Bulk vs Tin

[sablebrush52]

Many folks say the 1lb bulk bags blends come from the manufacturer are in are sub-par for long term storage, but I question that. That’s how the B&M’s store them until dispensed into big jars to be portioned out of, correct?

The larger 5 and 10 lb bags that B&M's use are a heavier gauge than the 1 lb bags, and even though that's the case, the contents are slowly drying out. B&M's aren't thinking about long term storage. They're thinking about stock turnover. So those bags aren't sitting for a year or two.

From sad personal experience I can tell you without reservation that these bags are absolutely sub par for long term storage. You'll get, maybe a year, during which time the tobacco will be slowly drying out. They may do longer if encased in a box, but longer than than a year and you're slowly sailing into the zone of death

 

[anotherbob]

I prefer bulk. Because it smokes the same (not every tin of the same blend smokes the exact same by the way) and cost way less.

 

[woodsroad]

The larger 5 and 10 lb bags that B&M's use are a heavier gauge than the 1 lb bags, and even though that's the case, the contents are slowly drying out. B&M's aren't thinking about long term storage. They're thinking about stock turnover. So those bags aren't sitting for a year or two.

From sad personal experience I can tell you without reservation that these bags are absolutely sub par for long term storage. You'll get, maybe a year, during which time the tobacco will be slowly drying out. They may do longer if encased in a box, but longer than than a year and you're slowly sailing into the zone of death

I second that. The big bags are polyethylene, so they pass moisture and oxygen. They stay moister, longer because they are bigger, so it takes longer for the middle to dry out. Also, some tobacco shops humidify the entire store.

 

[LeafErikson]

Many folks say the 1lb bulk bags blends come from the manufacturer are in are sub-par for long term storage, but I question that. That’s how the B&M’s store them until dispensed into big jars to be portioned out of, correct?

Bro I still haven’t bagged up my 1lb bags of Match Victorian that I got a few months back. LOL. Shameful, I know.

 

[andrew]

Throw the bulk in a jar, let it sit a month or 2, you can't tell the difference. I think the tins the components have married more then bulk, so jarring the bulk you're allowing that to happen

 

[SSGT.]

Well that's another question I was gonna ask on here. Is it anyone knew of good fancy jars. Chacom and Savinelli have some on SP, and then there are some antique looking ones on there too, I think they might be Savinelli too. I mean if they can keep the tobacco fresh for say a month. That be long enough.

I'd still go with mason jars I bought 3 of these fancy little mothers, tobacco still dried out.

Just to be a little different I use the amber quart jars.

 

[NookersTheCat]

Many folks say the 1lb bulk bags blends come from the manufacturer are in are sub-par for long term storage, but I question that. That’s how the B&M’s store them until dispensed into big jars to be portioned out of, correct?

Yeah in my experience the sealed pound bags that sutliff/macbaren used are fine. I have 5yo Aromatic English I just opened that's practically like new. Will I double bag my new sutliff as a precaution, eventually. But I would not fret about a factory bag personally. They're basically non-metallized mylar (mylar is the special type of plastic, not all mylar is aluminum coated)

Now the heavy mil ziploc bags like the squire uses.. absolutely they slowly leak. The main way you can tell is can you smell something? If you put it in a cupboard and smell tobacco when you open it, its leaking. I have factory sealed tins that do this too.. very slowly.

 

[NookersTheCat]

I think that the resale value of bulk tobacco is close to zero.

I wouldn't say that. It's definitely far lower than if there's a tinned equivalent.. but it all depends on the tobacco and the desireability/market for it. Bags of Esoterica sell for $300-400 all day. That last Sutliff limited edition (Sweated) was only available as 1lb bulk and it's probably one of the most expensive pipe tobaccos per lb ever sold on the bidding markets.

 

[Mortar0341]

I'd still go with mason jars I bought 3 of these fancy little mothers, tobacco still dried out.
View attachment 388502
Just to be a little different I use the amber quart jars.
View attachment 388503

I like these amber jars

 

[Sobrbiker]

I wouldn't say that. It's definitely far lower than if there's a tinned equivalent.. but it all depends on the tobacco and the desireability/market for it. Bags of Esoterica sell for $300-400 all day. That last Sutliff limited edition (Sweated) was only available as 1lb bulk and it's probably one of the most expensive pipe tobaccos per lb ever sold on the bidding markets.

Pretty sure he’s referring to bulk that has been jarred, etc as having largely diminished value for resale.
I do know that many here wouldn’t buy any tobacco not in its original container, but there are many who will (including myself). That said, it’s a ”caveat emptor” situation for sure.
I’ve been getting moisture back in to a 8oz Gawith plug that turned into a 2x4 in its old style heat sealed baggie in a cellophaned box.

