Obama signs FDA regulation of tobacco!
June 22, 2009
The Obama administration struck another blow against the tobacco industry today when the president signed the bill to give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sweeping power over cigarettes and other tobacco products. The bill was passed by the Senate on June 11 by a vote of 79-17 and includes a ban on flavored tobacco products (except for menthol), and increases restrictions on advertising and in-store displays, adds new health warnings on packages and eliminates the monikers "light" and "low-tar". The legislation was endorsed by Altria Group Inc, which owns Phillip Morris (the nation's largest cigarette maker) and will lead to reduced competition and consumer choices by regulating the small tobacco companies out of existence.
I hope to post an in-depth look at the new FDA tobacco regulations and it's expected impact on the RYO tobacco industry later this week. In the meantime, see the ongoing political discssions in the RYO Revolution forums.
Cigarette prices have skyrocketed over the last 10 years from a pre-MSA average cost of $2.18 in 1998 to a national average of over $5 per pack today. 13 states currently tax cigarettes at $2 per pack or higher and the April 1st Federal Excise Tax INCREASE of 62 cents per pack has left many smokers thinking about quitting or looking for cheaper alternatives.
Many folks have purchased cigarettes online or driven across state lines to try to save a few bucks.
In recent years at least 13 states have gathered names by issuing subpoenas to online cigarette sellers, resulting in huge tax bills accompanied by threats of extreme penalties (up to 500% in some states) if the back-taxes aren't paid within 30 days. Other states have set-up sting operations on their borders to catch cigarette smugglers.
Are you fed up with the rising cost of cigarettes and the constant increases in 'sin-taxes' that are forced onto smokers to help the states balance their budgets? I know I was.
When I found out my state was taking over $2 out of my pocket for each pack of cigarettes I bought, I looked for an alternative and discovered how much Rolling Your Own had changed in recent years.Even with the huge Federal Tax Increase on rolling tobacco, making your own cigarettes will still be about half the cost of most name brand cigarettes.
Join the RYO Revolution and Start Rolling Your Own!
Now I don't mean rolling a cigarette in the traditional sense, not like you've seen in the movies where a cowboy takes a pinch of tobacco and drops it into the paper and twists it up into something resembling a lumpy toothpick with tobacco hanging out of it.
What I'm talking about is a newer RYO method that is often referred to as Making Your Own (MYO) or Stuffing Your Own (SYO) cigarettes. Most of us don't use standard rolling papers to Roll Our Own cigarettes. Instead, we use an easy to operate 'tobacco injector' to fill pre-made filtered cigarette tubes.
The result is a cigarette which looks and smokes like factory made, yet they Taste Better and are a Fraction of the Cost!
1) Tobacco 
Start with a pouch (about $3 locally for 3/4 ounce - enough for about 1 pack of cigarettes) or small bag or can (typically 5 to 6 ounces at $20 or so with the tax increase, enough for about 1 carton) of "fine cut" cigarette rolling tobacco, which you can find at your local tobacconist's or smoke shop. Even your local convenience stores, supermarkets, and gas stations likely carry a few brands of rolling tobacco. Please BEWARE of some of the most popular and "bulk brands", we want your initial RYO experience to be a good one!
NOTE: In other words, avoid the best selling Top and Gambler brands as they tend to be rather harsh - no offense intended to any of their fans - but there are Much Better Rolling Tobaccos available to choose from. Bugler is available almost everywhere and is a good middle of the road choice, or try one of the Bali Shag blends for a step up in quality.
In fact there are over 150 Brands of RYO cigarette tobacco available, refer to my List of RYO Tobacco Brands to get an idea of just how many brands and varieties are available.
2) Injector 
When you buy the tobacco you should also pick up a hand-held injection machine, trust me this isn't nearly as scary as it sounds, it has nothing to do with needles! Sometimes these hand-held devices are called "shooters", "stuffers", "cigarette making" or "tube filling" machines. A good quality hand-held injector should cost under $10. (Again, if you're buying locally you will have limited choices, avoid the Top and Zig-Zag Precision Pro Injectors.) Good hand-held units from Gizeh, El-Rey, Premier, Maiker, Zen and a few others tend to work much better, especially for newcomers.
NOTE: For a little more money and for anyone who is going to stick with making their own, there are tabletop 'crank-style' injector machines. They cost from $20 (Premier Excel & Simron EXP1000) to about $45 (Premier Supermatic, Republic Top-O-Matic, and similar models). These machines are Faster and Easier to operate and can consistently make dozens of cigarettes at a sitting that are indistinguishable from factory made cigarettes. There are also electric machines such as the Easy Roller and Magnum Injector available from $120 and up which promise even greater convenience and are likely a better choice for those who suffer from physical disabilities, arthritis, etc.).
