DIY

[Nowak8510]

Anyone process thier own deer? Trying to learn how, don't really have too much money to have it done professional everytime, plus would really like the satisfaction of doing it on my own.

[SuperMag]

Yes, myself and the group of family/friends i hunt with all cut up our own deer when one of us gets one. It isnt very difficult and it is actually fun to do.. kind of a little cutting party. One season a couple years back we had seven deer to cut in one week, we cut 4 one night and 3 the next night.

[ATbuckhunter]

I do it with my father. Look up videos on youtube and it should help. 

[shawnhu]

Learned the hard way, but the abundance of deer helped. Practice makes perfect.

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[reeltime]

been doing my own for years, once you watch it a few times its pretty easy.  takes me less than 2 hours to process a deer including skinning if I am doing it by myself, about a half hour longer if someone helps me.  too much talking and too much of watching the knife so I dont cut off my helpers fingers.

[Vince1]

Plan on doin it myself as well. Aint gotta be pretty it all comes out the same exit hole

[ants]

I use to do them myself, for about 15 years . But then I found a guy who does them real well for a pretty good price……Yes I got lazy. Once you get the hang of it, its not all that hard. Just check out on line videos. It would help a lot if you could find someone who knows how to do it & have him/her help you a time or two…….Good luck.

[Nowak8510]

Awesome thanks a lot guys, just being able to provide for myself and family is something i look forward too.

[blackradio]

I do my own. Have for 3 years since I started. It's not hard at all. Just time consuming.

[Nowak8510]

That's the way it seems, blackradio. Once you get the hang of it it isn't that hard at all just takes time, atleast that is how i percevie it based on the readings and videos I have seen.

[Elmo]

Just watch a ton of YouTube videos and you'll get the hang of it. So what if you ruin a little meat in the beginning or miss some. It's hard to mess up that much.

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[Hardcore]

I process most of the deer myself, I do take some of the meat to a processor for ground and or sausage.  I am patient yet efficient when processing, over the years I have learned to follow the muscle lines and will say that it ends up looking somewhat professional. 

[WNYBuckHunter]

I do mine. Alot of the time some of the guys I hunt with have a few to do and they get cut up all at once. It can take a few hours to do, but its worth it. If you plan to do your own, youll be one step up by investing in a grinder. I have a small grinder from Gander Mountain thats a little on the slow side, but it gets the job done.

[moog5050]

Yep - the key is removing all silver skin, fat and connective tissue from the meat.  No strong gamey flavor.  Takes time, but you will get the hang of it.  Get a good sharp fillet knife and keep it sharp.  Thats all you really need (and someplace to hang the deer).  Grinder is a good idea.  I need to invest in one.  So far, all of my deer have turned into stew meat or steaks on the nice cuts (backstraps and loins).  I also use those cheap tarps under the deer when processing and just wrap up all of the scraps to discard.  Saves a lot of time.

[mac]

adding to Moog5050's tarp idea, I hang the deer over one of those rubbermaid brute garbage cans with a 3mm contractors bag in it and just cut and drop the waste right in it

[Culvercreek hunt club]

We used one of those cheap plastic 55 gallon barrels cut in half under ours. The contractor grade bags that fit 55 gal barrels fit perfectly in there and we also put it right under our hanging area.

[Lawdwaz]

I hang from the rear legs. Remove front legs at joint, stuff in chest cavity.  Skin it down to the head/neck junction.  Cut off head and hide together.  Pull backstraps and tenderloins.  ALL trimmings during this part go in chest cavity also.  Remove shoulders.  Take meat saw and severe spine at hind quarters.  Tie off one hind quarter and let the other dangle, remove from pelvic area by cutting at hip socket.  Remove pelvic area from remaining hind quarter, discard.  Once hindquarters are off, then use meat saw to severe legs from same.

 

All junk can now be either hauled to a hedge row (with permission of course) or bagged in a contractor bag and chucked to curb. 

 

Hide and head are separated, head to trash, hide to furrier or local trapper that sells them.

 

Sweep floor, holler at dog for licking shed floor at the same time, douse cigar butts and turn off shed lights/radio.

 

NOW you can start processing........................................

 

 

Boning knife, Reynolds Freezer paper, Saran Wrap, masking tape, Sharpie, grinder and a good imagination will get you to the finish line. 

 

Lots of other things you can do from canning, sausage, smoking and brining.  Maybe more but I can't think of them now.

[518BowSlayer]

I cut them up myself too but I have a butcher do my grinding and they add some fat in with it and vacuum seal them for me for just a couple bucks a pound. makes awesome burgers and meatballs. I like doing the rest myself, plenty of videos online to show you how

[WNYBuckHunter]

I also forgot, get a good vacuum sealer. Its a little more money than freezer paper, but the meat wont get freezer burn. I still have some backstrap sections from 2012 in the freezer, and they are just fine.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

I hang from the rear legs. Remove front legs at joint, stuff in chest cavity.  Skin it down to the head/neck junction.  Cut off head and hide together.  Pull backstraps and tenderloins.  ALL trimmings during this part go in chest cavity also.  Remove shoulders.  Take meat saw and severe spine at hind quarters.  Tie off one hind quarter and let the other dangle, remove from pelvic area by cutting at hip socket.  Remove pelvic area from remaining hind quarter, discard.  Once hindquarters are off, then use meat saw to severe legs from same.

 

All junk can now be either hauled to a hedge row (with permission of course) or bagged in a contractor bag and chucked to curb. 

 

Hide and head are separated, head to trash, hide to furrier or local trapper that sells them.

 

Sweep floor, holler at dog for licking shed floor at the same time, douse cigar butts and turn off shed lights/radio.

 

NOW you can start processing........................................

 

 

Boning knife, Reynolds Freezer paper, Saran Wrap, masking tape, Sharpie, grinder and a good imagination will get you to the finish line. 

 

Lots of other things you can do from canning, sausage, smoking and brining.  Maybe more but I can't think of them now.

If you put all that stuff in the chest cavity, how do you save the ribs?

[philoshop]

A few basic tools and a rough idea of what you're doing and yer good to go.

There is a learning curve if you want it to look like the grocery store stuff, but hey, you can still eat the mistakes until you get the hang of it!

[moog5050]

Forgot, along with the essentials are a vacuum sealer and good large cutting board.

[phade]

I have a big guy to carry my deer out for me. Then, I have a little guy skin the deer out and carve it up. If I feel like it, I may process a shoulder or a rear hock, and butterfly some steaks.

 

LOL.

 

 

[moog5050]

You need to work on those skills for sure phade.  No more excuses about how your back hurts - you drag all of the deer this next season - it will toughen you up. 

 

I still laugh about how bummed you were when you shot that doe and thought it was my injured deer.  "Aw man, now I have to process it."  lol  Good shot though!

[phade]

You need to work on those skills for sure phade.  No more excuses about how your back hurts - you drag all of the deer this next season - it will toughen you up. 

 

I still laugh about how bummed you were when you shot that doe and thought it was my injured deer.  "Aw man, now I have to process it."  lol  Good shot though!

 

 

I've definitely gotten over the "bloodshed" stage of hunting, lol. I think more about a reason not to shoot the does now. Sunday afternoon? Forget it. Work. Saturday? Nah, I miss out on a hunt. Too far from the truck? Not dragging it that far.