Cabela's Stuffers?

[Riich]

Just wondering if any of you are using the Cabela's stuffers? And of couse what you think of the quality of them? I am looking at the 11# unit, which is plenty big for the things I do.

I have the old cast iron stuffer I have been using for years but I am getting tired of lugging it around. It's time to put it into retirement. I like how the Cabala's ones are light and the can is removable for cleaning.

[Shack]

Have not used the Bella's brand stuffers yet. I have been using Northerntool's .5hp grinder stuffer since 2002 and have not had any issues. Good machine, grinds what you throw at it and then stuffs any sized casing you will be using. I see it is on sale for $99.00 right now :

Way better than the cast-iron ones, even hooked up to a drill instead of hand cranking. If you check it out, read the reviews and see how happy people are with them. The nice feature they have is reverse.

[Riich]

I have a grinder.

I am looking for a dedicated stuffer at this point. But thanks for the input.

[Shack]

Your grinder might/should could have a fitting kit your could buy.

You must have one of those kidney style push stuffers? Yeah, you get over 10-20lbs they do bite. I have used them.

[Riich]

This is what I have.

I want a lighter stuffer, not a grinder stuffer combo.

[reinhard1]

my suggestion would be a verticle stuffer. google meat stuffers and it will help you a lot. good luck.

[Shack]

I just read the reviews on the 11# Bella's vertical stuffer at Cabela's. IMO for reading just the recent reviews on the first couple pages, $279.00 purchase price, I would be passing on it. Weighing in at 40lb's I would not say that is light, but maybe it is compared to the one you have now. Seems the inner gears have a stripping issue and some O-ring seals concerns. The other one they have (non-Cabela's brand) must be new because it does not have any reviews.

I guess if it where me, for that price I would want something that I just push a button and it does the work for me. All I have to do is feed and twist. Plus I like cleaning up one machine and not two.

I know you have made up your mind, but for ease of production & use, portability and cleaning, I would sell my standalone grinder (great time to do so) and get something that is all in one and powered. Since I bought the one I had shown, it has seen about 15 deer worth of scraps and trim pass through it. Works perfect for the level of production I have done in the past and is very quick. I try to grind, push & smoke the next day , maybe two, after processing so the meat gets some freezer bite, but not frozen solid. I try to avoid as much "work" as I can and part of that is not having any crank handles, no matter how much gear reduction is involved. Personal preference and just my take. Good Luck.

[MN Mike]

We bought the vertical Cabelas 11# stuffer years ago, used it quite a bit and can't say anything bad about it and we put a lot of product thru that thing.

One thing you do find out is that if the mixture is too dry, you will blow the seal out on the plunger OR if you try to go too fast, it happens too.

Once you get things going it can really go thru the product.

Mike

[Riich]

I won't be selling my grinder any time soon.

Nor will I try to stuff with it, I run meat through the grinder once and on some occasions sausage is being made and stuffed while someone else is still grinding. I hate to mess with a good operation.

The only reason I would change stuffers is so my lovely wife can clean the new one by herself. Once you remove the can on the Cabela's style it is very light and she can throw it in the sink and clean it. I have to hold the cast iron one over the sink while she scrubs it clean, and it is a pain. Also, if I get one with a gear reduction she can do the cranking when my last child heads of to college next fall. I really am not interested in using my grinder to stuff.

[reinhard1]

i use my grinder for stuffing sausage because i do limited of pounds at a time. and do it all by myself, and mix my own seasonings. but if your going to do 50 or 100lbs at a shot it would be a good idea to have a stuffer and some help. good luck.

[Gotem]

It might be heavy, but you already have the best stuffer. We have two of them and love them!

[zent]

We have had a 20lb cabellas stuffer for about 10 years and usually run 150 to 200 pounds through it every fall. We have had no issues with it. When we make burger and stuff into bags the person grinding can't keep up. We wouldn't go back to the old hand stuffer for anything.

Z

[buddha]

I have the biggest stuffer that C makes and have been very happy with it. We make stick and ring sausage every year(about 500lbs or more) and it has been a great investment. We used the old style like above for 25 years and they are great. We have the attatchment to hook up to electric and it really speeds up the time when we are making large batches. Chalk me up for liking the product, I'm sure there are others that are a little cheaper and do the same too.

[Shack]

Riich that looks like a very nice grinder. I figure with the stuffer you posted (looks like it came over on the Mayflower) that your grinder was probably older as well. My bad.

Have fun stuffing and good luck with the CB's stuffer.

[KEN W]

I have a cast iron stuffer like that also.....came over from Germany in the late 1800's.I use it all the time.

