El Presidente Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 We all have different techniques to handle the occasional plugged/tough draw cigar. Use the poll to let us know which ones you mostly use. You have two picks I hate plugged cigars and am mostly a cutter. Have cut Double Coronas to a Short. Fist I try the fridge technique.
garbandz Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Generally I can use my poker and make a cigar smokable. If that fails I will take it apart and remake it with a NC wrapper.......... 1
skalls Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I have a jewlers screwdriver in my kitchen that I refuse to take back to its little case in the garage because I'm lazy. If that doesn't deplug the cigar it gets chucked.
SCgarman Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 This past Saturday night I went to grab a Upmann petit corona. I grabbed one that looked a bit over filled compared to the rest as they usually look a ring gauge or so larger. As soon as I clipped the head and took a cold draw I knew this one was a problem child. Needless to say it was plugged near the head of the cigar and trying to get any smoke was like sucking a golf ball through a garden hose. I tried everything with that cigar, rolling it between my fingers, re-clipping the head, even using a long wood screw to screw into the head and pull it back out removing some of the filler. Not a damn thing worked. Still no draw. I eventually went back into the humidor and grabbed a Monte4 which was a perfect cigar. While smoking the Monte, I decided to grab a razor blade and dissect the Upmann petit corona. The head was clearly over-packed, and I found no less than 3 good size STEMS in close proximity to the head. There is no way that cigar went through a draw tester. It would have failed instantly. So in summary I tried and tried to get that cigar to draw. Very frustrating as this does not happen with non-Cuban cigars. Part of the fun as they say! 1
Rye Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 My usual massaging technique isn't a voting option but occasionally I'll use a draw tool 2
maxcjs0101 Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 This past Saturday night I went to grab a Upmann petit corona. I grabbed one that looked a bit over filled compared to the rest as they usually look a ring gauge or so larger. As soon as I clipped the head and took a cold draw I knew this one was a problem child. Needless to say it was plugged near the head of the cigar and trying to get any smoke was like sucking a golf ball through a garden hose. I tried everything with that cigar, rolling it between my fingers, re-clipping the head, even using a long wood screw to screw into the head and pull it back out removing some of the filler. Not a damn thing worked. Still no draw. I eventually went back into the humidor and grabbed a Monte4 which was a perfect cigar. While smoking the Monte, I decided to grab a razor blade and dissect the Upmann petit corona. The head was clearly over-packed, and I found no less than 3 good size STEMS in close proximity to the head. There is no way that cigar went through a draw tester. It would have failed instantly. So in summary I tried and tried to get that cigar to draw. Very frustrating as this does not happen with non-Cuban cigars. Part of the fun as they say! Totally agreed. I seldom see it happening on NCs like Padron eventhough they feel super tight in the hand. And everyone knows that they use stems in their cigars too.
NSXCIGAR Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Gentle massaging, followed by the draw poker, followed by cutting above the plug if possible, followed by the trash bin. If the flavors are just incredible I'll try to work through pretty much anything but most of the time the poor draw is negatively affecting the flavors so out it goes without too much worry. 2
dicko Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I cut it down, finding that 90% of draw issues are below the band area. Must be something to do with the rolling technique?? 1
PigFish Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I am watchful about cigar percent moisture content and never smoke wet cigars. I have not had a plugged cigar in years! Precision (dry) storage has its advantages. On the flip side, a stiffer drawing cigar is more to my liking than a straw. One of the original attractions that I had with CCs is that they actually feel like they contain tobacco. My threshold for stiff draws is higher than most I believe. Cheers! -Piggy 3
JohnS Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I am watchful about cigar percent moisture content and never smoke wet cigars. I have not had a plugged cigar in years! Precision (dry) storage has its advantages. On the flip side, a stiffer drawing cigar is more to my liking than a straw. One of the original attractions that I had with CCs is that they actually feel like they contain tobacco. My threshold for stiff draws is higher than most I believe. Cheers! -Piggy I must say that my cigars have benefited greatly since I began to store my 'go to' stock at 62rh. Similarly, I've had no significant plugging or draw issues for a while. 4
ThatAlfonso Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 How often does this happen to you guys? I haven't had a cigar I couldn't get a draw through in over a decade and have only had one or two ever (knocks on wood). Do you find them more in certain brands or sizes/lengths? Already sounds as though Cuban construction is a more likely culprit than NC.
