Smoking is... good?

[sbeaudry]

I guess I would say, if you don't have to smoke those ingredients, then why do it?

Good point... I guess I figure I'm exposed to so much else these don't seem so bad. However, why would I justify adding that if I can avoid it? Probably convenience. Went and bought a pack and now I'm not so sure I shouldn't just move permanently to the loose tobacco. It is definitely different than the same tobacco in different papers, only now I wonder what's in the other papers I'm using... Ugh. To make things worse, when I smoke out of my pipe it seems like I have to relight more often, adding more baddies to the mix. One day I'd like to do as Mr. Premise and grow my own. Then I could make little cigarettes with tobacco paper...

 

[LQB]

I guess I would say, if you don't have to smoke those ingredients, then why do it?

Good point... I guess I figure I'm exposed to so much else these don't seem so bad. However, why would I justify adding that if I can avoid it? Probably convenience. Went and bought a pack and now I'm not so sure I shouldn't just move permanently to the loose tobacco. It is definitely different than the same tobacco in different papers, only now I wonder what's in the other papers I'm using... Ugh. To make things worse, when I smoke out of my pipe it seems like I have to relight more often, adding more baddies to the mix. One day I'd like to do as Mr. Premise and grow my own. Then I could make little cigarettes with tobacco paper...

I buy the cig tubes that are totally free of FSC chems, and use a $100 electronic tube-stuffer (I'll do about 3 packs in 20 min). For tobacco I blend Kentucky select organic with Kendal Gold (about 50-50) for the best cigs I've ever had. Cost is just a fraction of buying Am Sprits.

Kendal Gold is a UK product of Virginia tobacco that is minimally processed and sold as "pipe tobacco" - but it is shag-cut for cigs.

 

[sbeaudry]

Our FSC (Fire Standards Compliant) cigarette paper (for all of our styles) contains only natural flax fiber, calcium carbonate, citric acid, guar gum, water and alginate, which creates the speed bumps.

It looks to me like the water and alginate is the only thing they add differently to make the 'speed bumps',

I buy the cig tubes that are totally free of FSC chems, and use a $100 electronic tube-stuffer (I'll do about 3 packs in 20 min). For tobacco I blend Kentucky select organic with Kendal Gold (about 50-50) for the best cigs I've ever had. Cost is just a fraction of buying Am Sprits.

Kendal Gold is a UK product of Virginia tobacco that is minimally processed and sold as "pipe tobacco" - but it is shag-cut for cigs.

What kind of tubes do you use? Are the substance above in most cigarette tubes as well do you think? Going to look into Kendal, thank you for that. :) that will definitely be less expensive. Pipe tobacco incurs less taxes as well I think.

 

[Mr. Premise]

Our FSC (Fire Standards Compliant) cigarette paper (for all of our styles) contains only natural flax fiber, calcium carbonate, citric acid, guar gum, water and alginate, which creates the speed bumps.

It looks to me like the water and alginate is the only thing they add differently to make the 'speed bumps',

I buy the cig tubes that are totally free of FSC chems, and use a $100 electronic tube-stuffer (I'll do about 3 packs in 20 min). For tobacco I blend Kentucky select organic with Kendal Gold (about 50-50) for the best cigs I've ever had. Cost is just a fraction of buying Am Sprits.

Kendal Gold is a UK product of Virginia tobacco that is minimally processed and sold as "pipe tobacco" - but it is shag-cut for cigs.

What kind of tubes do you use? Are the substance above in most cigarette tubes as well do you think? Going to look into Kendal, thank you for that. :) that will definitely be less expensive. Pipe tobacco incurs less taxes as well I think.

Tubes don't have the FSC stuff in them. And for no taxes at all you can buy unprocessed whole leaf which is a higher quality than what goes into dual purpose pipe tobaccos. This thread has a discussion of how to get whole leaf.

 

[MikeAndreson]

I don't think smoking is bad but if you are consuming a tobacco on regular basis then it can harm you directly. It is better to use a Hookah or e-cigarette which will not harm you. And provide same experience of smoking cigar.

