Can't get a decent cig

I Started to stuff my own cigs about a month ago on an attempt to save money, and so far that's actually worked for me. My problem is actually getting a decent cig. I found wintergold tobacco which i really like the taste of, but I'm using gambler 100's with their slide machine. I already know that the slide machine sucks, i hate it with a passion and plan on getting a crank machine by top, cant remember the actual name for it at the moment. The main issue is actually getting a packed cig. so far they are all loose and constantly have the cherry fall off. i just actually finished a cig that only took me three hits before i was down to the filter... (most of them are usually better that that one.)

What I want to know is if I should grind or cut the tobacco with scissors at all before stuffing and what brand of tubes would work best for me. Please help =(