Strange question re: stabilizing tobacco

Doug Miller

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Location
Hardinsburg, KY
What would you use to stabilize tobacco?
I just had a thought to turn a cigar pen using a cigar. I've never heard of anyone trying it. Neither have I ever heard any discussion of tobacco and reactions with any glues or finishes. I'm going to experiment with this but wanted to know if any of you have tried anything like this or know of any bad reactions I need to look out for. Told you it was strange. Still, maybe I've come up with the next $1,000,000 project. (Hmmm, I wonder if Rush Limbough would like one for about $75.00?)
 
Doug, I think I'd look into a casting resin and a pressure or vacuum pot. I think the pen turning forums will have a lot of info on resin casting, but I can't recall any of the appropriate URLs. Hopefully one of the pen turners here will chime in. ;)
 
I thought of a vac pot, but I'm not going to buy one for this one project. Grea idea though.

Make one from some 2" PVC pipe. Cap one end, and glue a threaded coupling on the other, then use a threaded plug, and a vacuum hose fitting. Easy and cheap enough for a one-time use. Throw it away when you're done, or even clean it out for re-use later.
 
There are several guys on the IAP that do castings... I've actually had the same thoughts as you, casting a cigar to make a cigar pen, but I don't do any casting, don't have any of the necessary equipment plus I am more or less cutting back on pen turning...
Check with Jeff Taylor, Curtis Seebeck(The Mesquiteman), Ed4copies, The oklahoman or just look up casting and should find number of threads on casting.. There are lots more, just first names that came to mind.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=4
 
Make one from some 2" PVC pipe. Cap one end, and glue a threaded coupling on the other, then use a threaded plug, and a vacuum hose fitting. Easy and cheap enough for a one-time use. Throw it away when you're done, or even clean it out for re-use later.

Great idea, Jim. However, I don't have a vacuum pump. Is there a way to draw vacuum with out a pump in this small vacuum chamber?
 
Great idea, Jim. However, I don't have a vacuum pump. Is there a way to draw vacuum with out a pump in this small vacuum chamber?

I've used my food saver vacuum sealer with bags to do small veneering projects. It has a hose attachment, don't know it it would pull enough vacuum for your situation, but something to consider. :huh:
 
Iffin' I was to take a stab at a stogie, I think I would take a small jar full of Poly and dunk the cigar, Attach a vacuum pump and watch the bubbles escape, when they stop, release the vacuum and allow nature to force the poly into the cigar, maybe do this two or three times. After which I would take the soaking stogie out and place it on a drying rack for a few days. (Roll it around) When it hardens, it should be do-able...
 
The IAP penturning forum has a lot of discussion about stabilizing and casting.
One fellow popularized the notion of casting 'worthless wood' and other 'stuff'. Your cigar idea is not even close to the most bizarre thing some have tried. I believe a cigar could just be tossed in the stabilizing pot and stabled like a piece of punky wood. I might just try it with my next batch.
 
Interesting idea for sure.

I do know a bit about cigars, so a couple of things come to mind.

First, you need a real cigar, not a dry cigar, a real cigar is made from long leaves, bunched together, then wrapped. A dry cigar is made up of all the trimmings of the good cigars and some inferior tobacco, this is then chopped up and formed into a cigar shape, and a wrapper is applied.

cigar-unraveled-labeled1-255x300.png
Here is a cigar in pieces

I think if you try to use a dry cigar, because it is made from all the small pieces it would not hold together well, and it would look odd, if you use a good long filler cigar, you might have more success, but...... long filler cigars are kept humidified, usually at about 70%, so they are "wet" and you would need to dry it out before you tried any stabilization, IMHO.

Once dry these cigars are very delicate, they can crumble very easily, basically they are just dried leaves. When you do soak it, it could expand a lot, and kind of tear apart at the seams, so to speak.

Still, this is an interesting idea, and I'll be watching it develop!

Cheers!
 
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