Cigar Cutters

Brothers of Briar

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A slight bump I know :)

My main cutter is a Xicar 009 punch. Slightly bigger than the more common 007. Nice matte black, retractable blade keeps the edge untouched by anything other than cigar cap. Love it.

I have a ceramic blade guillotine that's astoundingly clean cutting but being a single blade it can sometimes be tricky to get it just right. I'd potentially scrap the punch if I could get a good double ceramic blade cutter.
 
A punch does seem like the way to go in many ways...I just haven't got around to buying one.
 
I know this might sound silly to some, but I have a variety of cutters and punches. Some were bought and others were free or part of a promo of some sort. I sometimes decide on which cutter to use after looking at the shape of the cap. Some cigars have a very delicate cap, which causes me to use a particular cutter after having a bad experience using a different style cutter.

The thing is, my best performing cutters all the way around are the cheap plastic guillotine and v-cutters. The only explaination I can come up with on this is that possibly all the money is invested in the blade itself. They certainly aren't conversation pieces, but they really get the job done.
 
I use the Xikar scissors that fold up. They are great, and fun to use. Super sharp, and you have a lot of control over the cut by just taking off a few little bits of the cap like a careful barber, rather than just chopping it all off at once.

Like these:

xikar_cutter.JPG


And they fold up to this:

xikar_cutter_closed.JPG


(pictures taken from this review: http://www.stogiereview.com/2008/03/08/xikar-mtx-cigar-scissors/)
 
I never met a cigar cutter I liked. I like to taste and smell the unlit cigar for a while and walk around in stores and places to see whether I can get some self-righteous cretin to scream, "Put out that cigar! There's no smoking allowed here!" Etc. Anyhow, by the time I'm done with the anticipation and other games, the end is moist enough to make the removal of the cap with your teeth child's play. Tasting the unlit tobacco for a while seems to enhance the flavor of the lit cigar for me, once I get around to setting fire to it. In other words, I don't see that opening the end is a problem in a well-constructed cigar. Some cheaper ones are more difficult, but then I just use my Swiss Army pen blade, honed razor sharp, to circumcise the bastards.
 
I have 2 cutters, both are Xikar. The X3 in redwood and a punch cutter on a keychain. I received my first Xikar as a gift. I love them. They cut well and hold up. My current one is about 8 years old with no problems. Once every few years I send it back for sharpening. I love the lifetime guarantee. I have cut a lot of stick with this thing and it is top notch.
 
Of the two you list (and I've owned both brands), I liked the Palio best. It was lighter, less bulky and just felt more natural to use.

Overall though, I preferred my cigar punch. Cheaper than both of the above and I was never without as it was always on my key ring.
 
I've owned some very nice and some very cheap cigar cutters. Imo if you're gonna buy one go with a double blade, but heres my opinion....no matter how nice and sharp your cutter is you're going to mess up the head of your cigar once in awhile leading to possible unravelling which is super friggin annoying(at least to me). Heres what i do....I always carry a very sharp Kershaw folding knife in my pocket, I take the knife and slowly cut the amount of cap off of the cigar that I want....not in a shaving motion but circular..I only cut the cap and not the filler tobacco. Then when i finish i lift the cap off with the edge of the knife...usually comes right off. The end result looks like the work of a huge punch and I never have to worry about messing up the head.
 
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