I also have a Sam Beare grinder that has a larger motor than the 1 from Northern tool.It has a stuffer attachment on it.Do I use it?Only if I am grinding 1 kind of meat.If grinding 2 in order to get it mixed thoroughly,like pork and venison,I have to grind twice.That is like trying to stuff a balloon.Takes forever.

[sparkyaber]

We tried the 30# stuffer from cabelas last year and broke two in one day!!! The gears broke teeth off in the same location on both. Like budda, we were using the electric foot pedal for the stuffer. Also, it would leak meat past the plunger and up into the drive shaft- covered in grease. For how much that thing cost, it should have better gears in it, and stronger walls on cylinder. Now we pushed 300 pounds in one day, but that equipment should handle that. Look at the reviews on cabelas HSOforum, and you will see that we were not the only ones with that problem.

If anyone has a line on an electric stuffer that is any good, let us know. It is really nice if only one person has to run the stuffer.

[Riich]

I have a neighbor with the Cabela's 11# unit who has stuffed numerous sausages and slim jims with it. He swears by the thing. I read the reviews and have mixed feelings about buying one, but he laughs and assures me his is tough as nails. Maybe his was made earlier by a different supplier, who knows.

My old cast iron one is starting to look like a keeper.

[Riich]

I just wanted to do a follow up on this thread after purchasing the stuffer from Cabela's this past fall. As mentioned earlier, I was a little apprehensive about buying it but after looking at my neighbors and seeing how happy he is with his unit, I pulled the plug and bought it.

I am very happy with the stuffer. It is light, cranks out meat very easily, and is so much easier to clean than the old cast iron one I have sitting in the basement collecting dust. I will pass that one on to one of the kids.

I made a little addition to the stuffer. It doesn't have a decent handle to carry it around, in fact it is kind of awkward to carry unless you get a hand under it. I work with stainless steel tubing all the time, so I dug out the bender and formed a nice little handle and screwed it to the stuffer. It was a great addition to an already pretty well made stuffer.

[reinhard1]

very good idea with the handle. vertical stuffers have always been my favorite. i have one myself that i bought recently. next week i will make:

venison kielbasa

hot venison italian

and venison jalopeno wildrice brats

GOT TO GET READY FOR GRILLING SEASON

good luck.

[MNHuntress]

Before I bought the C stuffer, I went thru 2 from Northern and 1 from somebody else,plastic gears. I bought the C stuffer, worked for about 2 years great and then meat started blowing over the seal just like described. Gears are fine. At that point the C store would refer you over to the manufacturer to buy parts. Well I was alittle slow in ordering parts ($120.00 for parts) and now the C stores policy is you have to go thru them to get parts. So I'm sure C store wants to make more money from parts. One hates to add a bunch of water to the meat, but I've found that just alittle bit extra when I make snack sticks makes it flow much easier and doesn't effect anything that I've noticed. But I've researched stuffers and short of doing it with the old fashioned kind, C store makes the best, even with their problems. If anybody can add insight to a better one that it about the same price let us know.

[hockeybc69]

I have the Cabelas 11 lb stuffer.

Wont ever look back and say it wasnt worth the price. I love it.

I used to use the grinder method, and this is much more efficient. I can ram out 11 lbs of summer sausage in less than 5 minutes.

The grinder I used wasnt any where close to that.

I do need to stuff a lot more sausage to make it worth the price, but I enjoy using it, so the price isnt a sticking point with me.

[sparkyaber]

I should also post a follow up to the cabelas stuffer. The 30# is long gone- replaced with a hand crank 15 pounder from Gander. We also borrowed and 11# cabelas from an apprehensive friend who heard of our horror stories with the 30#er. Well the the 15# stuffer did a much better job stuffing the sticks, I think that had more to do with the tube than the stuffer itself. The cabelas stuffer had a smaller diameter tube, and would not stuff the sticks at all. We also had the motor attachment for the Cabelas stuffer this year. Both stuffers work extremely well when it came to the brats and bulk meat.

[hockeybc69]

I stuffed 50 lbs of duck/goose pepperoni sticks a couple months ago.

Its slower going(obviously), but I have done a lot of sticks in mine and no problem.

What do you mean you cant do the stix at all??? Thats confusing.

[reinhard1]

the way you describe it, it is a tube problem. proper size tube for the casing used. also the amount of pressure you apply to the stuffer while stuffing. after a while you and your stuffer will work just fine together. good luck.

[hockeybc69]

if you are not using any water in the mix for pepporoni stix, you are going to struggle big time.