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View Full Version : Can anybody Recommend a Meat Grinder ?



gunDriller
7th October 2012, 12:47 PM
I have a hand-crank & have been using it about once a week since last March.

The hand crank grinder works great but it is some decent exercise - and if I've been cutting wood or something else physical, well some days I just don't have the energy.

I looked up a few but I am open to suggestions.

http://www.amazon.com/Electric-Meat-Grinder-Watts-Power/dp/B004HL04RW
$100 "Kitchener"

http://www.amazon.com/Waring-Professional-Die-Cast-Housing-Stainless/dp/B006ZC53M2/ref=dp_ob_title_kitchen
$149 Waring

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA02V0C73293
$63 Buffalo

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA0FU0ED6052
$56 Focus Electrics

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA00Y09C0206
$51 "Premium PMG677 400 Watt Meat Grinder"
Plastic - wonder how long that will last ?!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA02V0C73296
$53 Buffalo


List of Meat Grinders @ Newegg -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=-1&IsNodeId=1&Description=meat%20grinder&bop=And&Order=PRICE&PageSize=100

And I found one review -
http://www.galttech.com/research/household-diy-tools/best-meat-grinder.php


So, does anybody have any favorites ?

Neuro
7th October 2012, 04:22 PM
Stop whining and keep cranking! Man up! ;D Reward yourself with three extra ounces of silver, for resisting to buy something that doesn't really save you much time, but less work, and probably will only last you a couple of years...

gunDriller
8th October 2012, 10:48 AM
if we ever have a G-S.us conference, maybe we could have a contest.

first prize - an electric meat grinder ?


maybe i'll buy one when they get down to 1 ounce of silver.

Dogman
8th October 2012, 12:36 PM
Have a friend that had a good hand crank meat grinder, that after a few years he got the ideal of finding a pulley and motor combo that would do the job.

He mounted everything on a board and has been using the combo for years. The hardest part for him was figuring out the pulley size (Driven) vs (Drive ) speed ratio for a small ac/dc motor. So the grinder would have the torque to do the job but not run overly fast.

horseshoe3
8th October 2012, 12:46 PM
I have a #32 I got from Northern Tool. It came with a pulley and handle so you can use it with or without a motor. I mounted it to a 1x12 with a motor I had laying around. About 3000# of meat later it still works fine.

woodman
8th October 2012, 03:12 PM
I ground up one of my cows with a hand grinder. What a bitch! I had tendonitus in my hammer elbow for almost a year afterwards. Gundriller, I applaud you for wanting an electric model.. Of course you could always marry a strong Amish woman and have her do the grinding for you.

Heimdhal
8th October 2012, 05:21 PM
I've got the attachment for my kitchen aide and it actualy grinds and stuffs very well (I've used multi-thousand dollar ones in butcher shops and Im still happy with the Kitchen Aide).


However, it is such a PITA to clean that I hate using it and have seriously considered getting a good hand operated one (also good for SHTF).

Most of the electric ones are garbage in the low $$$ ones. I'd honestly stick with the hand crank kind.

woodman
8th October 2012, 05:58 PM
I have a mill for grinding malt for beer and it is quite easy to fasten my electric drill to the crank mechanism, so perhaps this would work well with a good quality hand grinder.

Neuro
9th October 2012, 04:54 AM
I ground up one of my cows with a hand grinder. What a bitch! I had tendonitus in my hammer elbow for almost a year afterwards. Gundriller, I applaud you for wanting an electric model.. Of course you could always marry a strong Amish woman and have her do the grinding for you.
You should laugh in the face of pain woosman, and get yourself some smaller animals! ;D

gunDriller
9th October 2012, 06:28 AM
I ground up one of my cows with a hand grinder. What a bitch! I had tendonitus in my hammer elbow for almost a year afterwards. Gundriller, I applaud you for wanting an electric model.. Of course you could always marry a strong Amish woman and have her do the grinding for you.

i definitely like the Amish ways, although i have a career in high-tech.

i use hand-tools for almost everything - unless i need a power tool. i can cut a 1x8 with a hand-saw, no problem. but a 2x6 wears me out, for that i use a cross-cut.


this conversation reminds me of what happened to Cuba when the Soviet Union collapsed. they lost their 'subsidy'. suddenly, life became a lot more manual. the average weight loss - 30 pounds per person. it was their version of a TSHTF situation.

i like manual labor - since i do it about 6 days a week. but i also want to keep liking it. so when i'm "done", i don't push it. at that point, sitting at a desk for 3 hours actually feels good.


i got a few meat grinders at estate sales. i like cast aluminum objects, so i basically paid the value of the aluminum. then when a dead cow suddenly appeared on a tarp in my driveway, i fished out the best grinder and started using it.

one thing i learned - it helps if it's on a firm solid surface. the table i use was my "soldering & battery charging table" - with 36" 3/4" all-thread for legs. very earthquake resistant, but moves all over the place like a deck on a ship when i'm using the meat grinder. so i guess i get to build another table, for meat-grinding.


OH YEAH - one thing i learned. i was getting tired of chewing these big pieces of meat from tough old "Momma Cow" - that was as close as the neighbor had to a name for her. yesterday i took the meat that looked like a good cut, and cut it into real small pieces, like for carnitas. cutting is easier than grinding.

i also learned, although the whetstone might come in handy, a good file is all you really need for sharpening the knife - for home use. although the butcher at Safeway who was nice enough to show me their operation i think would disagree. they use whetstones, no files.

Dogman
9th October 2012, 06:38 AM
Whetstones may be slower than files but they make the blades last longer. Using a file one can almost see the blade get smaller and just plane wear out, because there is nothing left to sharpen.

Katmandu
10th October 2012, 03:20 AM
This is a pretty good grinder:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTa_mm50Fhw

Camp Bassfish
10th October 2012, 04:41 AM
I'll second the Kitchen Aide grinder. 20#'s of meat, 2 passes in less than an hour. Does the job for me.