Can I cut a cigar with scissors?

You’re out and about and somebody hands you a cigar, but after scanning your pockets, you haven’t got a cutter. Or, you just pulled into a campground 50 miles off the grid and you remembered to bring the coolerdor, but your cutter isn’t in your glovebox where you thought you left it. No worries. When you’re in a pinch and need to know how to cut a cigar without a cutter, we’ve put together a handy menu of impromptu methods below. There are always a handful of quick fixes for clipping your cigar without a cutter.

Use Your Thumbnail

The best way to cut a cigar without a cutter is with your thumbnail. It’s also the most readily available and efficient method. Simply use your thumbnail to loosen a section of the cap, and continue around its circumference. The cap of your cigar is part of the wrapper leaf and it’s typically very thin and easy to remove. The remainder of the cap should easily peel off. Be sure to be gentle. You don’t want to tear the cap too aggressively while it’s still attached to the wrapper leaf. Otherwise, the wrapper can begin to unravel a bit. Also, stay above the cap line when making the initial incision with your nail. The cap will come off in a cleaner, sharper manner.

Slice It

If you’re hesitant to put your cuticles to work and you carry a Swiss Army knife or a quality pocket knife with a sharp blade, you’re in luck. Gently spin the head of your cigar against the blade with a touch of pressure. Make sure you position the blade above the cap line. You don’t want to cut too deep or you’ll mar the end of your cigar and risk getting loose tobacco in your mouth. You also don’t want to slam the blade down on the head of the cigar as if to chop or saw it off. The inside of your cigar is handmade from a recipe of patiently assembled tobaccos. Attempting to saw the end can disturb your cigar’s construction and the draw.

If you’re concerned about cutting the edge cleanly, you can also slice an “X” in the cigar’s cap with your blade. Make a horizontal slice and then a vertical one that crosses it. You should be able to pass air through the cigar when you draw on it.

Poke It

If you neglected to attach your best cigar punch to your keyring, simple items like a toothpick, paperclip, thumbtack, golf-tee, or a Phillips-head screwdriver can do the trick when you need a DIY cigar-piercer. You can also try the end of a wooden matchstick, although it’s best if you can sharpen the end slightly. The key here is to gently create an opening in the cap without causing the wrapper to crack or the end of the cigar to unravel. Apply a slight amount of pressure when you’re inserting the tip of a sharp end. For thin options like a toothpick or paperclip, you may need to make a handful of small insertions to pen up the draw. For less sharp options like a screwdriver, gradually make an insertion and only deep enough to penetrate the cap. As long as you can pull air through the cigar evenly, you’re ready to light it up.

Bite It

If you’re stranded on a sandy desert island beach without a cigar accessory in sight for miles, you can always resort to your pearly whites. Bite down slightly on the cap to separate part of it from the cigar. Once it’s open a little, you can usually peel the rest of the cap off with your fingertips. Try not to inundate the end with too much saliva, or you’re the head of the cigar can end up looking like a sloppy mess. It’s also worth noting, this old-school method for cutting a cigar has been endorsed by scores of cigar lovers for decades.

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The end of a cigar is sealed with a cap so the tobacco doesn’t dry out, but that means you have to cut it off when you want to smoke it. While you’ll get the cleanest cut using a tool specifically made for cigars, there are easy ways to remove the cap without one. Whether you’re at home or out enjoying a cigar with friends, you’ll be able to find a tool that works for cutting or punching the end of your cigar. Once you make your cuts on the cap, you’re ready to enjoy smoking your cigar!

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   Put the cigar’s cap in your mouth to moisten it. Look for the cigar’s cap, which is the closed rounded end that’s usually closest to the band or label. Quickly put the end of the cap in your mouth and rotate it. Immediately take the cigar out of your mouth so you don’t get it too wet.[1]

   • Moistening the cap prevents the wrapping from cracking so your cigar doesn’t come undone.

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   Position a knife above and parallel to the cap line. Hold the cigar in your non-dominant hand and a sharp knife in your dominant hand. Look for the seam where the cap meets the body of the cigar, which is the cap line. Place the blade against the cap so it’s just above and parallel to the line.[2]

   • Avoid placing the blade below the cap line since you will cut through the wrapping and your cigar may unravel as you smoke it.
   • If you don’t have a knife with you, you can also use your thumbnail to cut through the cap.

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   Roll the cigar in your hand to score around the cap. Lightly push the blade into the cap so it just cuts through the surface. Roll the cigar clockwise between your fingers so you cut around the circumference of the cap. Only apply light pressure to the blade so it doesn’t slip. Cut around the cigar 2–3 times to help loosen the cap even more.[3]

   • If you’re using a dull knife, you may need to rotate the cigar a few more times to cut through the cap.
   • Place the cigar on a table when you cut it if you have trouble rotating it by hand. This works best if you’re using a really sharp knife so you don’t crush or crack the cigar.

