Posted: 5/6/2007 8:35:31 AM EDT
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Here is a topic that comes up every once in a while, but one I'd like to give my input on; but before I do that let me ask that this Please not turn into a smoking bashing thread. I respect everyones decisions in life, healthy or unhealthy, moral or immoral, as their own and believe it is not my place to pass judgement. That being said, Cigarettes, while the most common form of tobacco used here in a America do not keep well for long periods of time. They get "stale", grow bacteria, and can prolly make someone sick if they are old enough. Loose cigarette tobacco is no different; it also contains a LOT of added chemicals and will breed bacteria over time. Chewing tobacco is also full of chemicals and will flat out loose it's flavor and/or potency after a few months to a year. So, those of us who would like to store tobacco on the long term, either for personal use or just for barter (no question about tobacco's worth in a time of war/civil unrest) are left with one option, a form of tobacco that has been in use for hundreds of years and will keep indefinitly: Handmade Cigars. Well, those are a little bit more expensive that a $9 bag of rolling tobacco you may say to yourself, but I will show you how to buy and store handmade cigars for very little money. For a small investment, you can have a massive stash of quality, always fresh tobacco that will last as long as you do. First, a little background on cigar manufacture: Those things you see at the gas station (blunts and garcia vegas, etc...) are NOT cigars. Get that out of your head right now! Real cigars are handmade and contain no additional chemicals save vegetable gum to hold the wrapper together. Unlike the oversized cigarettes Called cigars sold at the supermarket, they derive their flavor from the aged and fermented tobacco used. Different kinds of tobacco from different strains, different parts of the plant, and different aging and fermenting processes give the cigar "blenders" an endless combination of flavor profiles. Almost ALL handmade cigars are blended. Very few cigars are not. What this means is that several different kinds of tobacco are used to make the cigar and as such, if a cigar is pulled apart and broken up to be smoked (as it may be in a SHTF situation) the flavors of the individual peices of aged tobacco leaf will vary Greatly, for better or worse. A handmade cigar is made up of 3 parts: Wrapper, binder and filler. The wrapper being the outermost leaf and usually having the most effect on the flavor of the cigar when being smoked whole. The binder is what holds the filler tobaccos together. If you take apart a cigar you will see the sometimes knotty looking twisty binder under the wrapper. A cigar can still be smoked w/ just the binder and filler (as a side note). And finally, you have the filler tobaccos which can vary greatly in flavor, texture, color, etc...It's also important to note that all of these tobaccos in the cigar are not little cut up shreds of leaf as found in cigarettes. They are Huge strips of leaf cut into portions to make up the "blend". SO what does all this mean to the SFer who just wants to store 'em for barter? Obviously, a smoker would find cigars he liked and either smoke them whole in a SHTF situation (wasteful IMHO) or cut off peices of the cigar like those old play dough machines and smoke them out of a pipe, retaining the original flavor. What this means to people looking to store JUST for barter value is that ripping the cigar apart and trading off peices of leaf may result in a seriously unhappy trading partner. Those different kinds of tobacco have VERY different flavors, some of then downright awful if smoked independantly. The solution would be to either disect the cigar and cut up the leaves into small strips or peices and mix it back up by hand or take a cheese grater or similar device to it, keeping the "blend" somewhat in tact. That sounds like a lot of work you may say, but let me also state that an average cigar has about (if not more) tobacco in it that a pack of cigarettes. Besides, if SHTF we'll all be looking for something to pass the time anyway  having the equivilant of 200 packs of cigarettes sitting in a cooler waiting to trade for tp, razors, food whatever, would be a nice little bit of insurance.So, how do I go about obtaining these handmade cigars and storing them for long periods of time? Simple, cigars are hydroscopic, i.e. they retain moisture. To store cigars for long periods of time one only has to create the right kind of conditions, keep them humid and within a set temperature range (50F-80F). think of them like cheese or wine, they