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A Tobacco Tinning Mystery Solved (At Least For Me).

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mawnansmiff

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,426
7,369
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
It has always puzzled me how tobacco manufacturers managed to vacuum seal their tins prior to shipping. I have searched the interweb to no avail, I have asked on here also to no avail but last night I saw something on TV that might answer the question.
It was a documentary about the making of jarred mayonnaise of all things! Yes, I hear you, I lead a dull life to watch such things but they can be informative.
Apparently to get the jar to be vacuum sealed, a jet of super-heated steam is injected into the mayonnaise filled jar milliseconds afore the lid is placed and screwed on. The steam naturally cools in seconds and thereby pulls down the lid 'dimple' showing a partial vacuum has been created.....simple really.
Though I can't prove it I would wager that the very same process is used to create the vacuum in a tin of tobacco.
Does this sound plausible to the more scientific minded members of this forum?
Please feel free to debate..... :puffy:
Regards,
Jay.

 
carolinachurchwarden

carolinachurchwarden

Lifer
May 9, 2018
1,687
86
Raleigh, NC
It's either that, or like canning foods. In that process, you heat the vessel to a temperature that's warm enough to cause the air that is sealed within to become warmer, then as it cools, same thing? I watched my grandmother can vegetables from our garden growing up, and that process involved boiling the jars, adding the vegetables, applying the seal and capping them loosely, then boiling them a little longer and letting them cool until the seal, "popped" tight.

 
cosmicfolklore

cosmicfolklore

Lifer
Aug 9, 2013
34,000
75,783
Between the Heart of Alabama and Hot Springs NC
There is no assembly line or automated anything with pipe tobacco. This is very much a small time operation. This is a picture of a tinning machine bringing about a dozen tins up to temperature to seal them. I assume they are loaded and unloaded by hand.

tinning-machine.jpg


 
woodsroad

woodsroad

Lifer
Oct 10, 2013
11,799
16,178
SE PA USA
Tobacco Tinning Operations Rise To New Heights​

2v2JivqVGx3L6Bn.jpg

Tobacco is actually tinned at very high altitudes, then shipped to customers, the majority of whom are at much lower altitudes. The pressure differential results in "vacuum sealed" tins.
STG operates one of the world's largest tobacco tinning factories, high atop Mt. Everest. It's dangerous work, but relatively well-paying for the aged and disabled former Sherpas who constitute most of the tobacco-tinning workforce.

 
cortezattic

cortezattic

Lifer
Nov 19, 2009
15,147
7,638
Chicago, IL
From one of the Mac Baren Factory Tour videos produced by Kevin and Sykes, I got the impression that the tin (or a group of tins) is conveyed into a vacuum chamber where the lid is mechanically put in place. The vacuum level of the chamber is set to something like a 40% vacuum, i.e. 60% of an atmosphere (to secure the lid more than anything else).
The video showed the round, twist-on tins. I believe the pop-top tins aren't vacuum sealed at all.

 
mawnansmiff

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,426
7,369
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
Well it appears my idea went down like a lead brick.....however, unless I hear otherwise from someone who actually knows how it is done then I shall believe it a good contender as to how tins are vacuumed....ho hum :puffpipe:
Regards,
Jay.

 
cosmicfolklore

cosmicfolklore

Lifer
Aug 9, 2013
34,000
75,783
Between the Heart of Alabama and Hot Springs NC
Ummm, I posted a picture of the actual machine with a link to the article. And, while Woods is an actual tobacco company owner, his answer makes perfect sense, but something tells me that he might be kidding. Driving to work for STG must be a biatch, ha ha.
But, the amount of tobacco produced at a time doesn't seem to warrant the same sort of assembly line that mayonnaise would. I'll bet more egg salad made with Mayo is consumed in a day than pipe tobacco is smoked in a year.

 
jpmcwjr

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,748
27,347
Carmel Valley, CA
My takeaway: Vacuum sealing is either an arcane art, or requires actual decent machinery and a touch of expertise. For us at-home types, fergeddddabbbouuudddittt! Why bother? Just pack it as tight as you can, put on the lid, then wait a few years.

 
aquadoc

aquadoc

Lifer
Feb 15, 2017
2,044
1,522
New Hampshire, USA
At home, jar your tobacco, place the lid on the jar, screw on the ring but do not tighten, place jar in an oven pre-heated to 180F and leave for 15-20 minutes, remove and it will rapidly cool thereby sealing the jar with a vacuum.

 
pipesmokingtom

pipesmokingtom

Lifer
May 4, 2015
3,210
16
I always assumed that the lids were applied with enough force to just "press out" some of the air contained within. This would functionally create sort of a vacuum.
I thought in the Mac Baren video I saw, the lids were applied this way, but I could be misremembering. Off to YouTube!
Edit: The video I saw was actually from Per's Instagram and doesn't show the process of sealing the tin. Just how it is measured, packed, and screwed on. Hmm.

 
prairiedruid

prairiedruid

Lifer
Jun 30, 2015
2,005
1,137
There is no assembly line or automated anything with pipe tobacco. This is very much a small time operation. This is a picture of a tinning machine bringing about a dozen tins up to temperature to seal them. I assume they are loaded and unloaded by hand.
Click to expand...
Looking at the equipment pictured it's designed to create a vacuum and not for heating. Pressure gauge, tubing, and compressor motor at the bottom leads me to believe this.

 
jaytex1969

jaytex1969

Lifer
Jun 6, 2017
9,520
50,598
Here
When I'm really motivated, my tobacco jarring operation goes something like this.
Put 3 or 4 jars with lids removed into the soup pot with about an inch of water over a small flame. Open and prep bulk bags while water heats.
Turn off flame just as a simmer begins.
Extract each jar with a clean dish towel, dry and fill quickly. Screw lid on tightly.
If I'm moving quickly enough, the seal is pulling own on the first jar by the time I get the last one filled. Most all have pulled down by the next day.
Probably doesn't matter too much, though. If I understand the process correctly, the tobacco inside will begin aerobic activity and swell first, then turn anaerobic much later and contract back down until eventually opened for consumption.
jay-roger.jpg


 
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