As moderators we get asked many questions via the PM system everyday and accordingly many are repeated. This is a question I get asked all the time and I thought this time that rather than give a basic answer again in reply to the PM, I would give a detailed answer on the boards so that others can see my reasoning, add to it, contradict it, etc. So that we may all learn.
I’ve basically written an article in answer to the question but also look at it as the start to a debate and give your answer to the question with your techniques and reasoning behind them. There’s more than one way to cook an egg. 
Shamoomoo asked the question again recently and was clear and straight to the point so it is their question I have quoted, though I’ll also explain the benefits of whether or not to grind as that is another FAQ which is connected. The two are easiest to explain hand in hand.
QUOTE
Dear Grobag, I’m new to the site and need your help. I’ve spent the summer growing some outdoor plants, and its looking like all my efforts are gonna be rewarded. Which is great, but I ain’t got nowhere reliable to dry my bud, and there’s gonna be lots of it!!! I’ve got bubble bags already and have used them with dried bud. If I freeze my bud from fresh and then bubble it. Will it work as well/ at all.
So basically the answer varies according to what you want to do with the trim/bud. Sham’s question above (I assume) applies to the whole plant for bubbling, whereas most people save the best buds for drying out and smoking, then using the trim and ‘popcorn’ buds for processing into hash or oil. So I will concentrate on this more common separate way of doing things but if anyone wants to know more about bubbling/hashing the whole plant then I advise looking at HydroNaut’s threads and asking the man himself as this is his preferred method and he has the most experience in that field. There are loads of different ways and means so I’ll concentrate on what I do in this post and explain why.
I must first re-enforce the point that it really does matter what you are trying to achieve as to what method you use. For this it is best to explain a few basics behind the methods, sorry if I am explaining at far to simple a level.
With all methods of extraction you are trying to get what is in the resin glands on the buds. These glands come in a few shapes and sizes but the most predominant and visible are the capitate resin glands; the ‘mushroom’ shaped ones. These are the ones with the ball heads on which you collect when bubbling or dry sifting, physically removing and separating them. Whilst other resin glands on the plant, though not as high yielding, still retain the goodies that we want. So whether we dry, grind, freeze etc, is dependant on how we are going to go about getting at what’s in all those resin glands, capitate or not.
Hash:
Dry Sift:
Obviously with Dry Sifting the answer is in the name, but why? The point with this method is to dry out totally the bud/trim you are using then pass that over some form of screen of a specific mesh size to collect the resin heads. The main point here being the ‘heads’ of the capitate glands. As the plants are dry they are brittle and the heads snap off readily, so when the correct size of screen is used it is mostly only the resin heads that fall through whilst most of the plant matter stays behind. It is best not to grind up the plant matter first as there is then more chance that fragments of this to will pass through the screen aswell. On the other hand though you want to break everything open enough and give it a large surface area so that all of the resin heads are exposed rather than nestled inside a bud where they are unlikely to fall off. So if you are dry sifting buds, you want to break them open first to expose the resin glands, but not grind them and break up the plant matter. Therefore, the quality and quantity of dry sift collected depends on two major factors amongst others. Firstly, the screen size. If the screen used has a weave that exactly matches the size of the resin heads on that strain of plant then if the right techniques are used, it will mostly only be the resin heads that pass through. A larger weave can then be used afterwards to collect any heads left behind, but this will also inevitably let through more plant matter with it making for a lower grade of resin. Secondly then are the techniques used. The more you break up the plant matter you are using and the more vigorous you are at rubbing it over the screen, the more chance you have of plant matter falling through the screen with the resin heads. After all, all you are doing is collecting particles all of the same size or less and dried cannabis will readily break up. So the best resin is collected by the gentlest of touches, but will also result in the lowest yield - you just have to decide what’s most important to you; quality or quantity. After an initial light sifting for the highest grade of dry sift you can also decide how you want to go about getting the remaining resin. As mentioned you can use a bigger weave and be more vigorous with a second dry sift or you can wash with a solvent for oil, again producing an extremely high grade product whilst getting every last drop of goodness. I’ll get to that in a mo’.
Bubbling:
I take a totally different approach with the bubble/water hash technique for extracting the resin. The reason is quite simple really - the resin glands are submersed in water and therefore aren’t brittle like with dry sift so a different approach is called for. How do you snap of and collect just the capitate heads when they are far from dry and brittle? The water hash technique relies on the fact that resin, being more dense than water will sink whilst the plant matter floats on the main, then the bubble bags are the screens that separate and filter the resin into grades as it works it’s way down to the bottom. All you need to concentrate on then again is trying to just separate those heads and not little particles of plant matter which will also inevitably become sodden and sink aswell into the awaiting catching sacks.