never go bad, just age. Cigars must be kept between (typically) 60%-75% relative humidity and the stated temperature range. This is surprisingly easy. You DO NOT need an expensive cherry humidor or modified wine fridge or whatever to do this. A simple solution that can keep not only the humidity in, but also protect against drastic temperature changes is available to us all for very little money at most department stores: Coolers. Thats right, igloo, coleman, etc...insulated coolers for your beer, picnic food, whatever. I have been using coolers to keep my cigars for years and I am not the only person who does that  An average smaller, like 36 qt. cooler will set ya back about $10 at China-Mart. Be sure to select one that seals reasonably well, then wipe it down w/ some distilled water and let it air out for a day to remove the plastic smell before use. You now have an almost complete "coolerdore" for storing your handmade cigars indefintely. To maintain the proper humidity, there area number of ways to do this. PG (propylene glycol) solution can be obtained from a cigar shop or ordered online for very cheap and will keep the RH (Relative Humidity) ~70%. Simply add this to a peice of floral foam (the green stuff, costs about .89 for a little brick) and place in a dish, tupperware container with holes on the lid, whatever inside your cooler. I don't advise this method because you then place a reliance on a solution that will more than likely be hard to obtain later down the road, although, very little is needed, $10 worth (half gallon or so) could very well last you 20 years, even in warmer climates. You can also just add distilled water to the floral foam and keep the cigars hydrated in that way, however, you do run a risk of over-hydrating them as they will continue to absorb all water present (the solution draws humidity back in over 70%). The simplest and least problematic method IMHO is to use beads. They are little pellets of stuff that will always keep you cigars at the proper RH, only need "recharged" every once in a while and take just plain old distilled water. No hassle, no mess. They are somewhat pricey for the name brand (Climmax brand  I am not making this up), but can be had for a little less for an off brand.Here are some here from a good reputable site:link Price on these is $23 for 1lb which will do roughly about 3 52 qt coolers (a fuckin' lot). i have also read where people purchase similar beads from florists for $3 and $4 a pound but have never used those kind myself, so I can't comment on that. Simply add some to a small tupperware container, drill/poke/melt some holes in the top and you are good for the next millenia as long as you add water periodically  You want to use distilled water as most of the bacteria, minerals, etc will not be present. I would reccomend buying a good digital hygrometer. Again China-Mart sells these for $15. They are just digital outdoor thermometers that also give humidity. They are very accurate and very small and even come w/ a remote sensor so you can keep the actual unit on the outside of your cooler if you like. They use 1 AAA battery that will last several years. Truth be told, you can just pull a cigar out of your cooler, roll it between your fingers and tell if it is too dry or not by the sound of the tobacco. If it sounds like rice crispies and milk; add some water So, we have our cooler, humidor, long term barter storage unit, whatever...If we went all out and purchased everything at once, we are in it for about $50 $10 cooler $25 beads $15 hygro $50=total So, what kind of cigars do we fill this fantastic homemade storage system with? you may be asking. Simple. If you are a smoker, just try some cigars you like at a cigar shop or trade w/ people online at any of the bigger online cigar sites; you will find that cigar smokers as a general rule, are usually very friendly and willing to give advice, recommendations, free smokes etc...to newbs. that is another hobby and CAN be a very costly one, so...you were warned  For the non-smoker, this is easy. Buy what is commonly reffered to as "dog rockets". You won't be smoking them yourself, and they won't be THAT bad rolled into cigarettes or smoked loosely from a pipe as long as you take the time to shred the tobacco yourself as stated earlier. Dog Rockets are cheap handmades that don't taste good. Few are really disgusting IMHO, but nevertheless, not worth the hassle when there are SO many good cigars at good prices out there. The dog rockets typically are the cigars you'll see advertised for "as low as .49 a smoke!" or "50 handmades for only $30 blowout deal", you get the idea. these are typically honduran or dominican cigars, usually with whats