What meat processing equipment would you never give up?

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  • JeepHammer

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    Aug 2, 2018
    1,904
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    SW Indiana
    Wouldnlove to have just a cooler to let it hang, especially in the warmer early season

    We have an old, plain jane upright fridge I can hang meat in.
    The trick was getting holes in the sides for a cross bar that didn't break cooling coils in the process.

    The door stand open, shut down and dry most of the year, but it makes a good carcass chiller.
    The meat cuts so much better when it's chilled & firm it was worth the extra effort.

    I don't think I want to process much without a grinder.
    I started with a little hand crank grinder,
    Then got a bigger hand crank grinder and motorized it.
    We got a Kitchen Aid at the second had store and it's great!

    Its so good in fact I bought extra speed controller and motor brushes to rebuild it.
    We got it used, have used it close to 15 years and it hasn't needed rebuilt yet, but I'm ready...
    I did take it apart, clean everything and lube the gear sets a couple times in that 15 years, really simple to do (not much to them) and steel gear sets need fresh lube once in a while.

    The big cast iron grinder gets LOW speed motor, food grade silicone grease.
    It was never intended to get motorized, so I try and keep it lubed well when I use it.
    A pint of food grade silicone grease is cheap and lasts forever, no sense not to.

    I've always told myself I was going to give it a roller bearing but just never got around to it since I don't do hole hogs or beef.

    I worked on a processing trailer a few years back,
    Took a stainless reefer trailer from food service company (short city trailer) put a bulkhead in it so the front (reefer) is chiller, processing in the rear.

    Hoops to hold overhead winch beam, walk livestock up to rear, kill, skin/gut, then hoist up and push it back into the chiller.

    When it's hung long enough, the entire animal can be processed and wrapped in the rear of the trailer.

    The guy was making a pretty second job living moving around doing on site processing last I heard...
    He already had meat saws, slicers, all the stainless processing equipment, just lost the building he was using, so he went that direction.

    I thought about something similar for my canning/processing equipment.
    Not like a stainless trailer is going to rust or the weather is going to degrade it.

    Pretty good storage place when stuff isn't in use, but I've not run into another short stainless trailer, they are fairly rare since the food service places don't often go under or sell them off.

    You are only limited by the ideas you can steal! ;)
    Some ideas to take home with you...
     

    sugarcreekbrass

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    Mar 29, 2015
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    West central
    Before we sold the house, we were going to build a cooler to hang deer in. Our garage had a window AC unit in one corner. We were going to put up temporary walls and insulate. I have heard of people doing this. It would be most helpful in the warm season, but also help in the late season preventing the deer from freezing. A couple of years ago I had that problem and needed to fire up the propane heater to help thaw the deer before processing. Some kind of cooler is on the plan for our new house when we get it built.
     

    ws6guy

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    Feb 10, 2010
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    westside
    I put this in the breakroom but might as well ask here. Looking to get a new grinder, what are you all using? I'm wanting a #22 cause I already have newer plates and stuffing tubes for a #22. Looking at the LEM and Cabela which seem to be good but am also considering a meat mixer and the cabelas mixer has awful reviews.
     

    AtTheMurph

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    Jan 18, 2013
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    Wouldnlove to have just a cooler to let it hang, especially in the warmer early season
    A cooler that is big enough for a deer would be optimal. Everything starts with the field dressing and aging. Assuming that most people can dress he deer properly but very few properly age the meat. Such a shame.
     
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