Best Vacuum Sealer?

[smokegoddess]

Not sure if this is the best Forum Thread to put this in, but I'm looking for the best Vacuum sealer that you guys have found on the market?

We recently purchased and subsequently returned the Food Saver v3460 - it's the black upright that senses, vacuums and seals the bad automatically. It would start vacuuming sometimes (most of the time it wouldn't even sense the bad) but left a TON of air still in the bag, and half the time it wouldn't seal it afterwards. We had it for a month, we got it to vacuum 3 bags, and seal only 1. It was HORRIBLE!

Anyone have any favorites?

 

[jalan43]

Check with our sponser Vacuum Sealer Unlimited! She could steer you in the right direction! Click  the link on the right of this page.

 

[chef jimmyj]

I have had a Manual v2840 for a couple of months and love it. No sensor, you can double seal and very little wasted bag when you make them up.

This link has a Coupon Code... http://www.stoorz.com/i/v2840?z=GFoodSaver v2840&gclid=CNX9mfje6a4CFYuK4AodJ2jGLQ

And if you don't mind RED, you can save an extra $20+ here...
Good Luck...JJ

 

[jalan43]

Chef Jimmy, does it overheat when your doing more than usaul?

 

[chef jimmyj]

Chef Jimmy, does it overheat when your doing more than usaul?

I have only done 10 bags of Chicken Breast and Steaks in one shot without incidence...JJ
 

 

[smokinhusker]

I have the V2244 and it's manual. Bought it about 1.5 yrs ago from Cabela's on clearance for $50. I wasn't sure if I would like one or not, so figured for $50 if I didn't really no big deal. 

Here it is on Amazon


I did a small mule deer buck and a cow elk with it (one quarter at a time). I would seal all the bottoms for each quarter, fill them and then seal all of them. I've never had a problem with it overheating yet. 

 

[venture]

I use a cheapie Food Saver. It has done well for a year now.  The cheapies had better reviews than the more expensive upright models.  Mine is a V2222.  Whoo Hoo!

Follow the instructions.  They need 20 to 30 second rests between sealing jobs.  No big deal for me?

Whatever you buy, save yourself some money by getting great bags at half price here:

http://vacuumsealersunlimited.com/Smoking_Meat_Supplies.html

Lisa is a member of our forum, and I will vouch for her bags.  More importantly, I will vouch for her customer service!  You can't go wrong with her products, she won't allow that to happen.

Good luck and good smoking.

 

[thoseguys26]

I've had mine for 5 months. I've sealed two elks, 100 lbs + of sausage, PBB, CB, jerky, tons of smoked fish, etc etc. I just yesterday finally had to replace the seal strip tape for the first time. I'm pretty impressed. Plus it has a see thru cover so you can see your edge exactly. I love it so far.

 

[pineywoods]

I would send Lisa B a Pm she is a forum sponsor and a good person and will not steer you wrong. I can vouch for the bags she sells as well. I used to use the Food Saver bags and a lot of the time I had problems trying to get them to vacuum and seal correctly last week I used her bags and they worked much better. I will use her bags from now on site sponsor or not

 

[thoseguys26]

I've heard some good things about LIsa's vacuum bags as well. She'll be my next order, which is coming very soon!

 

[smokegoddess]

Sounds great - Thanks everyone!!

 

[onemagicman]

Well...I purchased a FS V3880 at Costco around Xmas as a gift to us.  It cost approx. $125.00; which was a few dollars less than Amazon.  You can't beat Costco prises overall.  But you do pay tax, so maybe it washed. 

This is my 2nd unit and I can't say enough about it.  The unit has worked extremely well out of the box.  Now I do buy bags at Amazon which can't be beat.  You know all that food sealed in zip lock bags in the freezer?  We emptied the freezed and put what we could in a FS bag.  Making our own bags from the roll are much cheaper than the premade sizes but they are convenient for certain things.  Most of us on this forum are BBQ/smoker guys which means we have plenty of spices around.

