The latest attempt

[Seanz]

This is todays attempt at rolling a stick



Tried the accordian thing and it seems to bunch better in the filler, But I am still getting a loose at the base, where the pig tail is. Still I am happy with it and looking forward to firing it up tomorrow, when I head back out to the rocks and entice those fish to jump into my frying pan. I still need to spend more time on getting the wrapper smoother, but i get paranoid bout ripping the bloody things. Though they do give a nice bit of body to my pipe tobacco.

 

[johnlee1933]

Sean, That's a decent looking smoke and a damn site better than my early tries. You'll soon get comfortable with and make bad cigars in half the time. LOL

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Sean, The loose end is common when first rolling cigars. Think about the shape of a tobacco leaf. It is narrow at the top and bottom and fat in the middle. When you are grabbing your filler and you trim a little off the tops and bottom to get the length you are looking for take a little bit of that tobacco and place it at the base of your cigar. When you roll, the extra bit of tobacco leaf at the base will fill in the loose area.

 

[deluxestogie]

Some terms:
foot = tuck = the lighting end (and where you begin rolling)
head = the end you stick in your mouth (where you end rolling)

If you roll a cigar using only the middle of the filler leaves, you end up with a lot of very short scraps. I use the same method as johnlee1933:

• bunch all the filler leaf, aligned at the head end
• cut it at the foot end to a length of the proposed cigar
• bring the remainder bunch up parallel to the initial bunch segment
• cut the remainder bunch, again at the foot end
• repeat until all the bunch is a cigar-length, parallel pile

This leaves only the final trimmings as scrap. I prefer the full smoke of a fat cigar (50 to 56 ring), but dislike the jaw-breaking effect of a fat head. So nearly all of my cigars are gradually tapered toward the head to about corona diameter (46 to 48 ring).

I obtain a firm wrap on the tapered head by lifting the axis of the cigar as I roll the final 1 to 2 inches of the bunch. While wrapping from the foot toward the head, the entire bunch is resting (rolling) on the cutting board. As I approach the head, I gradually lift the foot of the cigar, keeping the head in contact with the board. This required a lot of practice to be consistent. It always works best if the remnant of binder is trimmed close to the head before applying the wrapper.

After the head is fully wrapped in this manner, I then lay the cigar flat again, and spin the cigar beneath my flat hand, while anchoring the dangling remainder of the wrapper with my other hand. This produces a tight twist of the leftover wrapper end. With care, the twist can reach 2 or more inches in length. If the twist is tight enough, it will spontaneously spring back on itself to form a "knot" that remains in place. Plan B is to carefully tie an actual overhand knot in the twist and snug it to the head.

I use glue (pectin) only for gift cigars. The binder is kept in place by my little finger, while applying the wrapper. If I plan to smoke the cigar immediately (the usual situation), I don't even bother with any sort of knot at the head, but just trim the foot, trim the head, and stick it in my mouth.

Bob

P.S. Seanz, I love the color of your wrapper. Don't worry about wrinkles for now.

 

[johnlee1933]

Bob, Exactly right except gluing. I use a bit of gelatin on all my cigars. (And nicely put too.)

 

[Seanz]

Thanks for the input guys, High tides moving in so I will be back later, Have fun

 

[Knucklehead]

Some terms:
foot = tuck = the lighting end (and where you begin rolling)
head = the end you stick in your mouth (where you end rolling)

I think that's the problem I've been having. I'm always sticking my foot in my mouth.

 

[johnlee1933]

I think that's the problem I've been having. I'm always sticking my foot in my mouth.

Da-Da-Boom.