Hey everybody,

I picked up a Romeo Y Julieta Maduro last night for the evening smoke. As soon as i cut it i knew it was going to be a rough ride. It was packed super super tight and i could hardly get a good draw from it. Needless to say it was not a very enjoyable smoke.

What can i do next time when i pick up a cigar that has a horrible draw?
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From most you will hear "pitch it, life's too short". BS I say, life's too short to waste hard earned money on not trying to fix a plugged smoke.

try cutting a wire coat hanger, using about a 6-7 inch long piece of the straight side to work through the cigar carefully. I found mine to work really well in most situations, sometimes nothing will work, and then I pitch the cigar.
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I had a cigar like that last night as well. It smoked fine, but it was heavy and you could tell just from picking it up it was packed pretty firmly.
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So make up a makeshift draw rod. Is is typical for darker cigars to be packed a little tighter than the rest?
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I say riot and loot... but I am a dangerous sort...
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Usually just a roller having a bad day.
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If it was fresh from the shop then it may have been over humidified. Let it sit for a few days in an empty cigar box(dry boxing). Then test the draw again, if its still tight it may need surgery. :-)
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No.
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Is there anything i can do to make sure this doesn't happen again?
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The pinch test. A cigar should give a little and spring back when you squeeze it. If it feels like a wooden dowel, then it's over-filled or over-humidified. Of course, this won't help if there's a knot in the middle of the bunch causing a bad draw.
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Next time you cut a cigar blow through the foot with your palm in front of the head to see if you have airflow or not...if the cigar has little airflow you might try dryboxing it for 4-5 days and then trying again...it may have just been too wet...
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This could be an over humidified cigar, many folks recommend 65% RH and for smoking I agree.
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Would buying a draw rod be a good idea? Or should i just ghetto rig somethin up?
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Drybox first then I use a food skewer to poke through. Seldom do I need this after dry boxing
Tom
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fixed :-)
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I've used a nail to loosen up the draw on some tight smokes. It's worked pretty well until I get a proper draw poker.
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If you really care, draw the cigar before lighting it and if its tight sometimes 24-48 hours dry boxing will resolve the issue.

Also a wire coat hanger is a bad idea imo, its kinda think. Get yourself an actual plug tool or even a worm threader.
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