Visit the RYO Revolution Forum for more information about the variety of hand-held, tabletop crank style and electric injectors available.
3) Cigarette Filter Tubes 
Cigarette tubes come in a box that vaguely resembles a cigarette carton. Inside the box is usually 200 to 250 filtered tubes. The tubes (or blanks as they are called in Europe) resemble a factory made filtered cigarette with the tobacco missing. In other words, it's a hollow tube with the filter already attached. The brand you choose doesn't matter much when you are starting out, there are only a few companies who actually make the tubes and the quality is pretty consistent these days. Your main choice will be whether to buy the "Full Flavor" or "Light". For starting out I suggest getting whichever reasonably priced brand of King Size tubes are available to you locally. The box of filtered tubes should cost under $3 (slightly higher for Menthol & other specialty tubes).
NOTE: There are actually dozens of brands and tube styles available; King Size, 100mm, Shorts, Ultra Slim, "Cigarette Size", Menthol tip, Charcoal Filtered, Fruit Flavored, Brown, Black and even Unfiltered. Tubes are also manufactured with various filter lengths, filter density, paper porosity, perforated tipping paper, etc. which affects how full-flavored or light the resulting cigarette will be. But you needn't concern yourself with those details when first starting, there will be plenty of room for experimenting to find the perfect combination of tube and tobacco once you're comfortable with the process of making your own.
Looking for advice on RYO Tobacco, Cigarette Tubes and Injectors? Visit the RYO Revolution Forum for user reviews & opinions.
When you have your Tobacco, Injector and Tubes head over to our Getting Started Guide with step-by-step instructions and tips to help get you started Making Your Own custom cigarettes.
Advantages of Roll Your Own
When you light-up that fresh, custom made cigarette the first thing you'll notice is that it doesn't taste like the factory made cigarettes you're used to.
That's because you're likely tasting something you haven't in a long time, if ever. That's right, you're tasting the tobacco instead of the hundreds of chemicals, preservatives and artificial flavors that the big tobacco companies put into their cigarettes to hide the fact that they are made from reconstituted "sheet" tobacco, "expanded" tobacco, stems & stalks! Chemicals are often also added to the tobacco and paper to make them burn faster, so that you'll smoke (and buy) more.
And now, 39 states have passed laws which require that ALL cigarettes sold are FSC "Fire-Safe Certified". These abominations are constructed with alternating bands of fire-retardant chemicals in the paper so that they will stop burning if left unattended. I guess our government officials don't think the chemicals found in most factory made cigarettes are enough, or perhaps it's another underhanded measure to try to force thinking adults into quitting. Who in their right mind would want to inhale fire-retardant chemicals? Fortunately, we still have the RYO alternatives. No rolling papers or cigarette tubes currently on the market in the U.S. contain these fire-retardant chemicals to my knowledge.
If you smoke, you owe it to yourself to try RYO using the Make Your Own method, once your body adjusts to smoking cigarette tobacco instead of factory made chemical cocktail sticks, you will likely find yourself craving cigarettes less than ever, and quite possibly you'll gain the advantage you need to quit smoking entirely (if you're so inclined).
Many people have used the RYO method as a stepping-stone to quitting, since it's likely that the chemical additives in factory made cigarettes are at least as addicting (if not more so) than the naturally occurring nicotine in Real Tobacco. Because of the higher quality tobacco and fewer chemicals, most RYO smokers soon find that they are smoking fewer cigarettes per day. Once you've converted and your body is adjusted to RYO cigarettes, smoking becomes a choice again rather than a habit. It soon becomes easier to smoke fewer cigarettes per day and quitting no longer seems like an impossible task.
Other RYO converts continue to smoke as many custom made RYO cigarettes as they had
previously but can now fully enjoy the unprecedented flavor that comes from their choice
of fine quality tobaccos and wide variety of filtered tubes to suit their mood. One thing is for certain,
those who smoke RYO cigarettes are saving money every time they light-up.
So go ahead, stuff another tube using your new found skill, pour yourself a drink, then light-up that homemade custom cigarette and enjoy the fact that you're smoking something a lot closer to that which smokers historically enjoyed, LESS chemically altered factory produced quasi-tobacco, MORE real tobacco flavor like our forefathers smoked.
You don't need to limit yourself to the 3 or 4 Rolling Tobacco brands that you find on the shelf at your local supermarket or convenience store. There are over 150 Brands of RYO Tobacco to choose from! Please consult my List of RYO Tobacco Brands to understand the choices available to you.
There are dozens of tobacconist shops with online stores these days. I've compiled a list of the 10 Best Online RYO Shops. These great shops are ready to serve you with many varieties of RYO tobacco and discount pricing!
