Northern Industrial #12 Electric Meat Grinder Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)My husband and I have been using electric grinders to make our cats' food since 1998 (used hand grinders prior to that). We have both the Tasin and this NT grinder.
I received the Tasin as a gift but needed another one b/c we were in the process of a cross-country move and we each needed a grinder as he had 2 of our cats, and I had the other 2 w/ me. I am so glad I checked amazon first before shelling out 2x as much for another Tasin. Reason being - they are practically if not actually, one and the same.
The wattage is the only thing that on paper is slightly higher on the Tasin, but it's the wattage *during* grinding that is the important factor. And the grinding speed seems the same to me. We use the reverse button a lot on both grinders; it's a handy feature our old Villaware grinder did not have.
If I had to do it over, which one would I buy? - NT b/c a) It's more readily available i.e from amazon than from some unknown person on the internet, and b) I'd rather pay less, so the winner again is NT from Amazon. FWIW, I paid $129 for my NT purchased from amazon (what can I say, I was in a rush and couldn't wait for a price decrease), but at the time Tasin cost way more than I see it selling for now ($150-200) so it was still a better deal.
At the price the NT's selling for nowadays ($90-100) on amazon, it's a no-brainer. My husband and I grind around 25lbs of meat at a time. It takes us about 1.5 hrs from set-up time till loading up the dishwasher. This grinder actually seems to do better w/ bones than just meat. I'd suggest alternating supplements and meat, as well as alternate veggies (if you use any) and meat when feeding through the grinder chute. Thaw the veggies a little first as I have found it makes it easier to grind, but meat is easier to grind when it's semi-frozen.
We typically grind whole chicken fryers and whole rabbits for our cats. Only recently did we try turkey. I was skeptical about the turkey but hubby cut the longer heavier bones (e.g. leg) length-wise and grinding was a breeze. We were able to grind almost an entire 14lb turkey. Very cool.
When in doubt, mash bones up first, and you'll have no problems. So far, I'm happy w/ both the Tasin and NT grinders. I've had both for about 3 yrs now.
The only complaint I have w/ both grinders is that after the very first wash, the metal turned into a dark ugly color. Also the small parts such as the grinding plate tend to rust more easily than my old Villaware, so that's the reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5. Seems to me quality issues pop up for most appliances these days:(
Oh another thing - don't be fooled by the bigger-seeming intake chutes on this grinder (and the Tasin) than say the older Villaware b/c you'll still need to chop up the meat into smallish pieces to fit 'em into the chute. There's no getting around that unless you buy a huge $2,000 restaurant-style grinder that weighs a ton.
Hope this review helps:)

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