You may not have a cigar cutter all the time with you, although nothing can match the precision of a cutter, you can use certain alternatives to do the job for the time being.
These alternatives become much more important when you misplace your cutter or forget to carry it while moving out. So suppose you are out with your friends and going to smoke a cigar when suddenly you realize that you are not carrying any cutter. What to do?
With the help of this article, you will not have to drop your plan of cigar smoking anymore. We will be talking about some of the easiest and handy methods of cutting a cigar which will solve your problem in seconds. Do not go anywhere, as this is going to be very interesting and useful for all the cigar smokers out there.
How to cut a cigar without a cutter?
You already know that the ends of a cigar are sealed with a cap to prevent tobacco drying. However, you need to cut it off to smoke a cigar. A cigar cutter is the best tool for doing that, but it is not the only way. There are several other ways of cutting a cigar that may not be as accurate as a cutter but can be used as an immediate option. Let us check them out one by one!
Use of thumbnails
We will be starting with the most easily available option, and that is nothing but your thumbnail. It is the simplest way of cutting a cigar. You just need to weaken a part of the cap using your thumbnail and continue around its circular border. The cap is a part of the wrapper leaf, and usually, it is very thin and easy to detach.
However, you have to be a bit careful while removing the cap. Make sure you are not trying to tear it with a large amount of force while still connected to the wrapper leaf. This can lead to the unwrapping of the leaf. Also, try to make the initial incision a little bit above the cap line, which will lead to the removal of the cap in a much cleaner and sharper way.
Use a Knife
Another effective way of cutting a cigar besides your nails is a knife. Since it is a sharp tool, it will result in a much cleaner removal of the cap compared to your thumbnail. So if you are carrying a pocket knife, you are highly fortunate! But how to use a knife for cutting a cigar?
First of all, you have to moisten the cigar cap in your mouth. It prevents the cracking of the leaf wrapper. However, make sure that you do not overdo it. Next, you have to gently put your knife a little bit above the cap line and rotate the cigar in your hand to cut around the circumference. Avoid using a dull knife as it can cause some major inconvenience in your work. Finally, you can peel off the cap while rotating the cigar to ensure no connection between the cap and the leaf wrapping.
Besides this, you can also cross-cut on the cigar’s cap by making a horizontal incision followed by a vertical one. This will ultimately help you to draw air through the cigar while smoking.
Punch a hole
Okay, so talking about our next alternative, which is again very simple and effective. Here, you can use some sharp objects such as toothpicks, paper clips, or a screwdriver to punch a hole in the cap without cracking the wrapper. Do not put too much pressure while inserting the tip of a sharp object. However, in thin objects such as toothpicks, you may have to insert the tip several times to make a proper hole for smoking.
In other tools such as a screwdriver, gently insert the tip with slight pressure to make an appreciable opening for smoking. After this, put the cigar in your mouth and breathe in through the hole. If there is an easy passage of air through it without putting much effort, you can finally light up the cigar and enjoy the tobacco smoke.
Read: Best Cigar Punch: Reviews and Buying Guide
Using teeth
Lastly, you can use your teeth to cut out the ends of a cigar. You just need to put the cigar below the front teeth ensuring that your teeth are above the cap line. After this, bite the end of the cigar with slight pressure. But do not put the cigar beyond a certain extent as it may cause damage to the cigar.
Now you have to roll the cigar in your mouth and continuously bite around the cap till it gets detached from the cigar. Once you are done with this, you can take out the cap from your mouth and throw it away. This is an old-school method of cutting a cigar. Nowadays, it is not recommended as it makes an inconsistent cut. Moreover, you can accidentally swallow the cap, which can make you sick.
Precautions while cutting a cigar
There are certain things that you need to keep in mind while cutting a cigar without a cutter. Let us have a look!
- Do not use a regular pair of scissors to cut the cap off, as it can cause the cracking of the leaf wrap.
- Do not hurry while slicing the end of your cigar to avoid hurting yourself with the sharp knife.
- Do not cut the cigar below the cap line as it may damage the cigar’s wrapping.
- Make sure that you do not swallow the cap or tobacco while biting the cigar.
- If you are a beginner and this will be your first time, make sure your age is above the legal age for cigar smoking.
Conclusion on How To Cut A Cigar Without A Cutter
On an ending note, we would like to say that it is always better to carry a cigar cutter for cutting the ends as they are sharp and make a consistent cut without damaging the cigar. However, if you do not have a cutter due to any reason, you can always use the alternatives mentioned in this article.
Please avoid using the biting method as you need to be very careful while doing it; otherwise, it can make you sick. You should use it only if you have no other option left. So that’s it for today. We will be back with another article in a short while. Hope this article helped.
Thank you for reading!