Arpomatic Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 recently i bought 3 kilos of exoticas...i havent looked at the other two boxes yet but the first one had white spots on them...usually you have to score exoticas just to break them but i can break these with ease. has anybody else had this problem?happy smokin'-arp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechAnt Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 It was a problem way back when. Take pics and contact the company you bought them from. See what they have to say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryno Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 They are def softer than the ones we've had before. It seems like that have a touch of silver lining on them... makes me wonder if the new Exoticas Jap coals are just the stick cut and coatedEdit- I'm apr's roommate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPackSunday Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 say it isnt so!let me know who you ordered from via text/phone sometime so i can check before i make my order (would hate to slander a good company for a mistake that isnt theres in public)also ryno, who is the apr you speak of? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Codename067 Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Arp started this thread.I have never had that problem, then again I have not bought Exoticas lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SixPackSunday Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 i know, i'm not knocking arp for starting the thread... he's a friend of mine and i'll be smoking with im in a day or two anyway, i just want to makesure i dont get the same coals when i make my order this weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hookah hippie Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 from what I remember from previous threads the white spots where water damage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JillyIsJustKidding Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Is it like glittery sort of? I heard its the binding and it normal. If its dried water drops...then that is a different story. If so, that means your vendor didn't take care of those boxes or water got in during shipping Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushrat Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 well..being a bit of an expert on Exoticas and water damage...In general, the exoticas are not as good as they once were. Instead of pre-scoring them they way they claimed they were going to do they simply made them "easier to break." the only way you can make a finger coals easier to break is to make them less dense. The thing about exoticas USED to be they were very dense so they lasted a LONG time and burned at a nice temp. Since these are less dense then I have noticed they DO break easier and they DON'T last as long. They simply are cheaping out on the materials, using less and compacting them less. This is why they seem to shrink a lot more when they are fully lit as well. I sus[ect the quality wil continue to decline over the next year or so as seems to happen with most coals.As for the spots. Since they are now making silver coated jap styles in the factory, i would say it was not unthinkable for soem of the paint to get on the equipment. If the spots are silverish I'd say thats what happened. If they are white, like mold, then ya..sounds like more problems in shipping. The binding in coals is simply cellulose, not sure if it would be "glittery". As for the fingers and the japs, of course its the same basic charcaol mix in a different shape and silver coated. Who did you get them from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 8, 2008 Author Share Posted September 8, 2008 QUOTE (mushrat @ Sep 8 2008, 11:21 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>well..being a bit of an expert on Exoticas and water damage...In general, the exoticas are not as good as they once were. Instead of pre-scoring them they way they claimed they were going to do they simply made them "easier to break." the only way you can make a finger coals easier to break is to make them less dense. The thing about exoticas USED to be they were very dense so they lasted a LONG time and burned at a nice temp. Since these are less dense then I have noticed they DO break easier and they DON'T last as long. They simply are cheaping out on the materials, using less and compacting them less. This is why they seem to shrink a lot more when they are fully lit as well. I sus[ect the quality wil continue to decline over the next year or so as seems to happen with most coals.As for the spots. Since they are now making silver coated jap styles in the factory, i would say it was not unthinkable for soem of the paint to get on the equipment. If the spots are silverish I'd say thats what happened. If they are white, like mold, then ya..sounds like more problems in shipping. The binding in coals is simply cellulose, not sure if it would be "glittery". As for the fingers and the japs, of course its the same basic charcaol mix in a different shape and silver coated. Who did you get them from?Wow. you know your stuff mushyI got em from MNH...-arp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r1v3th3ad Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 lol, here we go again.pics pls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 8, 2008 Author Share Posted September 8, 2008 Pics as requested.. In the pics the spots look white, but they are more of a silver. Got 3 kilos of them, and all of them seem to have it... Not to mention some of the sticks were broken when I opened up the box.