Ball Mason Jar Query.

[mawnansmiff]

My source of cheap bailtop jars appears to have dried up (Asda, UK version of Walmart) so I have had to invest in the more expensive Ball Mason jars to store my tobacco in.
My first box arrived this morning (4 x 945ml) and going over the instructions I read "Press on the lid. If the jar is sealed, the lid will NOT flex up or down". The jars are currently empty but with the lids screwed down tight there is a 'click-clack' when I press upon the lid.
Does that rule only apply if the jars have been hot filled with preserves (or whatever) where a slight vacuum is created?
The jars are brand new and the real McCoy.
Regards,
Jay.

 

[mothernaturewilleatusallforbreakfast]

Does that rule only apply if the jars have been hot filled with preserves (or whatever) where a slight vacuum is created?

Yes. Otherwise, fill and screw on tight. Check them periodically to make sure they're still tight, but the lid will pop up and down because the jar has not been vacuum sealed.

 

[jitterbugdude]

Jay, You are correct. The little button will stop popping once a vacuum is obtained in the jar. I have quite a few cases of Mason jars filled with tobacco. It seems to be hit or miss, some form a vacuum and some do not. When I put in an oxygen absorber they all pull down real nice.

 

[deathmetal]

When I put in an oxygen absorber they all pull down real nice.

Such a thing exists? I need to get a huge one of those and chuck it into [name of institution deleted].

 

[mawnansmiff]

Well thanks chaps for the confirmation, I have no need to panic. I did actually take time out to read the Wikipedia page for the history behind Ball Mason jars (well worth reading for history buffs) and right at the end it stated they were now made in (bloody) China, yet the jars themselves are moulded with a "Made In The USA" badge...so who do I believe?
Regards,
Jay.

 

[jpmcwjr]

You may have a case that was indeed made here. They should shoot up in value, so don't fill them or smoke them!

 

[saltedplug]

BTW, you don't have to do anything other than make sure the jars are clean. No need to heat thew jars and?or tobacco. Fill and screw down very tight. Periodically check that the lids remain tight. Often when you open them after a period of time, you will find that a vacuum is created of its own. My take on aging is that anaerobic is best as it duplicates the aging of tobacco in a tin. To that end with, say a pound of tobacco, jar 4 ozs X 4.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Except that tobacco is sold and measured by weight, and mason jars by volume. I always pack as tight as possible, also on the theory that anaerobic aging is better than aerobic.

 

[cortezattic]

This has a lot to do with availability and personal choice, but 945ml seems like an awfully large volume. I like to use a number of smaller jars (8 fl. oz., ~230ml) so most of the tobacco remains sealed.
As to pressure, I just add the tobacco packed about as firmly as I'd pack a pipe -- maybe a little tighter -- and place the lid and ring on it tightly. Most of my tobaccos develop a slight seal, but a couple of blends actually developed a positive pressure, blowing the lid off when the threaded ring was removed. Cf. http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/♪♬♫-pop-goes-the-baccy-♪♬♫

 

[yaddy306]

I did actually take time out to read the Wikipedia page for the history behind Ball Mason jars (well worth reading for history buffs) and right at the end it stated they were now made in (bloody) China, yet the jars themselves are moulded with a "Made In The USA" badge.

Jay, I read and reread the Wikipedia page on Mason jars and can't find any mention of China. Where do you see that?

 

[cortezattic]

My Ball brand Mason jars are made in the USA. There are other manufacturers of Mason jars, however.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Jay did say Ball masons, but he'll be up in a few hours and I am sure he'll elucidate.
Would that be "'Ball' brand of Mason jars"? Did Mason forget to say "Mason brand of canning jars" or summat similar??

 

[jzbdano]

No need to clean new jars. A fellow member on this site or another ran ATP swab tests on a couple new jars and they came back sterile. For aging I try to pack with as much baccy as possible and I can get 1 pound in a quart jar, even with dry blends like D&R. Since Jay is a frequent consumer of SG flakes, I will mention that 500gr(2 boxes) of SG flake fit perfectly into the pint and a half widemouth jars. 9 jars in a case and you have @10lbs of wonderful weed.

 

[mcitinner1]

Mason is the name of the original inventor of the canning jar, thus it's still the basic generic name for ALL canning jars. Ball and Kerr are two main brands of these jars made today. I have 14 cases of a dozen quart jars (945 ml).

 

[jpmcwjr]

Thought so. That's why I deduce he or his company failed to protect the name, hence falling in to the generic. Now, is it "mason jars"? Or "Mason jars"? Kleenex brand of facial tissues. Xerox brand of copiers. But you xerox a page, or you used to. And some may still "tivo" a TV program on a DVR. I do, when I'm not "taping" it.

 

[nevadablue]

Crescent wrench? Some are, the rest are adjustable end wrenches. 8) Pretty common mis-use of names, like Phillips screw driver.

 

[mawnansmiff]

"Jay, I read and reread the Wikipedia page on Mason jars and can't find any mention of China. Where do you see that?"
My error folks
What happened was I read the Ball Mason Jar page and then moved onto the Kilner (British made version) page and it was there that I read that though once Yorkshire made they were now made in China so I do apologise.
I had 12 .5l Kilner jars arrive this morning and other than the shape of the jars they are identical to Ball Mason jars and the two piece lid fitment is just the same so how they can claim to have been invented by the Kilner family baffles me.
"A Kilner jar is a rubber-sealed, screw-topped jar used for preserving (bottling) food, invented by the Kilner family and produced by John Kilner & Co., Yorkshire, England."
"In 2003, The Rayware Group purchased the design, patent and trademark of the original Kilner jar and continues to produce them today in China."
Regards,
Jay.

 

[jpmcwjr]

That's one of the more interesting mistakes here ever. Fascinating to me, and now I wonder who the hell invented the Mason-Kilner jar? Was Dixon involved??

 

[mawnansmiff]

"I wonder who the hell invented the Mason-Kilner jar?"
John Landis Mason took out the first patent in 1858. Kilner were established in 1842 but their product was different.
"The clever iconic design originally produced with a glass plug and rubber seal but more recently updated with a rubberized metal top" as per the original Mason jar.
So J. L. Mason invented the idea.
"Was Dixon involved"? No, Dixon was elsewhere fiddling with his theodolite ::
Regards,
Jay.

 

[saltedplug]

It makes no sense to me to think that since one batch of jars tested sterile that all batches will be so, and then to put tobacco into them. Tobacco is neither expensive nor inexpensive, but however regarded represents money spent. To me it makes sense to always wash jars before jarring. Not difficult and not a long labor. But in this regard I should own up to the fact that I have about 20 jars sitting on the counter that need to be washed, with lids needing to be replaced, that I have emptied in the course of smoking in the last year. It's not that washing them would take more than 45 minutes that I mind, it's that I always have something else that I would prefer to do.