Well it finally happened

[luckyace12]

I got my hands on a LO rolling kit, Criollo seco, fire cured wrapper, and CT LS binder. Then rolling ensued. I learned a couple of things.
1. Rolling is a lot harder than it looks
2. Mixing cigar glue is a P in the A
3. Rolling is a lot harder than it looks
4. The veins on a fire cured leaf are unreal
5. I have absolutely no idea what Im doing
6. How do you even cap?!?!
Anyways pics are below. Any tips for beginners is greatly appreciated.

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[Jim D]

Awesome! Those first sticks look way better than my first sticks did!
As for tips for beginners, I used (and still use sometimes) strips of newspaper for a mold. The newspaper will allow you to make any vitola and still smooth the surface of your bunch and your wrapper.
Next, if you can roll frequently, you'll improve faster. You don't have to roll a huge amount everytime, but the more frequently you do it, the less time you have to forget what you've already learned!
There are plenty of videos showing techniques, watch them a couple million times...now that you've rolled some, you'll notice different things in the videos you've seen before.
Have fun with it!

 

[luckyace12]

Most definitely after rewatching the videos I picked up some stuff. I think the the fire cured veins are too pronounced for a wrapper so the next rolling session I'll use my other wrap. I also need to sharpen my chevata knife like crazy! I used paper towels as a mold and it worked really well. But I now fully appreciate the practice of casing...

 

[Hopduro]

Go watch tons of videos (@blisscigarco on YouTube)and read through this sub forum!

Looking good brother, welcome to the fun

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[webmost]

I got my hands on a LO rolling kit, Criollo seco, fire cured wrapper, and CT LS binder.

If I wanted to devise a kit the flavor of which would dissuade a beginner, that would be about it.

1. Rolling is a lot harder than it looks

No it's not. It's like fallin' off a log. Gotta fix yer 'tude, dude.

2. Mixing cigar glue is a P in the A

So don't. Mix the night before. Stir it around until you're not getting anywhere. Yes, you will have a bunch of white boogers where the glue did not dissolve. No worry. Set it aside. By next morning, all those white boogers will have disappeared. Stuff pretty much mixes itself.

3. Rolling is a lot harder than it looks

There ya go again.
My first grandson insisted I take the training wheels off his bike. I ran alongside holding his jacket collar for about twenty yards and let go. He promptly rode across the parking lot right into a parked car and crashed. Picked himself up, jumped back on, pedaled away.
My second granddaughter did nothing but complain. Nana put elbow pads, helmet, knee pads on her, and a padded jacket. I ran round the lot twenty minutes without ever letting go her collar. No fall. Then she made me put her training wheels back on.
Rolling is easy. Rolling like MarcL or Bliss takes practice; but rolling is easy.

4. The veins on a fire cured leaf are unreal

Horrible kit. You need a kit from WholeLeafTobacco. Better blend and better ingredients.

5. I have absolutely no idea what Im doing

Were you sposed to?

6. How do you even cap?!?!

Cap not required.

Any tips for beginners is greatly appreciated.

Where you at, Lucky? Maybe one of these rollers here can roll on over and hold your jacket collar. Vids are mostly useless, IMHO, cause the rollers are too good, their hands are too fast, the leaves they use are too flat, and the camera angle doesn't zero in. Just a half hour of "wait minute, what did you just do there?" is worth six days of YouTube vids. Hell, you're anywhere 500 miles from Dull-Aware, I'm always up for a long motorcycle ride. You got the beer I got the time.

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[luckyace12]

If I wanted to devise a kit the flavor of which would dissuade a beginner, that would be about it.

No it's not. It's like fallin' off a log. Gotta fix yer 'tude, dude.

So don't. Mix the night before. Stir it around until you're not getting anywhere. Yes, you will have a bunch of white boogers where the glue did not dissolve. No worry. Set it aside. By next morning, all those white boogers will have disappeared. Stuff pretty much mixes itself.

There ya go again.
My first grandson insisted I take the training wheels off his bike. I ran alongside holding his jacket collar for about twenty yards and let go. He promptly rode across the parking lot right into a parked car and crashed. Picked himself up, jumped back on, pedaled away.
My second granddaughter did nothing but complain. Nana put elbow pads, helmet, knee pads on her, and a padded jacket. I ran round the lot twenty minutes without ever letting go her collar. No fall. Then she made me put her training wheels back on.
Rolling is easy. Rolling like MarcL or Bliss takes practice; but rolling is easy.

Horrible kit. You need a kit from WholeLeafTobacco. Better blend and better ingredients.

Were you sposed to?

Cap not required.


Where you at, Lucky? Maybe one of these rollers here can roll on over and hold your jacket collar. Vids are mostly useless, IMHO, cause the rollers are too good, their hands are too fast, the leaves they use are too flat, and the camera angle doesn't zero in. Just a half hour of "wait minute, what did you just do there?" is worth six days of YouTube vids. Hell, you're anywhere 500 miles from Dull-Aware, I'm always up for a long motorcycle ride. You got the beer I got the time.



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Haha sounds like sage advice. Mind you I was up wayyyy passed my bedtime, anyways I digress. I look forward to the journey and getting my rolls squared away. As for my location I'm in Houston TX so a far cry from where you are. But all in all a fantastic experience I hope to repeat frequently.

