Just a few points on snuff boxes and buying them. Expert points or newbie questions all welcomed of course! In my view using a good snuff box adds immeasurably to the pleasure of taking snuff, and makes the whole process more tactile. You need a good snuff box, and once you have one and start using it taking the snuff from a brand can is never the same again. I’ll split this thread into antiques, modern boxes and things that work just as well: Antiques ********* As with any antiques its very much a case of buyer beware, especially with the advent of Ebay etc. You will see endless beautiful objects that look perfect for the job but were in actual fact made for other purposes. Pill boxes, soap tins or just anything that looks a bit old have all been passed off as snuffs. I’ve also seen modern boxes sold as antiques on Ebay. Sometimes this is out and out deception, but can be just simple lack of knowledge on the part of the vendor. The only sure way of telling if a box is useable is to examine it - so pay particular attention to the hinges on the pictures. If they are exposed they will clog after one or two openings when the box is filled. Tiny bits of snuff get inbetween the rollers and spring them, then the only way out of this is to wash and dry the box. Hardly practicable. A good snuff box will be absolutely trouble free in this respect and will take any amount of shaking in the pocket. There are bargains but get someone who knows their stuff to have a look first. Also, pay attention to the dimensions; a member here bought a soap box because it looked right and was sold as a snuff, obviously a dissapointing purchase. Also take care when buying old, mass produced boxes in things like Bakelite (a surprisingly large amount were made) as old plastics can degrade. Old papier mache snuffs have often seen a lot of wear and the closing can be too loose to use, but if you find a good one they are superb at keeping snuff fresh. Often sold in small groups of three or four (probably Grandpa has just passed away) - if the price is right, worth taking a punt that at least one will be ok. Good silver or gold snuffs with named makers can be found but definitely get someone to look it over for you. At the end of the day you take a chance with Ebay but it can work out. Do not be afraid to ask questions of the vendor - if they are legit they will not mind. Modern boxes **************** There are some great, good and pure lousy modern boxes. Pat Collins and Grudgings (flip top) boxes are great, but as they are wood you need to look after them a touch and most users have more than one as they do wear. Whilst there are different ‘tricks’ to tightening up a wooden box it’s really best to treat them like a pipe smoker treats his pipes: rotate. The Pat Collins boxes have been a great success and have spawned some imitators that are not quite so good. I bought an Indian PC look-alike which turned out to be a kind of wooden housebrick with a poor seal. Should have known better. PC boxes always have his mark on the back. There are some other good slide boxes around especially the lazer printed Wilsons of Sharrow type. There are still a few pewter boxes to be found on the market and these are generally very good. Pewter, however, is very soft and they are probably best used as table top boxes. A very small amount of silver boxes are made new and are quite a find when you come across one so beware the pill box trap, see below. Silver, in my opinion, keeps snuff better than any other material and are the essence of elegance. Pill Boxes *********** I’ve learnt this the hard way. (most) pillboxes make lousy snuff boxes due to the exposed hinge as mentioned above. An old member here, pooh-daddy, found what appeared to be a great source of small silver pill boxes ideal for snuff (theres a thread somewhere). I got one and the thing sprung in a second. Don’t even go there. One of the online vendors offers small silver pill boxes as snuffs and the same applies. Not content with being stung once I tried one of these - it had the dimensions of my thumbnail and had a lousy (as above) hinge. My mistake there was not checking the dimensions (including the tell tale ‘useable depth’ they mentioned) My wife liked it so no loss. Never buy a pillbox online unless you intend to keep pills in it. Very occasionally they are made with suitable hinges but they really need to be inspected by hand to gauge this. Bullets ******* Now, there’s no two ways about it - snuff bullets were made to take cocaine etc from; this accounts for why some US snuffers have had edgy experiences using them as we in the UK don’t have much of a history using them like this. Because they were made for coke or whatever the dosing chamber is relatively small. You can drill them out or use multiple doses of course. Bullets are ultra convenient and quick and come into their own with fine snuffs. I use mine to take Dholakia White from. There are inumerable other containers that make great snuff boxes (eg the Toque flask is really a spirit flask but works great for snuff). Ive got various old tins that do the job and look nice - a vintage, good condition snuff brand tin makes a great retro snuff box (just don’t pay £20 for it!) I’m no expert so these are just a few personal points picked up over the years - experts feel free to weigh in!
No expert here, however: i recieved a sample from Tom at nicotine rush in a “lacons” plastic container and it has served super duty for almost a year. It is a harder plastic than many, snaps closed audibly, and keeps my Dr. Rumney Exclusive moist and mentholly even for extended periods in my pocket Its not the fanciest, but it work w/out complaint.
The famous ‘smash box’. Yeah, they are great and will probably last a lifetime. Hey, if it works and you like it; job done.
