Weston Realtree Manual Meat Grinder/Sausage Stuffer, Silver

Not too many people gave this thing a good review, but I bought it anyway. I needed a bigger and better grinder after using a clamp mounted Universal grinder I had found in an antique store. Although the box it was in was damaged and had been opened, I found the grinder in perfect condition. I have only used it twice which is the reason for the four star rating, perhaps after a few more times I will revise my views.My daughter and I used it to grind meat to make home made bratwurst. It was a learning experience. Now that I have a better understanding of how it functions, I can all but eliminate the problems that we faced.First thing we did was run a couple of tortillas through the machince to clean it. Why tortillas? Because the wife threw away the stale bread I was going to use. Glad we did this because the chopped tortilla was darkened when it started coming out but looked fine when it was done. My first mistake was not removing the plate since some of the tortilla did wrap around the base of the blade.We used frozen meat cut into chunks, next time I will cut the chunks small and freeze them on a covered cooking sheet, that should eliminate my second mistake of using large chunks and frezing it into one large clump.Third mistake was not removing the connective tissue in the meat which also clogged it up a bit.But after having to take it apart twice and clearing it, we finsihed grinding three pounds of pork and two of chuck.Over all the function was acceptable, it was a little unstable on the suctionn cups but I feel that a lot of that was due to the mistakes above.The next day we stuffed natural hog casing to make bratwurst.. Jumping to the end product; the taste and flavor were spot on but they were dry due to not enough fat.The stuffing function worked great, using the biggest stuffing tube however made for some really fat bratwurst so we started over with the middle tube. Here is where I think Weston could do a better job in the design. The tube fits into a funnel which fits onto the grinder. The tube pops out the back when you try to slide the casing onto it. Inconvienent at best and a pain in the butt. They shoud have it either pop into place or somehow lock into place. I put the thing together and had to hold it in place while trying to slide the casing on.After all was said and done we ended up with 15 links and 4 slider sized patties.Lessons learned: Cut meat into smaller chunks and freeze on a cookie sheet, take your time and expect to get a moderate work out.All in all I am please with the quality and function of this meat grinder

Overall I am very pleased with this grinder. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was due to a few areas that were not properly electroplated. Other than that, I am very pleased with it's performance and features.First, in my opinion, this is the perfect size grinder for deer processing and even for making your own ground turkey while at the same time being portable and easy to maintain.The other thing I really like about this unit are the suction cups. This makes it very nice for the occasional DIY meat grinder like myself. I always have the option to remove the suction cups for a more permanent mount, but having the suction cups makes it convenient to pull out of the box, slap it on a counter and go.Clean up is a hassle, but that's not the grinders fault. If you're going to grind your own meat, be prepared to deal with spending some time on both prep & cleanup. Also, I recommend storing your plates and the knife in a baggie filled with rice to prevent them from rusting after you wash them.For the money (just under $65 plus free shipping at the time I purchased it), it's a great price for a solidly built grinder, and I expect that it will last a lifetime with proper storage and care. There's a good video on YouTube that shows it in action: [...]

I ordered this Weston Realtree manual meat grinder about a month ago. I bought this meat grinder to start making homemade dog food. I just open the box to put this thing to work a couple days ago, The instructions were ripped in half, but I figured that just happened in boxing, then I realize the box was pretty beat up itself and taped together. But it seem like everything was in the box for the grinder. When I started grinding the chicken meat I noticed a wooden handle started slipping back and forth and then it came off in my hand. I took a close look at it and it was a broken part in the handle. So the thought came to me that this meat grinder may have been a return, I made a quick fix to the handle and finish grinding the meet. The next day I called Westin and asked him if there was a part missing. They said no they were looking at their diagram. So with it still under warranty they are sending a new handle assembly. They were very helpful and quick at taking care of the problem.Now with that said, I was amazed at how well this little meat grinder went right through chicken bones and turned out whole chicken in to ground meat so quickly. It really did not even hesitate to grind the bones. Very good product.

Would have given a five star review but when I opened the box, the thumb screw used to hold the crank handle in place was missing. I'll have to go to Lowes to get a replacement as I need to use the grinder today. Sad. This could have been a very pleasing order.

Took me one try to get to know the machine. I don't snug up the collar too tight on the blade and screen. I do start winding the handle as soon as two bits of meat hit the hopper. 'Bloody Bonza Mate'. Love it. So does my other 1/4. Well OK then, my other 1/2. He loves it too. Perfect for me.

At first my wife was having issues with it clogging up and not doing a very good job grinding the meat (both pork and chicken). After a closer look at what was happening. I discovered that my wife was over filling it, cramming in way to much meat. So if your Weston Realtree meat grinder isn't working.... THEN YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG....

Not the best for stuffing

It is very unstable on the rubber vacuums. Sad. Also the knife inside is really not sharp at all as one would expect from a new grinder.