:-)

Cameroon Especiale is a great $2 retail stick.

Tabacos Baez Series SF is another great everyday smoke, box cigar, Pepin blend, under $3!
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Thanks to Mr. Ed and Dunkel I just bought a 15 pack of these.......and free shipping!! :-)
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Been meanin' to post this for a couple of weeks....


The La Aurora 2nds are very, very tasty and are now in my weekly rotation......especially since they are less than $2.00 a stick :SS
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I gotta say I love them too, great cheap cigar!
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to chime back in here once again, although I ain't smoked it yet, the 15 stick mazo of RP X-out Liga D robustos (RP Decade) look, smell, and have the same prelight draw and flavor as the 1sts I've had... proof is in the smoking, but all indicators are there.

Also, I read this on another board I frequent, but someone had an idea that RP was selling all those Factory Selects, 2nds, X-outs etc. as unbanded and unboxed 1st just to move more volume of product to more consumers, sort of a make the margins larger for those who'll pay, and move more product over all approach.... makes sense to me as once again, the 2nds look/feel/smoke exactly the same THUS far. I can't get over how consistently perfect the draw and flavor have been on every single RP sungrown FS PC, and every RP OWR X-out maduro torpedo I have had. I ain't no RP whore, although I do enjoy about 4 blends of his immensly, but if someone is reading this thread and wondering about whether to try 2nds or factory selects, then going the RP 2nd route is a NO BRAINER for sure IMO.

Rant off and more than my :-) given.
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Thanks bro!! I'll be on those next!! :-) Do they come from CI and or Famous?

-
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^^^^ Famous has Rocky's best 2nds, which are actually called RP Factory Selects.... this is the Sungrown blend. In an interview awhile back he listed the 2nds in order:

1sts - smokes with bands and boxed

Factory Selects - smokes with slightest wrapper imperfections, and ZERO construction issues.

2nds - smokes with even more wrapper imperfections, but these look better than most factories 1sts IMO, yet again with no construction issues.

So thats the order, not sure where CI's X-outs fall into the rank, but of all I have smoked of those, I'm nearly positive you could stick an OWR maduro band on my bundle and you couldn't tell the difference. Also, CI carries the 2nds and the X-outs, and I have and will again buy from both retailers.

If you want the best 2nd/factory select he makes, this is the Sungrown 2nd from Famous, don't see them offered in the FS anymore.

http://www.famous-smoke.com/brand/rp...ungrown+cigars

Just prior to SCHIP, I pulled the trigger heavy on 7 bundles of the PC size in all they had left of the FS, and 2nds.... and I still ain't sorry I did.
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I've heard that the X-outs are sometimes blemished cigars, sometimes firsts - not really sure. But one thing that I have heard that seems to be fairly consistant, is that they aren't aged much after rolling, they're bundled and shipped as soon as they can get away with it, rather than letting them age the full time that the banded firsts get.

YMMV.

---------

Yes, a few or more years ago. Some bundles were very HdM like, some were very Punch like. No real variation in the bundles that I could recall - if the first cigar was "punch like" then all of them were, same for HdM. Other than that, a decent cigar. They used to be a great bargain, not sure if they are anymore, or how they smoke now, as I haven't looked at them recently. I have friends who still buy them and swear by them as daily smokes though.
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I am not sure why go for "seconds" when good "firsts" such as HdM Roths (MM or Oscuro) can be had for $110 per 50 (or Punch Roths). I know HdM/Punch are not talked about here much, but they are really good smokes, IMO, and at the price are an incredible deal. What's the attraction of buying "seconds"?
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These yummy babies taste the same as Rocky Patel The Edge maduro torpedos.
On sale for $59.95/bundle of 20 thru 1/11/10.
http://www.famous-smoke.com/rp+facto...ars/item+31175
Great billows of smoke with an emphatic punch of spicy flavor. A dependable everyday smoke!
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Up until a few years ago, you could get CI's Super Premium Seconds for an average of about $19-21 a bundle of 25 on cbid. That low a price kind of made it worthwhile, especially when they wouldn't put up the boxes of 50 firsts.

I have no idea what they go for nowadays at auction. They list in the catalog at $40 for 25, versus $122-$127 for the box of 50 firsts from CI, so I agree, not much more to pay for a product where you know what blend you will be recieving and the cigars will probably have a bit more factory age after rolling on them too.
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Adam,

I just won an auction @ C-Bid for these. $22 for a bundle of 25 (plus 4.95 shipping). I've heard good things about these and (for me at least) the price was very good.

I have never smoked one so, after I have a few, I will give my opinion. :-)
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If those are the ones I am thinking of they are very tasty. They were a very dark short filler stick that were great after a month or two of rest.
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Oh... and I have also smoke a bunch of the RP seconds/x-outs and have thoroughly enjoyed them.
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2nds are good!:-)
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you're talking to the connoisseur of cheap smokes.

I have a database of Consuegra conversions.

I have a cross reference for Flor de Copan's.

I remember when Oliva Segundos sold faster than firsts.
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:-)

I dunno, they're not short filler, but they are stubby little sticks (50 x 4.5") and the rest of your description sounds about right.

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/p...m=CS-P2A&cat=3
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Always looking for an economical smoke...these I will be trying and if I like them will put a couple of bundles into my Humi.
Also been looking at the RP x/outs at CI the Edge has always been good to me.
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Looking to order a bundle to burn a coupon Famous sent me. RP Factory Selects Original maddies look good (and free shipping). Anything else I should be looking at for ~$50?
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Right there is the attraction :-)

I bid several times a month on many seconds on c-bid. My high bid is always less than $1 each with shipping. I loose 99% of the time but when I win, I get quality cigars that get rested for at least 6 months or longer and make excellent daily smokes. I smoke 2-3 a day while working and often set them down, get distracted or dropped. No problem when they are lass than a buck :-)

Chas
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