I purchased 24 widemouth and 24 9oz Ball jelly jars, from my local Ace Hardware.  Walmart had them "in stock" in three local stores but they were out.  So I went online and found them at Ace.  AND they were only between .50 & .75 per dozen more expensive.  With gas at $4.25.9 per gallon I made 1 trip for supplies and saved money.

So last weekend I took all of our spices and  got rid of all the odd sized/oversized jars (from Costco, etc.) and put them either of the two jars that the spice(s) would fit.  What a difference.  What uniformity.  My Son said that was very anal retentive, and I reminded him of what spices cost and how long their shelf life was to keep fresh, and he saw my wisdom.  PLUS, I like doing stuff like that.  I labeled each jar. Works for me. 

Then I did many dry items which were in bags, etc. Rice, Flower, sugar, and the like and they are now "food saved.",

Go to Facebook and subscribe to the Food Saver foum.  The FB page for FS is there to sell you FSA stuff, but look around and you will find plenty of forum's you can jump to and get some great ideas. 

I hope some of these ideas will work for you and other's on the forum.  I am new and learning many smoker/BBQ tips. 

 

[diggingdogfarm]

I'm fed -up with the Foodsavers, they don't last.

Next one I buy will likely be the Weston.

Overstock.com currently has it for 349.95 + $2.95 shipping.

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Pro-2300-Vacuum-Sealer/4389375/product.html

 

[thin blue smoke]

I currently have a Vacmaster Pro 130 and it rocks.

I also buy the Vacmaster bags and rolls and have not had an issue with either.

Webrestaurantstore.com has great prices on the bags.

I just put up 12 pounds of pastrami and 8 pounds of roast beef without a hitch.

 

[thoseguys26]

I'm fed -up with the Foodsavers, they don't last.
Next one I buy will likely be the Weston.
Overstock.com currently has it for 349.95 + $2.95 shipping.
http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Pro-2300-Vacuum-Sealer/4389375/product.html

I'm still breaking mine in but I love it so far. I've sealed a lot and Im only on my second strip. 1 in 20 seals might not hold up but you'll see right away.

 

[lisa b]

Hello,

My March coupon expires in a week, so I thought I'd post my new discount code.  If you enter 10APRIL2012 at the checkout, you will receive an additional 10% off all bags and rolls for FoodSaver, VacMaster, and Seal a Meal, in addition to 10% off all VacMaster home equipment.

Thanks for all of your support.  I've really been enjoying being a member of this forum and (virtually) meeting a lot of you.

Lisa

VacuumSealersUnlimited.com

 

[onemagicman]

I emailed Lisa yesterday and heard back from her right away with an acknowledgment then a few hours later with links, etc.  This morning I compared prices for Qt's, Gallon bags and rolls with her pricing and with Amazon.  A Qt. bag at Amazon is .40 and Lisa's price is .28 each.  The rolls are significantly less expensive as well. 

I just emailed her and said she would all my FS bag orders in the future.  She is now bookmarked in my FS folder on my desktop. 

Thanks for this great money saving tip.

Regards to all

OMM

 

[lisa b]

Thanks for checking out my site.  Remember to use the discount coupon code 10MAY2012.

Take care,

Lisa

 

[lisa b]

Hi Everybody,

May went by so fast and now June is here.   Our last coupon has expired, so I thought that I'd give you the new one.  It is:

10JUNE2012. This will save you 10% off all of our home use equipment, bags and rolls for FoodSaver, Seal a Meal, Weston, and VacMaster.

Happy Smoking!

Lisa

Vacuum Sealers Unlimited

 

[smoker21]

Hi Lisa and everyone else.

My wife got me a no name vacuum sealer and I have a couple of questions.

First is how much air should be left in the bag when it's done and 2nd, is how can you tell if the seal is airtight or should be resealed? 

It seems to pull out about 80-90% of the air so the contents don't seem real tight.  Is this normal??

Thanks all.

JD