Chicken plucker

[dun]

My chicken plucker is the same as my gate opener.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

My chicken plucker is the same as my gate opener.

:lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

 

[skyhightree1]

My chicken plucker is the same as my gate opener.

Are both functions automatic or do you have to get a switch :lol2:

 

[dun]

Automatic, no modifications required

 

[skyhightree1]

Automatic, no modifications required

:lol:

 

[backhoeboogie]

I've been doing some web searches as well. Buddy and I bought around 30 that we will need to butcher in a couple of weeks. I'm leaning towards just skinning them as I've not been able to find anybody with a plucker I can borrow.

Skinning them is what I did. I put up 3 roosters on Friday. 4 more to go out of the other chicken tractor. They'll be RIR and they are not quite big enough yet. That will leave one rooster in each chicken tractor with 8 hens in each. Just not enough to rationalize building a plucker.

The pluckers I have seen used get the bulk of the feathers off. Cleanly too. But you still have to do the fine finish. Maybe they have improved. Dad never bought one back when I had to do a hundred and fifty or so each year.

 

[M.Magis]

I was concered about pin feathers, but other than a few straglers under the wings, the birds were as clean as could be.
I appologize again for not getting pics. I had a bit of a calving emergency this weekend that took up most of my "free" time. Got Cub Scouts tonight, but I'll get it pulled out soon.

 

[skyhightree1]

I don't want to skin them that's the best part lol

M.Magis...Hey no problem take your time and post when you can.

 

[True Grit Farms]

I don't want to skin them that's the best part lol

The best part is also the worst for you. About like everything we eat the better is taste the worse it is for you.

I like the PIC deal but there needs to be 2 pieces and they need to turn towards each other. Then the feathers would be collected in the bottom of the box or barrel.

 

[skyhightree1]

I don't want to skin them that's the best part lol

The best part is also the worst for you. About like everything we eat the better is taste the worse it is for you.

I like the PIC deal but there needs to be 2 pieces and they need to turn towards each other. Then the feathers would be collected in the bottom of the box or barrel.

True if it taste good its bad for you... Yea I like that idea

 

[M.Magis]

I finally managed to get this thing drug out. It was buried in the shed, and the bantams took that shed over as their roost so it was covered in crap. Here's a few shots I took while cleaning it. it's pretty basic. The motor is attached to a pulley/belt that the bottom is attached to. The drum doesn't move, only the bottom. The biggest mistake I made is that I don't have nearly enough fingers in the bottom. The birds fall in between them and then that jams the whole thing. There needs to be enough fingers on the bottom to completely support the bird, so they hold it up and lets it bounce off of the outer fingers which remove the fingers.
We still made it work, we just weren't able to drop the bird in. We had to hold them by the feet and work the feathers off. Still took less than 30 seconds, but if it had worked as planned we could have done 2 at a time. holding them also resulted in some torn skin around the wings, but part of than may have been scalding them too long. Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[skyhightree1]

M.MAGIS Thanks for the pics and time you spend taking them looks great. When are you putting it to use?

 

[M.Magis]

Not sure, I built it for a batch last summer but haven't made plans for another batch yet. I'm thinking I'll do a batch this fall, but I need to figure out another place to raise them. And to be honest, it wasn't cheap. After food and the chicks, I had $9/bird in them. That's expensive chicken.

 

[skyhightree1]

Not sure, I built it for a batch last summer but haven't made plans for another batch yet. I'm thinking I'll do a batch this fall, but I need to figure out another place to raise them. And to be honest, it wasn't cheap. After food and the chicks, I had $9/bird in them. That's expensive chicken.

That's true I was hoping after about a month I could put them on brewers grain and feed them out. The feed is 14 bucks a bag here for chicks. What breed did you raise?

 

[M.Magis]

I went with the regular Cornish/rock broilers. At the time I needed them done in certain period of time. Maybe I'll try something different next time, but the regular broilers are certainly fast. But they're not suited to anything other than sitting in a pen and eating/sleeping/crapping. Sometimes all at once.
I would find them all the time laid out on their bellys sleeping, face buried in the feed and crap coming out the back.

 

[skyhightree1]

I went with the regular Cornish/rock broilers. At the time I needed them done in certain period of time. Maybe I'll try something different next time, but the regular broilers are certainly fast. But they're not suited to anything other than sitting in a pen and eating/sleeping/crapping. Sometimes all at once.
I would find them all the time laid out on their bellys sleeping, face buried in the feed and crap coming out the back.

:lol2: I think im going to try red rangers I think that's the name they look meaty

 

[dun]

:lol2: I think im going to try red rangers I think that's the name they look meaty

Being meaty isn;t the end all. Rapid feed conversion so you don;t have to dump as many dollars into feed to get them to butcher size is the key. That's where the cornish/white rock crosses shine. Of course, that's also why chicken has no flavor. The white color is also an advantage when plucking them, the few tiny pin feathers don;t show.

 

[skyhightree1]

:lol2: I think im going to try red rangers I think that's the name they look meaty

Being meaty isn;t the end all. Rapid feed conversion so you don;t have to dump as many dollars into feed to get them to butcher size is the key. That's where the cornish/white rock crosses shine. Of course, that's also why chicken has no flavor. The white color is also an advantage when plucking them, the few tiny pin feathers don;t show.

Gotcha is this the ones you all are talking about?

https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/jumbo_ ... rocks.html

This is the most remarkable meat producing bird we have ever seen. Special matings produce chicks with broad breasts, big thighs, white plumage, and yellow skin. The rapid growth of these chicks is fantastic and the feed efficiency remarkable. Whether you get these Cornish X Rock chicks for your own pleasure or to raise and sell, you can't do better. If you want to raise capons, buy males and have them caponized at 2 or 3 weeks of age. Females have a fine smooth finish when dressed and reach beautiful roasting size. Buying straight run chicks gives you some of each sex so that you can take advantage of the strong points both ways. We think our Cornish X Rock chicks are among the finest meat birds in America. We should know. We fill our family freezers with them every year! Males will dress from 3 to 4 pounds in six to eight weeks and females will take about one and one-half weeks longer to reach the same size. Please Note: These birds are not recommended for raising at altitudes above 5000 feet.

Please Note: Jumbo Cornish X Rocks are hybrids. Therefore we do not recommend breeding, they will not produce the same high quality in the next generation and due to the extreme rate of growth they will be too large at time of sexual maturity to breed successfully.

 

[slick4591]

Red Rangers will take a couple of weeks longer to finish compared to the Cornish X.

 

[dun]

Don;t know about the jumbo part unless it's just sales hype. Cornish/white rock crosses have been the standard of the industry for years.
Staright cornish are really meaty but don;t grow nearly as well or fast as the crosses.