I think this may be my first official post. Been a longtime lurker either way.
I want to purchase a new grinder. I ground up about 20 lbs of poke this past weekend and my KitchenAid mixer got smokin' hot! Plus I get really annoyed by the blackish "boogers" that squeeze out around the center of the plate where the auger goes through. Is this common with all grinders? Or only the KA? It seems that there is close to 1/16" slop between the diameter of the auger and the hole in the grinding plate.
I don't want to spend a fortune right now, even though I would love one of the stainless steel pro grinders from Cabelas that everyone raves about. I've looked at the Northern Tool grinder, and it looks like the grinding plates are carbon steel. The same exact grinder is on Gander Mountains website for $30 more with stainless steel grinder plates. Is it worth $30 to not have to worry about oiling the plates every time I put the grinder away? Will I still have the booger issue with the Northern Tool Grinder? Or should I just bite the bullet and buy the cabelas pro grinder for a few hunnert more?
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200451267_200451267 (http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200451267_200451267)
I have the above cheapo model from Northern tool and love it. I have not had any major issues while grinding. I would bet the KitchenAid is getting the meat too warm. The fat starts to melt and the meat begins breaking. I try to keep the meat partially frozen when grinding. I will also throw that metal tray in the freezer before grinding and during the down times to keep everything cool. After cleaning it I crisco my plates and store them in a ziploc bag with the grinder. It is a little extra work but not much.
I would recommend the Northern Tool grinder. Save the cash so you can buy a stuffer too!
I already have the nice LEM stuffer with metal gears. No problems with that.
I get the little boogers regardless of whether the grinder and meat are frozen right out of the freezer or if I have been grinding for a couple minutes. The KA is serviceable, but I don't want to kill it and then be killed by my wife! That's the main reason. The main question is though do the little boogers happen with the Northern Tool Grinder?
I've had the NortherTool Grinder for about five years now and I've never had any problems with it; no problems with meat squeezing past out of the auger hole. As far as the plates go, I don't spend the extra money on the stainless steel ones and have never had a problem with them either.
Hi jleiwig;
Welcome to the forum.
Twenty pounds of meat at one setting is a lot for the KA grinder attachment. The most I have done was 10 pounds. I partially freeze the meat, then take out about two pounds at a time. Grind it, then pull out about another two pounds. It sounds like you are tightening the cap too tight. Just tighten until snug; don't over tighten. Also when doing that much grinding, even with 10 pounds, I find I must periodically remove the blade and clean off any built up sinew.
I gots the #12 Northern Tool grinder also and never had a lick of trouble. No black gubbers either. As far as the plates and cutter go. Just wash them and rinse and pat dry with a paper towel and air dry. I spray a dab of food grade lubricant on the plate and cutter and put in a zip lock baggy. I have ground hundreds of pounds of meat and they are like new. Great product and price.
Well I went ahead and ordered the Northern Tool grinder. :) I'll have to see if Gander or Bass Pro has the lubricant as the shipping is more than the lubricant!
Maybe now the wife won't kill me. Although I think that if she sees the UPS man deliver it she might kill me anyway. It's a no win solution, but she loves to eat the delicacies I produce. Go figure!
I have the Northern Tool grinder...no problems. :) I store the parts in a container of rice, no rusting either.
I have that same grinder only mine says Gander Mountain on it, other than that the Gander Mountain model was 179.00 and I got it for 129.00 so 99 is a great price. I'm very happy with the grinder and would suggest getting it. Good luck on the new grinder.
Tim
L & M Fleet Supply - 2012
http://www.landmsupply.com/
Lem Stainless Steel #8 .35HP Meat Grinder Price: $269.99 Free Shipping
http://www.landmsupply.com/shop-by-brand/lem-stainless-steel-8-35hp-meat-grinder
Lem Countertop 575 Watt #8 Grinder Price: $99.99 Free Shipping
http://www.landmsupply.com/shop-by-brand/lem-countertop-575-watt-8-grinder
Here is a copy of an email that was sent to me the other day....
Hi Mark,
A coworker and I were just discussing LEM and I thought of you. I hope all is well for you and your Bradley Smoker forum friends. I'm pretty pleased with our LEM assortment this year, please take a look below and let me know if there's something you feel we are missing. We appreciate you spreading the word to your followers last year and I hope to work with more of them this year. Please make sure they ask for me and I will offer them our best possible prices. Happy cooking!
http://www.landmsupply.com/shop-by-brand?brand_filter=14&brand=Lem&pb_page=1
Take care,
Ryan Dekich
Buyer
L&M Fleet Supply
Ph: 218-326-9451
Shop Online
www.lmsupply.com
I ordered the grinder from Northern Tools. Now I have to tell my wife I have another toy to play with.
Quote from: ratherbboating on August 22, 2012, 10:27:25 AM
I ordered the grinder from Northern Tools. Now I have to tell my wife I have another toy to play with.
Yeah..I got the look when the UPS man knocked on the door. But then I got a different look when we had some of my home made brats for dinner. So I didn't hear about it too much! ;D
If you're going to be doing larger loads (10-20lbs) on a more regular basis, it may be worthwhile to invest a bit more $$ in a more powerful grinder.
Either the larger LEMs or Cabelas.
Kevin
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/GuitarPix/Smaller%20Stix%20Pix/Bolog_pork_sml.jpg)
Quote from: Kevin A on August 23, 2012, 12:25:03 PM
If you're going to be doing larger loads (10-20lbs) on a more regular basis, it may be worthwhile to invest a bit more $$ in a more powerful grinder.
Either the larger LEMs or Cabelas.
Kevin
I'll play with this Northern Tool for a while and I have friends I can pass it along to if I find that it's not up to snuff.
I did find it curious that on the box it says it has stainless plates and knife, but on the website it says it's a stainless knife and carbon plates. Either way I bought the LEM cleaning kit from Gander Mountain and put the plates and knife in a baggy and sprayed them with the food grade silicone spray which should displace water and keep them from rusting if they are carbon steel.
Now I just need to find time to make some sausage!