Mason jars with a latch

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ThomasS

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 30, 2024
610
5,354
52
Bayfield, WI
You can get replacement gaskets. The modern silicone ones seal a lot better than the latex ones do. (And if you have an antique with India rubber, that’s pretty well useless)

I also ran into a trouble once by not making sure all of the ribbon bits were swept off the rim and they broke the seal in a small jar enough for the contents to crisp after a few weeks.
 

davidy97

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jan 20, 2017
155
177
Tx
I have about a dozen that I keep my daily drivers in and I have had no issue with them drying out. Some of the jars have had tobacco in them for a couple of years. I've seen a few tobacco shops that keep their bulk inventory in the same type of jars on the counters. I have to assume they are working out as short term storage for them.

I wouldn't use them for 5-10 year undisturbed naps with aging as the goal.
 
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Sobrbiker

Lifer
Jan 7, 2023
4,464
58,639
Casa Grande, AZ
A lot of food come in these jars.

I have to prise the lids to break the vacuum seal on these.
So they obviously have NO problems maintaining a good seal.
Rubber is perishable, so they need replacing
View attachment 355898
That’s some stout looking bail wire compared to a lot of them.

I haven’t had issues with Mason or Ball branded ones, but they aren’t what I pick for long term (years). I’ve had blends in a few for over a year with dipping in quite often that have fared just as well as screw top jars that get dipped into.
I’ll agree with what @Sigmund said: silicon is better than rubber for seals, and bail tension may need tweaking on some.
 
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GrampaJoseph

Might Stick Around
Feb 11, 2024
68
56
Sacramento, California
Late to the party, but, I seem to be the only responder who has stored tobacco in both screw-top (aka Ball/Kerr/Mason) and bale-top (aka clip-top) jars long-term (up to 10 years). They both work perfectly when sealed properly. Either will fail when not. In my experience, it's easier to open/close screw-tops, (and there are nifty gizmos to partially vacuum seal the replaceable lids), but clip-tops make a great seal without needing the gizmo. In the past 10 years, I have had 3 screw-top jars leak so badly the tobacco turned to cardboard. Never had a clip-top fail that bad. Besides the obvious issues of (A) how carefully I cleaned and closed the sealing surfaces (or not), and (B) storage location, (temperature fluctuations and sunlight exposure). there is the issue of (C) FERMENTATION - which causes positive pressure inside the jar. I suspect the clip-top jars handle this better than the screw-top. Maybe they can re-seal better after a "burp", or simply hold it in better. I don't know exactly why, but over the years, I have come to trust the clip-tops more.
For both open selection shelf and long-term storage of bulk blends, I currently use mostly clip-tops. Tins I cellar in the tin. But, bulk I cellar in glass, tightly packed without much air, and not using the vacuum gizmo. The main thing I've learned about cellaring bulk in glass jars is to keep them out of direct sunlight and temperature fluctuations. I don't think any would've leaked if I'd been more careful.
Regarding brands of clip-tops, I have over 100 jarred tobaccos, both KILNER & FIDO. The older Kilners are great, but lately, the FIDO are better quality. ...just sayin'
 

Philosophical Smoke

Might Stick Around
Jan 3, 2025
94
385
Oklahoma
I store almost all my tobacco in small jars and only open one when I'm transferring it to an even smaller jar for smoking out of. That seems to keep it all from drying out and most of it never gets opened so it's consistently aging. YMMV
 
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Apr 26, 2012
3,670
9,119
Washington State
I use Ball/Mason jars for long term storage in my cellar. Mainly because they take up less space and I can store more jars in my cellar. I have several bale top jars that I use for aromatics; which I smoke out of as part of my so-called rotation. As I primarily smoke English/Balkan blends and Virginia's, the aromatics do sit a while and I've never had a problem with them drying out. I have had a bale top jar of Peter Stokkebye - Balkan Supreme in my tobacco cabinet for the last 7-8 years that I smoke from time to time, and just actually smoked the last of it, and the tobacco never dried out. So do I think you can use both for long term storage, sure, but again, I like the Ball/Mason jars because of space saving. I also know they keep tobacco very well, and I don't have to worry about my tobacco.
 
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Jan 28, 2018
14,138
160,335
67
Sarasota, FL
Apothecary jars are decent solutions for short term storage while smoking through what's in one. Definitely not suitable for long term cellaring. And why would you, they're way more expensive than standard mason jars? For long term aging, you don't need or want access to the tobacco. Once you're ready to open a mason jar, then transfer it to an Apothecary jar if you wish to store it while you're smoking through it.
 
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GrampaJoseph

Might Stick Around
Feb 11, 2024
68
56
Sacramento, California
does anyone utilize Mylar and vacuum seal for long term storage? Or even a regular vacuum sealer bag?
Mylar seems like a great option! If I were just starting out today, that’s probably the route I’d take. But, I’m already invested in glass and have enough high quality glass vessels that it doesn’t make sense for me. - EXCEPT FOR Ken Byron Ventures blends - they’re already in Mylar and stay that way in my cellar (saves on glass).
 

Choatecav

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 19, 2023
608
1,670
Middle Tennessee
Just saw this thread. Brand names aside.... the old lever and latch style that you show in your picture, worked well enough for basic canning and preservation needs in the 19th century. But, that said, they are not as efficient as the Mason/Ball style screw tops that we use now and have through much of the 20th century.

Summarized: They look cool, but I would use the screw top.
 
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Dec 6, 2020
34
82
Portland, OR
In my experience those work fine for short term storage as long as the seal is in good shape and the jar closes tightly enough. Long term the seals seem to dry out and crack and the seals don’t maintain their integrity, so I wouldn’t use them for that. Also whatever rubberized material some of the seals are made from have a strong smell and while I’m not sure it has any effect on the tobacco, I don’t like them for that reason.
 
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