Marijuana smoking has become a cultured art with legalization. Underground accessories and weed smoking culture are no longer maligned or looked down upon. Before most states embracing legal weed, cannabis culture was talked about in places like High Times magazine, Hunter S. Thompson novels, Cheech and Chong movies, Snoop Dogg hooks, and various stoner flicks. Luckily, with this stuff above ground, the ways that people partake in smoking together are common knowledge.
There's a science to smoking, ranging from learning to use tools like Grinders to becoming cannabis connoisseurs. Today, we want to go over rolling trays, another aid for smoking dry herb that wouldn't have made mainstream news advertisements. So, we're happy to explain and educate you on the topic. After all, we've got you covered. We'd like to go over a backstory about rolling trays for those new to the game, and then do some mentions of our favorite trays in stock. We'll fill you in on what's good.
Why Rolling Trays Matter
Rolling trays go back to the days of rolling tobacco, which has a debatable history steeped in both legend and truth. It's rumored that the first papers started in the Spanish court. They were influential in the history of smoking papers and the first place to mass-produce them. According to Ben Marks in Collector's Weekly here, "Pay-Pay exported its first rolling papers from Alcoy in 1703." This means that rolling papers have a long history in the tradition of smoking, likely dating back to the 18th Century. Smokers continued using rolling papers, which also evolved into the production of cigarettes.
Eventually, rolling papers became how people smoked dry herb. With the Reefer Madness era, it's not like the government and companies were going out of their way to make smoking cannabis available to the public. People rolled joints with rolling papers and the way that some rolled became an art, like origami. The only problem with rolling papers was that they were messy. When you roll a joint, you would often have to separate the bud from seeds. Even with dispensary weed, you might still have to pick out some stems. As you probably know, most people need a flat surface to roll tightly.
By the 1970s, people were using rolling trays made of teak wood or stainless steel. Nowadays, rolling trays come in any material imaginable and the trend of clean rolling is spreading. We've got plenty of rolling trays, but want to focus on the four that address most smokers' needs in terms of the look and material. A rolling tray is one of those things where you don't know what kind you want or need until you see what we're talking about.
Lighter USA's Top 4 Rolling Trays
1. The Blazy Susan Spinning Rolling Tray
First, we have to say that this tray has an awesome aesthetic with Susan, the sassy weed lady serving up some dry herb, dab, whatever you need. The tray is made with an Italian, varnished finish and painted in this bubblegum pink that works with the design. As for rolling trays, this is far beyond the best products of yesteryear. The Blazy Susan has organized compartments and nooks and crannies galore.
There are places to break up your bud on one side and other places to store everything you need to smoke (and more). There's a customizable dab station made of silicon that you can order. You can see one side that has slots to hold lighters of different shapes and sizes. Another part of the tray has a place for anchoring a cell phone to stream the session. The best part is that it's even got a cup holder.
Susan's got you covered.
2. The Glow Trays
The Glow Trays are a far cry from a modest teak wood platter. They light up with 6 LED colors (7 if you include the party mode setting). The look is that there's a glowing orb of a tray in front of you. In a dark room, you can pull it out and roll away. Of the many times in life where you need a rolling tray or place to smoke, it's more often than not going to be somewhere secluded from the rest of the party. Plenty of people are ninja smokers who like smoking in adventurous places like rooftops, scenic benches, or while backpacking.
With the Glow Trays, they also come with a little artsy touch and a graffito moniker that looks neat in the light. The graffiti design has references to childhood candies, so it's a silly ironic design. Plus, the lettering really pops with the LED lights.
3. Blazy Susan Stainless Steel Tray
This tray is simple and comes in at an affordable price point of $21.95. The tray is in the bubblegum pink color unique to the Blazy Susan brand. There's also a shiny copper version for people who don't want the pink branding. The tray is light, airy, and made of good quality materials. We would recommend this tray for someone used to rolling who doesn't want all the bells and whistles of the other models. It gets the job done in the sense that it's mess-free and a nice, flat surface. Both trays are shiny, spectacular finds.
This is another update on a classic rolling tray that has a sleek lacquered look to it. Our #ThisThingRips XXL rolling tray definitely lives up to its name and isn't too fancy, has a sleek look to it. It also has inches along one of the sides that can help you gauge how fat of a joint. It's also $29.95, so it falls into the affordable side of paraphernalia.
5. The Blazy Susan Hemp Plastic Rolling Tray
We wanted to throw in another Blazy Susan model and one that is the opposite of the prior products. This one is more down-to-earth and made of 100% biodegradable hemp itself. The hemp composition makes the tray a subdued, gray color. If you like the Blazy Susan features (such as the holes and caverns for joints, cups, and other loose ends), then this is a subtle version and worth checking out. It's good for people who like earthy looks vs. the signature pink look.
