Cigar Companero Premiere Edition 2008 Xikar Review

   I recently received a Xi-3 STK model of the Xikar line of cutters. I needed a good cutter more than I realized. The goal of a cigar cutter is to create a small opening in the end of your cigar, which allows for a draw. In fact, with a good cut you only cut off the end of the cap, and all the tobacco stays intact. Don't always work that way but that is what is considered a good cut. No torn tobacco, no wrapper unraveling, and a nice little draw hole is what you should end up with. How best to not destroy a good cigar but then to use a great cutter. The Xi-3 works better than any other cutter I have used, I am sure there are some I have not used, but for a hand cutter this is the bomb.
     Using my Xikar for the first time, the first thing I noticed is you don't
have to worry about pinching your fingers like on the slide cutters. I
hate that with a passion, and it is very embarrassing in public to pinch
your fingers just trying to cut a tip off a cigar. The action of the Xi-3 is
flawless and it would be quite a chore to get hurt or pinched with this
action other than sticking your fingers right in the blades. Only a dummy
would do that, "Ouch!" The auto-locking blade is not only a nice feature;
it is a necessity. Your blades are always protected as after each use; it
closes automatically and locks after each and every cut. No risk of
getting cut when you stick your hand in your pocket to reach for change
or something
      The test for this cutter was at our local poker party where there are
some very novice cigar smokers. To watch these guys cut way into the
cigar cap is a sin, so I offred to cut most of their cigars. Those that have
been smoking cigars for quite some time loved it. And why shouldn't
they, it was the best cutter out of the many laying on the table. One tip
though when showing off your piece: Don't ever lose sight of your cutter
. This will make for a nice conversation piece as in: "Guess what you left
at my house last night?"
      The blades are incredibly sharp. Made of high quality 440 stainless
steel and can be sharpened as needed by simply sending it back to Xikar
for the life of the cutter. 440 Stainless Steel is used in items such as; surgical instruments, precision roller bearings, and of course high quality knife blades. 440 Stainless Steel is the best metal for withstanding corrosion and wear, and with the right heat treatment it is considered to have the highest strength, hardness, and wear resistance to any other stainless alloy. This is important in a cutter blade as it provides longevity and quality for cutting every time.
      I had never realized in all this time that most cutter blades can easily dull, get chips in them, and whatever else may happen to them if they are not of a top quality metal. So as I look through my drawer of cutters here, I have a huge collection of nice cutters, so I thought. And all of them are no where near as sharp as the Xikar, and they have those little nicks in them. I had always had to work real hard to get a good cut on a cigar. You apply pressure to the cigar with a dull blade and watch as the wrapper pulls and stretches, hoping it'll clip before it rips! But not with the Xikar Xi-3! One clip is all you'll ever need! One precise cut and the cap clips off almost like melted butter.
     The esthetics of the Xikar Xi-3 STK cutter is amazing. They are something even a
military field officer would be proud of. The STK has a coating of Titanium Nitrade.
Not being a metal specialist I had no idea what this meant and if it was a good thing
or not or if it was just a style thing. Titanium Nitrade sounds almost like it is some
kind of nuclear device or something. So I looked up Titanium Nitrade and educated
myself. I guess they use this stuff on aerospace equipment and very high end jewelry.
It is even used on bio-implants like hip replacement parts. It is known as the hardest
ceramic based coating known to man. I would have never known that is was ceramic
based, and is harder than axes, chisels, and very good knife blades; in fact the only
thing I find comparable to it is metal sheer blades,; according to the Rockwell ratings.
The actual rating on this coating is called Rockwell 85, which the only thing I know is
that the Diamond hardness starts at about 100 and that axes and chisels are usually
only about 45. So that makes this coating very hard. At least from a layman's view
point.
     Well, I've shared with you the Xikar Xi-3 STK in detail, and do you want to know
what I think? I think I'll never go back to another cutter! Every cut is precise and
smooth. The style is amazing and the functionality is even more amazing. And you
can fit a 54 ring gauge cigar right through the middle of it and cut the cigar in half! I used it on a 60 ring and still recevied a beautiful cut on the end of my cigar. It opens easy and stays closed. It may not sound very exciting but believe me, when you reach into your pocket to get your cutter, and you grab a hold of it, you know the blades are not exposed; it is a nice safety factor. Then you open it up and it pops open with preciseness, and you cut with the same gentleness you would use in rubbing a baby's bottom. You end up with a nice clean draw hole on the end of your cigar.
      Oh yeah, back to the warranty…. It's lifetime! All you have to do is take it back to the retailer or send your cutter back to Xikar and they'll take care of it for you. And when you register your cutter online with Xikar or send in the registration card, they will send you a new Xikar sheath for your cutter. You can even purchase a beautiful stingray skin sheath if you choose. And for a minimal fee, Xikar will custom engraves your cutter! I am not sure but you may want to check on the details of that first, as I think you may have to actually buy from the Xikar website to get the engraving. Am I beginning to make it sound like Xikar is your best friend? Well, there are now my best friends!
      I have to mention Xikar's other Xi-3 models. There's the brand new Mammoth Cutter, with handles decorated with 10,000 year old mammoth tusk bone. Talk about owning a piece of history, you can only see the preview of this one on thier website. And there's the redwood, zebrawood, beechwood, and even a gun metal model. And check out the Xikar interview in this issue were described for you is how they make the new Havana collection - another piece of history! Visit the Xikar website through our links page for a cutter that fits your style!

