Frequently Asked Questions

The Ohio Division of Wildlife weighed 115 whitetails and found an average of 52.19 lb of venison per deer after butchering (48.52% of field-dressed weight) — about 62.51 lb for antlered deer and 45.05 lb for antlerless. Yours will vary with size, shot placement and trimming. Full breakdown: how much meat from a deer.

It depends on how many deer you process a season, not how big one deer is. A hand grinder or a #8 electric covers a light season; a #12 is the usual step up for three to five deer; a #22 earns its place at six or more, or when you're splitting a half beef. The reasoning, with the size table, is in meat grinder sizes explained.

At the Good Meat Project's realistic packing range of 20-25 lb per cubic foot, one average deer (52 lb of venison) needs roughly 2.1-2.6 cu ft, and five deer roughly 10.4-13.1 cu ft. See freezer space for a deer for the full table.

It depends on three numbers: your processor's per-deer fee, how many deer you process, and what the gear costs you. We work the break-even with published processor price lists and live gear prices in DIY vs processor cost.

At minimum: a boning knife or processing kit, a way to hang or support the carcass, meat lugs, a grinder, packaging (vacuum sealer or freezer paper) and freezer space. The three season setups list one pick per stage for 1-2, 3-5 and 6+ deer.

USDA's Meat and Poultry Hotline recommends heating meat to 160°F (poultry to 165°F) before the dehydrating process, because a dehydrator alone may not get the meat that hot before it dries (USDA FSIS, Jerky and Food Safety). Our deer jerky guide walks through the step.

USDA says food stored constantly at 0°F will always be safe; recommended freezer times are for quality only (USDA FSIS, Freezing and Food Safety). Good packaging keeps quality longer — see how long vacuum-sealed meat lasts.

For some products, yes — and it has to be measured exactly. Cure #1 and Cure #2 are not interchangeable with each other or with table salt. Read the curing salt guide before using any cure, and follow the amounts on your recipe or kit.

Often, yes. Many states restrict moving carcasses because of chronic wasting disease, and the rules differ by state. Check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before you transport or process a deer.

No, and we don't pretend to. Rankings are built from manufacturer specs, owner's manuals, warranty terms and published data, scored on a public rubric. The method is on How We Pick.

Live from Amazon's product data service, refreshed daily and dated on every button. Any price older than 48 hours disappears and the button reads “Check price on Amazon” instead.

As an Amazon Associate, Grind & Cure earns from qualifying purchases. It doesn't change your price or our rankings. Details: affiliate disclosure.

A few models aren't sold on Amazon. When that's the case we link to the maker's own store plainly, label it, and earn nothing from the click.

It's the season tier we assign from the maker's published specs — size number, motor, rated output, capacity or duty cycle — against the pounds of meat that season produces at the Ohio DNR average. It's a judgment from documents, not a lab result.

Every page carries the byline of Mike M., the hands-on owner behind Iron Mako Media, which publishes the site. More on the About page.

Email mike@blackironathletics.com or use the contact form. Corrections are reviewed within 48 hours.