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[BrewinHooligan]

Practice practice practice. Try rolling only 2-4 at a time as frequently as possible. Make sure you have time set aside to pay attention to what you are doing and not feel rushed. If you aren't enjoying it, you need to check your mindset and maybe set it aside for another time. I think of it like cooking, if the cook is in a foul mood the food doesn't turn out quite right, if they cook with love you can taste it. The same applies to cigars. You put a little passion into it, you're gonna get a more rewarding experience. Don't worry about caps or aesthetics, there are only 2 things that matter the most while you are getting started. 1, does the stick have a good draw, and 2, will the thing burn well. After you get those two things figured out the rest will fall in place the more you roll.

 

[Bruce T.]

2. Mixing cigar glue is a P in the A

I tried cigar glue once and I agree, mixing it is a pain. I also found that it didn't work very well. I always use pectin. It is a fruit sugar liquid used in making jams and other baking. You get it at the grocery store in the baking section and it is cheap. You can get powder that you mix or liquid ready to go. It works great.

One time I was in Dominican Republic and a roller was using the liquid center of a Halls Cough Drop as cigar glue. It had a strong flavor and it went fantastic with the cigar. I always thought that was real creativity.

Also, let me say that your first rolls look good but that wrapper leaf leaves something to be desired.

 

[webmost]

Haha sounds like sage advice. Mind you I was up wayyyy passed my bedtime, anyways I digress. I look forward to the journey and getting my rolls squared away. As for my location I'm in Houston TX so a far cry from where you are. But all in all a fantastic experience I hope to repeat frequently.

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We do have a Houston Dull-Aware... but it's pronounced "HOUSE Tun". I'd be glad to come visit Houston, except for the fact it's in Texas. General Phillip Sheridan was posted to Texas after the Civil War. Six months later, he reported back: "If I owned Hell, and I owned Texas -- I'd rent out Texas and live in Hell."

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[BrewinHooligan]

I tried cigar glue once and I agree, mixing it is a pain. I also found that it didn't work very well. I always use pectin. It is a fruit sugar liquid used in making jams and other baking. You get it at the grocery store in the baking section and it is cheap. You can get powder that you mix or liquid ready to go. It works great.

One time I was in Dominican Republic and a roller was using the liquid center of a Halls Cough Drop as cigar glue. It had a strong flavor and it went fantastic with the cigar. I always thought that was real creativity.

Also, let me say that your first rolls look good but that wrapper leaf leaves something to be desired.

Cigar glue really isn't that hard to mix. What my mentor from Cuba taught me is to heat up your water in the glue container first, almost to boiling, then add your powder and stir. Mixes just fine but will have bubbles that will be gone by the next day. 80% of cigar rolling is prepping and cleaning. I used to use pectin as well as xanthan gum and they did work ok but they spoil over time and the pectin can go sour even after you roll with it so it isn't good for sticks you intend to age. The cigar glue seems to work better and I don't need to use as much to get the job done.

 

[Hopduro]

Xanthum gum man. Works great, no flavor, no fuss, cheaper than dirt

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[Marc L]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gum-Tragacanth-for-Gumpaste-and-Pastillage-/281826117227?var=&hash=item419e25466b

1/2 of a teaspoon, 8 to 1 with water. ..that's 8 parts water, 1 part powder.. enough for 80 smokes. I end up throwing it away after 2 or 3 weeks. keep in refrigerator.

 

[BrewinHooligan]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gum-Tragacanth-for-Gumpaste-and-Pastillage-/281826117227?var=&hash=item419e25466b

1/2 of a teaspoon, 8 to 1 with water. ..that's 8 parts water, 1 part powder.. enough for 80 smokes. I end up throwing it away after 2 or 3 weeks. keep in refrigerator.

That's the stuff, or you can order direct from Jorge at rollerschoice.com. I have used it all and this stuff works better than anything else by far.

 

[luckyace12]

I plan on rolling a few tonight but using a different wrapper. That fire cured doesn't handle we'll and is really unsightly

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[luckyace12]

So here are my blends I've rolled so far:

Home Roll Blend #1
Wooden mold press
Filler: 2 Criollo Seco, 1 Fire Cured
Binder: Nicaraguan
Wrapper: Fire Cured

Home Roll Blend #2
Paper towel
Filler: 2 Criollo Seco, 1 Fire Cured
Binder: CT LS
Wrapper: Fire Cured

Home Roll Blend #3
Magazine page
Filler:Criollo Seco
Binder: Nicaraguan
Wrapper: Fire Cured

Home Roll Blend #4
Paper Towel
Filler:Criollo Seco
Binder: Nicaraguan
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Seco

Home Roll Blend #5
Paper Towel
Filler: 2 Criollo Seco, 1 Fire Cured
Binder: Nicaraguan
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Seco

 

[luckyace12]

What do yall use to mark certain blends because my dry box looks like a jenga set

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[Jim D]

What do yall use to mark certain blends because my dry box looks like a jenga set

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I just cut strips of paper about the width of a piece of tape and write the recipe with the date on it....separately, I write all the same info in a notebook. When I smoke one, I'll go back to add notes on the back of the page.

 

[luckyace12]

I just cut strips of paper about the width of a piece of tape and write the recipe with the date on it....separately, I write all the same info in a notebook. When I smoke one, I'll go back to add notes on the back of the page.

Do you attach it with cigar glue?

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[Hopduro]

Do you attach it with cigar glue?

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Yup, or tape

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[Jim D]

Do you attach it with cigar glue?

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Tape. My xanthan gum wouldn't hold the band together so I used tape. I'm using arabica now (from LO) and sometimes it holds the band, sometimes not. Both seem to hold wrapper leaf together just fine so a bit of tape for the band and I'm all set.