Recommend a meat grinder ...

[Mr.Magoo]

For all you home processors out there.  Any recommendations on a good meat grinder?  Thx.

[non-typical]

#32 with a pulley wheel and at least 3/4 hp motor, 1 hp is even better. That's what I've been using for years. It easily grinds 5 lb a minute.

[Michael Pfander]

#32 what?
MAP

[Benner]

I use a Cabelas 1/2 hp. We usually do a couple hundres pounds a year. It works great.

[Eric Krewson]

I bought an elcheapo grinder off fleabay for about 45 bucks, one of the more powerful ones. It sounds like a B-52 taking off when it runs but has served me well over the years.

Your choice will depend on how much you plan to grind. I use mine occasionally, If I ground up multiple deer a year I would go with one in the $400 range.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

I believe mine is LM or L&M brand that I bought from Cabelas or Bass Pro, and it has worked great for me a number of years, it's also fairly quite.
I have the smaller model 1/4hp I think?
I'll double check this am and get back here.

[Zradix]

I just use a hand crank porkert.(sp)
Doesn't cost much and I grind an entire deer in about 20mins. It's not hard to turn at all.

[wingnut]

I got the 1 hp grinder from Cabelas last year after years of using cheaper and smaller units.  We grind whole hogs and deer when we get them so it's not uncommon to do 50-75 # in a morning.  The new one works like a charm.  I bone and chunk the meat and Jason grinds it as fast as I can feed it too him.

Mike

[Don Stokes]

Northern Hydraulics carries a good relatively cheap one that is rated at 1000 watts. It grinds right through anything you put in it- very little trimming of the meat is required. I loaned it to a buddy who had a couple of shoulders to process, and he cut it up half frozen with no trimming, and it never even slowed down, whatever he put in it. He put stuff in it that I wouldn't have wanted to eat, all the membrane and sinew, but he was happy with the result and bought one for himself.

When I used a hand grinder, I had to trim all of the connective tissue to keep it from clogging up.

[calgarychef]

Start going to restaurant auctions, it won't take long to find a good commercial one.  Something made by hobart will be bombproop.  Maybe you'll have to buy new blades etc. but something like that will last for generations.

the chef

[koger]

Try Northern tool, they have one that was recommended to me when I had a similar post 2 months ago, $99 w/accesories. It is powerful, just cut your strips in long slim pieces, will suck it right in, has a narrow throat dropping down to the grinder auger. I ground up 75% of an elk in 3 hours! Mine has done 2 huge elk, and 6 deer without a hiccup. I use the #2 poly bags for burger from  thehome processor.com, 500-$25 and they have a tape machine sealer and tape also, machine is $29, tape 2.99 a roll, 1 roll will do 1000 packages of burger. It comes with sausge stuffing tube, 2 different grinder plates. I use the sausage stuffer to fill the poly bags, just slide over the tube and fill as you are grinding! I usually fill mine1-1&1/2# for me and the wife.  Pm me if I can be of any more help.

[swampdrummer]

Northern Tool sells a pretty decent grinder for  about $125. I usually kill a couple of deer a year and bunches of pigs and it hasn't let me down yet.

On sale now for $99
 http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_36989_36989

[swampdrummer]

Koger beat me to it!

[two4hooking]

I bought a cheap one from cabelas...then got another cheapo from Wally World for a backup but have not needed it.  That was 5 years ago and over 20 deer!  Those 1 pound game bags and that handy tape sealer/dispenser that goes on the bag twists is really nice though.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Mine is an LEM brand and I have not had a single problem with it, and I use food saver machine and bags to vaccum seal everything. I would like to try a roll of those burger stuffing bags and a crimper that puts the metal rings on the bags. I think it would be a whole lot quicker and the bags would probably be cheaper than the food saver bags.
I could still package my steaks in food saver bags, but they are too dang expensive and there's no good reason for them to cost as much as they do.

This is like the one that I have.
575watt-  http://shop.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/lem-575-watt-meat-grinder.aspx?a=360417


That set up that Koger mentioned from Northern Products sounds like a great deal also, you might want to give that one a shot.

[Don Stokes]

A senior moment- I think mine is from Northern Tools like koger mentioned, not Northern Hydraulics.

[Don Stokes]

I just went and checked the box. Here's the info:

Northern Industrial Tools
1000 Watt Electric Meat Grinder
Grinds 176# of meat per hour
Fine, medium and coarse plates
Kubbe and sausage stuffer attachments
110 volts, 60Hz

[Mr.Magoo]

Thx for the replies guys.  I'm going to give the model Northern Tool has on sale a shot.

Thx again.

[Charles K.]

Cabela's grinder...no problems so far. sharpen the blade every now and then.

[frassettor]

I bought a Torrey. Mine was about $3200, but I do alot of processing, and sausage making. They do have smaller ones, it all depends on how much you will use it and how crazy you wanna get