alright... after a bit of time away from this thread I'll add another chuck.

Ask and ye might receive!

How many people know that your looking for that box of No. 9 Flying Pigs? Nobody???? Well then, when someone sees them then they wont know to let you know. There's no need to keep your hunt a secret one. Recently on Puff a member posted that they were looking for a '04 Opus X and they new that it was a shot-in-the-dark/no chance in hell request that someone would be sitting on 8-year old Opus and want to sell them. Well, I did and I hooked him up. Had he not posted I would have never known and he would have continued to search.

Often a WTB (want to buy) thread is posted and a handful of people know a website or two that have them in stock. There's no reason not to use your fellow S/BOTL as a valuable resource in scoring your white elephant cigar.

Get to know your local shops

Sounds easy enough but I'm amazed at how few people know the owner or employees of a cigar shop. If you find a shop that has good stock and/or a friendly atmospher then hangout and bullshit with them. Obviously if there are customers then they will have to take care of them. The bottom line is that if you want to find a cigar, chances are good that they know of the cigar, know where to get it, want it as well, or have some type of connection.

I have the cell phone number of the owner of my favorite local shop. When he can't find something or if a customer is looking for something he can't find the will shoot me a text. On the flip-side, he has an amazing selection and will hoard and hide stuff for me to be able to get first pick at. He has grabbed '05 Opus, full boxes of Tat Face and Drac, Partagas 150, etc.

Hell, after getting to know the shop owner and employees.... bomb them! Yep, everyone like someone giving them their favorite cigar as a gift. You would think that the owner of a shop would have plenty but when you find out what they like or if they say, "Damn... I just smoke my last BBF". Well, you know what to bring the next time you walk into that shop (if you have it). Or, if you get a handful of sticks that are htf, bring them one to have.

Social networking is your friend

Want that latest Viaje, Tatuaje, or Liga Privada release? Connect to their Twitter or Facebook account (and maybe StogieFriends.... one day hopefully). Do the same with various online retailers. I scored one of the only Viaje S&B Daisy Cutters because Cigar Consignment posted that they had just listed a single on there site. A couple minutes later... it was mine

Pick up the phone

Why do so many people search for 2 weeks on the Net but never call a shop? You can usually find a list of authorized distributors for a brand on their website. Check out the distributor's sites and call the shops up. You can meet some really cool S/BOTL across the country that way. I've made a handful of contact over the phone that I hope to one day visit when I get the time.

The bottom line is...

If you get out there and do the leg work, you can find just about anything.