 

[sbeaudry]

Tubes don't have the FSC stuff in them. And for no taxes at all you can buy unprocessed whole leaf which is a higher quality than what goes into dual purpose pipe tobaccos. This thread has a discussion of how to get whole leaf.

Thank you thank you! Did some research on whole leaf and the pricing blows me away... I have been paying WAY too much and this will bring the price down, WAY down. This is a huge thread and I was not up to speed. Thanks for the guidance!

 

[Mrs. Peel]

I don't think smoking is bad but if you are consuming a tobacco on regular basis then it can harm you directly. It is better to use a Hookah or e-cigarette which will not harm you. And provide same experience of smoking cigar.

Welcome to the forum, it is customary for newbies to post a short introduction about themselves and how they found their way here. You can check and see how others have done it here...

http://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php/board,39.0.html

That said.... have you read this entire thread? What type of chemicals are in the e-cigarettes?

 

[Nienna]

I don't think smoking is bad but if you are consuming a tobacco on regular basis then it can harm you directly. It is better to use a Hookah or e-cigarette which will not harm you. And provide same experience of smoking cigar.

Hi MikeAndreson, maybe you would like to learn a bit about smoking and tobacco from someone that is not being paid by the PTB?

This article Let's All Light Up has some very good research behind it, as well as experience. It is very informative and I highly recommend this article for those who want the truth. What we have been taught by bought and paid for researchers is not what should be believed.

Commercial cigarettes are poison. But that is because of all of the chemicals and fillers that have been added over the years. People become ill from the chemicals and fillers, and that, then, makes it true that people shouldn't smoke - but not because of the tobacco.

We also realize that smoking is not for everyone. Some people just shouldn't smoke if they are not inclined to. So there is much more going on with smoking than what people have been taught.

Added: Also reading through this entire thread, if you haven't already done so is very educational.

 

[Ennio]

Tubes don't have the FSC stuff in them. And for no taxes at all you can buy unprocessed whole leaf which is a higher quality than what goes into dual purpose pipe tobaccos. This thread has a discussion of how to get whole leaf.

I was thinking of purchasing some whole leaf tobacco from here _http://wholesale-cigarette-tobacco.com/roll-your-own-tobacco-leaves-tubes-and-accessories/index.html

It's not organic but it is additive free. Just wondering if anyone has tried their smokers choice blend. Or for that matter, does anyone recommend any other whole leaf sellers that they've tried and liked?

 

[Mr. Premise]

Tubes don't have the FSC stuff in them. And for no taxes at all you can buy unprocessed whole leaf which is a higher quality than what goes into dual purpose pipe tobaccos. This thread has a discussion of how to get whole leaf.

I was thinking of purchasing some whole leaf tobacco from here _http://wholesale-cigarette-tobacco.com/roll-your-own-tobacco-leaves-tubes-and-accessories/index.html

It's not organic but it is additive free. Just wondering if anyone has tried their smokers choice blend. Or for that matter, does anyone recommend any other whole leaf sellers that they've tried and liked?

I wouldn't order from them. Their prices are way too high and the smallest quantities they sell are 5lb lots. That's a lot of tobacco to buy for something you haven't tried. I would try www.wholeleaftobacco.com from which a few of us here have ordered and discussed it on this thread. Their prices are half what they are on that wholesale site, the quality it top notch, you can order as little as 1lb., and they carry Turkish varieties which I like as part of a classic American cigarette blend (60% Virginia flue cured, 30% Burley, 10% Turkish is usual). They also have a good cigarette sampler that has 4 varieties in the right proportions.

And all whole leaf will be additive free otherwise it would be taxed as a tobacco product, not as an untaxed raw material. Organic whole leaf is almost impossible to find, I found one source but they only offer Burley which doesn't taste so great unblended.

You can also order cigar varieties from them and roll your own cigars.