 

[LeafErikson]

I like these amber jars

I’m a big fan of Mylar. It takes up less space and still has the resealable zipper at the top. You can get the smaller bags and put 2-4 oz in them and smoke them as you would pouches tobacco. As long as you heat seal the top you should be good on long-term storage.

 

[fr0st]

In addition to Ball brand jars, I’ve found the Kerr brand of mason jars work just as well.

I regularly use these for canning food and have never had a problem. They take the Ball rings and lids.

Around here Walmart usually has the best selection. I’ll pickup either of these brands based upon availability for the size I want.

I like the wide-mouth jars for loose tobbbaco, but I’ve found the regular mouth 1/2 pint jam jars are best for flake. They’re more vertical and the flake drops right in, I can store two cans of flake in one of these jars.

Pickup a plastic canning funnel, these help immensely. Also, I made a wooden masher on the lathe, but any sort of clean cylinder/ dowel can be used to compress the tobacco and fit more in the jar (don’t do this with flake).

 

[Douglas]

I love bulk. I’ve never had a bulk that I thought was different than it‘s tinned version. Not saying that can’t happen but it hasn’t happened in my experience. So much more affordable to ‘bulk‘ up on large quantities. The only non bulk tobacco that I’ve purchased multiple pounds of is Elizabethan. I absolutely love it and it isn’t available in bulk. I use 16 ounce Ball Mason jars. No problems so far.

 

[Nonesuch]

I haven't tried the cake, I like the normal version because it's easy. I've heard the cake is good though.

Buy a couple of tins of the cake and set them aside. You'll open these and smoke them on special occasions.

Buy a pound of the bulk stuff and a bunch of 2-ounce Mason jars (usually under $20), and pack all of your bulk tobacco into them (search the forums here for more info on that). Label and date them, then smoke them one at a time to let them age.

This exercise will give you a sense of how the blend changes as it ages, but (I think) more importantly it will deepen your relationship with the blend itself. Just my two cents.

 

[Pipeski]

For the most part, they are the same. I’ve noticed some flakes are better looking packaged in a tin vs bulk, but it’s all the same blend nonetheless. After all we are going to rip them up and smoke them regardless.

 

[Gerald Boone]

I started with tins. Now I only buy in tins what I can't find in bulk. Bottom line you can buy more tobacco at the same price when buying in bulk. I agree with those here that, in my experience, any difference in taste is miniscule. The tins price is higher and for me anyways; not cost effective. Some nice people here have taught me the value of mason jars and that keeps the bulk tobacco fresh. So I highly recommend buying in bulk.

 

[Sig]

I love bulk. I’ve never had a bulk that I thought was different than it‘s tinned version. Not saying that can’t happen but it hasn’t happened in my experience. So much more affordable to ‘bulk‘ up on large quantities. The only non bulk tobacco that I’ve purchased multiple pounds of is Elizabethan. I absolutely love it and it isn’t available in bulk. I use 16 ounce Ball Mason jars. No problems so far.

The only difference I've noticed is with MacBaren VA#1. I have bought a LOT of it over the last 30 years.
The difference is not in the taste or smoking quality.
The tinned version has larger pieces of the broken flake, the bulk has much smaller chunks.
That's all I've noticed.
I of course have always bought the bulk for storage.

 

[BayouGhost]

2nd vote for bulk and mylar if you like a blend. 7mm is the best for puncture resistance if you are transporting them around a lot. I keep mine in a box so the more affordable 5mm has worked well for me for many years. 4mm and less can be susceptible to UV light, which is not an issue for me, but I still feel better at 5mm. I buy the small ones so I can divide a batch up into several smaller "open and use" packets. Once you open one you can just roll the top over a few times and put a rubber band around it. I've had ones open like this for a full year and they don't dry out as long as you roll them over tightly at least 3 times.

 

[sunnysmokes]

If you buy bulk tins (either a box of tins or just multiple of the same tin), do you open only one at a time as you're smoking, or open a couple at a time and transport them to your jar/bag/etc for smoking?

 

[NookersTheCat]

If you buy bulk tins (either a box of tins or just multiple of the same tin), do you open only one at a time as you're smoking, or open a couple at a time and transport them to your jar/bag/etc for smoking?

Think you may be misunderstanding friend... they're saying bulk vs. tin as in bulk loose tobacco sold by the ounce (usually people buy pounds and store them in mason jars) instead of buying dozens of tins... generally because its cheaper and easier to handle if you know you like a blend and wanna stock up. But we aren't saying "buying tins in bulk" like buying a case of 60 tins of the same blend at Sam's club haha

To answer your question tho you generally don't wanna have too many tins open at the same time without throwing them into a small mason jar because the seal on the tin (after its popped the 1st time) isn't actually very good and will cause your tobacco in the tin to dry out and lose flavor over time.

Hope this helps