ChefBoyRG54 Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Generally I can use my poker and make a cigar smokable. If that fails I will take it apart and remake it with a NC wrapper.......... Clever. I like it 1
dvickery Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 At 62% ( and whatever ambient temp is ( usually close to 70 )) I get very few plugged cigars ... Maybe one every few years . That being said ... This has worked for me a couple of times . Entirely accidentally done the first time ... I cut it and plugged ... Cut again still plugged ... Cut a third time and the wrapper started coming off ... Removed all the wrapper and gave it a twist ... Draw was just fine and I smoked it . Looked like Sh!t but Drew and smoked and tasted fine . Have done this a second time and it worked just fine . Derrek
Popular Post rbelcastro Posted November 17, 2015 Popular Post Posted November 17, 2015 Frankly, my temper gets the best of me and I chuck it as far as I can into the woods, followed by quite a few expletives. That's if I'm smoking alone or on my patio. If at the local shop, I will patiently poke and prod with a poker in an attempt to make it smoke able, all the while wishing I was on my back patio so I could chuck it and cuss....... 5
alloy Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I chose an RyJ Exhibition #4 to smoke. It was plugged and almost unsmokeable. Si I used a toothpick to dig into the end and pulled out a stem that was the whole length of the cigar! Sm,oked much better after that. 1
cigarbreak Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I will usually cut it until smokeable. If i can find a stem or loosen a tight bunching by pulling bits out i will do that as well. I rarely pitch CC's or have he need to, but NC's on the other hand lol...some don't even need to be plugged
msm1771 Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 This past Saturday night I went to grab a Upmann petit corona. I grabbed one that looked a bit over filled compared to the rest as they usually look a ring gauge or so larger. As soon as I clipped the head and took a cold draw I knew this one was a problem child. Needless to say it was plugged near the head of the cigar and trying to get any smoke was like sucking a golf ball through a garden hose. I tried everything with that cigar, rolling it between my fingers, re-clipping the head, even using a long wood screw to screw into the head and pull it back out removing some of the filler. Not a damn thing worked. Still no draw. I eventually went back into the humidor and grabbed a Monte4 which was a perfect cigar. While smoking the Monte, I decided to grab a razor blade and dissect the Upmann petit corona. The head was clearly over-packed, and I found no less than 3 good size STEMS in close proximity to the head. There is no way that cigar went through a draw tester. It would have failed instantly. So in summary I tried and tried to get that cigar to draw. Very frustrating as this does not happen with non-Cuban cigars. Part of the fun as they say!Lol yeah...FunKind of like having a 20$ bill and all of the ink leaks off when you go to hand it to the cashier. Sent from my 86" White Testarossa 1
jani1976p Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Interesting! I never heard of the fridge technique, how does that help against a tight draw?
mkz Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Life is to short to struggle with a plugged cigar. I just toss it and reach for another one. 2
LGC Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Interesting! I never heard of the fridge technique, how does that help against a tight draw? It is simply putting the cigar in an environment of low water content. It's not a quick fix for a "wet" cigar or a truly plugged cigar. A wet or recently-shipped cigar needs to be slowly acclimated in a environment of lower water content to provide proper draw and combustion from the wrapper to the filler.
jani1976p Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 It is simply putting the cigar in an environment of low water content. It's not a quick fix for a "wet" cigar or a truly plugged cigar. A wet or recently-shipped cigar needs to be slowly acclimated in a environment of lower water content to provide proper draw and combustion from the wrapper to the filler. Ok, like dry boxing where the fridge is the box?
PigFish Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I did some experiments on this and in actuality drying does not happen in the short-term fridge plan. What does happen is that you cool the cigar below the dew point of the ambient conditions outside the fridge. When you remove the cigar, water deposits on the wrapper and you essentially douse the cigar with water, loosening the wrapper. If this short-term plan actually dried the cigar, you could weigh the cigar before and after with a precision scale (what I did when experimenting with it) and actually see a weight loss in the cigar. The fact is the opposite happened. When the cigar came from the fridge, it weighed more than when it went in. This is because water was attracted to the cold cigar once it emerged from the cooler. -Piggy 1
LGC Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 Thanks for doing the leg work Ray. One would tend to ignore what happens out of the fridge, and only try to apply theories to what takes place inside of the fridge. What happens whenever you take a beer out of the fridge? The temperature differential causes the dew point and rh curves to intersect... apparent by the condensation 1
SCgarman Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 If the bunch is twisted or over-packed and contains multiple stems such as was the case of the Upmann PC I attempted to smoke Saturday night, no clipping or putting it in the fridge or drying most of the water content out of the cigar would have helped it. Within a box, there are always cigars that are the proper ring gauge, noticeably under filled cigars and noticeably over plump cigars. I thought the extra fat mareva I grabbed would give me a bit more smoking time due to it's larger size. It turned out to be a **** that would not draw smoke despite my numerous attempts to loosen up the filler and even remove some of the filler. I know that back in the day, in such countries like England, cigars were preferred on the dry side. But I believe it was due to the fact that cigars were taxed by weight. My end table cabinet humidor averages in the low to mid 60's humidity. The cigars are not "wet" by any means.
ErikB Posted November 17, 2015 Posted November 17, 2015 I sometimes use a satay skewer. Mostly I have zero tolerance and patience, though. Especially when I've paid good money for a cigar. 1
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