Chicken plucker: Machine or drill?

[mandelyn]

One's first investment should be in a couple very good knives and a way to keep them sharp.
The feathers dull blades quickly and a knife that isn't super sharp will cause more injury to you than the bird.
You also want to decide how you'll store them. Vacuum seal and shrink bags are the way to go to prevent freezer burn and I prefer the latter.
The reason is, I've used a couple different vacuum seal systems and while they may be versatile for lots of different foods, they require a machine which can fail. If there is oily water from the chicken that gets sucked out, they don't always seal. You are also limited to the size of the bird that will fit into your machines product. With the shrink bags, you don't need a machine. They do all the work and they come in multiple sizes not restricted by the size of the vacuum.

SHRINK BAGS ARE THE BEST THING SINCE SLICED BREAD!!!!

 

[trainman]

Well,we've been processing chickens for about 5 years now. We usually do between 14-25 at a time and have always done it by hand. I'm going to buy a tub style plucker for the next batch we're about to order this month. I think the investment is money well spent when doing a lot of birds at once. They seem to really speed the process. I'm told folks rent them but I haven't found out where to do that. That sounds like a good option for you.

 

[Bellagrl]

I borrowed a big fancy one from a friend last year and it was great, plucked them in less than a min, but if your not carful it will rip the skin. This was also my first attempt at plucking chickens and we did 24 in one day. If you're doing a large amount, you definitely need that. It took my boyfriend and I most of the day from live to freezer to do all of them, and I feel like we moved at a good pace.