# Cabelas grinder/Stuffer. How good does the stuffer attachments work?



## dae06 (Jan 15, 2014)

I have to tell the truth, I bought the cabela's 1/2 hp grinder and love it. We grinded up 10 pounds of venison and pork butt for breakfast sausage. The grinder works awesome. I then attached the biggest stuffing horn to fill 1 to 1 1/2 pound sausage bags (you know, the white ones meant for ground meat). The stuffer attachment worked, but it was really slow. I bet it took 2-3 minutes per bag. Not a big deal for 10 pounds. But being the guy I am, I didn't read any instructions, and later realized there is a speed augar attachment for stuffing.

Has anyone used the speed auger for stuffing? I actually thought since it was only made only for the 10mm tube it would be slower than the biggest tube. I won't get around to using ithe grinder for some time and would like to know if it will speed things up. If not, I will go with a dedicated stuffer.

Thanks


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## rexlan (Jan 15, 2014)

Always better off with a dedicated stuffer IMO and a great opportunity, provided by junkcollector, is available today.

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/156023/discounted-sausage-stuffers


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## java (Jan 15, 2014)

Go with a stuffer! We started grinding our elk and  making our own sausage a couple years ago.

When I started I said no to a stuffer and just used the grinder, what a mistake! takes forever .

A stuffer will let you stuff in 1/10th the time.(giving you time to grind more of your paycheck into something great to eat)!


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## mdboatbum (Jan 15, 2014)

I realize you didn't ask for a comparison of grinders and dedicated stuffers, but I can't give you any insight on the speed auger. I'd say give it a try. It sounds like the manufacturer is at least aware of the shortcomings of stuffing with a grinder and at least attempted to lessen the problem.

That being said, a dedicated stuffer is on my list of things I REALLY want. Aside from the painfully slow process of stuffing with my Kitchenaid grinder, it pretty much ruins the texture of my sausage. I can grind to a nice chunky consistency, then when I run it through again to stuff it, it basically emulsifies it.

One thing I've been meaning to try is to cut my meat into strips then add the seasoning and let it rest in the fridge overnight to dissolve salt and let the spices meld. Then par freeze the strips and grind and stuff all in one shot. Obviously this wouldn't be ideal if you were adding fat or using a couple different kinds of meat, but for a simple breakfast sausage I think it'd work just fine and speed up the process as well as preserve the texture.

DISCLAIMER: I have read that pre-seasoning your meat then grinding can be hard on grinder blades, so take that into consideration.


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## johnb5 (Jan 15, 2014)

I have done a lot of breakfast sausage, brat, and summer sausages the last 3 weeks or so. I am using and lem grinder for grinding and stuffing. It is a great grinder and works well as a stuffer. It  just doesnt work like I want it to when stuffing. I thought no more sausage as I would be making and the novice I am a grinder used as a stuffer would get me by. Man was I wrong. So wrong that I now have a 5lb & 15lb lem stuffer waiting on me when I get home.


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## dward51 (Jan 15, 2014)

Make sure if you use the grinder to stuff, that you have taken the grinder plate & knife out. You will need to use the "kidney" plate insert to keep the auger aligned.  It is a plate with very large kidney shaped openings to let the already ground meat flow with minimal resistance.  If you leave the regular grinder plate (small holes) in, it will still stuff, but very slowly.

Quoted from Cabela's


> ```
> When using the grinder as a stuffer be sure to remove thegrinding plate and the blade and to use the stuffing star,if you leave the grinder plate and the blade in place theycreate too much back pressure and will not work well as astuffer.
> ```


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## gomez93 (Jan 16, 2014)

Quote from the manual:
"NOTE: the high-speed stuffing system is designed for use with the 10mm funnel ONLY. DO NOT attempt to use the High-Speed Plastic Auger with any other Funnels. SERIOUS DAMAGE to the Grinder Head and other components may occur.


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## ernurse28 (Jan 20, 2014)

Dae06- That's awesome! I got the same grinder for Christmas but haven't been able to break it out of the box yet! Looking forward to using it and glad that you like it! I recently got an awesome deal on a 5# LEM vertical stuffer! Keep an eye out for a good deal! They are well worth it!


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