 

[herondancer]

I'll second Mr. Premise's suggestion. I ordered the cigarette sampler from them two months ago and it has worked out very well. I can't seem to be able to cut the leaf as thinly as a proper shag, but even the pipe width will still roll well. If you mix the different leaf types in the proportions sent to you it makes a nice smoke. You may find it a little harsh at first because there are no conditioning additives, but it tastes so much more real. It worked out to about 56 dollars with shipping and exchange for the sampler and this one order will keep me in cigs for at least another three months. What a bargain!

 

[LQB]

And all whole leaf will be additive free otherwise it would be taxed as a tobacco product, not as an untaxed raw material. Organic whole leaf is almost impossible to find, I found one source but they only offer Burley which doesn't taste so great unblended.

Same here on the organic whole leaf - I put out numerous feelers months ago and never heard back about any commercial sources. But I do think that whole leaf is the way to go. I just got seeds for many varieties delivered and am going to try growing this season. Mr P, Pashalis, or anyone else - if you have any growing tips based on your experience so far (beyond what you have already posted), I'd love to hear them.

 

[Foxx]

I have a bit of a different take on the whole leaf tobacco, after having worked with it for some time now. I personally like a number of things about it, but without some kind of automatic cutter that can cut the leaves quickly and easily (never mind the de-stemming process), for me it's more of a time commitment than I'd like since it takes quite a number of hours to cut the leaves, even using the hand powered tobacco cutter that I have (_http://www.leafonly.com/tobacco_leaf_shredder_standard.php). I got a sample from 4noggins.com of one of their own blends a while ago and liked it a lot and recently purchased some more (the English and the Aromatic sample packs) and have been really enjoying their stuff and find their blends to be cut pretty nicely for rolling and to smoke quite well in my pipe. The price per lb for their tobacco blends is around $37 and for me personally, I think the added cost is worth it not to have to spend the time cutting the leaves (especially with scissors, as that took forever and hurt my hand after a long enough time). I also prefer the smoke and, considering the leaf cutter I bought above, at a few pounds of whole leaf it's pretty close to the same cost as 4noggins' blends (which, of course, would decrease as you increase the number of pounds cut by the shredder). Here's a link to their blends:

http://www.4noggins.com/4nogginsbulktobacco.aspx

Just my take, FWIW.

 

[Mr. Premise]

Well there are different considerations here. The 4noggins offerings are bulk pipe tobacco, so they will have additives in the casing and topping. But since pipe tobacco is taxed at a much lower rate than cigarette tobacco you can get a decent price. But since they are pipe blends it won't taste or burn like a cigarette.

If lack of additives and price are the main concerns, whole leaf is the way to go. It is by far the cheapest, and much cheaper than growing your own, believe me. Growing your own is a hobby and as such the expenses can grow to the point you would have to grow for five years or more to make the cost low enough to compare to whole leaf. But with growing your own you can grow organically.

As for shredding I decided to invest in a Powermatic shredder from the wholeleaftobacco site which cost $270 but shreds so fast and effectively that you could shred a year's worth in a couple hours. Since it costs a lot it can offset the lower price of whole leaf but people who live nearby each other could pool together for the purchase of one to share.

The shredder makes a good cigarette shred. If you smoke pipes pressing with a c-clamp and a couple boards then cutting flake with a knife works best.

 

[Mr. Premise]

And all whole leaf will be additive free otherwise it would be taxed as a tobacco product, not as an untaxed raw material. Organic whole leaf is almost impossible to find, I found one source but they only offer Burley which doesn't taste so great unblended.

Same here on the organic whole leaf - I put out numerous feelers months ago and never heard back about any commercial sources. But I do think that whole leaf is the way to go. I just got seeds for many varieties delivered and am going to try growing this season. Mr P, Pashalis, or anyone else - if you have any growing tips based on your experience so far (beyond what you have already posted), I'd love to hear them.

Welcome to the tobacco growers club LQB. What part of the world do you live in? That would help in advising you on growing.