rtraverdavis
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2016
- Messages
- 4,078
My Food Saver from Costco has been great for fish and small-batch stuff, but I've never used it for big game. Plastic wrap and freezer paper is what I prefer for that.
Vacuum Sealer
- Thread starter SticksMcKinley
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I have a weston, 4 years and a pile of game and it’s still going strong.
LuketheDog
Well-known member
^Get a Weston!
I have a foodsaver and it's good, probably could upgrade to make the process faster / easier.
A tip I picked up from one of Steven Rinella podcasts or shows was to vacuum seal approx. 1 lb packages of ground pretty thin and flat. Then u have a kind of "library" of ground and it can be evenly defrosted crazy fast just by placing in water bath. Makes it much easier to crank out a fast meal (tacos, etc) when u haven't planned ahead....really helpful when you've got young kids in the house like I do.
A tip I picked up from one of Steven Rinella podcasts or shows was to vacuum seal approx. 1 lb packages of ground pretty thin and flat. Then u have a kind of "library" of ground and it can be evenly defrosted crazy fast just by placing in water bath. Makes it much easier to crank out a fast meal (tacos, etc) when u haven't planned ahead....really helpful when you've got young kids in the house like I do.
recurveman
Well-known member
I own one. My uncle owns one. My mom went and got one. Buy it and you will be super, super happy. I've had mine for 6-8 years and use it quite a bit and it still runs like a champ. It does a great job.
https://www.cabelas.com/product/CABELAS-COMMERCIAL-GRADE-VAC-SEALER/2742410.uts?slotId=1
https://www.cabelas.com/product/CABELAS-COMMERCIAL-GRADE-VAC-SEALER/2742410.uts?slotId=1
Bigjay73
Well-known member
Anyone have a problem with food saver bags losing their seal after they've been in the freezer? Seems to happen to about 10% of my bags.
WyoDoug
Well-known member
I bought my Foodsaver at Sportsman Warehouse and it proved to be one of my better investments. I now buy meat and veggies in bulk and freeze them for a fraction of the price I have to pay for prepackaged stuff. I buy pork chops, chicken, and hamburger by huge family packs then break it down to individual servings for wife and I. Best investment so far.
Only a few so far, but I don't buy Foodsaver brand. I buy bulk bags off of eBay.
SFC B
Well-known member
I double seal everything 
OutdoorsMan67530
New member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2019
- Messages
- 11
I took the opportunity to buy a FoodSaver vacuum sealer this weekend on sale for $55. I ordered it off the FoodSaver website.
FoodSaver GameSaver® Outdoorsman™GM2060 Food Preservation System
It doesn't have the highest ratings, but the reviews weren't well written either. If anybody on here has use on this model, I'd be interested.
I think it will be alright, but could struggle with deer, hogs, bear, etc.
FoodSaver GameSaver® Outdoorsman™GM2060 Food Preservation System
It doesn't have the highest ratings, but the reviews weren't well written either. If anybody on here has use on this model, I'd be interested.
I think it will be alright, but could struggle with deer, hogs, bear, etc.
Twolftg
Active member
Used my buddies food saver loved it. Its damn addicting, I started digging thru my cabinet and freezer just looking for things to seal. Lol
Bambistew
Well-known member
Foodsavers are a money sink, IMO. They are designed to last x number of cycles and they they fail. I would get maybe one season of fishing out of one before they crapped out. The originals made in Germany, where bomb proof and repairable... the new Chinese will do one of 2 things. Stop pumping, or stop sealing. Some of the models have an auto shutoff to keep you from melting the sealing bar... Giant PITA when you have to stop and wait 5 min, and you have 200 bags of fish to seal. The seal bar is really thin, and if you pack wet items like fish, many of the bags will fail to seal properly. Their warranty is junk too. As a matter of fact, I bought a FS once for backup (got it on closeout at the end of the seasoN), didn't use it for a year, took it out of the package and it wouldn't even turn on. No returns, no refunds, nothing.
The cheap chamber vacs are nice, but if you're into production, the cycle time can be arduous. Pack up 200 bags, and you'll be into it 3+ hours. They also need to be maintained occasionally, and maintenance cab be a couple hundy. The bags are cheaper though, and they do liquids and fish very well. I do not think they preserve the meat/fish any better than a good vacuum sealer. The seal is all about the bag... use a cheap thin bag, get a cheap seal.
The best vacuum sealer I've found for the money is the Weston 2300 pro ($400ish). I can seal 2 bags (8" wide quart size) at a time. Its fast, and the sealing bar is 3/8" wide, vs 1/8" on the FS. I can cycle 2 bags in about 20 seconds, or roughly 4 bags a minute vs 1 bag with a chamber sealer... I've yet to have a bad seal. A FS vs. 100lbs of fish, I would have to redo about 5-6 bags, and I would find another another 3-4 in the freezer that let go. Sure there are workarounds with the foodsaver, like put a piece of paper towel in the bag to grab the juice, or freeze them slightly, but I don't don't like wasting time. I have zero bags fail to seal with the Weston, due to the larger sealing bar.
If you plan to use it a lot, spend the money. If you're doing a 100-200lbs of wild game, a FS will get you through a couple seasons.
The cheap chamber vacs are nice, but if you're into production, the cycle time can be arduous. Pack up 200 bags, and you'll be into it 3+ hours. They also need to be maintained occasionally, and maintenance cab be a couple hundy. The bags are cheaper though, and they do liquids and fish very well. I do not think they preserve the meat/fish any better than a good vacuum sealer. The seal is all about the bag... use a cheap thin bag, get a cheap seal.
The best vacuum sealer I've found for the money is the Weston 2300 pro ($400ish). I can seal 2 bags (8" wide quart size) at a time. Its fast, and the sealing bar is 3/8" wide, vs 1/8" on the FS. I can cycle 2 bags in about 20 seconds, or roughly 4 bags a minute vs 1 bag with a chamber sealer... I've yet to have a bad seal. A FS vs. 100lbs of fish, I would have to redo about 5-6 bags, and I would find another another 3-4 in the freezer that let go. Sure there are workarounds with the foodsaver, like put a piece of paper towel in the bag to grab the juice, or freeze them slightly, but I don't don't like wasting time. I have zero bags fail to seal with the Weston, due to the larger sealing bar.
If you plan to use it a lot, spend the money. If you're doing a 100-200lbs of wild game, a FS will get you through a couple seasons.
Jim/Wa
Active member
Same here. I finally opted for a chambervac. One of my best investments so far. I do use it a lot though.
