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I see nothing overt that raises a red flag. As Tom said its nice to have a name or number to contact or show legitimacy, but the lack of a storefront does not indicate a fraudulent business.

The prices seem in line with other retailers. Nothing rare or unusual shown as a lure.

As long as you are using a credit card you are protected. The card company will fight your fights if it comes to a fraud issue.

If you see something you want then buy it. :2

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The website looks nice too, which tells me it's not some cheap scam. I can't believe they don't have a contact number listed...

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Got this today in response to a query sent using their 'contact' website:

It was sent from 'Cigarz38@aol.com':

"Hello Mr. Silbernagel,

We have been in the retail/wholesale cigar business for the past 11 years. We just recently added to our business in the past 6 months by adding a web site. If you have any further questions or concerns, feel free to email us back.

Thank you & We appreciate your business.

Internet Smoke Shop Sales Department"

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Sounds like a B&M that added an online store. They should really set up e-mail through their domain, though. It looks cheesy to me when an online retailer uses a free e-mail account.
Posted via Mobile Device

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i just got a colibri torch and im wondering if i REALLY need to refill it with Colibri butane. I ask cause i cant seem to find refill detailers that can ship to canada!

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no.

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any will do? and if not recommandation?

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Lava and Vector seem to be the most highly regarded choices.

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Not any. Any premium stuff (stuff that's been filtered 3-5 times). Avoid regular stuff like Ronson fuel - it can clog the jets on higher-end lighters like your Colibri.

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yokai! thanks guys

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Hey guys I have had my vino setup for about 1 mth now and I have around 8 boxes in there with about 50 cigars. I have the other ones in my desktop.

question is, I have my temp at 65 degrees, but humidity is at 67-68%. I have 2lbs of beads and 2 oust fans and a 80mm PC fan running on low.

Any idea on why the humidity isn't at 65%? It doesn't really fluctuate much and I do have 65% beads.

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Hygrometer properly calibrated?

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Dry the beads out a bit more to soak up the excess moisture.

:2

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Beat me to it - lol!

Second suggestion is taking RH readings at various levels as humid air is lighter (less dense) so RH will be higher at the top than the bottom.

I hope this helps

~Mark

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Patrick, you will find Colibri for couple of dollars in your area, very common in Mtl so must be in QC city.

Any butane will do just make sure its good quality so it dosent clog your lighter.
If you want Colibri and cannot find it, let me know I will send you a bottle.

Have a great one

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They beads are pretty much still over 60% pure white. Only a few are clear.

The hygrometer is maybe is anything1% off. If mark remembers I could not get it exactly to 75% with the salt test. I would get it at 75% and then it would bounce to 76% that fast.

I'll dry the beads out and go from there. .

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Bottom line is to ask yourself, "How are my cigars smoking?"
If you are happy with them, then don't sweat the couple of percentage points. Focus less on the numbers and more on the enjoyment of your cigars. (Keep in mind that the hygrometers most of us use are not precision, laboratory grade devices.)

:2

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/\ Deff true. I haven't noticed anything too bad. Sometimes they dont burn as well as I would hope. I have to relight here and there on some cigars.

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Yeah, but that might not be due to your humidors. If you are smoking a narrow ring cigar and the humidity is high and you are sipping at it, or you are just smoking slowly, expect relights. It's no big thing.

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Ohok, I thought that the way it burned directly correlated to the humidity.

I would assume if the humidity is between 60 and 70 then its ok right? This isnt optimal, but in terms of catastrophic cigar problems ( wetness, splitting ect )

Once again, thanks guys.


EDIT: What is the best way to relight? Sometimes I'll have to relight a smaller RG cigar like you said, I was wondering do I purge it? snip the end?

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60-70RH storage humidity is fine. Most of us seem to aim for the lower end of that range, for a few reasons: better draw, usually better burn, most cases more flavors and/or less acidic flavors from burning a wet cigar, less chance of mold.

For relights, just knock the ash off, blow gently through the cigar to purge the stale smoke and then light normally. If it hasn't been out for long, you can skip the purging at your tastes/discression. No need to clip the end unless you are talking about relighting a cigar you started a day ago, at which point you should have clipped the buring end before it went out.

----
EDIT: When I said "higher humidity" in my post previous to this, I meant the ambient humidity where you are smoking - sometimes it's hard to keep cigars lit when the weather is damp/high humidity.

