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Sources for boxes

Sources of boxes for UK builders and the difficulties of finding them is a topic that's cropped up quite a bit in different places, so I thought it might be useful to start a discussion strand on it. I've managed to scrounge cigar boxes free from a couple of sources (a cigar smoking friend and a local shop) but those supplies are very limited (the shop tells me they don't have many boxes these days because of the decline in smoking). So, recently, I've been looking around for alternatives and I found the following one which I thought might be worth sharing.

There's a firm called Tomtom which sells cigars and posh coffee online. A Google search for cigar boxes turned up a section of the Tomtom site where they also sell spare empty cigar boxes. They're priced at £3.50, which didn't seem too bad to me (while it's possible to get boxes for less I've also heard higher figures talked of). Anyway, I thought I'd give it a try just to see whether they were any good. I've just got two really nice boxes, which came to £10.50 including the delivery. The website allows you to specify what type of box you want - I just gave some minimum dimensions and mentioned Cohiba Esplendidos as an example of what I like. They actually took the time to e-mail me and check a few possibilities to see if they suited my needs. In the end I left the final choice slightly to pot luck, which turned out very well on this occasion (in particular a beautiful Cohiba Maduro 5 Genios box which calls for something special).

The relevant section of the Tomtom website is at:
http://www.tomtom.co.uk/Catalogue/Product.aspx?Product=1431

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kevin Lawton on October 22, 2009 at 5:46am

Very useful info, thaks - I'll be using them.

Permalink Reply by HOGS GRUNT on October 22, 2009 at 6:20am

Thanks for the info and contact.
I just ordered two and will let you know what I get and what they are like.

Permalink Reply by Roosterman on October 22, 2009 at 8:22am

Good work Junk!
Theyll wonder whats happened when they receive 80 empty box orders next week lol

Permalink Reply by Mark on October 22, 2009 at 1:28pm

Yeah, I thought I'd try them first and then post here ;) As it was I had to wait a week or so until they got some boxes in that fitted the sizes I specified - I guess if they get deluged then the wait might be longer (depending how picky you are about what you ask them for).

I posted couple of pics of the Cohiba box they sent me (http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/albums/boxes-3). It really is a gorgeous box with a high quality black gloss finish, a perfectly fitting lid and some very solid hinges. I'm in two minds about which side to use as the soundboard - the black would be a great finish for the front of a guitar but there are some practical reasons why that arrangement might not be best. At the moment I'm leaning towards a design that uses the base as the soundboard and keeps the lid "as is".

As a curiosity, both the boxes I got came with the thin wooden veneers that they use for separating the layers of cigars and also both contained a small piece of wood about the length and width of a single cigar.

Randy Rooster (Ben) said:

Good work Junk!
Theyll wonder whats happened when they receive 80 empty box orders next week lol

Permalink Reply by Christopher Queen on October 23, 2009 at 1:43am

Brillian, for some reason the shop I got my initial ones from have started being a bit sniffy about it. Can't be a great time to be a seller of luxury good at the moment I s'pose.

On this subject, anyone know of a source for tea chests? The only ones I can find online are forty quid, and collection only from Wythenshawe.

Permalink Reply by HOGS GRUNT on October 23, 2009 at 2:56am

Tha's a lovely box. Hope mine are as good.

Junk Box Instruments said:

Yeah, I thought I'd try them first and then post here ;) As it was I had to wait a week or so until they got some boxes in that fitted the sizes I specified - I guess if they get deluged then the wait might be longer (depending how picky you are about what you ask them for).

I posted couple of pics of the Cohiba box they sent me (http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/albums/boxes-3). It really is a gorgeous box with a high quality black gloss finish, a perfectly fitting lid and some very solid hinges. I'm in two minds about which side to use as the soundboard - the black would be a great finish for the front of a guitar but there are some practical reasons why that arrangement might not be best. At the moment I'm leaning towards a design that uses the base as the soundboard and keeps the lid "as is".

As a curiosity, both the boxes I got came with the thin wooden veneers that they use for separating the layers of cigars and also both contained a small piece of wood about the length and width of a single

Permalink Reply by JUJU on October 23, 2009 at 7:21am

Hope you guys have better luck than i did with Tomtom - after spending ages searching for the boxs i liked and the sizes , i emailed Tomtom and never got a reply that was about 14 months since i've given up hope of hearing from them now lol!
juju :-)

Permalink Reply by Mark on October 23, 2009 at 10:16am

All I can do is report my own experience, which was very good. Obviously juju's experience was rather different. I hope that's because they've raised their game a bit in the intervening months - guess all we can do is watch what others have to say.

soundssogood said:

Hope you guys have better luck than i did with Tomtom - after spending ages searching for the boxs i liked and the sizes , i emailed Tomtom and never got a reply that was about 14 months since i've given up hope of hearing from them now lol!
juju :-)

Permalink Reply by Andy Stone on November 15, 2009 at 7:06am

I've just got one of those divider sheets, I'm thinking it would be good for a few headstock laminates (but rather thin to keep the nut in place) and maybe a decorative scratch plate. Not sure what to do with the stick though!

HOGS GRUNT said:

Tha's a lovely box. Hope mine are as good.

Junk Box Instruments said:
Yeah, I thought I'd try them first and then post here ;) As it was I had to wait a week or so until they got some boxes in that fitted the sizes I specified - I guess if they get deluged then the wait might be longer (depending how picky you are about what you ask them for).

I posted couple of pics of the Cohiba box they sent me (http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/albums/boxes-3). It really is a gorgeous box with a high quality black gloss finish, a perfectly fitting lid and some very solid hinges. I'm in two minds about which side to use as the soundboard - the black would be a great finish for the front of a guitar but there are some practical reasons why that arrangement might not be best. At the moment I'm leaning towards a design that uses the base as the soundboard and keeps the lid "as is".

As a curiosity, both the boxes I got came with the thin wooden veneers that they use for separating the layers of cigars and also both contained a small piece of wood about the length and width of a single

Permalink Reply by HOGS GRUNT on November 15, 2009 at 11:03am

Hi all,
I forgot to tell you that I got my boxes from Tom Tom and they are fine. Not quite what I wanted but they will do for something, if I can ever find the time to get around to them.

Permalink Reply by smojo on November 29, 2009 at 12:19am

There's lots on the UK Ebay site at the moment. A bit expensive but if you're desperate ........

Permalink Reply by Ian Edwards on June 27, 2010 at 11:07am

I was in Solihull yesterday and popped into the tobacconists there asking after boxes. They had none and told me that they save them all for somebody anyway. So which of you lot is it? I hope it is for a CBG maker and not some mad person who just stores stuff in them.
I found a wine box (would have held 6 bottles) in my outhouse today though that I'd forgot I had. Wondering about making something with that perhaps, but perhaps I need to head over to wineboxnation to discuss that.