The best table top incubator? what are they

[deerman]

Quote:
I have 5 sportman incubator,and 1 sportman hatcher. All were bought used none cost me more than 200.00.(none for sale)

Have had my first one for over 20 years a model 800. still working fine.

Hate to see people paying 100.00 and more for those cheap made styroforms incubator. I had them but never again.

Craiglist, even ebay but you will pay more on ebay.
Look for ones with 3 turning tray with hatching tray.

 

[crazychickenrancher]

Yeh it was a bit much but at the time I had the money and I was using the 2 strofom ones and my hatch rate sucked

But now that I have one Im good ... I also have one really big one that hold about 1200 eggs at a time

but over the winter I dont need one that big.. I really only use that one in the spring!

 

[iajewel]

I have to ask.. What do you do with 1200 chicks a year? You must have a place to go with them?

 

[deerman]

Myself I sale day old chicks, by the hundreds. Pheasants,chicken,and quail 75.00 per hundred.

 

[crazychickenrancher]

I usually sell them at a local auction to pay for the feed bills around here..... But I also soooo enjoy watching chicken hatch

But above all Yes Hello my name is Diana and I am a chick-a-holic

-diana-

 

[Chickies-duckies-etc]

You said you put your foot through your incubator. You can get replacement tops and bottoms for the styrafoam bators. If the heating element and the fan is not ruined, just transfer them to the new top. That would be one good incubator for less than the cost of a new one.

 

[iajewel]

Quote:
It was ruined, I tossed it out probably 5yrs ago. I also thought I was done breeding Orps. My new neighbor had just moved in from the city. They had a hunting type dog and thought now that they lived in the country the thing could run. I had been at the store, the kids at school and when I got home I had birds torn apart and scattered from my driveway, up to the house, all around the house. The dog had ripped up my penns and wipped me out of birds. As you can imagine starting over a long term breeding project was not something I wanted at that point.
I have since shot 3 of thier dogs. Another neighbor shot 2. (why they kept getting more I don't know) Eventually they got the picture. The mayor, me, and one other person even took them tie out chains and collars. To make a long story short. After a court case cost the town of Carbon 500.00 for them charging me with discharging a fire arm with in city limits.. and I won. They had to pay the court costs and they also now have a pen for thier dog.
Now after many years of thier city to country attitude, ( most learn faster) I feel safe if having brids again.
Before Donna my neighbor gave me some laying poults this spring I went down, knocked on thier door and let them know I was getting chickens again. I let the mayor know I was getting chickens again. I was very clear that I would hold the town responsible for any damages if the town failed to maintain the rules on loose dogs. I made it very clear to my neighbors that I had cleaned my gun..
Here it is fall and every single bird is still doing great. Im baking my neighbors and their son's family a nice loaf of bread and taking them some freash eggs for Thanksgiving. Im sooo proud of them.. I know it had to be hard.

The birds I lost were all blue Orps with a few blacks and a second flock of buffs. All show birds. Im going to do my best to replace them now that I had a dry run with mutt birds.
Anyway.. need new incubator.. time for a new beginning.

 

[ninny]

If you decided to get the sportsman you could always buy eggs then sell the chicks. Im thinking of doing that i have several places to sell at. That should bring in a income to cover any cost of raising your show birds.

 

[sara]

Quote:
That's great that you have so many sportsmans. However for the vast majority of people on this board having an incubator that hatches hundreds of eggs at a time is of little to no use. This thread asked for tabletop incubators, not large units. I myself at some point would like a cabinet incubator, but for most an incubator that can hatch 40ish eggs (like the Hovabator which is made by the company that makes the sportsman) is more than enough. This isn't meant to be rude, but I think it slightly silly to encourage people to buy huge incubators for no reason other than it isn't styrafoam.

 

[iajewel]

Quote:
I don't have any place to sell at. I live 8 miles from the nearest small town that doesn't have a stop light, its that small. I live 26 miles one way from the nearst real groshery or Wall-Mart. 2 hours from the nearst city.

Im 26 miles from the nearst farm store like Orshlins, or tractor supply.

My point is what I don't sell via mail order, I won't sell. The stores want hatchery eggs and they have used Welps for so many years they won't change. Locals have a hard time selling in the "Exchange" our local free paper.

I pretty much have to eat or use what I create. OR have to have such outstanding birds that people would want them. That takes years to build a reputation. Im just starting over.

We will see how it goes.. Im still thinking about a sportsman.. but just don't know about the space, or all that empty room in it.