How to Fix a Cigar Wrapper

You get home from work and reach into your humidor for that special cigar. But then, disaster--you discover that its wrapper is peeling or cracked. That evening that you looked forward to is ruined.

Cigar repair guide:

Don’t despair just yet. Use this little cigar repair guide to rescue your prized stogie.

Fixing an unraveling cigar wrapper

When their cigar’s wrapper is peeling away from the roll, many smokers try to quickly re-attach it with a bit of saliva or beeswax-based lip balm. But that rarely works. Instead, use acacia powder or pectin.

You can find acacia powder in the baking aisle at some grocery stores, as well as in spice shops and online. Pectin, used for canning jams and jellies, can also be found in grocery stores.

1. To fix the peeling cigar wrapper, mix the acacia powder or pectin with distilled water until it becomes ‘gummy’ (mixing the water and powder in a soda bottle cap and stirring with a toothpick is a good strategy).

2. Then apply the gum to the wrapper and roll the peeling part of the leaf back into place.

Once it dries, your cigar wrapper repair is complete.

How to fix a crack in the middle or foot

A crack in the middle of your cigar can leak smoke and hamper its draw and burn. To repair it, you’ll need some acacia powder or pectin, and also a ‘patch’, a small piece of donor tobacco, perhaps from the cigar stub of a similar blend.

To make the cigar wrapper repair, simply apply the acacia or pectin to the patch, paste it over the crack and wait for it to dry.

If the crack begins at the foot of the cigar and is less than an inch long, some smokers opt to cut the cigar just above the crack instead of applying a patch. If you choose that route, use a sharp, powerful cutter and cut quickly to get a clean cut.

Repairing minor cigar wrapper issues is straightforward. It just takes the right tools and a little time. Do you have any other tips for repairing a cigar wrapper?