New Pipe Tobacco Blend for RYO

[djkvl]

Hi, I was hoping to get some insight as to the possibility of grinding flake tobacco to use as a RYO cigarette.

I want to blend the following tobacco.
Solani 656: aged Burley - Flake Tobacco

Full Virginia Samuel Gowith - Flake Tobacco

Peter Stokebbye Turkish Export - Shag Tobacco
This will cover the Virginia, Burley, Turkish blends most cigarettes in the United States are comprised of.
I want to then take that blend and add dried mint leaves to make a menthol flavored cigarette. Would this work?

I am little scared to experiment, so I thought I asked around first.
Thanks,
Edit: Title Edited by Kevin. Please do not put ALL CAPS. It is SHOUTING!

 

[sjpipesmoker]

You can always start with a small amount. I would assume flake tobacco is to dense for RYO since most of it is ribbon cut?

 

[guitarguy86]

Can't hurt to try. Well, I've only been smoking for a few months. I'm not an expert by any means, but I assume that a little experimentation can be fun.

 

[djkvl]

Hi Sjpipesmoker,
You are correct. From what I've been seeing in videos, the flake tobaccos are layered . So to get a real comprehensive tobacco flavor in your pipe you have to cut it height wise and not width wise. Just like cutting a piece of cake, start from the top and work your way down. Once you have these thin cuts, I think it may be possible to grind the tobacco into a finer and smaller pieces for ryo tobacco cigarettes.
I agree with your analysis though. Are these tobaccos way too dense for RYO cigarettes? Some people have used Prince Albert and other pipe tobacco for ryo cigarettes. So I am thinking it is theoretically possible to do it. But what makes me thing twice is, perhaps pipe tobacco goes through another process which makes it a lot richer or more dense as you said for cigarette use, no matter how finely it is cut and ground.

 

[djkvl]

Hey guitarguy86,
Yes I think it would be interesting to see what happens. I just want to run this past some of the pipe tobacco gurus here before I experiment.

 

[baronsamedi]

A ribbon cut would work better. I bet Lane MV-1000 would be pretty good as a cigarette. VA with a hint of vanilla.

 

[nsfisher]

Hey mate. I have a friend who grows spearmint leaves. I always take some when I visit him. I dry the leaves to almost crisp, shred them and mix them in with Drum baccy. Makes a nice cool tasting smoke, but be careful because it can burn hot if your not sipping.

 

[philip]

I'd say to forget the cigarettes and stick with a pipe.

 

[ocpsdan]

Depends on if you're using a roller or not. I remember working at B+Ms and recommending 1oz pipe tobacco to 6oz of RYO for those looking for a pipe tobacco flavor kick in their cigs. When blended, it works in a roller without damaging the performance.
For hand rolls, the smaller pieces of tobacco, the better.
I know that as far as pre-packaged RYO is concerned, Kentucky Select is one of the only all-natural tobaccos available. If you're looking for menthol, small amounts of Kentcuky Select Blue will provide the desired effect.

 

[shawn622]

+1 phillip

 

[daytonsean]

Yea hang on to that pipe. Cigarettes are so yesterweek.

 

[mluyckx]

I'd say to forget the cigarettes and stick with a pipe

Yep.. I'm a cigarette smoker, but ripping apart flakes to then try to use as RYO... is just ... well.. plain :crazy:
Stuff em in a pipe. Or mix'em up first in a baggie and use that to fill a small bowl. Or even better, Scottish Flake is a VA-Turkish of excellent quality that is really close to some cigarette tobacco. But way better :puffpipe:

 

[djkvl]

So I kind of tested this out today. I had been drying some mint leaves for about a week. The dry leaves themselves have a very powerful kick to them in terms of smell. I also had some Bali Shag laying around, so I mixed it up and rolled one up. LOL...let me just say this is definite nothing like smoking a regular menthol you buy at the gas station.
Couple of mistakes I made on my end. One week is not long enough. I tied them together as a bunch at the root and hung my mint leaves upside down. Supposedly, this way all the essential oils and flavor trickle down and get absorbed in the leaves. I thought they were dry enough, but that was not the case at all. Those leaves have to be very dry otherwise they won't burn well at all.
I keep telling myself the Native American tribes probably have some secret tobacco raising formula that will yield the best tobacco you've ever tasted. But they'll never tell us. :P