quality vacuum packers? Anyone got one?

[Dan9113]

I am looking at getting a better vacuum packer. I want a good one that you don't have to worry about liquids, overheating from overuse, etc.

Im sure someone here must have some experience. I am tired of buying a $200 unit every couple three years.

Dan

[Jennie@ifish]

Do a search on them on ifish about 2 or 3 years back.
Jerry Dove, I think... bought a professional one and has absolutely had a great time of it.

You should talk to him about it?

Jen

[OceanBlue]

Hoggemin has one.

[Popeye]

I have a commercial unit, and ABSOLUTELY love it. $1,300.00 though
Actually I just bought another for the ranch. Got mine from Cabelas

[Net fun]

Dan,
I don't have one, but I just saw a pro vac Food Saver that goes on sale at Englunds Fri - Sat. 10% off $255, I believe. This is a new model this year I was told.
Englunds has a lot of neat stuff in their sale. They were getting ready for it today.
Russ

[Onokai]

I have a vacmaster by Ary which is made in usa.Cabelas used to carry them was 399 or 499??? now they have a new one that looks good for 399$ a CG-15. The food saver stuff is well crap. quality bags for reasonable prices is the question I have now. Good luck.Mark

[Silver One]

Dan, As stated above you can choose from many good units. As you observed, paying good money isn't the problem, paying good money for a product that has a short life is. In addition I had a problem with the bags, they're expensive and the material they're made from is more brittle (my guess) than the bags used by the commercial units. Also, they are 3.5 mils whereas you can buy 4 mil bags for the commercial units. I finally concluded that the bags sold by the manufacturer you mentioned being more brittle? thinner? developed holes where creased while jostling items in the freezer at below zero temperatures. I started playing with the commercial bags to see if I could achieve a vac pac and seal and stumbled on the method I use today. I cut a small two inch square piece of the old embosed bag material and sandwhich this between the two layers of new bag material and start the vac process. I had the old foodsaver which I could adjust the temp setting with whereas the newer units are preset (so I'm told), anyway, it takes more heat because you're melting the additional square. In my estimation it's worth it because I bought a 1000 bag box of 4 mil, 8 X 10 bags for 79 bucks (available at a meat processing supply shop in Clackamas). Compare that to any price you can get from costco for the aformentioned product. Also I bought some bigger bags 10 X 24 for our trip to Canada which requires whole filleted fish for size / identity for about 20 cents a bag. Last winter I bought the Ary SVP 5 packer because it's chamber allowed me to vac the bag using the little square I mentioned but seal the bag without going through the extra square thickness. If you don't mind the little extra playing around this will save you money and offer a better quality product IMO. Course you still need the little squares........Mike

[slowbuilder2005]

I am looking at getting a better vacuum packer. I want a good one that you don't have to worry about liquids, overheating from overuse, etc.

Im sure someone here must have some experience. I am tired of buying a $200 unit every couple three years.

Dan

Here: http://kodiakhealth.com/catalog/default.php/cPath/50_71

They have good prices and the unit ships from Idaho so the shipping is cheap. I got the Magic Vac Maxima and love it. Kodiak sold it to me for about $100 less than what other places wanted. Definitely a quality machine. Nice deep drip tray to catch the spare liquid that sometimes gets sucked into it and the vacuum uptake is far ABOVE the bag, so drips don't get to the vacuum pump (the best way to kill a vacuum packer). The Maxima has an adjustable sealer (0 to 10) that seals VacuSeal (or anybody's) bags on a setting of about 2 or 3 ...it'll be a looong time before turning it up a bit more won't make up for an aging sealer. The machine also has dual pumps and operates quicker than most. The inches of mercury that it draws is around 29" ...same as a commercial packer. No more loose bags! And it works for any channel bag, from any manufacturer (cheap or not).

In any case, no affiliation, just a happy customer. I did quite a bit of research on packers before buying this one and the people I met that owned them raved about them ...most had them for lots of years and they still worked like new (like over 10 years old and going strong.)

Brian

PS: The SVP-5 is the Maxima but with built-in cooling system instead of just being convective. Mine will not overheat though ...I just rapid-packed about 15 bags of tuna this weekend and it wasn't even warm (wife helped). Note that Flaum Nouva from Italy builds the Magic Vac ...the original company that used to make VacuSeal (?) before they got cheap and started building units in China ...completely new design that's nowhere near as robust. Magic Vac units are heavy and solid feeling, work well and last.