sufficient time in the tumbler. When the tumbler is flat, you control how long the flowers get trimmed because the flowers remain in the tumbler until another handful from the hopper pushes them out. Because the tumbler sits level, it will hold a lot more material. This ensures there is never a wasted inch of blade surface not making contact with leaf (It also helps vacuum efficiency, but that’s another topic for another day…).
Sometimes a second pass is beneficial for those who really want the pig-shaved look. This can also be achieved by slowing down the rate the machine is fed (or by having two machines running inline, or even two sets of two inline machines. Both setups have become popular with some of our customers – but that’s another topic for another day…).
Hope some of you find this info useful. If you have any questions, give us a shout and we’ll see what we can do. Good luck!