referred to as a connecticut wrapper (milder lighter colored) and will have a mexican binder (typically) It is important to note that mexican binders are spicy and somewhat harsh if smoked by themsleves. Here is a list of the biggest online cigar shops that sell "dog rockets": Jrs CI Thompson's Here is a good example of typical "dog rockets" although even cheaper prices can be had regularly:link Also, cigar auctions are good place to score smokes at Really cheap prices. The dog rockets go for very little (obviously) you can pick up bundles and boxes for literally a few cents a cigar if you don't mind watching an auction now and again. Here is the auction site I was hooked on and spent Way too much money at for a very long time  C-Bid So, there you have it. I've been meaning to do a thorough write up on this subject for some time now. I think that luxury items like alchohol and tobacco will be in VERY high demend in a SHTF situation as people are looking for anything to help take the "edge" off of a stressful situation. A small stash like this could easily IMHO be worth more than gold to the right people. Speed |
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I'd just buy seeds and try growing it, since I like to smoke, storing packaged tobacco for just in case seems wastefull to me, here's a link for tobacco seeds: www.heirloomacresseeds.com/CatalogPrd.asp?prm=115 |
From what i understand, tobacco itself grows easily, however, getting Smokable tobacco from a plant is somewhat difficult and very messy. Speed |
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Seems to me that the roll it yourself cigarettes are the way to go with this... Vacuum sealed bulk tobacco and papers should last a while. Personally, after seeing both of my parents die (badly) from tobacco related illness, I wouldn't reccomend anyone smoking. But if you are going to smoke, I can't see why you would pay what premanufactured cigarettes go for when the components are readily available, easily put together, and relatively inexpensive. |
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Even though I quit smoking over four years ago, I see the benefit of have a pack of smokes around. 1. As R. Redford tells B. Pitt in Spygame, to always carry smokes, it an easy way to approach someone unknown in a friendly manner. "I need a light," or something of the such when approaching guards, soldiers, etc, and "bumming" one to then is an easy way to make quick friends, gossip, and generally find info, especially when a smoker has been without for sometime. 2. They also make great fuse lighters when lighting multiple fuses without constently have to light a match or lighter. Plus you can always extend the time on an M80 fuse by sticking on the end like when we were kids.
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Well, the downside of that is that they DO NOT keep that long. those foil lined cardboard containers of rolling tobacco are not going to be smokable after a year or 2. One of my best friends and neighbor smokes roll up tobacco, factory sealed or not, it doesn't last anywhere close to the indefinite amount of time handmade cigars will. Also, If you purchase cheap cigars at .50 a peicex400= $200+ $50 on the humidore(cooler) you will have the equivilant of 400 packs (40 cartons) for $250 that will last forever...you cannot buy cigarettes even that cheap on a reservation AFAIK. Speed |
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Coffinails has much better selection of tobacco. theres 2 types of tobacco. Cigarette tobacco. Cigar tobacco. http://www.coffinails.com/specialoffer.html Ive used em and bought the "special" for cigarette tobacco i grew 3 different types of cigarette tobacco , grew 2 pounds of it, hell still have alot left. they also have 3 or 4 varieties of Cigar tobacco. they have best selection of tobacco varieties I know of, and arent expensive. And from what i understand Tobacco can last for a VERY long time in storage, just keep it in a cool dark place and you are set for storage. |
| The bugle tobacco I have bought comes in an metal can, about half the size of a #10 can that freeze dried food comes in. Granted I have not opened a can yet, but usually stuff that is vacume packed will last longer than a few years. Of course, if I am having a nicotine fit I wouldnt be too choosy. |
yeah, as I understand it, it's kind of a drawn out process, but I like to smoke and if the shtf and becomes teotwawki, then I'm pretty sure I'll have plenty of time to devote to my tobacco so I can keep on smoking, besides man, indians were growing and smoking tobacco long before winston/salem went into business.
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