Compressed hops: cutting off the right amount

[mike004]

Bought one of those vacuum-packed compressed blocks of hops at the weekend. I had a hell of a time trying to cut off the required amount. Next time I'll try a hacksaw.
Any tips on this?

Mike

 

[homebrewer_99]

Do you mean a plug?

You're supposed to uncompress them prior to usage.

They're just compressed for shipping size (to reduce bulk).

Once uncompressed you can weight them easier.