Cigarette Papers

[Mike PooleParticipant @mikepoole82104]

If we call the thickness a thou I doubt many of us will be bothered by the difference.

Mike

[MC Black 2Participant @mcblack2]

I treat anything on the Internet with caution.

Wikipedia especially

MC

[Gavin AllenParticipant @gavinallen13083]

What a fantastic read, which brings back memories for me of using Rizla Green papers for setting up either; milling cutters, drill bits, or lathe tools. I would also use them for checking the corners of folded boxes before they were welded and again after I had linished the welds and lips, to make sure they were flat before they went for plating. The boxes when the lid was put on would be EMC shielded.
Thanks for the memory.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

Never having been a smoker….

The type of paper does not really matter, within reason, if you measure it first: I use a strip of ordinary printing paper, and "glue" it to the work with oil.

For other workshop purposes, expired plastic bank or club membership cards can be effective shims (measure first – but they appear of highly-accurate thickness). For bank cards, cut off the strip and embossing first, as instructed anyway. I set the magnetic readers on my mill's DRO using a "feeler-gauge" cut from a previous year's association card: non-magnetic.

….

I think the fondness, or preference, for cigarette paper is purely historical. The writers of the earlier model-engineering reference-works were great craftsman but still had to relay practices based on what they and most of their contemporaries had in their own workshops and homes. Besides, in their day far more people smoked than now.

Maybe someone of our next generation will gaze fondly on his, or her, Gold Medal winning, IMLEC-champion 7-1/4" g. 'Britannia'; and describe how to set up the ubiquitous 'Myford' 5-axis NC machine, using a plastics-free, nicotine-substitute, vapour-oil bottle…

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

Posted by Georgineer on 11/08/2020 12:09:46:

… with paper, thickness is defined by weight and area. Easier and more useful to weigh bulk products like paper than to micrometer individual sheets, which vary with compression etc. …

Dave

This was valuable knowledge when I was a Science teacher. An A4 sheet of 80 gsm paper weighs 5 grams, and there was an accurate balance in the prep room. No need to count the worksheets – simply weigh 'em out and weigh 'em back in – "Two more worksheets to come back, please." It worked every time.

It also worked with connecting leads, any other small components, and plasticine. Especially plasticine – it's very satisfying to see kids scrabbling about to find the pellets they flicked at their mates, when really they want to be going to break!

George B.

What about the ink?

[GeorgineerParticipant @georgineer]

Posted by duncan webster on 08/02/2023 14:29:55:

Posted by Georgineer on 11/08/2020 12:09:46:

… with paper, thickness is defined by weight and area. Easier and more useful to weigh bulk products like paper than to micrometer individual sheets, which vary with compression etc. …

Dave

This was valuable knowledge when I was a Science teacher. An A4 sheet of 80 gsm paper weighs 5 grams, and there was an accurate balance in the prep room. No need to count the worksheets – simply weigh 'em out and weigh 'em back in – "Two more worksheets to come back, please." It worked every time.

It also worked with connecting leads, any other small components, and plasticine. Especially plasticine – it's very satisfying to see kids scrabbling about to find the pellets they flicked at their mates, when really they want to be going to break!

George B.

What about the ink?

That was only an issue when I was a pupil. We had nearly covered the form-room ceiling with wads of chewed paper flicked up with a ruler, and some idiot soaked his in ink.

Form master noticed, and it was class detention to get them all down again with brooms… Can't reach? Stand on the desks!

George

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Nigel Graham 2 on 08/02/2023 12:36:30:

…

I think the fondness, or preference, for cigarette paper is purely historical. The writers of the earlier model-engineering reference-works were great craftsman but still had to relay practices based on what they and most of their contemporaries had in their own workshops and homes. Besides, in their day far more people smoked than now.

…

I rain disapproval on bad habits passed on to youngsters by thoughtless conservatives, but I approve of Cigarette papers because they work so well.

The paper is thin, typically a thou, sometimes less. Being slightly absorbent means a little oil or spit sticks it temporarily on a spinning job. Then, slowly bringing the tool to bear whips it off a tiny fraction before the cutting edge touches the work. Cigarette paper is a very effective way of zeroing the tool on the work, and it's accurate, cheap, and easy!

I don't smoke either. Like to think when I buy the thinnest papers the shop has, that they think I'm an aficionado stoner, an elderly hippy dismissive of weed and fully prepared to argue the merits of Sour Diesel over Amnesia Block hashish…

Dave

[Robin GrahamParticipant @robingraham42208]

Posted by SillyOldDuffer on 08/02/2023 17:48:43:

…

I don't smoke either. Like to think when I buy the thinnest papers the shop has, that they think I'm an aficionado stoner, an elderly hippy dismissive of weed and fully prepared to argue the merits of Sour Diesel over Amnesia Block hashish…

Dave

Back in the day when I was working at a University I would sometimes pop into the campus newsagent for a packet of papers. They would always give me the King Size (spliff rolling) variety, Students eh!

Robin.

[Mick B1Participant @mickb1]

This was a long time ago in a galaxy far away, but:

Rizla Blue worked for setting the ignition timing on 1950s BSA magnetos. I had a wooden timing stick to put down the plug holes marked with TDC and 11/32" before. You chocked the magneto to 'fully advanced' with a nut or something, made sure you had all backlash taken up the right way, then rotated the magneto till the Rizla *just* dragged out between the points before (IIRC) tightening up on the taper.

Then you smoked the Rizla wrapped around whatever you happened to have…

Edited By Mick B1 on 10/02/2023 10:09:19

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

Somewhere, I bought a pack (Lots ) of Zig Zag papers. Theybare white and are 0.0015" (0.037mm ) thick.

Ideal for just "touching off" a job when "secured" with oil.

My executor will wonder why a non smpker had so many cigarette papers!

Howard

[old martParticipant @oldmart]

Back when I smoked, the Rizla red and green papers were 0.0015" thick and the blue were 0.001".

[Steve CrowParticipant @stevecrow46066]

Just stumbled on this thread and it prompted me to check out paper thickness using my comparator.

 

I use black OC papers for smoking and workshop use as they seem the thinnest and don't burn down as quick.

These appear to be just over 25 microns, handy if you're working in Imperial.

 

The most common rolling paper, the green Rizla, is slightly thicker at 32 microns.

 

I knew I'd find a use for the comparator one day!

Edited By Steve Crow on 12/02/2023 17:29:25

Edited By Steve Crow on 12/02/2023 17:29:51

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

George Thomas wrote that he cut his papers into strips and they lived in a special tin. A single pack would last almost indefinitely.

[Alan Wood 4Participant @alanwood4]

Sainsbury's Non Stick Baking Paper comes in 15m x 380mm wide roles at GBP2 per roll and is very consistently 2 thou thick. Very good to use in the workshop when referencing. Suggest raiding the kitchen when the boss is at the hairdressers. There are other brands available.

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