Cigar cutter types

Every cutter makes one of three openings

A cigar cutter opens the sealed cap in one of three shapes: a flat circle, a wedge-shaped notch or a small round hole. The design of the tool decides the shape. Your hand decides the depth.

The flat circle comes from guillotines, scissors and most table cutters. The notch comes from a V-cutter. The hole comes from a punch. Same job, three different draws. A flat cut lets the most smoke through. A hole lets the least. The notch sits in between.

Where and how deep to cut is a technique question, and the cutting guide walks through it.

Single blade or double blade?

A single-blade guillotine slides one blade across the head toward a fixed frame, while a double-blade guillotine closes two blades from opposite sides so they meet in the center. The difference is pressure.

With one blade, the cigar gets shoved against the far edge before the steel bites. Soft or slightly dry caps can flatten and tear. Two blades pinch from both sides at once, so the head stays round while it's cut. Wikipedia's cutter entry notes the double blade usually gives the cleaner cut.

Single blades still have fans. They're thin, flat and cheap, and a sharp one does fine on firm, well-humidified cigars. Double blades are bulkier and cost more. Pick based on how often you're cutting thick or soft heads.

V-cutters bite deeper than they look

A V-cutter, also called a wedge, notch or cat's eye cutter, presses a V-shaped blade down into the cap and lifts out a wedge, leaving most of the cap in place. It was first made for pointed pyramid shapes.

The catch is depth. A good V-cutter goes deeper into the head than a straight cut does, which opens the draw without taking the cap off. A cheap one can sink too far and split the head, which leads to an uneven burn. Look for a stop that limits how far the cigar goes in.

Width matters too. The blade has a fixed span. On a fat cigar the notch may not reach across the whole head, which gives a narrow slot instead of a proper V.

Punches come in three styles

A punch is a short round blade that you push into the cap and twist to lift out a plug, and it comes as a bullet punch, a Havana punch or a multi-punch.

• Bullet punch. A bullet-shaped barrel, often on a keyring. The cap unscrews. Lose the cap and the blade is bare in your pocket.
• Havana punch. The blade sits recessed and springs out at the push of a button. Safer to carry.
• Multi-punch. Two or three blade sizes in one body, so you can match the hole to the cigar.

Punches take the least tobacco off and keep loose filler out of your mouth. The tradeoff is a small hole that can clog with moisture and tar. They need a rounded head. A torpedo's point gives them nothing to bite.

Scissors and table cutters

Cigar scissors are short, curved shears that cut the cap straight across, and a table cutter is a heavy, weighted guillotine or V-cutter that sits on a bar or table instead of in a pocket.

Scissors are the most precise of the lot. You see the blade, you see the cap line, you close slowly and adjust. They take practice to keep square, and they don't fit in a coin pocket.

Table cutters show up in lounges and shops. Some are lever-driven guillotines. Others combine a punch and a V in one block. The weight holds them still, so one hand guides the cigar and the other works the lever. They don't travel.

Cutter designs side by side

The main differences between cutter designs are the opening shape, how much cap they remove, the largest ring gauge they accept and how they're cared for.

Will a cutter fit your ring gauge?

A cutter fits a cigar only if its opening is wider than the cigar's diameter, and ring gauge is that diameter in 64ths of an inch. A 64 ring is a full inch across. Measure the cutter's hole, then check it against the numbers below.

Figures are simple conversions: ring divided by 64 for inches, times 25.4 for millimeters. Box-pressed cigars measure wider corner to corner than their ring suggests, so give them extra room. The ring gauge converter handles any size in between.

How do you keep a cutter sharp?

A cutter stays sharp longest when it only ever cuts cigars, gets wiped after use and is stored closed and dry. Tobacco is soft, but tar and sugars build up on steel and drag on the next cut.

• Wipe it. A dry cloth after each session. Sticky residue makes the blade drag and tear.
• Cut only cigars. Cord, tags and fingernails chip edges fast.
• Store it closed. Open blades get nicked in a bag and nick you back. Wikipedia's cutter entry recounts a famous 1999 finger injury from a careless cut.
• Check the meet. On a double blade, both edges should meet flush. A gap means a ragged cut.

The test is the cut face. Clean ring of wrapper, no strands hanging off? Sharp enough. Fuzz and tears on a properly humidified cigar? Time for a new one.

Cutter design questions

Cutter styles, as documented

1. Cigar cutter: guillotine, punch, V-cut and scissors, Wikipedia