Now that I have told you about the Xikar cutter, let me tell you about the lighter I got with it, the new dual flame Axia lighter. The Axia has a dual flame jet protected by a fold over cap that you simply flip open with your finger and expose the double jets and presto, they have a Piezo ignition. Now for those like me who have no idea what a Piezo ignition is, I looked it up and from what I understand, it is a quartz crystal that when a hammer strikes it produces a high voltage current or spark. Very reliable, in fact, my lighter has lit every time except when it runs out of fuel. It is very easy to tell when the Axia is out of fuel as there is a little sight glass on the back of the lighter. The only time this lighter has not lit is when it is out of fuel. The ONLY TIME! The top cover is nice as it keeps the lighter jets clean when you are not using it and storing it in your pocket or wherever. The Axia weighs a little less than than 3 ounces. It does not gather a lot of the heat when you use it and it is comfortable in you pocket. After using the Axia for about 30 to 60 seconds it is not too hot to put back in your pocket. That is if you use the lighter the way I do, most lighters get way too hot to put back in your pocket right away, hence maybe forgetting it somewhere could be the end result.

      The Axia dual flame makes for a real nice feature when pre-toasting your stogie. What is pre-toasting you may ask? The way I light my cigar is like this. With the cigar not in my mouth yet, I hold the cigar and point the flame directly at the end of the cigar without letting the flame touch the cigar, using just the heat of the flame to toast up the end of the cigar. I do this till a light ash appears on the end of the cigar about 15 to 30 seconds. I then stick the cigar into my mouth of course and take a puff, sometimes it is ready to go and sometimes you need to pre-toast just a little. You can tell if it is ready to light if you get just a hint of smoke when you try to draw after toasting the end, then it is ready to light or if no smoke at all then more pre-toasting is needed. Once you get that little faint puff of smoke form pre-toasting, you then put it in your mouth and once again without touching flame to cigar, using just the heat form the flame of your lighter, you draw lightly while making a gentle circle around the end of the cigar with the flame pointing straight at the end of the cigar. Before you stop drawing move the lighter away or it will flame up when you quit drawing. Do this a couple of times and you have a well lit cigar that will not flounder. Never does the flame actually touch the cigar.. With a dual flame Axia, the whole lighting process last about 15 to 30 seconds. With other single flame lighters this method may take a bit longer.
      For a lighter, the Axia is the best I have ever used. Xikar has put some time and effort into making this lighter very handy and reliable. The dual torch is really nice, helps cut down on lighting time, by about half I would say (Go figure, huh.) One thing I did notice was that one flame is slightly higher than the other, just slightly. In talking to the manufacturer this is not planned this way but just the way they work. I thought to myself what a novelty idea, because I make sure the longer end is always to the middle of the cigar and the shorter towards the edge, making sure the edges don't get burned up faster than the middle or vice-versa as needed.
     Point being, if you are tired of spending $10 to $20 every month or so for a new lighter that does nothing but cause problems after refilling and using, such as I have found with just about every inexpensive lighter I have bought. And I have a drawer full of them just like the cutters. You need to get a Xikar and the Axia is one you will appreciate forever, it seems like it will last that long, and so does the warranty. I have yet to have set this lighter aside for another. It works and always works, except when it needs filling. Now for filling it is suggested to turn the fuel valve all the way down and drain out the excess air, which I forget most of the time and it has not made a difference yet. But it is suggested. The huge thumb knob at the bottom is well placed and hid, but easily accessible. The knob is nicely grooved for easy turning and always stays where you turn it. No screwdriver needed here. Nice, eh!

And last but not least, I received a single cigar tube from Xikar called the Envoy. Nice leather outside finish in a cognac color as the covering with Spanish cedar inside. It is two pieces and adjusts to the cigar size of course, and the biggest cigar that I have fit in it is a 7 inch long 54 ring gauge. I already have a carrierthat is made by somebody else but it is lined with leather, and kind of flexible, meaning something could squash my cigar if not careful. With the Xikar Envoy tube that is not happening, in fact, I have carried this around in my front pocket of my pants and have been just about everywhere and nothing has ever hurt my cigar. The cigar is always intact and just as fresh as when I put it in the tube. So when I am just going out and taking along one cigar which I always make sure I carry at least one wherever I go, I don't have to carry around my bulky travel humidor. The Xikar tube goes into my pocket right along with my Xikar cutter and Xikar lighter. And when I registered online with Xikar, I received a pouch for both the lighter and cutter.. Tonight I am going out to dinner and you can bet my Xikar tools and carrier will be with me. They are just as a necessity as my wallet now.
How does a cigar smoker live without the tools from Xikar, I don't know. Visit their website and get the style of the items that fit you best and make your next cigar more enjoyable and do it with style with Xikar.

Marc Cote