It’s best to decide what you are going to be doing before you crop so you go about doing things in the best way for your needs. When I first chop the plants I trim them straight away from fresh. This way will give you the most options of what to do with the trim (you can always dry it separately if you want). I first chop off all of the fan/shade leaves without any visible resin glands on them and throw them away. Along with the stems and roots, these are the only waste from the plant with which I do nothing. I then perform a second manicure of the buds, removing and collecting all of the frosty leaves and the lower down smaller and looser buds which don’t make for quite as good a smoke on their own. All of the buds I then hang to dry for around a couple of weeks in a cool dark place before jarring for a cure, but all of the collected trim/air bud I freeze from fresh without drying at all. This is a key point with strong reasons behind it. Again I see these as twofold; firstly from the aspect of making the resin glands brittle. With the higher moisture content within the capitate glands themselves (as opposed to being dried out) they both stand out prouder and freeze more readily, making them easier to snap off. As long as the water is at a low enough temperature containing lots of individual ice cubes the trim/air bud will remain frozen when added. I always add cold water from the tap and then add a load of ice to the bucket, plus setting up all the bags in order, so that the water is cold enough, before adding any cannabis matter. The key is keeping it cold enough the whole time so you want a load of ice on hand throughout so that there is always lots of solid chunks in there. These both keep the temps down and bash about the trim knocking off the heads. If trim stays frozen then the resin heads will remain brittle and can be removed easier. The second benefit of freezing the trim from fresh is that the plant matter is more likely to remain intact. If dried before freezing (or without freezing), the plant matter is more likely to break up when being bashed about in the bubbling process, and therefore more likely to make it through the screens with the resin glands. Full Melt Clear Dome (FMCD) Bubble Hash is only made from resin heads alone with minimal amounts of plant matter; mostly only achieved using freshly frozen trim.
Again though a lot depends on technique and FMCD hash can only really be made with a gentle approach as with dry sifting. Ultimately it is the same balance of quality vs. quantity and what you want from your labours. Me, I want the best, and find this is best achieved by doing things by hand. Using electric mixers, drills with mixer paddles, etc (I’ve tried quite a few ways) is the easiest way to bubble but even on the lowest settings they tend to be far to vigorous. By hand, and by that I mean using a plain wooden spoon or chopstick even, you can be far more gentle and increase the chance of breaking off the resin heads alone with minimal plant matter with them. Plus you can get into all the nooks and crannies easier, avoid clumping, and just generally do a better and more thorough job of exposing the surface area and knocking it about in the iced water - the basic aim. With a few bouts of stirring it about to knock off the heads and expose different areas, then letting it settle for equal amounts of time in between, you allow the resin a chance to break off, float free and sink through the grades of bags. Like with dry sift, you could always do a second, more vigorous run to get any missed resin heads along with more plant matter making a second lower grade of hash(s). Or you can do as I do and dry the trim out after bubbling (oddly after being submersed in water cannabis dries out quicker than if it was just dried straight from fresh!), then oil wash it for the remaining cannabinoids. Remember aswell that the capitate heads are not the only resin glands, and even the stalks of the capitate glands are left behind. After both dry sifting and bubbling, oil washing is the best way get at all the remaining resin whilst producing an even more superior product to the original hashes made. Definitely something worth baring in mind.
With both of these methods of making your own hash, dry sift and bubbling, and whether or not you decide to dry it out first, best results are achieved through not grinding the trim at all. If you grind it up you are just increasing by far the chance of plant matter getting through the screens with the resin glands and making all other techniques used pointless. If all you are after is a high quantity of low grade hash then grind up dried trim and be extremely vigorous with passing it over the screen. You’ll get a greener product that won’t bind as well due to the added plant matter, but you’ll still get a far better hash than most you see on the streets of Britain nowadays and you’ll get a lot more of it. Personally I don’t see the point though. I like to make as pure and strong a product as possible and just smoke less of it, it is far more enjoyable. I, like most of us here at UK420, come from the perspective of supplying myself with the best smoke possible rather than for any financial gain. It’s a passion for me - plus a bit more!
Good luck mate and happy hashing.
Grobag, I always enjoy reading your threads and always seem to know twice as much as I did before.
I've just noticed that this thread went down quite well.
As i renowned expert in this area i really do appreciate the sweet synopsis (NoT sure if smelt correctly) 
