You don't want much, do you? I'm not picking on you. To be honest a whole lot of people on this forum want the same thing.
That leaves out the Cornish Cross. While they are hybrids and won't breed true that isn't the big problem. If you could breed them even their poorer offspring would still make tremendous meat birds. It's just too hard to keep them alive and healthy enough to breed and lay eggs. The Rangers are somewhat in the same boat. They may be a bit easier but easier does not mean easy. They would still be a big challenge to breed.
Some people have used CX or Rangers to cross with a dual purpose chicken to create their own line of meat birds, usually hens of one of these with a dual purpose rooster. You only need to keep the hens alive long enough to get some eggs to hatch so you have your breeding stock. These will not breed true in the first generations but it doesn't take that many generations of selective breeding before you consistently get pretty good birds. There are some good threads on this forum detailing how some people have approached that.
There is a common fallacy on this forum that some people believe all birds of a specific breed have exactly the same traits. That is not even close to true. If a specific breeder breeds for good egg laying flock they can have a strain of that breed that lays really well. If a different breeder breeds the same breed for meat qualities they can develop a strain of the same breed that might not lay really well but makes a good meat bird. That's why I hesitate to mention breeds but Ilike posts like
@BrennaM 's because it is talking about strains.
Different people like different qualities in a meat bird. You mentioned fast grower. That is a real common trait we like. What age do you plan to butcher them? One person in here likes to butcher at 14 weeks so that is his fast grower target. I like butchering later, say 23 weeks, so that's more my target. Some people like the big breeds like Brahma or Jersey Giants, but those are slow maturing. You are probably talking months instead of weeks for them. A lot of that is how we cook them, different ages can require different cooking methods.
Are you buying all the feed they eat or will you grow most of it or rely on forage? If you are buying it then early maturing might be more important for feed costs than otherwise.
How many do you want to hatch a year, whether you eat all of them or sell some? Is this just for your table or are you planning on going commercial? How important is this to you? Is it worth a big commitment from you or is it more casual?
The better your starting stock the better your flock will be. But you have to select your own breeding stock to maintain top quality. Getting good birds to start with is only part of the process.
Do you pluck your birds or do you skin them? If you skin them it doesn't matter, but you get a prettier carcass when you pluck if you start with a white or buff bird. The darker pin feathers left behind are really noticeable on a plucked bird. Would that bother you?
Back in the mid 1900's before the Cornish X took over the meat bird market in the US the most popular meat market breeds were Delaware, New Hampshire, and certain strains of the White Rock. When the CX took over the hatcheries stopped breeding specifically these for meat bird traits so these days most hatchery birds of these breeds aren't any better for meat than many other dual purpose breeds. If you can find a breeder that knows what they are doing and is breeding for meat traits you can get some good initial stock. Many breeders breeding for show have good sized stock. But you will pay a price for these, they don't sell them at hatchery prices.
If your only goals were a lot of cheap meat, you can't beat the Cornish X even with buying the chicks. You can probably buy the meat at the store cheaper than you can raise it, especially if you put a price on your time. Some people go that route. Many of us have different goals and prefer to go another way.
I obviously cannot come close to telling you which might be best for you. I've probably added stuff that makes it sound more complicated than it has to be. My suggestion is to read threads on here, ask any questions that come up, and then try something. I know you want to avoid the trial and error, that's why you ask questions. But the only way to really know what is important to you is to experience it. Some things I thought important to me weren't really. Some things I never thought of were.
in a perfect world, I would like something as close to the CX as I can get but that can live long enough to breed and is healthier than the CX. I’d like to butcher as soon as possible, ideally around 12 or so weeks. I will be buying their feed but they can forage as well, I raise my roosters in an over grown pasture. Their area is 100x100 surrounded with electric netting.
Spirit
Friend
