Palio vs. Xikar cutters

[KenM10759]

Well thanks to Matt @ Stroble Cigars, I now have both a Palio and an Xikar X2. My impression:

Xikar X2 cuts close to the cap, a square cut every time.

Palio cuts cleaner, but seems to make angled cuts unless I pay very close attention. No big deal, but it's looks odd.

Mind you, I've had the Xikar for almost a year now and it's getting duller after cutting 3 or more cigars per day. The Palio is brandy-new. Upon close examination, I find the big difference between the two cutters is the manner in which the blades are brought to a sharp edge. The Xikar is highly-polished down to less than 0.5mm from the edge. The Palio's edge is a grinding finish, with a 0.2mm (or less) flattened area right down to the cutting edge. As a machinist, I could see the Palio would take specialized equipment to resharpen, less so with the Xikar.

In the end, I like both of them and will continue to use both depending upon which one is closer to my hand. Anyone else have a comparison they wish to share?

 

[BlindedByScience]

Your cutter isn't getting dull, it's blade is getting impregnated with cigar tars and oils at the microscopic level.

Give the edge a good cleaning with alcohol and you'll be amazed at how sharp it really is.....

 

[Sweetrice80]

I am almost positive that both Palio and Xikar state that if the cut is becoming dull they replace it with a new one.


Been discussed before but Palio for me!

David

 

[Renefatdude]

I use both, but prefer the Palio

 

[scubagrunt]

Purchased my first real no kidding cutter. A Palio from Rob and the good folks at Cigar Swag, wow what a difference! Funny how a clean chrisp cut makes life much easier.

 

[KenM10759]

Your cutter isn't getting dull, it's blade is getting impregnated with cigar tars and oils at the microscopic level.

Give the edge a good cleaning with alcohol and you'll be amazed at how sharp it really is.....

No, it's actually getting dull sir. I have a magnifying loupe to view it and I cleaned it well before passing judgment.

I'll send it back to Xikar as soon as I get a Round Tuit. As I said, both are nice cutters, and I really have no preference...yet.

 

[IrishSaint]

I'm going to be looking to purchase my first "real" cutter in the next few days and it seems it comes down to one of these two....The decison remains the palio or the xikar? What's a guy to do!?

 

[bigwhiteash]

They're both great cutters, can't go wrong with either.

 

[souldog]

Purchased my first real no kidding cutter. A Palio from Rob and the good folks at Cigar Swag, wow what a difference! Funny how a clean chrisp cut makes life much easier.

Wait, so is it Rob, Rod, or Todd?? ??? :sign:

 

[KenM10759]

I'm going to be looking to purchase my first "real" cutter in the next few days and it seems it comes down to one of these two....The decison remains the palio or the xikar? What's a guy to do!?

If you're buying at a B&M that has both, try them in your hand to see which style suits you better. If on-line, see if you have any local friends who have one or the other (or both, like me) to see which you prefer.

That said, if I ever buy again I'm going to be looking at the higher-end body (not blade) materials such as burlwood or aluminum. The Xikar I have is the red "polymer" (plastic) and it binds ever so much on the blades when clicking it open because of a little deformity in the plastic. It rubs just enough that if the blades springing open hit the palm of my hand, it won't open fully for my 48+ ring sticks. It's easy to nudge it open that last 1/16th of an inch though. Ill take a photo later to show the wear marks on the blades, right across the Xikar logo.

As for the Palio, the low-end plastic one has a feel to the plastic body not unlike the bigger freebie/$1 single-blade cutters given and/or sold everywhere. Very light texture surface, but with noticeable mold break lines down the center that fall right under the thumb & forefinger you'd use to open and close it. Those break lines lend it a "cheaper" fell than the Xikar's smooth spring-loaded mechanism. Don't get me wrong though, the closing and cutting action of the Palio is really nice because of the way the molded handles and steel blades slide together. I've already taken my razor-sharp Old Timer pocketknife to the Palio to eliminate those mold break lines, and it feels much better.

As was said, you can't go wrong with either.

 

[northernmoris]

Purchased my first real no kidding cutter. A Palio from Rob and the good folks at Cigar Swag, wow what a difference! Funny how a clean chrisp cut makes life much easier.

Wait, so is it Rob, Rod, or Todd?? ??? :sign:

Probably depends on what you need/want....

I'm going to be looking to purchase my first "real" cutter in the next few days and it seems it comes down to one of these two....The decison remains the palio or the xikar? What's a guy to do!?

Got my first Xicar X2 on Cbid for about $58.. My second one from a great deal from Al.. I have thought about a Palio.. Maybe.

 

[MX]

I love my Palio, hands down the best cutter I own. That being said I do not own, nor have I ever even used a Xikar.

I do the circumcision cut on 90% of my cigars and I think that it might be harder to achieve with a Xikar, but it is all hypothetical.

Tim

 

[Sunshine86]

Personally, I like the Xikar--I like the way it feels in my hand and, thus, I can make a nice, clean cut with ease. That said, I don't think you can go wrong with either one.

 

[xRanger]

I personally like the Xi2. Depending on which Xi2 you get, it could be made in Germany, or in Taiwan. Mine is made in Germany. Palio is also a good cutter, but I do not own one.

 

[smokintexas]

I currently own a Xikar Xi cutter and I have to say that once I learned how to properly cut a cigar, this cutter was/is fantastic. I am waiting for the arrival for a Palio cutter to see what kind of difference it makes, and to see which one I prefer.

 

[Guitar_Gatler]

I think they're both great cutters, but, at the moment Palio is still working out the kinks with the new finishes. The last time I talked to Marc he told me they were looking at a new company to do their burlwood/carbon fiber finishes and as soon as he got the kinks out, those finishes would be available again. Ken is right about the standard black being a bit plain, I'm looking forward to the "new" finishes becoming available again. Until then, if you're looking for something with a little bit of a classy look to it, I would go with the Xikar.

 

[klipsch]

Received my Palio from Cigar Swag today. The cost is definitely in the blade, as the rest of the cutter is pretty plain. Feels good in my hand and cuts great. Lifetime warranty...how can you go wrong?

 

[AdriftPanda]

Received my Palio from Cigar Swag today. The cost is definitely in the blade, as the rest of the cutter is pretty plain. Feels good in my hand and cuts great. Lifetime warranty...how can you go wrong?

Lifetime warranty on the Palio? Wow that's awesome. I have yet to try Palio, to me it just look just plan and boring. I have a Xikar and I think the cut is amazing, it looks much better then the Palio, imho.

 

[IrishSaint]

I just won a silver xikar cutter from cigarauctioneer for $26.00, I'm excited to finally have a nice cutter.

 

[Joho]

I personally like the Xi2. Depending on which Xi2 you get, it could be made in Germany, or in Taiwan. Mine is made in Germany. Palio is also a good cutter, but I do not own one.

Is there any noticeable difference in quality? If so, how does one determine which Xi2 is made where?

I'm in the market for a cutter (I've been using cheapo $2 ones) and the Xikar Xi2 seems to be perfect for me in terms of quality and price.