Firearms season

[nomad_archer]

Nice doe Zach, congrats

[ManOfTheFall]

Congrats on the doe Zach!!!!!

[nomad_archer]

Mrbb like my Monday went something like this....wow it is a legal deer. Gun up deer stopped.... Bang. Deer jumped twice and was down. Excitement soon turns to the realization that it is close to 60 degrees and I have a lot of work on the ground. Gutting is a 10 minute or less ordeal from start to clean up. The trick was at that temp how fast could I get the meat in the fridge. Took me 3 hours from shot until quartered and in the fridge. Finally got it wrapped and in the freezer tonight. The grinder I bought 2 years ago after the season has now paid for itself as this was the 5th deer through it and my 4th in that time span. With butcher costs $70+ a deer it is way easier to do the work yourself.

[Bushman]

I beg to differ. I gladly pay the 70$ b/c I don't have the time or resources to butcher a deer.

[zachc]

I'm gonna have to go with nomad on this one, $70+ to have a deer cut up isn't really worth it to me. On top of that for $70 you might not even get what you want out of it. We have taken deer to get them processed to a few different places over the years and have gotten some weird cuts back (ribs, shanks, etc), at least if we cut it up we can get what we want out of it. Also don't know if y'all have ever tried deer ribs or shanks buts there's hardly any meat on either, would rather just bone them out and get a lil more burger. And I understand why they do it that way, the faster and more deer they process the more money they get but still...

[nomad_archer]

My cabelas 3/4hp "commercial grade" grinder cost me $350 two years ago after season. So far I have put 5 deer, 4 of mine and 1 of my dads and at the going rate the grinder has paid for itself. One more deer and the good knife set I purchased will have paid for itself. So with that said 6 deer to pay off all of the equipment needed. I had a spreader and pulley before hand so that there wasn't an expense there but you can pick up a good one at tsc that is way better than the ones sold at the big box stores. For roughly $400 I was able to have what I needed to get started. So for $450 or less if you have nothing you can be up and running with good equipment. I made those investments at 28 years old so I will get my moneys worth over my life time. I didnt in my wildest dreams think I would put 5 deer through the grinder in two seasons and this season isn't over yet and my dad and I still have buck tags and 4 more days or parts of days to get out hunting.

Plus I last one I had butchered, I was not impressed with and my wife didn't like the meat. I clean the meat better then the butcher and I get more meat that I know is mine. Processing your own takes time but it is worth it for me. Plus when I hunt at my cabin I cant really take a deer to the butcher and pick it up a week or two later. The 4.5-5 drive is prohibitive to that.

Bushman, I do not know your situation but not having the time and resources to process a deer leaves you with only one choice and that is to pay the going rate. I get that I needed to do that for years when I was in college and or living in an apartment. For me now it is a choice and I have the space to process the deer and I make the time to get it done.

[mrbb]

well I agree, some of the place's up here charge over a 100 bucks for a basic cut, and then if you want things made it can run up over 200 bucks to get a deer butchered??
CRAZY in my eye's
but I have a few friends that are butchers and they get a ton of business, and folks pay no questions asked??
My one buddy put his 3 kids thru collage on $$ he made butchering deer
he used to butcher like 700-1,000 deer a yr, for like 15+ yrs, then the deer numbers dropped and so did the deer bought in, and then the Game commission and all its red tape about butchering and blah blah, rules and crap!
,
he gave it up, , but MAN he made a lot of money over the yrs, and he had one of the cleanest cuts going
he is a full time butcher , and he used to buy all his supply's at work, everything came back, wrapped just like in a store, , foam bottom, blood rag, boneless and cut clean
, used to rent 3 tractor trailer freezers, and hired local high school kids foot ball teams normally, and man they could cut deer up fast!

But to pay a 100+ bucks to get back 35-40 lbs of meat?? is a lot to many folks


I've butchered a LOT of mine own deer, then, got spoiled, my one buddy, LOVED cutting up deer?? not sure why??
but when I killed one, all I had to do was call him up, drop it off, and about 2 hrs later go pick it up, all de boned, and wrapped in freezer wrap, and labeled?
for free , well,I gave him a case of beer for every deer he did! ? LOL

then, he moved, and one of my other buddy's opened a butcher shop, and still has it, so, again, last 15+ yrs, my deer get cut up, and all I have to do is drop em off! and get back in a few hrs!
I have it spoiled folks LOL

[nomad_archer]

Here we go back at camp getting ready to head to the stand.... Game on

[mrbb]

well good luck, raining here, and calling for rain all day tomorrow??
should save a lot of deer for next week, or next yr LOL

[nomad_archer]