Mr Snuff sells 5 and 6g plastic smash boxes, nice and cheap. Im going to buy some this month to try. Does anyone have any opinions of these?
They are very good and completely trouble free. They always remind me of the black papier mache boxes that you see in collections these days - papier mache was a cheap material. I always think of them as a kind of modern alternative; they will keep your snuff in good condition and be nigh on indestructable.
Only thing that keeps me from using them is I think they’re ass ugly. Smash boxes that is.
Thanks @Snuffster.
@snuffster: A nice little essay. This should be helpful to lots of people. One thing I would add if you shop on ebay, don’t be afraid to question your seller. If you see a box you like, and you are dealing with the ingorant but honest (rather than the deceptive) seller, you may both help to educate him/her and yourself. Ask if it leaks snuff, tell them they can use flour to test it. That’s the quickest way of finding out if its a real snuff box.
Nice article snuffster. Very useful info and good tips. It’s amazing the percentage of ebay “snuff” boxes that aren’t made for snuff and worse yet just don’t work as snuff boxes. I’ve been wanting a nice silver box but I’ve come to realize it’s gonna cost through the nose to get the real deal. I want a real antique, real sterling silver, and makers marks that lead back to a reputable silversmith/snuffbox maker. Oh, and thanks for the mention. Like johndeere89 said the smash boxes are ugly. To me they are for storage more than for carrying. I do have to say that nothing will keep a small amount of snuff fresh and moist like the smash boxes. I opened one the other day that is over a year old and the snuff is still moist and fresh. And like xander said, ask lots of questions when using ebay. If they don’t respond or seem wishy washy about their answers, skip it. If you asked all the right questions and still get a bad product then at least you made them lie, which you still have saved in your messages folder or emails as proof.
Thanks for the input guys, good points re Ebay. It’s your money so as Xander rightly points out get them to describe the hinges if they are not clear and ask the vendor to add a small amount of fine flour to the box and give a vigerous shake. Being about the same texture of snuff, any leakage would indicate it would be no use as asnuffbox. Patrick: @onefortheroad my favourite dealer is at: http://www.ifranks.com/silverware/snuff\_boxes/snuff\_boxes.html
I use an antique silver snuff box - 102 years old , three Patrick Collins boxes, one heart wood box and today I received my Toque bottle. I agree with snuffster, the silver box is amazing, it keeps the snuff so fresh, hard to believe. But it was expensive, over R2,000.00. The PC boxes are perfect and I use them every day. I don’t fill them up, just put enough snuff in for about 2 days. The heart wood box is BIG, so I only use it when I go on holiday. I fill it up with Toque Original which I use during the day. I’ve survived on Original for 5 days straight, only using a pinch or 2 of O&G before bed and at wake up. The Toque bottle is so beautiful and handy. It’s filled with SP Extra at the moment but I’m going to fill it with Original. SP Extra will then go into the silver box. I’m going to order another bottle in January which I will use for Toque Menthol. The rest of my snuff are kept in Taxi and Ntsu boxes. I buy lots of them and just discard the snuff and use the boxes. They might be ugly old boxes but they are waterproof and thus airtight. We only have the big -25g- boxes available here and that suits me fine. Edit: I forgot to mention my Hawaii round wooden snuff box, a gift from Juxtaposer. It’s the size of a smash box, it seals pefectly and it’s beautiful. I’ve got some Echt Fresco in in, also a gift from Juxta. Thank you once more, good man!
I have a huge collection of snuff boxes. While I agree with most of Snuffster’s points, I don’t have problems buying and sellig on ebay, because I know what I’m looking for. Buying a snuff box is not rocket science, but it does take some understanding of the philosophy of the snuff box. Personally I dont care much for the PC wooden boxes. The tobacco dries out too quickly and they’re useless when trying to take a pinch on the street. The lid will shave off have your pinch and generally the boxes are too small for my use. Ive had the best results with antique silver boxes. People generally seem to take better care of these, and they simply are of a different standard if you pick a good Scandinavian box f ex. Yes its more expensive, but you dont want a crappy little cheap wooden/plastic box, because in the long run, it will drive you nuts! Get a good box - spend some dough on it. You wont regret it! :o)
@PieterClaassen I agree on the silver boxes, they are the best, cost a lot of money but more then worth it! Do you really discard the Taxi and NTSU snuff? O my god 
Some of the best snuffs around.
@snuff-belgium, Taxi and Ntsu is so cheap here that I can do that. I can’t buy any better snuff boxes for that price. I use some of the Taxi to mix with other snuff but otherwise I just pour the snuff out on my lawn. Forgot about my SPRINBOK HORN SNUFF BOX. With the new “attach a file” I will post a photo of it soon. Lovely work of art.