Accused of selling fake Siglo VI Tubos

[Fuzz]

» Take off the cap. Look inside to the cone. Are there 8 or 16 seams?

I just checked my Siglo VI tubos that were gifted to me by a fellow board member and only one has 16 seams. Oddly enough, all the others have 13 seams in the cap! No consistency in the way the welds were made either.

None are fake as all come from the same supplier, Czars, unless my buddy is giving me fakes... Jase!

[Rogers72]

I think the bottom line with regard to choosing and trusting a supplier is this: You buy the person (not the website someone is running, the actual person who stands behind it) first, then the cigars. When I found this website and vendor, I was not referred here by someone else who had years of experience with buying here, I stumbled onto the forum, started reading everything that I could then decided that the store attached to it HAD to be 100% authentic. After talking with Lisa and making subsequent purchases, I realized that I was quite right and very happy to have found this place. I exclusively shop here now b/c there are really good people behind the operation who do not attempt to hide behind a curtain. I have never met any of them in person but I don't need to in order to trust them completely. How many other vendors maintain such an open forum with their clients and truly make one hell of an effort to make you feel at home and that your business (extremely small amount in my case) is invaluable? I honestly don't think this guy who counted the ribs in his tubo and called out the vendor in question on CA is an active member of this community, else he would have taken it to the vendor first. I think we are looking at what you kangaroo humpers call a "tosser or wanker".

[brian1]

Yeah, like cuba is known for its consisitency and quality control in packaging..LOL!!!

A wise man once said "keep your words light and sweet to the taste as you may have to eat them one day"

» »

» Lisa, I am thoroughly distraught. I received some Siglo 6s tubos from

» you.

» The legitimate cap uses 16-panel closure at the top while a counterfeit

» specimen uses 8-panel. The authentic specimen uses 8-panel at the base of

» the tube while a counterfeit specimen uses a cap-piece. This is not the

» case with your cigars. Also on the Habanos label i am missing a black

» stripe that runs adjacently to the gold. I find this throughly upsetting.

» I would like an explanation. Seeing that they are fake i will not ruin

» your reputation. I will simply ask for my money back unless i receive

» further explanation.

» Thanks

[Chicago]

» Some mornings are better than others

»

» A gentlemen sent this through. We know they are not fake unless PCC is

» distributing fakes throught the Asia Pacific ;-) . Have a read below and

» check your own VI tubos stocks. All mine have an 8 panel closure. All mine

» have the Habanos diagonal sticker minus the black stripe.

»

» I could ring / e-mail Habanos and they would get beck to me in a few days.

» I suspect tube supplier has changed or they are using two suppliers. Still

» if you can check your stock for me lets see when the change was made.

»

» Thanks guys.

»

»The fact that you are posting and addressing this issue (or non issue) is proof that you are a stand up guy and worthy of anyone's business. Cigars are not like buying a Mercedes or Corvette where it has to be showroom perfect, they are rolled and packaged in a near third:-) world country! C'mon, get real here.

[mkz]

Siglo VI tubo from LCDH Gothenburg. Bought in the late 2007.

Cap: 8

Bottom: 8

How am I going to enjoy this cigar now when I KNOW it is fake due to its poorly constructed packaging??? :-D

[Freefallguy]

I’m with the Wise Old Owl and Cigarnv… why doesn’t he just smoke a stick before whinging… the proof is n the pudding, not the bowl.

I’ve known Rob since ’99 when he ran his business out of a walk-in humidor tucked into a corner of a coffee warehouse. Yanks though we are, he was the most gracious host to my sons and I at his home over Easter break last year. Despite the fact that his family was celebrating the week at the beach. I must and will attest to Rob first as a friend, a man of character and graciousness.

As a customer I had the chance last year as well to walk through the new shop and stand slack-jawed amidst his stock. I would not and do not buy my cigars, domestic or import, from any other purveyor. Period. Lisa IS everything you would hope she is and packing has vastly improved now that Smithy I has chosen an alternative lifestyle in the remote north.

Rob… sorry for the long absence on the forum… spring here has been surreal; home and work. I’ll shoot you an email.

As for whingers, the gentleman in question is nothing. Last year I also had the mischance to run up against the biggest of the lot. Even as three year olds my kids didn’t cry as much as that bridge dweller. I’d be most willing to bet by now he’s written a book on whine. Sad really.

Cheers all.

