OV9

Anyone a fan? Figured I may as well start with another socially unacceptable hobby alongside fast cars / unnecessarily large SUVs before they ban them.

Picked up a couple of Romeo y Julietas on holiday as a start but now obviously need to buy a cheap(ish) humidor as I'm not going to be smoking them straight away

Always fancied cancer in your mouth?

no not so much. It won’t be a regular thing - hence the humidor. Just something I fancied a play around with, not smoking them on a daily/weekly basis.

Eeew. Disgusting.

No - Rank.

Even when I was a smoker I didn't get cigars, they felt like a bonfire in my mouth compared to a light cigarette. However, when I was a kid my dad smoked them so I do quite like the smell.

same - i don’t get them.

Yeah I like an occasional cigar (maybe one or two a year)

The thing I found most useful is that there's often no correlation between the strength of taste and the amount of nicotine

I would advise asking for something mild in both respects

Cigars deliver far more nicotine than cigarettes, and it's easy to overdo it and feel sick

Also, I've learned with things in general, start of with something relatively expensive rather than something cheaper

If you sample a really good X and don't like it, you're unlikely to like a cheaper version

But if you try a cheap one and don't like it, you'll wonder if spending more on a better one would mean you would like it

Going expensive first can often be a cheaper approach over all

And you have a benchmark for what good can be

Gavster wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 8:56 am Even when I was a smoker I didn't get cigars, they felt like a bonfire in my mouth compared to a light cigarette. However, when I was a kid my dad smoked them so I do quite like the smell.

Exactly the same as me, used to smoke 20ish a day but hated cigars. Like the smell though as my dad smoked them.

Is there a vape to replace cigars yet?

DaveE wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 9:12 am Yeah I like an occasional cigar (maybe one or two a year)

The thing I found most useful is that there's often no correlation between the strength of taste and the amount of nicotine

I would advise asking for something mild in both respects

Cigars deliver far more nicotine than cigarettes, and it's easy to overdo it and feel sick

Also, I've learned with things in general, start of with something relatively expensive rather than something cheaper

If you sample a really good X and don't like it, you're unlikely to like a cheaper version

But if you try a cheap one and don't like it, you'll wonder if spending more on a better one would mean you would like it

Going expensive first can often be a cheaper approach over all

And you have a benchmark for what good can be

Thanks, Dave - helpful advice. The ones I picked up are good quality so we'll see how I get on. I think the advice re buying good versions of things is good general life advice!

ZedLeg wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 9:31 am

Gavster wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 8:56 am Even when I was a smoker I didn't get cigars, they felt like a bonfire in my mouth compared to a light cigarette. However, when I was a kid my dad smoked them so I do quite like the smell.

Exactly the same as me, used to smoke 20ish a day but hated cigars. Like the smell though as my dad smoked them.

Apparently the Venn diagram circles between cigarette smokers and cigar smokers overlap minimally, possible on account of the inhaling v not inhaling. I never got on with cigarettes (thankfully).

My father moved over to cigars after his insurance provider mentioned that cigar smoking was classed as a non-smoker! Not sure if that advice still stands, but may be worth checking your insurance..

Quite a few of my friends still smoke cigars, they tend to be kicked out to the garage when they want to smoke.. that may be mutually beneficial however!

IanF wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:14 am My father moved over to cigars after his insurance provider mentioned that cigar smoking was classed as a non-smoker! Not sure if that advice still stands, but may be worth checking your insurance..

Quite a few of my friends still smoke cigars, they tend to be kicked out to the garage when they want to smoke.. that may be mutually beneficial however!

you can imagine the old boys sat in the insurance buildings in the city putting their foot down on classing their cigars as smoking!

IanF wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:14 am My father moved over to cigars after his insurance provider mentioned that cigar smoking was classed as a non-smoker! Not sure if that advice still stands, but may be worth checking your insurance..

Quite a few of my friends still smoke cigars, they tend to be kicked out to the garage when they want to smoke.. that may be mutually beneficial however!

Anything that has nicotine in it (vaping, cigars, patches etc) is classed as smoking for health insurance, life insurance etc. It's the nicotine insurers are worried about as it's addictive. Do they do vapes without nicotine?

Yeah, my partner mixes their own with bottles of the liquid and small bottles on nicotine solution.

GG. wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 9:58 am

ZedLeg wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 9:31 am

Gavster wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 8:56 am Even when I was a smoker I didn't get cigars, they felt like a bonfire in my mouth compared to a light cigarette. However, when I was a kid my dad smoked them so I do quite like the smell.

Exactly the same as me, used to smoke 20ish a day but hated cigars. Like the smell though as my dad smoked them.

Apparently the Venn diagram circles between cigarette smokers and cigar smokers overlap minimally, possible on account of the inhaling v not inhaling. I never got on with cigarettes (thankfully).

Yeah, I stole a cigar off my dad once when I was like 14, automatically inhaled and spewed everywhere

Rich B wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:35 am

IanF wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:14 am My father moved over to cigars after his insurance provider mentioned that cigar smoking was classed as a non-smoker! Not sure if that advice still stands, but may be worth checking your insurance..

Quite a few of my friends still smoke cigars, they tend to be kicked out to the garage when they want to smoke.. that may be mutually beneficial however!

you can imagine the old boys sat in the insurance buildings in the city putting their foot down on classing their cigars as smoking!

Really don’t think that loophole lasted long as cigars have the same health warnings as cigarettes

Jobbo wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 9:53 am Is there a vape to replace cigars yet?

Not really - a major part of the cigar experience is the flavour, and it's generally accepted that replicating the flavour of burning plant matter is functionally impossible. You can get something that might kinda pass for it in some side-aspects (ie something might taste a bit smoky and a bit sweet) but the flavour itself just isn't something you can do.

The draw and weight of the smoke could be replicated quite easily - airflow and vapour control are pretty simple - but that's only part of it.

I'm another one who when smoking, never got cigars and upon trying them since moving to vaping, I still don't really get the appeal - I can get more interesting flavours in the vape.

For someone who might enjoy an occasional (once every other month or so) thing though, even if they could perfectly replicate the flavour, cigars are probably more convenient than keeping an e-cig setup around (due to liquid going stale in the coils etc) and the real world absolute risk of mouth cancer to an intermittent user of cigars is likely to be relatively low (I'd expect a lot gets conflated with committed smokers etc, although not all) - I never investigated in anger back in the day though, you're all grown ups, I'm not yer mam, yer da sells Avon, etc.

Mito Man wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 12:23 pm

Rich B wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:35 am

IanF wrote: Tue Jul 23, 2024 10:14 am My father moved over to cigars after his insurance provider mentioned that cigar smoking was classed as a non-smoker! Not sure if that advice still stands, but may be worth checking your insurance..

Quite a few of my friends still smoke cigars, they tend to be kicked out to the garage when they want to smoke.. that may be mutually beneficial however!

you can imagine the old boys sat in the insurance buildings in the city putting their foot down on classing their cigars as smoking!

Really don’t think that loophole lasted long as cigars have the same health warnings as cigarettes

I think - think - there might be exceptions for private members clubs and suchlike, but that might have changed - it's been near a decade since I followed that stuff closely.