Redford Lite Custom Finish 1,250-Cigar Humidor Cabinet

The Redford Lite Custom is the same 1,250-cigar climate-controlled cabinet as the standard Redford Lite, offered in a choice of ten finishes instead of one. It is for the buyer whose cabinet has to match something — panelling in a study, casework in a lounge, an existing bar back. Made to order, it carries a lead time the stock model does not. Everything behind the tempered glass door is unchanged: heating, cooling, humidification, touchscreen control and a cedar-lined interior.

Who it suits

Choose this version only if the finish genuinely matters. If black oak works in your space, the standard Redford Lite is an identical cabinet without a made-to-order build. If you need Rosewood to sit beside rosewood, or White in a pale room where black oak would look like a hole in the wall, this is the one worth waiting for. On capacity, the usual guidance applies: comfortable from roughly 400 cigars up.

Climate control

The control ranges are 41°F to 71°F for temperature and 56% to 78% RH for humidity. Read those as the limits of adjustment rather than as targets. The window most collectors aim for is roughly 65 to 70°F at 65 to 70% RH, which sits mid-range here — you can go cooler and drier for long aging, or warmer and wetter for cigars destined to be smoked within the year, without running the system against its stops.

What separates this from a passive humidor is that the cabinet has an active opinion about temperature. A passive humidor simply follows the room, which is tolerable in a climate-controlled house and a real risk anywhere the summer pushes past the high seventies, where tobacco beetle becomes a live concern. This unit both cools and heats, so it corrects in either direction. The specification states a built-in cooling and heating system without naming the technology; we will not guess whether it is compressor-driven or thermoelectric.

• Temperature: adjustable, 41°F to 71°F
• Humidity: adjustable, 56% to 78% RH
• Heating and cooling: built in, so the setting holds regardless of the season
• Control: touchscreen digital panel
• Humidification: built-in system with a water reservoir and a fan that circulates humidified air rather than letting it pool at the base of the cabinet
• De-mist: cool glass meeting warm humid room air fogs, especially in summer; the de-mist function keeps the pane clear so the cabinet still displays
• Door: tempered glass with a heavy-duty seal — the seal is what allows the rest of the system to hold a setting

Capacity in the real world

The 1,250 figure describes loose single cigars laid out efficiently across the four sliding shelves and the removable tray. It is a ceiling, not an expectation.

Boxes change it substantially. A dress box or slide-lid cabinet carries its own walls, lid and cedar sheet, and partial layers waste more space again, so a box-stored cabinet realistically holds nearer half the loose rating. Large ring gauge cigars and long cabinet-selection sticks cut the count further, because fewer fit across a shelf's depth. In daily use, the four sliding shelves matter more than the last few hundred theoretical cigars: pulling a shelf out lets you reach the back without emptying the front. The removable divider tray suits loose singles, and lifting it out opens up height for taller boxes. Plan with these figures, but treat them as guidance rather than a promise.

Build and finish

The cabinet measures 52 inches high, 25 inches wide and 24 inches deep. Ten finishes are offered: Cherry, Canadian Maple, Sycamore Teak, Crimson Cherry, Khaki Gray, Rosewood, Castle Gray, White, Gray Oak and Sawtooth Gray. Prestige lists an estimated 9 to 12 week lead time for these, since each is built to order rather than pulled from stock. Confirm the current estimate at the time you order.

Underneath the finish, the construction follows the Lite: a tempered glass door on a heavy-duty seal, white LED lighting for full visibility, and four sliding shelves plus one removable tray with dividers. LED is the right lighting choice inside a humidor because it produces very little heat, so an illuminated shelf does not become a warm shelf.

The interior is cedar lined. Cedar earns its place in a humidor by holding moisture without warping, buffering the interior when the door opens, contributing to how cigars mature over years, and deterring tobacco beetle. The specification says cedar lined without naming a species, so we describe it as cedar rather than claiming Spanish cedar. No lock appears in the specification for this model — confirm before ordering if you need one.

Specifications

Voltage, weight, lock and cooling technology are not stated in the specification supplied to us — take those from the manufacturer's documentation. The cabinet is covered by Prestige Import Group's manufacturer warranty; see the warranty tab for terms.

Setting it up

General best practice for a cedar-lined climate-controlled cabinet. The manufacturer's manual has the final word.

• Season before loading. New cedar is dry and will draw moisture from the air, and from your cigars, until it equalises. Run the cabinet empty with the reservoir filled and allow the interior several days to stabilise. Most complaints about a new cabinet not holding humidity trace back to a skipped seasoning.
• Distilled water only. Fill the reservoir with distilled or reverse-osmosis water. Tap water deposits minerals that scale the humidification system and leave residue where mould can take hold.
• Placement. Interior wall, out of direct sunlight, away from radiators, vents and heat-producing equipment. Leave clearance for the cooling system to exhaust — a cabinet pushed tight into an alcove has nowhere to reject its heat.
• Level footing. An unlevel cabinet holds its door out of square, and a glass door that seals unevenly leaks conditioned air continuously. Level it before it is loaded and heavy.
• Power. The specification gives no voltage, so read the rating plate on the cabinet and plan the outlet from that. A dedicated outlet is preferable to an extension lead.
• Load gradually. Wait for a stable reading, then fill over several days rather than in one session, giving humidity time to recover between batches.

Delivery

Cabinets of this size ship crated by freight as an LTL shipment rather than by parcel carrier. Kerbside delivery is the norm, meaning the carrier brings it to the back of the truck and no further, so arrange help and a plan for the last few metres before it arrives.

Measure the route in advance: doorways and turns against the 25 inch width and 24 inch depth, and headroom against the 52 inch height. Inspect the crate carefully before you sign for it and record any damage on the delivery paperwork at the time — that is far easier than raising it after the driver has gone.

Common questions

Is this cabinet different from the standard Redford Lite?

Only in finish and how it is built. Capacity, dimensions, temperature and humidity ranges, shelving, lighting, controls and de-mist are the same. The standard model comes in black oak; this one is built to order in one of ten finishes, with the manufacturer's estimated 9 to 12 week lead time.

How does it compare with the full Redford?

The Redford holds the same 1,250 cigars with the same climate ranges and the same shelf layout, but adds embossed wood side panels and crown moulding in a dark cherry finish, in a slightly larger 26 by 26 by 52.75 inch cabinet. The difference between the ranges is cabinetry and styling, not storage or climate capability.

Can I see the finish before ordering?

Finish names alone are a poor guide, and screens render wood tones unreliably. Since these are made to order, ask for a sample or a photograph of the actual finish before committing — a lead time of this length is not something you want to spend on a colour you have only seen on a monitor.

Can I store boxes in it?

Yes. The sliding shelves make boxed storage practical and the divider tray lifts out to free height for taller boxes. Expect a box-stored cabinet to hold well below the 1,250 loose-cigar rating, often around half.

Does it need plumbing?

No. The humidification system draws from an internal reservoir that you refill by hand with distilled water. There is no supply line and no drain in the specification.

Will it hold up in a garage or unheated room?

Less well than you would hope. The cabinet heats as well as cools, which helps, but adjustment stops at 71°F and a space that reaches the nineties in summer or freezes in winter asks more of the system than it was designed to correct. Keep it in conditioned space.