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If you are relighting within an hour, then just relight and purge. If its been more than an hour and less than a day I would clip. After a day, throw it out and start over. :2

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Thanks guys! That will help when I'm going to work and cant finish one, I'll clip and relight.

And yeah my area where I live is pretty humid at times. and I too try to aim lower on that RH scale in my humidor but I cant get the vino any lower than 67-66%. Hoping maybe the hygrometer is off a bit, but not my desktop humidor I cant get it to stay at 65%. Its like 63%. Cant win haha.

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63% is great. :2

I keep my humidors at 60%-62% ish.

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Is That For All Your Cigars, Or Just CCs?

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All.

I've found that for my tastes and less troublesome burns, 60%-62%-ish works great.:2

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I like my cigars at 65%

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Then how low is too low of RH? I thought 70% was the generally accepted ideal. I was about to post a question regarding why my humi won't stay at 70% (hovers around 65%) but maybe that won't be a problem afterall?

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I have experimented with my RH over the years and after a recent stint at 70% (I had brought all my sticks up to 70% for around 6 months) I find that I have far too many smoking problems at that RH, also I found the higher RH to contribute to increased tar buildup in my sticks making the final third or so a bit harsh (nothing empirical to support this however)

After my Aristocrat arrived on Sept 11 I moved my RH back to 65% and have been very very happy there, it will remain my RH standard.

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70% is generally cited as the ideal, but a lot of hobbyists who've tinkered have found lower humidity levels to be better. I also prefer 65% RH. Too low is up to the individual. There are some who keep their cigars at 55-60%, but that's the lowest I've ever heard. Lower than 55% would be problematic as a generalization.

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Many say that 70% is preferred for non-Cuban cigars, and 65% for Cubans. I found my NCs also smoked better at the lower humidity. I keep mine at 62%.

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I've found the same. Which is why it's taste more than science :)

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Agreed. :)

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I shoot for the higher end 70-73% for long term storage. I started with a desktop and now keep the desktop at 65ish, because they'll be my "smokers" for the short term.

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IMO you're at risk for mold. Storage in that range of RH puts you in the minority, for sure.
But do whatever works for you.

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I will agree with some of the above posters, I keep both coolers around 65%. So far so good!

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Agreed. Most that I know store in the mid 50's to mid 60's for long term storage, including me. Anything around 70 and above just invites mold, imo.

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I keep my Acids in a separate humi, but what is the consensus on Naturals and their ilk?

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If I'm not mistaken, all drew estate cigars are infused in some way, so it is best to keep them separate. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

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+1

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The Natural line is not infused - it only employs blends of odd tobaccos. The Liga Privada and La Herencia Cubana aren't infused either.

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I forget that drew estate makes the liga privada. Basically, any infused or flavored cigar needs to stay in a separate humi from 'regular' cigars.

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It seems some of my taste in cigars are against the grain and trashy. :D
I guess I look at it like beer, I love micro brews and a good German/Belgium, but I can thoroughly enjoy a bud light as well.:tu

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Funny you say that as I see you are in Iraq. Someone once mentioned here that it seems troops love Acids. When I was there this past year I had a buddy that smoked nothing but Acids. To each their own I guess :D.

Stay safe!

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I liked Acids alot more when I was a 1-2 pack-a-day Marlboro Red smoker, now they are just too damn sweet for everyday use, but I still enjoy an occasional. I do like some of the Naturals as well. I also like several of the Gurkhas, which seems to be a "raging" debate around here.:ss

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Chateau Real and the La Vieja Habana are also not infused.

Some of the tobacco used in the rolling of the Natural line is tobacco that would have eventually become pipe tobacco, had they not arrested the curing process partway though the casing. The remainder is just "untreated" / normal tobacco.

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ive just recieved a box of chairman cigars but i dont have a cutter to cut them as they have a ring gague of 60.

does anyone have any ideas on how to cut them succesfully with out ruining them?

having 25 of them i would be as well to buy a cutter, ive searched ebay over here and most of them are for 22mm max cigars. any links for cheapish ones

thanking you in advance

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I have a cutter like this one and it cuts large ring gauges just fine: http://www.cigarsinternational.com/p...-DB12-T&cat=13

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Take one of the cigars with you to a local shop and check the cutters. Most likely the RG of the cap is slightly less than 60rg. You can also use a very sharp knife or a razor blade(be careful) to cut your cigars. Or there is always caveman style, just bite off the cap! :2

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How about using a punch?