Processing done

[Bornacentury2L8]

I with a little help from my 9 year old daughter processed 5 young roos today. I have processed before, but nowhere near as easy and enjoyable as today. I have to thank the good folks on this message board.

You guys are great. It was so much better going in knowing exactly what to do. The thread by Frugal was awesome help for me. There are others, and videos on you tube. Just want to say thanks everyone.

I have included a pic of my homemade plucker ( which works great) and the finished product.

If anyone wants to know how to make one I'll gladly tell you.

Getting ready for their ice-water soak.

 

[Scoop]

Oh, I'd love for you to tell me how to make that plucker! Does it work good?

 

[kingmt]

Is that vacuum tubing?

 

[Bornacentury2L8]

Quote:
It works great. I hand plucked one to compare and it saved me 12 minutes. Takes a little getting used to. Kept hitting my hand at first. The feathers just peel off..

Quote:
No. its a black rubber bungee strap cut in three inch lengths then split down the middle. Drill 1/4 inch holes in a 4" pvc pipe 6" long. insert bungees and use a thin piece of metal or paper clip to keep the bungee in place.Drill a 3/8 hole in the end cap and use a 12" piece of threaded rod with nuts and washers to hold to end cap. then glue on the end cap. Put in any drill and strap it down to a table, tree, tailgate, whatever. You should stand slightly to the side or you'll get a face full of feathers and water.

My daughter laughed for a while about that one. Its really nice once you get the hang of it. the main drawback is that it's hard to control where all the feathers go, but that's not too bad. I just wet them all with a hose and raked them up. Put a trash can underneath because thats where 95% of the feathers go.

 

[MeatKing]

Very cool, love the plucker! The more I read, the more I think we should be processing our own!

 

[The Chicken People]

I apologize now for asking questions I can research on my own but...how old were they? When I buy chicks for meaties whats the best breed? Do you seperate the Hens and keep them for layers? So many questions..I dont want to buy eggs, chicken, or tomatoes, potatoes etc..next year! We are trying to become more self substaining! I have the land and just gotta get the knowledge! Thanks in advance!

 

[Scoop]

That's a way cool plucker idea! And so simple to make! Thanks!

 

[Bornacentury2L8]

Quote:
Don't worry about asking questions. I have a lot to learn too. These roos weren't meaties . they were chicks I hatched for egg layers and turned out to be roos. They were 6 months old and I didn't want to feed them anymore. And I had to make room for laying hens I picked up on Saturday. I am going to go with the cornishx for meaties. Other folks like others, but I picked them for the fast growth and quick turn on my money (less time feeding them) I don't know if meatie hens will make good layers. Cornish X will probably die before they lay an egg. But others, I don't know. I've heard good things about Colored Rangers for meat, but there are a lot of people on here that can squash me with all they know. I wish you luck with your dream of being self sufficient. It's my dream too. Hopefully when the economy turns around I will be able to get the land to persue the dream. For now I will do what I can. I love my chickens and little vegetable garden.

 

[Bornacentury2L8]

Quote:
Thank you. I may try to make one with a smaller diameter pipe and shorter fingers to see if it is easier to get under the wings and between the legs. But I may just stick with what I have. If it ain't broke don't fix it, Right?

 

[lmcl]

I was thinging of making a chicken plucker out of 1.25 pcv . I have a lot of 1.25 pvc . how big of a hole should I drill in the pvc for the bungee strap to come out . Do you just use the end of the bungee strap or do you cut it all up And how long do cut the bungee strap.