What are weed sun rocks?

Weed sun rocks are a highly potent cannabis product comprised of top-shelf nugs, cannabis extract, and kief. Consumers enjoy sun rocks for their potent, intoxicating high, along with the novelty of the experience. Despite being trickier to smoke than unadulterated cannabis flower, sun rocks allow consumers to experience a strain more fully due to the compound nature of the product. The THC concentration in sun rocks is extremely high, often reaching upwards of 80%. 

Learn about cannabis sun rocks, how to make them, and the difference between them and their more popular cousin, moon rocks. 

What's the difference between moon rocks and sun rocks?

Sun rocks and moon rocks are both highly potent cannabis products, but they differ in a few fundamental ways. 

Base material 

Cannabis nug on green background Photo by: Gina Coleman/Weedmaps
  • Moon rocks typically start with a medium to high-grade cannabis bud, though there are anecdotal reports of brands using their lowest-grade nugs to make moon rocks. 
  • Sun rocks always begin with very high-grade, top-shelf cannabis flower.

Concentrate 

  • Moon rock buds are soaked with hash oil or a similar cannabis concentrate. 
  • Sun rocks also employ cannabis concentrate, but it's often of a higher quality or potency compared to what brands use for moon rocks, and they aren't soaked so much as drizzled with oil. The concentrate that coats sun rock nugs is always the same strain as the nug. 

Kief coating 

Hand in black glove holding up a moon rock Photo by: Gina Coleman/Weedmaps
Kief coating on a moon rock
  • After applying oil, moon rock buds get caked in kief, giving them a rough and lumpy appearance. 
  • Sun rocks get a lighter dusting of kief, allowing the bud and oil beneath to be partially visible. This gives sun rocks a shinier and less uniformly coated appearance.

Potency 

  • Moon rocks have a high THC content, but the potency can vary depending on the quality of the bud, oil, and kief. They typically range between 50 - 70% THC. 
  • Sun rocks are known for their extremely high potency, often exceeding 80% THC due to the use of top-shelf ingredients.

Effects 

Woman smoking joint outdoors Photo by: Gina Coleman/Weedmaps
  • Moon rocks provide a strong, long-lasting high, but because the nugs, oil, and kief often come from different strains, the high can be somewhat muddled. 
  • Sun rocks also offer an intense experience, but doubling down on one strain may make the high feel purer to some consumers. 

How to make sun rocks

Making sun rocks is relatively simple as long as you can acquire high-quality ingredients of the same strain. 

Materials

  • Top-shelf cannabis buds
  • Cannabis concentrate (BHO or CO2 oil)
  • Kief (the powdery, trichome-rich residue at the bottom of your grinder)
  • Tongs or tweezers
  • A small brush or dropper for the oil
  • A lighter or heat source (optional — for thinning the concentrate)
  • A tray or clean surface for drying

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare oil 

If your cannabis concentrate is too thick, gently heat it to a more liquid consistency. This can be done by placing the concentrate container in a warm water bath or using a lighter to warm the outside slightly. 

Be careful not to overheat the oil so the terpenes don't evaporate.

Step 2: Apply oil

Using the brush or dropper, carefully apply the cannabis concentrate onto the buds. Aim for an even coating, but avoid saturating the bud too much. The goal is to cover the bud without it being overly drenched.

Step 3: Allow oil to dry

Let the coated buds dry for a few minutes so the concentrate becomes a bit tacky. This will help the kief adhere better.

Step 4: Roll nugs in kief 

Using tongs or tweezers, gently roll the oil-coated bud in kief. Avoid applying a heavy kief coating and instead aim for a light, even dusting that allows some bud and oil to show through.

Step 5: Dry 

Allow the finished sun rocks to dry on a tray or clean surface in a cool, dark place. This process can take several hours. Proper drying ensures that the kief and concentrate properly adhere to the buds. 

Step 6: Store

Once dry, store the sun rocks in an airtight container to maintain their potency and freshness.

Buying sun rocks at a dispensary

If you don't feel like making your own sun rocks, they are available to purchase at some dispensaries.

Image of weed sun rock Photo by: Gina Coleman/Weedmaps

A lot of the sun rocks sold in dispensaries are made with myrcene-heavy, top-shelf OG Kush due to its strong aroma and taste.

How to consume sun rocks

The oil coating makes sun rocks trickier to smoke than regular flower, so approach them differently with the following tips: 

  • Use scissors instead of a grinder. Putting sun rocks in a grinder will gum up the gears. Instead, use a designated pair of scissors or a sharp knife to break up the sun rocks for consumption carefully. 
  • Use glass. Rolling sun rocks into a joint can be more labor-intensive, and there's the added concern of wasting an unfinished joint. Instead, place a small piece of a sun rock in a glass bong, pipe, or one-hitter, and smoke it as you would with regular flower. 
  • Top off a bowl. If you're smoking with friends, a bit of a sun rock can add potency and longevity to a large bowl of regular flower. To keep the experience as top-shelf as possible, keep the strain of the regular flower and sun rock consistent. 
  • Use hemp wick. Light a hemp wick and use that flame to light your bowl instead of a lighter to avoid contaminating the flavor of your sun rocks with butane. 
  • Go low and slow. Sun rocks are much more potent than regular flower and moon rocks. Exercise caution and take time between puffs to assess how your high is progressing before consuming more. 

Bottom line

Sun rocks are a top-shelf, potent way to experience a cannabis strain. Exercise caution when consuming sun rocks for the first time, as the high can be much more intense than unadulterated flower.

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The information contained in this site is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as medical or legal advice. This page was last updated on December 20, 2023.