Processing your own deer

We purchased a home and hope to be in within a month or so and I finally have a garage where I have room to cut up my own deer and would like to start doing so....ive never done it before and was wondering if any of you guys who do had some insight tips or tutorials that would help me out

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I am not a licensed butcher, by no means listen to what I say:

We have done our own for years now.

(1) Hang the deer in the garage. If you are just using a rope or some pull systems, we have found attaching it to a vice makes things easy.
(2) Skin the deer. (If it is getting mounted leave plenty of hide and take your time not to put holes in the hide.)
(3) Remove limbs that are not needed.
(4) Remove tenderloins.
(5) Remove backstraps.
(6) Our next move is to debone everything else. We keep a couple roasts, but mostly everything else is turned into hamburger, sausage, etc.
(7) We do not make our own hamburger or sausage, etc. We put all of the meat in clear plastic totes in the freezer and wait until the deer season is over to get our stuff made. By doing this our meat is not mixed with everyone elses. It does not cost a lot of money to go about it like this. Very reasonable prices.
(8) Our process takes 60 min to 90 min with two people. I promise you it is not that hard. Make sure your knives are sharp, don't worry about expensive knives, just make sure they are sharp.

 

Youtube is your friend here bud. I would just sit down and waste a couple hours of your day and watch as many videos as you can on how to process a deer. It really is not hard, and once you do it, you will wonder why you have not always done it yourself!

I could give you a bunch of tips, but you will learn them yourself once you start your own processing!

Once you learn the "cut lines" I have found it makes it easier to debone the rear quarters while the deer is still hanging, gravity helps you with your cuts. I hang from hind legs and not the neck.

Sharp Knife, A good Meat/bone Saw(once you get the hang of it you really wont even need a saw), and get the widest spread gambrel you can find(trust me it makes life much easier)

Chill the Backstrap in the freezer for an hour or so just to "firm" them up before you start cleaning/cutting them up, it will also make it easier!

Vacuum sealer is worth its weight in gold!

Go slow at first and try to keep the meat clean, after a few deer your process time will speed up.

Gd Luck

 

this is about the way my grandpa does it.

 

People are going to love me linking this old Rancid Crabtree thread, but I think this could be useful.

http://forums.bowhunting.com/bowhunting-talk/15948-deer-processing-pictorial.html

 

This guy is right on IMO
Deer Hunting: Field Dressing and Quartering - YouTube

he has other videos check him out.

 

always put hunks of bacon in the burger!!!

 

that was really helpful

 

well done,very informative. The cost to get one processed around here is 85-110$ or so depending on what u get

 

I ordered the big game processing video from Bass Pro last season, its really helpfull. I did all my own butchering and processing, its not that hard if all you really want is hamburger meat, sausage and jerky. All it takes is a good meat grinder. I always mix really fatty bacon with all the meat i grind gives a better taste to me. The video goes into how to cut the steaks, roasts, and backstraps up. Youtube has really good video's as well. With doing all the butchering myself I feel more accomplished since i litterally did everything myself.

 

Nothing fancy here, looks don't change the taste to me. I skin it in a tree in my yard, cut the back straps off, quarter then debone it. I usually freeze it in about two pound roast size chunks except for the ribs which grill. When I take it out of the freezer for dinner, I then decide if it will be steaks, burger stew meat, jerky etc. Wife got me a vacuum sealer a few years ago. Pretty quick process. If I am short on time, I'll quarter it and put it on ice in a big cooler and get to it as soon as I get a chance. Save your money for hunting equipment. Also, you know it's your deer when you are eating it. Good luck.

 

The pictorial posted earlier really helps and is very informative

 

Only tip I have that I haven't seen posted is .... let the deer hang long enough for rigor to leave before you process it . The steaks and roasts will be a lot more tender .

 

I did mine up until back surgery #2. Now it's too hard for me to hang them, skin them, etc. They go straight to a processor I trust. They do good work.

But learning to do it yourself not only saves money, it allows you to make cuts exactly how you want. I have had processors here cut the backstraps and tenderloins on a bandsaw while still on the spine. So you get bone all through the meat. That was the biggest reason I learned to do my own. I might try again this year, my back has been pretty good (knock on wood).

 

Fantastic info guys appreciate it....cant wait to finally have meat cut the way I want it and like some said...know for sure its MY deer im eating

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I didn't see anyone mention the golf ball trick to skin a deer. Check out the link to see how to do it step by step:

LiveLeak.com - Skinning A Deer with a Golf Ball and Pickup Truck

The kid in the video says to "cut off the hooves" first; but you don't have to do that. Just cut through the skin all the way around appx. 3-4" above each hoof, so that when it's done it will look like the carcass is wearing socks.

Also, I usually do it with the deer still hanging rather than on the ground on a tarp, but thats just b/c it's easier to begin butchering them that way. Your choice.

 

I agree with the youtube way. Thats how I learned some great tips on getting the job done