Meat Grinders

Start with your season, not the spec sheet

The right grinder is the one that keeps up with how much meat you actually put through it. Ohio's Division of Wildlife weighed 115 deer and found an average of 52.19 lb of venison apiece (Ohio DNR yield study, PDF). That's about 104 lb for a two-deer season, 261 lb for five, and 313 lb and up once you're into six or more. Every pick in this section is sorted against those three tiers: Light (1-2 deer), Moderate (3-5) and Heavy (6+ or a half beef). Your deer may run bigger or smaller, and the same study found antlered deer averaging 62.51 lb and antlerless deer 45.05 lb, so adjust the math to what you shoot.

Size numbers in plain terms

The number on a grinder (#5, #8, #12, #22, #32) is the size of its head and plates. Bigger head, bigger plate, more meat through the knife with each turn of the auger. LEM's BigBite line makes the ladder easy to read because one maker rates every size the same way:

• #5: 0.35 HP, 4 lb a minute (LEM). A small-kitchen grinder for one deer.
• #8: 0.5 HP, up to 7 lb a minute, 2-inch head opening (LEM). The Light-season machine.
• #12: 0.75 HP, about 11 lb a minute, 2.25-inch opening (LEM). Where a Moderate season belongs.
• #22: 1 HP, up to 13 lb a minute (LEM). Six deer and up, or beef on top.
• #32: 1.5 HP, up to 17 lb a minute, 3-inch opening (LEM). More than one household's deer will ever need.

Notice how the gains shrink at the top: the #12 is rated 4 lb a minute faster than the #8, but the #22 only 2 lb faster than the #12. That's why we tell most hunters to stop at a #12. The full table, with plate diameters and minutes per season, is in our meat grinder sizes guide.

The upgrade path: hand crank, mixer attachment, standalone

Most people climb the same ladder. A hand grinder is the honest answer for one deer: quiet, no outlet needed, and LEM rates its #10 at 2-4 lb a minute by hand. The best manual meat grinders page shows the math on when cranking stops making sense. A stand-mixer attachment uses a KitchenAid you may already own, fine for burger batches, but KitchenAid publishes no grinding rate or run limit for it. Then comes the standalone electric: a #8 for one or two deer, a #12 for three to five, a #22 beyond that. If you're weighing the middle step, read KitchenAid attachment vs standalone grinder first.

What decides the price

Three things, mostly. The motor and head size, which set the rated output. The gearing: LEM calls out "all metal gears with roller bearings" on its #12 and up, and Weston describes an all-hardened-steel gear transmission on its Pro Series. The materials: stainless heads, augers and housings cost more than cast aluminum, and wash easier. Warranty tracks price closely too: 1 or 2 years on entry electrics, 3 on STX, 5 on LEM's BigBite and Weston's Pro Series, and a lifetime warranty for the original owner on MEAT! Your Maker grinders.

The mistake upgraders make: buying on peak watts

The biggest number on a grinder box is often the least useful. The STX Turboforce 3000 is sold as "3000W Max," which STX's own manual defines as maximum locked-motor wattage, a stall figure. Its listing says the motor normally draws 800-1200 W while grinding, and STX's site rates it at 175-225 lb an hour, about 3 to 3.75 lb a minute. LEM's 0.5 HP #8 is rated at 7. Buy on size number, the maker's pounds-per-minute rating, gearing and any published run limit, and the watts take care of themselves. We rank on exactly those in our best meat grinders for deer.

Where to go next

Deciding between two sizes? Start with LEM Big Bite #8 vs #12 or #12 vs #22. Buying for burgers and bulk beef rather than deer? See best meat grinders for home use. And if the grinder you own keeps stalling on the second deer, fix that first with why your meat grinder keeps clogging. A sharp knife, a matched plate and properly chilled meat are the first things to check before you blame the motor.