Our first big processing day with a near-miraculous ending.

[SIMZ]

We've done a rooster or two a few times over the winter, but Saturday we did 22 meaties on our own.

We used a turkey fryer with water for a scalder and my husband made a plucker out of a drill. We started at 9:45 and finished clean-up around 5.

The plucker was the definite hold up and we probably spent about 75% of the day picking little feathers out of those birds. Other than that things went fairly well.

Believe me when I say we KNEW we had to come up with something different in the plucking department before the other 30 were ready to be done in a week or two, but we also knew we'd have to spend a few hundred to finish the homemade one. Ugh.

So, Sunday afternoon I was checking craigslist for nothing in particular when I saw a newly listed chicken plucker for $100. Would you believe it's a (way) older Hom-pik Jr. in great working condition?!!! He was moving and couldn't take it and just wanted it gone. What a blessing!! Now we can't wait to try it out!

 

[Beekissed]

Yay for you!!! So...how did you find processing these CX compared to the regular DP bird? Much different, aren't they?

I find they have very little smell, the feathers just WIPE off when you are hand plucking...so easy! Their innards seem to come out more easily than DP/older birds.

Those pin feathers is why I am holding mine until 10 wks...most of the feathers are grown out by then and only minimal pin feathers remain, which just scrape out easily with the flat of the knife blade.

You'll have to post a pic of your new plucker and let us see your end product birds. How are you finding their weights? Satisfactory? Can't wait to have mine done and in the jar and freezer!

 

[SIMZ]

Oh, they're SO much easier! As a beginner, I had some bruises on my hand from trying to clean one of our DP roosters from that breast bone.

We quickly realized the pin feathers were going to be a problem and remembered reading something about waiting until those feathers are in. Live and learn! LOL

I posted our numbers on the Central thread - the average weight of the 22 was 3.64 lbs. (or whatever is on that thread). Not bad for just over 5 weeks from hatch - they were almost all boys. They were by far the cheapest I've raised them so far. The rest are out there growing. We'd like our own birds to be around 5 lbs. with a few 6-8 pounders. They look like they're going to make it by next week.

We oven roasted one for dinner last night. Yum!

 

[Beekissed]

I bet that was one tender and juicy young thing!