Exotica Help!

[resixpromo]

Okay, after struggling to cut these and burning what could possibly be the worst series of burns in my carpet ever, I need help with these. I have always been a 3kings person so this is my first time dealing with natural coals. What is the best way to cut these and what is the proper size? I just bought 3 boxes of these and I dont want to regret my decision to switch so please someone give me a 101 on this. Thanks!

[Victim026]

The method I've been using is taking an old serrated knife and cutting a notch into the coal in each place I would like it to break, and then just using my hands to break it off... Haven't had any issues doing this with these yet...

[oolatec]

Okay, after struggling to cut these and burning what could possibly be the worst series of burns in my carpet ever, I need help with these. I have always been a 3kings person so this is my first time dealing with natural coals. What is the best way to cut these and what is the proper size? I just bought 3 boxes of these and I dont want to regret my decision to switch so please someone give me a 101 on this. Thanks!

I cut each large stick in 3rds or 4ths... with a serrated knife... just cut a bit down, then twist the knife and the piece should pop right off. Using two pieces at a time works well for me. Good luck!

[aronparsons]

Hold it in your hands and snap it? I have no problem getting 4 roughly equal-size pieces and I'm quite weak.

[resixpromo]

What is a proper size for each piece? Like I said Im new to using natural coals so all help is useful

[Canon]

1/4 or 1/3 of a peice

[Luke69]

If you end up not liking them, ill take em off your hands, always wanted to try them.

[resixpromo]

well Im going to give them thru the weekend to see if I can deal with these, if not, 3 boxes of them will be up for grabs

[HarryTheHookaMaster]

well Im going to give them thru the weekend to see if I can deal with these, if not, 3 boxes of them will be up for grabs

I'll take a box off your hands! I have been wanting to try em!!!

Harry...I'll pay shipping!

[zeppyrkr]

back off guys , let him try them and then offer them before you ask for them, there 9 bucks what do have to lose buy some yourself? sorry if this sounds mean at all Edited January 18, 2008 by zeppyrkr

[gaia.plateau]

I had a box that worked fine, but they were super-hard... like, I'd cut super deep notches and use all my strength (can bench 160 and I grapple competitively), and the fuckers just wouldn't break. I had to use the claw of a hammer to break them up, ended up with a bunch of splinters that work pretty good for maintaining heat mid-smoke.

[neffertiti]

usually I take my monster BBQ flipper and wack the coals into 4 evenish pieces

[HarryTheHookaMaster]

what about using a hacksaw or bandsaw????

just a thought...

Harry

[Bulldog_916]

I usually just notch them and break them evenly. I havent had a bad break yet.

And....to those who suggested a coil stove...THANK YOU!!!!

They heat the coals so well, I didnt have a shitty taste in my mouth for the first 5 minutes and the flavor has been way better. For 10 bucks, highly suggested, you wont regret it if you use exoticas or any natural coals.

[Canon]

I had a box that worked fine, but they were super-hard... like, I'd cut super deep notches and use all my strength (can bench 160 and I grapple competitively), and the fuckers just wouldn't break. I had to use the claw of a hammer to break them up, ended up with a bunch of splinters that work pretty good for maintaining heat mid-smoke.

sorry, i had to lol at that. Edited January 18, 2008 by Canon

[ExoticImports]

Hey Guys, Hope all are well. Best way to cut Exoticas are as follows:

Cook the coal and once completely cooked, get your tongs and tap the places you want broken. I suggest breaking them in 3. Some people say 2 but I say 3. Other say 4, but I feel that 4 breaks down into very small pieces

2nd method is to cut it by hand. We are working on making the coal harder next month as we are producing the coals stronger and better than ever. Although it is costing us alot more for that, we will not change the pricing for anyone

3rd method is what others say, cut it with a knife prior to cooking. I think that just takes too much time. I say method 1 is the best and that is what I use 3 times a day min.

Thanks again to all!

Gabriel

[The Devils Playground]

For anyone that wants to try them theres a free ad on the forum go search for it to get some free samples. If this seems like spam to the admins please delete this but if not I am happy to pass more out for free. I think everyone should try them. They are an execlent coal if you have the patience to light them.

Still using 3 kings here. To hard to light them in my shop. and I could not find a coil burner at my wal-mart. And I am not going to sit here all day trying to light an exotica with a Torch lighter. lol

[resixpromo]

Thanks for all the help guys. I ended up figuring out how to get the pieces easily with a knife so it seems to be working well. Now do you want to wait for the coal to be completely red before pulling it off the burner or does it matter if there is still some darkness on the top of the coal?

[Canon]

let cook then flip over the coal, there should be no black at all.

by the time you use the coal, it should be ashed over.

[spoolinspoon]

I found that busting out the balistic glasses and dremal does the trick for me. Cut a nice slit and your set.

[iamscott06]

Cook the coal and once completely cooked, get your tongs and tap the places you want broken. I suggest breaking them in 3. Some people say 2 but I say 3. Other say 4, but I feel that 4 breaks down into very small pieces

So if we do it this method we waste a third of the coal? Am i reading that right?

[gaia.plateau]

let cook then flip over the coal, there should be no black at all.

by the time you use the coal, it should be ashed over.

You really only need to cook 3 sides, the 4th will cook by itself while you're smoking.

sorry, i had to lol at that.

>.> that's 10 reps free. 215 on machine. I'm a student, not a soldier And at any rate my point was that my arms and wrists are pretty strong so that isn't the problem. Edited January 18, 2008 by gaia.plateau

[mushrat]

Hey Guys, Hope all are well. Best way to cut Exoticas are as follows:

Cook the coal and once completely cooked, get your tongs and tap the places you want broken. I suggest breaking them in 3. Some people say 2 but I say 3. Other say 4, but I feel that 4 breaks down into very small pieces

2nd method is to cut it by hand. We are working on making the coal harder next month as we are producing the coals stronger and better than ever. Although it is costing us alot more for that, we will not change the pricing for anyone

3rd method is what others say, cut it with a knife prior to cooking. I think that just takes too much time. I say method 1 is the best and that is what I use 3 times a day min.

Thanks again to all!

Gabriel

The problem is that you have to waste the rest of the stick you don't need since they will be burned out before you need to replace them. Just a way to sell more coal i think.

We used to use a hack saw to notch them into quarter sticks before the crappy batches were sent out, those you can break with your fingers.

try Nour coals, cost more, more consistant quality.

[Bulldog_916]

Cant you use another stick after that? I dont get it. If you're trying to get even numbers, 3 isn't, and on a standard bowl, you only need 1 after you get it going. I use 2 for the first part of the smoke and then the last third on the last part of the smoke. Works every time, and if I want to keep smoking, I just grab another stick. Maybe I'm just confused.

[mathuv]

try Nour coals, cost more, more consistant quality.

is that....ADVERTISING?!?! Nour coals are the cylinder shaped ones, right? dont they roll off the bowl? oh and this might be a bit off topic, but whats the big deal with zoghal ghaleb coal, they look like quicklights but apparantley dont have the starter...I lit a crappy quicklight and the starter just went off, came back 3 mins later to check on it and it was completely out..it was a bitch to light on a stove too, is that what zoghal's are like?