Good day,
I've searched the archives already but thought this may be a timely subject since deer seasons are in full swing. After years using a Northern Tools $100 grinder I decided to up my game and got a LEM #12 and foot petal. What a beast! I flew flew through the initial grind and the coarse plate. You can't feed this thing fast enough to keep up. Upon a second grind/bagging it really bogged down and I had to use the pusher. The meat was cold but not partially froze and was well trimmed but not completely free of all sinews that occur in the middle of the larger roasts. I'm thinking: 3/16 plate is just too fine for deer or maybe the meat needed partially frozen. The machine is really nice and definitely has the power but the once ground meat wanted to hang up on top of the auger. The 3/16 plate also seemed to get gummed up. I was initially using the large plastic stuffer to fill bags as I went.
I'm thinking about ordering the 1/4 (6mm) plate and using this for my final grind. Questions are....
1) Will the 1/4 plate produce a fine enough grind for burgers etc?
2) Is the 2 inch stainless tube needed to stuff bags on the final grind or will the large plastic tube work?
3) Is it helpful or needed to have a separate blade for each plate (matched set)?
Love to hear tips/tricks from longtime users. Thanks
