I'm looking for a good vacuum sealer for meats and other food items. Can any of you hunters tell me the pros and cons of various makes and models?

Thanks in advance.

We have had this one.

https://www.amazon.com/VS-02-Vacuum-Sealing-System-Starter/dp/B00IUAK39A/ref=sr_1_8?dchild=1&keywords=NESCO+food+sealer&qid=1595982263&sr=8-8

For at least 5 years now.  We buy bulk meat packs, separate into meal sizes, vacuum seal and freeze.

It works just fine.  

We also use it to seal smoked cheese.   After you smoke cheese, you have to seal it for 2 weeks or it's bitter.  The vacuum sealing lets the smoke migrate to the inside of the cheese.

We seal apples slices when the apples come in.  They spend like 8 hours on the dehydrator and then get sealed.

We seal corn we cut off the cob and freeze it.  We had a bag of Silver queen tonight for dinner.  We had sealed it last fall.

It gets a LOT of use.  

You have to pat the grease off of chicken otherwise you'll get these rivulets that suck up to the sealing area and prevent a seal.  Some juicy red meats will do it too.  You can also just put it in a bigger bag, but the bags cost money.

No matter what you get, you'll appreciate when your 6 month old tenderloin that you bought on sale isn't frost burnt at all!

I had a food saver brand one but it did not last that long. I bought a commercial grade one a while ago. Its the same one my deer butcher in NJ uses. Expensive but worth it, I use it allot. 

 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001GP81R2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_EHmiFbM0EHBYN

Soo  food saver. But I get the rolls. Preseal I do a single. When vacuum sealing I’ll seal, re seal, and seal again. @Displaced Texan and I have a conversation bout this. But he can’t Cook like me sooo there’s that

I have a Weston Pro-1100. I'm less than impressed.

Just a couple of weeks after the warranty expired it stopped sealing. Had to have it shipped to the manf. to fix.

Later the locking mechanism on one one the sides broke. I'm not shipping it back, So I just hold it down until it vacuums and seals. I won't be replacing it with the same brand.

https://www.sportsmans.com/outdoor-cooking-grills-supplies-accessories/food-processing/vacuum-sealers-food-storages/weston-pro-1100-stainless-steel-vacuum-sealer-with-roll-cutter/p/1441173

6 minutes ago, Zeke said:

Soo  food saver. But I get the rolls. Preseal I do a single. When vacuum sealing I’ll seal, re seal, and seal again. @Displaced Texan and I have a conversation bout this. But he can’t Cook like me sooo there’s that

There’s help for people who cook like you...https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/worst-cooks-in-america

 

And to add value to this thread, I use a FoodSaver. I’ve had it for about 15 years and it still works perfectly. Bought it at Costco. 

We buy bulk meats and break them down (I just did a whole beef tenderloin last weekend). We seal and freeze meals too. 
It gets a lot of duty around my house. 

Thanks guys. You've given me a good starting point. Fishnut that unit looks awesome but the wife will never go for it, wants to keep cost under $150.

I can't resist chiming in here!  I have had many food sealer machines and they all disappointed me for one reason or another. Until I got this one! https://www.amazon.com/FoodSaver-V4440-Automatic-Detection-Certified/dp/B00DI342B4/ref=asc_df_B00DI342B4/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167141308073&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2179284432521501983&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003841&hvtargid=pla-275795423738&psc=1

I have used this most everyday for about 10 years now and I use for all types of food and sealing my ammo as well!

Don't even think twice about this one!  Buy rolls of the material  in 8 inch and 11 inch by 50 feet on amazon and cut to the length you need!

You will NEVER regret this purchase!

7 hours ago, JohnnyB said:

I can't resist chiming in here!  I have had many food sealer machines and they all disappointed me for one reason or another. Until I got this one! https://www.amazon.com/FoodSaver-V4440-Automatic-Detection-Certified/dp/B00DI342B4/ref=asc_df_B00DI342B4/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167141308073&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=2179284432521501983&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003841&hvtargid=pla-275795423738&psc=1

I have used this most everyday for about 10 years now and I use for all types of food and sealing my ammo as well!

Don't even think twice about this one!  Buy rolls of the material  in 8 inch and 11 inch by 50 feet on amazon and cut to the length you need!

You will NEVER regret this purchase!

That’s the same one I have. 

FoodSaver guy here for many years.  Bought my first one a dozen years ago and it lasted for 10+ years.  One #2 now.  Still love it.  Bed Bath & Beyond with 20% off coupon.  Order refills online.  It's cheaper that way.

food saver mine is 20 years old. 

My Food Saver is also at least 20 years old.

Thanks guys that one is in our (my) target price range. Hard to argue with that many positive reviews.

In March we purchased one from Costco. I think it is a FoodSaver. It has worked very well. In addition to preserving food (eg frozen meats) longer, we find that it makes more efficient use of the space in our freezer.

On 7/31/2020 at 7:57 AM, oldguysrule649 said:

In March we purchased one from Costco. I think it is a FoodSaver. It has worked very well. In addition to preserving food (eg frozen meats) longer, we find that it makes more efficient use of the space in our freezer.

Was in Costco in Hazlet on the weekend and they have Foodsavers on sale. This is not the exact model I purchased earlier this year but I assume it functions the same. Plus it is on sale as are the refill boxes.