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   Peel the cap off of the end of the cigar with your fingers. Pinch the cut edge of the cap and slowly peel it up. Rotate the cigar as you peel up the cap to make sure it isn’t still connected to the wrapping. Keep working the cap off of the cigar until you expose the tobacco inside. After you remove the cap, you’re ready to smoke the cigar.[4]

   • If you have trouble peeling the cap off, you may need to cut around it again with your knife.
   • Be careful if you see a vein running from the cap to the main body of the cigar since you could tear the wrapping and make it come undone.

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   Make a straight horizontal cut across the cigar’s cap with a knife. Use a sharp knife so it’s easier to cut into the cigar’s cap with crushing or damaging it. Hold the cigar vertically with your non-dominant hand and your knife in the other. Place the bottom of the blade on top of the cap so it’s perpendicular to the cap line and intersects the center. Apply light pressure with the blade and pull it across the cigar’s cap to make your cut.[5]

   • This style of cut works best on cigars that have rounded or blunt ends.
   • Do not apply a lot of pressure to the knife since it could easily slip and you may cut yourself.

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   Cut another line that’s perpendicular to the first one. Rotate your cigar by 90 degrees so the cut you just made is parallel to the blade. Push the bottom of the blade carefully through the cap until you don’t feel resistance. Pull the blade across the cap to make your cut.[6]

   • You can light and smoke your cigar after making the second cut if you want.

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   Score 2 more lines through the cap if the cigar has a tight draw. Put the cigar in your mouth and try inhaling to see if air passes through it easily. If it feels difficult to pull through, place the blade on the cigar’s cap so it goes through the center and is in between the lines you already cut. Slice across the entire diameter of the cap. Then make another cut that’s perpendicular to the one you just made. When you’re finished, you should have 4 cuts that look similar to a star.[7]

   • Cutting additional lines into the cap allows more air to flow through the cigar so it’s easier to draw from.
   • You do not have to peel off the cap to smoke your cigar since air will pass through the lines you cut.

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   Lick the top of the cigar to prevent it from cracking. Take the cap end of your cigar and place it in your mouth. Rotate the cigar as you lick the cap with your tongue to moisten the wrapping. After a few seconds, take the cigar out of your mouth.[8]

   • Avoid trying to punch a hole in your cigar when it’s dry since you’re more likely to damage it.

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   Push a Phillips-head screwdriver into the middle of the cap. Hold the cigar in your non-dominant hand just underneath the cap so you’re less likely to break the wrapping. Position the pointed end of your screwdriver in the center of the cap. Slowly push the screwdriver into the cap by about 1⁄2 inch (1.3 cm) to make a hole.[9]

   • You can use a flathead screwdriver if you need to, but it won’t make as large of a hole.
   • If you don’t have a screwdriver, you can use any sharp or pointed object, such as a pencil, pen, or golf tee.

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   Breathe through the cigar to check if the draw is too tight. Put the cigar in your mouth and breathe in through the hole. The air should easily flow through the cigar without having to inhale too hard. If it feels like there’s a lot of resistance, then the draw is too tight and the cigar won’t smoke well.[10]

   • If the draw feels too tight, punch 1–2 more holes next to the first one and test it again.[11]
   • If you used a pen or golf tee to punch your holes, you may need 4–5 holes total through the cigar’s cap to get an even draw.

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   Position the cigar between your front teeth just above the cap. Locate the seam around the base of the cap where it connects to the main body of the cigar. Place the cigar in your mouth so your front teeth are just above the cap line. Lightly bite down so the cigar doesn’t move around in your mouth.[12]

   • Don’t put the cigar any further in your mouth since you could damage it if you bite past the cap line.

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   Bite down through the cap. Only use your front teeth since they’re the sharpest and will give you the cleanest cut. Lightly bite down on the cap until you feel it separate from the cigar’s body. Rotate the cigar in your mouth and bite down on it again. Continue working your way around the cap until you feel it detach.[13]

   • Biting the cap will make an inconsistent cut, so it’s not recommended unless you don’t have any other way to remove the cap.

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   Spit the cap out. Once the cap detaches, you’ll have the cap and a little bit of tobacco in your mouth. Take the cap out of your mouth and throw it away. If you still have tobacco leftover in your mouth, rinse it out with water before spitting it out.[14]

   • Avoid swallowing the cap since it could make you sick.[15]

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• Be careful not to cut below the cap line, or else the wrapping will unravel and ruin the cigar.

• Experiment with different ways of cutting your cigar since it can change the intensity of the flavor.

• Avoid using a regular pair of scissors to cut the cap off of your cigar since you could crack the wrapping and damage it.

• Work slowly when you slice the end of your cigar with a knife so you don’t cut yourself.

• Only smoke cigars if you’re above the legal smoking age in your area.

• Be careful not to swallow the cap or any tobacco if you bite it off since it could make you sick.[16]

Things You’ll Need

• Knife

• Knife

• Screwdriver or another pointed object

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