Power Pluckers..real deal or gimmick?

[Lip'em]

I was browsing through fleet farm the other day and noticed one of these machines with rotating rubber fingers used for plucking birds. My question is, has anyone used them and do they work at shaving time off of plucking birds or do they just make a big mess with little to gain?

I imagine they have a tendency to be quite messy with feathers flying everywhere but if it could shave some time off cleaning a pile of birds one would think it could be worth the money to buy one?

[Sartell Angler]

unless you own a duck club in which you clean all of your clients birds, I'd say just suck it up and pluck 'em the old fashioned way. I know it does the trick but I've never thought the plucking was that difficult anyways. Plus, we usually breast our birds out, only cleaning a few for roasting each year.

[D.Boedigheimer]

Lip'em,

My dad and his buddies used a home-made plucker that is almost identical to the commercial ones at Fleet, it worked great, would pluck a mallard in two minutes, easy. The few drawbacks were it would not remove alot of pin-feathers, the mess, or catching a chunk of skin in the face. But if you had nice clean puddlers or ringnecks it was amazing.

[benelli_dude2002]

when I was a kid my dad had a plucker and he would have his clients over and we (us kids ) would clean their ducks. Same set up, rubbber fingers and it had like a smaller plastic sink on its side with the drain just behind the rubber fingers then a shop vac on the back side of the sink so it would suck up most of the feathers. Then when you were done with the plucker you would just simply pull off the shop vac hose and get the rest of the feathers. I seen in a catalog where you can get a attachment for your drill. Worked good especially for a quantity of birds.

[bigdog]

I bought the aluminum head and mounted it on an old electric motor. Installed that on a piece of counter top that fits over a trash can. Cut a hole in the counter top and built a hood with wood sides and an aluminum sheet top. It works real good on dry feathers, okay on wet feathers. Mine will not pick a rooster although I have heard of some that will, I think they use a longer, more flexible rubber finger.

[ZEEK1223]

my dad had a plucker too. It was called me and my brother. He had my brother and I cleaning ducks for hours while him and his buddies would drink whiskey and talk about the hunt.

[dan z]

wax or hands is what I would do my opinion on using electric stuuf for cleaning is cheating plus you can drink more grain belts pluckin by hand!

[Sartell Angler]

yeah, more Leinies Summer Shandy too!

[riverrat56]

mmmm......Grainbelt.....