[Colt45]

» For my part in this, I accept full responsibility for publishing this

» information, apparently without sufficient qualification or disclaimers

» regarding its interpretation and use. I carried out this work when I was

» just beginning and perhaps my fault was in seeming just a bit too sure of

» what it all meant. One can never really anticipate all the ways in which

» one's work can be used or abused. If one tried, progress would be stifled.

» For my contribution to this strife, I offer my profound apologies to Rob

» Ayala and the entire Czar organization.

Well, personally I feel that you were very clear in pointing out that the tubes by themselves

prove nothing. You do and have done great work. I posted a link to the older thread simply

as a point of reference. In my opinion, you have absolutely nothing to apologize for, but that's

not my business.

[Cohiba007]

I just received the new maduro tubos from Rob and they smoke fine.

[gyosa]

hi all ....

i purchased some ( definitely ) genuine siglo 6 tubos from the czar in sept '06 and dec '06 ...

i checked the tubes out , and here are the results....

9/06 - can't tell how many panels on cap ... 8 or 16 or 10 ... very slipshod workmanship.... bottom piece - 8 clean panels.

12/06 - 16 clean perfect panels on cap. bottom piece - no panels at all... although there are some very faint "pie-cut" lines barely visible ....

conclusion : minor packaging discrepancies don't mean much.... your supplier is THE most important link in your chain of acquisition. :-P

-bk

[Matthew]

Looked at a few Sig VI tubes I've had for at least 2 years; they have 8 panels.

Wouldn't surprise me if Habanos had contracted more than one tube manufacturer over the past few years.

Reminds me of the panic that occurred during the broach incident of '06!!! ("mine are Italian... mine are German... which are fakes?")

All I can say is folks need to chill out. Waiting a few days/weeks for more information isn't going to change the nature of the sticks in your humidor.

Thanks to Rob for this thread and to Ginseng for all his analytical work.

[Ginseng]

» » For my part in this, I accept full responsibility for publishing this

» » information, apparently without sufficient qualification or disclaimers

» » regarding its interpretation and use. I carried out this work when I

» was

» » just beginning and perhaps my fault was in seeming just a bit too sure

» of

» » what it all meant. One can never really anticipate all the ways in

» which

» » one's work can be used or abused. If one tried, progress would be

» stifled.

» » For my contribution to this strife, I offer my profound apologies to

» Rob

» » Ayala and the entire Czar organization.

»

» Well, personally I feel that you were very clear in pointing out that the

» tubes by themselves

» prove nothing. You do and have done great work. I posted a link to the

» older thread simply

» as a point of reference. In my opinion, you have absolutely nothing to

» apologize for, but that's

» not my business.

Thanks, Colt. I appreciate that.

It certainly makes me think about how I'll conduct and report in the future though. I'd hate to have to preface each article with a big, bold, flashing disclaimer but perhaps that will have to be the case.

Wilkey

[strayvector]

I remember when Wilkey first posted his analysis of the tubos. I checked my supply and all had the 16 panel construction. I had 6 tubes at the time. Three were purchased in Sweden in late '04 and 3 were from Rob and Lisa in mid '05. I also remember the first time I received some 8 panel tubes in '06 from Lisa. I knew about Wilkey's comparative analysis, but knowing that these tubes came from Lisa, I had no doubt about their authenticity. I still have a few tubes left, a couple with 8 panels and a few with 16. All are authentic because they came from the Czar. I'll take pictures when I get back to Tucson.

[SmokinLightning]

I've got empty SigVI tubes layin all over the place at the house, now I'm curious and going to have to inspect them all... my wife's gonna think I've lost my mind when she sees me muttering "8, 18, cap" to myself while staring at a pile of gold and black tubes. :-D

I don't know if I trust Rob, but I do trust Lisa! :-P

To be completely serious, I know ultimately this is Rob's business and his goal is to make money... but he goes so above and beyond a typical vendor in order to educate his customers about all aspects of not only the cigars, but also the industry. Not to mention his generosity in awarding some of the most incredible prizes I've ever seen from a vendor. Czar is one vendor I never worry about, and pretty much the only one I will deal with these days.

This board is an invaluable source of info, both from Rob and my fellow members, thanks to all for making this community what it is.

[Colt45]

» .....Persian silk, placed individually in highly polished golden tubes and then

» sprinkled with fairy dust.)

Smithy's not there anymore.....

» It certainly makes me think about how I'll conduct and report in the

» future though. I'd hate to have to preface each article with a big, bold,

» flashing disclaimer but perhaps that will have to be the case.

An unfortunate sign of the times.....

