This might seem like a silly question, but some people don’t actually know what a grinder is. Many people reading this probably do know what they are, although they have many different names around the world.
Grinders are objects that are used for grinding up your flower, making it easier to roll into joints. The basic models are made up of two halves, with some metal spikes or “teeth” but they can be made of many different materials due to how many different models there are available. These teeth intertwine and pass by each other when you turn both sides of the grinder against each other, which in turn grinds up the flower on the inside, making it easier to roll into joints.
To roll a joint you’re going to have to cut up the bud, and sometimes buds can be hard and resinous; you can always use your hands or some scissors, but if the flower is hard and resinous this can take a very long time and leave you with some extremely sticky fingers. Grinders are easy to use and take a matter of seconds to use.
When you grind up your buds in a grinder, they come out nice and even, without any big chunks in the middle that might mess up your joint. If you try rolling a joint with flower that you’ve pulled apart with your hands and flower that you’ve ground up in a grinder you’ll be able to notice that the joint made with the grinder has a nicer taste and the flower is more evenly distributed, making for a much more pleasing smoke. The one that was hand-separated will have big fats bids of flower here and there and even some parts with no flower at all.