LEM Big Bite #8 Meat Grinder Review
The most daunting task I felt at the time when approaching the mindset of processing my own deer meat was grinding hamburger. Quartering deer, trimming silver, and packaging roasts and steaks aren’t all that hard. Prepping and having the materials for grinding, knowing proper %, and little tricks are what took me the longest when learning DIY how to process a deer.
I started with one of my lifelines…phone a friend! When looking at which meat grinder to buy I didn’t know where to start, so I thought the best was to get 1 year under my belt by using someone else’s. I also learned a great rule…freeze everything and save it for just one grind! My friend brought over the LEM Big Bite #5 grinder and gave me a few pointers…little did I know that the first grind would be a horrible experience.
This was due to 2 reasons, which were not the grinder. The first was not grinding half-frozen meat, it was cold…not half-frozen. This is the biggest mistake first-time grinders can make. The fat from the beef or pork fat mixing in can coagulate quickly, compact, and cause the grinding to stall. Half to just under still completely frozen meat chunks are required to cause friction with the auger and blade and push all the leftover mush/fat from building up on the edges. The more frozen your chunks of meat (not completely hard) the faster and cleaner the grind goes. The second mistake was grinding with a big plate size first, then switching to a smaller plate size second causing the backups!!
This experience led me overall to also want to bump up a size over the .25HP #5 Big Bite Grinder and go with the #8 at .5HP, yet still stay on a budget.
LEM Big Bite Grinder #8
A step up in size in power from our #5 model, the #8 BigBite Grinder’s 0.5 HP motor powers through your grinding sessions, delivering a premium grind in half the time. The perfect size to grind 3-5 deer a year, it has the speed and muscle to tackle large jobs. Ideal for small to medium grinding projects, it’s a significant step up from a basic kitchen meat grinder attachment. Ideal for both occasional and frequent hunters as well as home chefs who regularly process primal cuts into ground meat.
Price: $380-400
Top Features:
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- 0.5 horsepower
- Grinds about 7 lbs. per minute — that’s 420 lbs. per hour!
- Weighs 29 lbs.
- Includes stainless steel knife, head, auger, and large meat pan; stainless steel coarse and fine plates; stuffing plate; 3 stuffing tubes; meat stomper; auger puller
- 5 Year Warranty and lifetime customer support
Why the #8 LEM Big Bite Meat Grinder?
After using the grinder for 2, going on, 3 years now, I can honestly say it’s perfect for 4-6 deer or so a year, and perfect to keep around the house for other projects. I have processed that number of deer each year, and plan to this year as well. I have also run a giant pig through it midway through the year, and even some turkey. It’s nice to go budget and have it around versus always borrowing from a friend.
This grinder has more power than the #8 pushing the half-frozen meat with ease and if done correctly chews through 4-6 deer worth of cubed meat trimmings in no time at all. In about an hour and a half, we had all the deer ground and in packages.
LEM Big Bite #8 Grinder Features
| HP & Wattage | .50 HP |
| Head Size | #8 – Stainless Steel |
| Hole in Head Opening | 2″ |
| Dimensions mm | 470 x 232 x 396 |
| Dimensions inches | 18.5 x 9.13 x 15.59 |
| Weight kgs. | 13 kg |
| Weight lbs | 28.66 lbs |
| Grinds lbs per min | 7 lbs. per min |
| Attachments | 1227, 433TJ, 1733, 1869, 517, 689 |
| Pan Dimensions (mm) | 310 x 232 x 108 |
| Includes | 3 Stainless Steel Plates: 4.5mm, 10mm, & stuffing plate, meat stomper and Stainless Steel Knife |
| Stuffing Tube Sizes | 3 plastic stuffing tubes (1/2″, 1″, and 1 3/8″ OD) |
| Product Cord | Cord length is 6′, use of an extension cord is not recommended. |
| Certifiications | US and Canada ETL and ETL sanitary certified, conforms to UL Standards |
| Country of Origin | China |
| Warranty | 5 Year |
| Other Features | on/off switch with sanitary cover, storage drawer |
PROS:
CONS:
100% Supplying Your Own Meat
Ever since owning the grinder the family and I have strived to supply 100% of our own meat in terms of hamburger and breakfast sausage. This accounts for roughly 2-3 dinners and 3-4 days of breakfast a week. To do this we package 2lbs at a time usually, defrosting for bigger dinners to achieve leftovers with a family of 4. For breakfast sausage this means splitting the 2lbs into 3 days of cooking, always having freshly cooked sausage. On the other days, we still mix a little bit of bacon into the diet since it is the kid’s favorite! The reliability of supplying that meat, and always having it available despite missing the groceries for several days is great! All of it which we have the #8 Big Bite Meat grinder to thank!
Ready to buy? LEM Big Bite #8 Meat Grinders are available at a lot of stores including Sportsman’s Guide, Optics Planet, Scheel’s, and others. These are some of the best deals!
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AUTHOR BIO
Weston Schrank is a hunting industry professional with years of whitetail management and hunting experience in the Midwest. He is currently expanding that experience in the mobile hunting world, and the world of western hunting.
Instagram- @wes.schrank