And just thinking out loud.........

The purpose of this thread was to determine roughly when tube construction changed.

Given the wording of the title and original post, I might think another reason is to bring

this out in the open - hear it directly, as members have pointed out.

But at the risk of incurring the wrath of our host, I can't help but think there may be another.

I can picture RA standing tall, middle fingers erect, screaming:

"Question my character?.....FU!!.....Come and get it!"

At least I hope so....

[greenpimp]

This would have been much better handled strictly via email IMO, especially by someone who has little enough experience that they have to rely solely on packaging for authenticity.

I read the other thread on CA and posted my thoughts on it. I think it was a legitimate question poorly handled.

Don't let it worry you Rob.

[Taino]

I've seen so many weird stuff in cuban cigar packaging over the years that nothing surprised me any more.

Funny packaging can give me an alert but I trust almost only in my smell, sight and taste smoking the cigar in question.

...as long as you are not playing poker or trying to pick up a girl in a party, Rob and crew are some of the most honest and client oriented companies in the industry. Never had a problem with them with respect to cigars.

[anacostiakat]

It just so happens that I have an empty tube sitting on my desk.

On inspection it has sixteen on the cap and eight on the foot. I believe this was from a 3 pack bonus received February '07.

[mef]

» I’m with the Wise Old Owl and Cigarnv… why doesn’t he just smoke a stick

» before whinging… the proof is n the pudding, not the bowl.

»

» I’ve known Rob since ’99 when he ran his business out of a walk-in humidor

» tucked into a corner of a coffee warehouse. Yanks though we are, he was the

» most gracious host to my sons and I at his home over Easter break last

» year. Despite the fact that his family was celebrating the week at the

» beach. I must and will attest to Rob first as a friend, a man of character

» and graciousness.

»

» As a customer I had the chance last year as well to walk through the new

» shop and stand slack-jawed amidst his stock. I would not and do not buy my

» cigars, domestic or import, from any other purveyor. Period. Lisa IS

» everything you would hope she is and packing has vastly improved now that

» Smithy I has chosen an alternative lifestyle in the remote north.

»

» Rob… sorry for the long absence on the forum… spring here has been

» surreal; home and work. I’ll shoot you an email.

»

» As for whingers, the gentleman in question is nothing. Last year I also

» had the mischance to run up against the biggest of the lot. Even as three

» year olds my kids didn’t cry as much as that bridge dweller. I’d be most

» willing to bet by now he’s written a book on whine. Sad really.

»

» Cheers all.

I fully agreed with you, Freefallguy.

I had the pleasure of meeting Rob, Lisa and team about 2 weeks ago. I too attest Rob is true a friend, a man of honour, superb entrepreneur and visionary about the CC industry in Asia-Pacific. Lisa and team are pillars of CCzar and I've seen it and experienced it.

Even before meeting Rob and team, I've decided CCzar is my ONLY source of CC. It's a no brainer and always with a 5 star service and smile.

Have a great day FOHers, and Rob it's a bliss knowing the CCzar team picked my cigar orders.

mef

[puros1969]

Wow, this issue is getting way too much attention elsewhere. I hope this does not attract the attention.

[anacostiakat]

[ArloGut]

Nothing here :-D

[puros1969]

Got it. Edited. Not a problem.

» Puros

»

» I sent you a PM.

[anacostiakat]

Did I say this already?

[jay8354]

» » Take off the cap. Look inside to the cone. Are there 8 or 16

» seams?

»

» I just checked my Siglo VI tubos that were gifted to me by a fellow board

» member and only one has 16 seams. Oddly enough, all the others have 13

» seams in the cap! No consistency in the way the welds were made either.

»

» None are fake as all come from the same supplier, Czars, unless my buddy

» is giving me fakes... Jase!

Unless Rob gives an update on the outcome to the author of the email, I think I can safety say that most of us think that Rob's word is his bond.

Having read most of the post here, I think and agree that the author should have not posted elsewhere before contacting his source of supply. Fair's fair, innocent until proven guilty. Though there is nothing to prove here IMHO.

As for the SIGLO VIs I gifted Fuzz, they are all from Czar since I, like many members like to contact Czar to speak with them. I don't buy from anyone else due to their great service and care.

The only complain I do have is that when you give someone a gift, you expect them to be gracious and at least have smoke one of them. Esp when you have gifted them a humi, loads of cigars and he does not smoke most of them......

[El Presidente]

All ended well. Client graciously saw the error of his thought process.