Last year, we reviewed the Les Fine Lames Le Petit cigar knife cutter that had begun getting popular in some cigar enthusiast circles. While at PCA last year, the company showcased a prototype of the Le Tag T135, a dog tag like necklace that features a guillotine cutter. Intrigued, we decided to review one of these and see if it is as functional as it is wearable.
Under the Lid
Le Tag was first released in November of 2023 and is available in Champagne, Black, Green, Red, and Blue. All of them have an MSRP of $90. For an additional $30 each, you can add custom engraving and/or custom logos added to yours if ordered from the company’s website. The Le Tag is delivered packaged in a matte black pouch that the company says can be immediately repurposed as an airtight & resistant cigar carrying pouch. Le Tag is manufactured in Thiers, France.
The first thing I want to note is this is the larger version of two of these Le Tag pendant cutters. The other is known as the T100. That cutter the company says can cut up to 64 ring gauge. The T135 can cut up to 100 ring gauge so this does have quite the size to it not only for a cutter, but for something that you will wear around your neck. Le Tag is a double blade cutter made from 420C stainless steel, 3mm thin and comes on a 31.5″ ball chain similar to actual military dog tags. I assume you could swap that for another chain that fits through the bail of the cutter if you wanted to. The company says on their website the T135 is exactly 35% larger than the original military dog tag.
Performance Notes
In terms of cutting, I found this to be better than I had thought but not as great as it could be. When you first grab the bottom, you need to keep in mind the blade is above the backing plate so you need to apply pressure only to the top. Otherwise, you’ll be pulling the entire body and the blade will not open so it can be a little deceiving, but not a major issue. The blade slides out slightly firm but I assume that it can wear in over time and get a little looser. For the month or so that I used this for review, it stayed the same but a longer duration could change that. The blade doesn’t feel loose and flimsy when it is open and pressure is applied up and down on the handle which is a plus as it doesn’t feel cheap.
Next, I slide my fingers over the edges of both blades and feel the sharpness. At the touch they feel sharp, there is a nice edge to them. They too feel nice and solid despite the thin nature of the entire cutter. But will it cut well?
Cutting a 54 ring gauge toro, the cutter does snap right through it. I even did a meaty cut below the cap where an experienced cigar smoker wouldn’t normally cut in order to test the strength. Surprisingly, it went right through with a nice snap ensuring a flat clean cut. Now, I didn’t have a 100 ring gauge cigar to cut with this mostly because I don’t typically smoke those and wasn’t going to spend the money on one just for a cut and then smoke for a few hours. I used an 80 ring gauge cigar and like the smaller cigar, it did cut well, obviously with more resistance but only due to the increased mass. I would expect that on any cutter.
The last part of this review is something that well…I don’t think we normally check for that that is wearability. This is pretty cut and dry, you can wear it. It slides around the chain and I didn’t have any issues with it. The only compliant I have that unless you’re a very large human being – it is a pretty big thing to have swinging around your neck. It feels like what I imagine rappers from the 80s and 90s with large pendants or even clocks (Flavor Flav) would feel like. To put it simply it is annoying after a while. While I have not used the T100, I am going to go out on a limb here and say it is probably much better.
Smokin Wrap
If you like odd items that are cool yet function this is for you. If you smoke mostly 70 ring plus cigars, this is for you. If you smoke 60 and below I would recommend trying the T100, as this thing is bulky, despite how thin it is. It does cut well and its made well so I have to give Les Fine Lame credit for the quality of the cutter. But the size of it makes it feel unnecessary, and there for I recommend the T100 if you are going to use this product.
Score: 88
Matt Tabacco
Born and raised in New England, Matthew Tabacco began smoking cigars and living up to his unique namesake in 2017. What began as just a social indulgence became a world of everything premium cigars- learning from some of the biggest and best in the business. From casual smoking to lighting up on the hit podcast The Smokin Tabacco Show, Matthew can usually be found in some of the largest smoke shops in the Northeast enjoying a cigar, talking business, or preparing for a show.
