Motor size for grinder

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craddock

Fire Starter
Original poster
Nov 15, 2013
36
10
Chippewa Falls, WI
I have used the search and found several threads but I have a question.

I am motorizing an Enterprize or Chop-rite grinder. For now it will be a #22. I currently have a #8 LEM 1/3 hp and in the past I had a Cabela's #8 that was 1/2 hp but was stolen. LEM has increased the hp on the #8 to 1/2 I believe. Now the Cabela's was a beast. They only bottleneck was the small throat size. The LEM is weak. I getting venison and I don't buy into the logic that silver skin makes for gamey taste one bit. Because of this I like to grind partially frozen. The LEM will trip the breaker when I try to load it to hard. It is very frustrating and I feel like I am going to break it. So with that said here is my question.
I have seen threads on converting a manual grinder with variously size motors. One person on here actually used a 1/8hp?!?! What? Plenty of others have used a 1/3 HP. Ideally I would be looking for a 1/2 or 3/4 but there is a 1/3 HP 1720rpm that I can get locally for probably $10-15. Is my LEM overrated? I know how silly shop vac ratings are and even see amplifier ratings. Will a stand alone 1/3 HP motor with proper reduction outperform my weak LEM? The sausage supply store recommended 175-225 rpm but I have read on here 80 to avoid smearing the meat. I really am just looking for info on hp rating and if people think a stand alone 1/3 is better than my POS LEM.

Thank You
 
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I bought a Cabela's 1 hp electric grinder brand new, getting a deal at Christmas time on it and never looked back, I have since given it to my sons to share because of my failing health, and it will last them for years to come. It has a #22 throat and can grind up anything you want with it's 1 hp motor, well worth everything I paid for it! And' it has all the safety guards built into it automatically. I've seen hands sucked into grinders (I was a professional meat cutter for over 40 years) and your fingers are worth much, much more than the "do-it-yourself" manual-to-electric conversion units out there)! For a few hundred $, do your hands and your family a favor and be a professional and get the professional equipment to do the job right the first time, instead of making a tragic error! The investment in quality equipment is always the right choice!



These are what I bought and they did the job just fine, and safely!
 
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