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushrat Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hard to tell if thats paint or what....How do they smell when you light them? heavy odor? Do they crumble too easily once lit? How easy are they to break?I go through about a master case (12 boxes) a week and i don't think ive ever seen anything like those before. In any event it's unlikely to be MN's fault, more likely soemthign from the factory or soemthing on the boat to the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 8, 2008 Author Share Posted September 8, 2008 (edited) oh im sure its not MNH's fault...ive been going through them a while now an I have never had any problems...they smell like exoticas usually smell...they break really easily! in the past i had to score them for them to even come close to breakin an even then they were still tough to break...now they break with very little force and they break really easily when they are lit...when i ash them in the ashtrey they usually break into a couple pieces...-arp Edited September 8, 2008 by Arpomatic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny_D Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 That's just the binder, I had a box like this. ITs nothing to get your panties in a twist over I would suggest.JD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 8, 2008 Author Share Posted September 8, 2008 k jd the my panties are out of the twist...thanks for puttin it all in perspective for me-arp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushrat Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 but that's still not a good batch is they break that easily...Some of the ones ive been dealing with crumble when i try to break them, soem are still pretty hard...poor production standards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jester589 Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 (edited) It sounds to me like it came from the one or whatever number of bad batches that may or may not have existed lol...I exclusively use Exoticas anymore and in my time smoking have come across one bad box...If they break when lighting or break way too easily and have the strange little markings odds are you got a bad box...As was probably said before contact vendor or whomever and see what they'll do for you...Sucks to get a bad box but I have had enough great experiences with Exoticas it's not enough to scare me off unless I got another bad box, which I haven't...Enough rambling from me Edited September 8, 2008 by jester589 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JillyIsJustKidding Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Does it just rub off? Don't worry its normal. I have asked Gabe about it since I was freaked out about the last box I had and he just told me it was the binding. Just rub it off and its okay! If not...Eek then Idk what to tell you. If it smokes fine and no after taste, then nothing should be wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 9, 2008 Author Share Posted September 9, 2008 the lastest and biggest problem is they basically crumble on the stove, which has never happened before...im kinda disappointed because before now exoticas have always been the best coals i have smoked with...we'll see how the next couple kilo's are...-arp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushrat Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 Jilly: gabe also said a few things to me..doesn't make em true. I trust him not at all and I trust anything he has to say to explain crap on his coals even less. Of course he's goping to tell you they are ok...and why would there be minding agent on the outside of the coal? It's mixed INTO the charcoal before they press it/extrude it.Arp: its the "new" batch. Cheaper to make. It will get worse, bet on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryno Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 What we think happened was water got to them during shipping. I opened another box today and the top coals are harder to break than those on the bottom... Arp said the bottom of the box seemed wet.. so who knows what really happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canon Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 i did a complete test on exoticas and water. when exoticas are in water (for any amount of time) and they dry there are no spots on them. no white or anything, what does happen is they get alot lighter because the water washes out some of the material (resulting in a much much lighter exotica) when you light an exotica that has been in water for a week or more then they are very very fragile and break when you try to lift it with tongs. but they do not produce any more smell or taste then a perfectly fine exotica. as far as mold goes. i was unable to produce mold on an exotica in warm temperatures when i was in southern georgia (mold loves to grow there)my conclusion is the white spots are the binding material, lighter exoticas either mean they are made that way or water could have gotten on them, but i doubt that because if water did get on them while in the box then there would be residue in the bottom of the box (what i noticed with exoticas in water) and there would be water damage on the box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpomatic Posted September 9, 2008 Author Share Posted September 9, 2008 just wanna say thanks to everybody who has put imput in on this thread...i appreciate it guys...i just hope this is a temperary thing for the exoticas cause they are my coal of choice...we'll see...im not gonna give up on them just yet...thanks guys!-arp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny_D Posted September 9, 2008 Share Posted September 9, 2008 QUOTE (Arpomatic @ Sep 9 2008, 05:41 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>just wanna say thanks to everybody who has put imput in on this thread...i appreciate it guys...i just hope this is a temperary thing for the exoticas cause they are my coal of choice...we'll see...im not gonna give up on them just yet...thanks guys!-arpGood for you I've had a few boxes that were easier to break than others. But like any producer of anything there are going to be good an bad. Some folks have had some very specific problems with exotica's which may have (and quite rightly so) tainted there opinions.I know some folks who won't touch a ford because they had one break down in 1974. Time will tell.JD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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