St. James Flake

[PipedJimmy]

Hey guys, have been working with this blend for a while and due to reading posts from other smokers of this blend on this board, have unfortuantely come to the conclusion that I'm not getting the best out of this tobacco; is there a particular style of preparation whch benefits St. James Flake? At present I've tried rubbing out and drying, rolling and stuffing (a amateurish take on the air-pocket method, and smoking it as flake, all of which have been tried in a Peterson B10 shape, any help that you could yield would be helpful

 

[Carlos]

I rub it out. I would try a different pipe.

 

[Natch]

I treat many of the MC broken flakes like "regular" flakes; that being I hold them in small bunches parallel to the length, cut them with a scissors into about 1/8" cubes, dry sufficiently (which for most MC blends can tale a long time!) and lightly pack the bowl with the cubes. Seems to work for me.

Natch

 

[PipedJimmy]

Thank you for your replies

 

[Carlos]

I am going to try this mini cubed cut for some dark flakes. I have a bunch of Dark Star and cannot quite hit the zone with it. For some reason certain tobaccos are that way. Just picky about the cut, the packing, the briar, the moisture level.

 

[Natch]

It's really become my favorite way to smoke almost all flakes. I also make a point of loading the finer "crumbs" first and the larger, "cubes" last. If the gods are with me that day, I can get one or two cubes to burn then pass on their flame to the next just before they go out. Also, I sometimes will mix the cubes of two different flakes for an interesting blend of a smoke.

Natch

 

[Smokey Joe]

I get a better flavor profile by smoking flakes in straight shank Billiards or Pokers (no larger than a group 4).
After airing out the flake, I rub out just enough kindling for the top and bottom of the chamber, then fold and stuff. Then I puff very, very slowly.

 

[Slow Puffs]

Isn't St James Flake S&G Kendal's ?

Regardless, i enjoy it by cutting it into cubes like Natch( Carlos ).

 

[Trout Bum]

I have yet to try St. James Flake, but I am a HUGE fan of Black Woods Flake. I will have to try the cube-cut method, though I seem to hit the zone, so to speak, pretty easily with Black Woods. I really want to try Dark Star, St. James Flake, and 5100, plus some of the other McLelland offerings. If their flavor profile is anything like Black Woods Flake, I am pretty psyched. ("flavor profile" meaning the whole bbq sauce/ketchup/vinegar thing, which some like and some do not -- me, I love it!)