Time to process an elk?

[zion zig zag]

Last fall my wife and I decided we would start processing our own animals. We’ve done 2 elk and 1 deer so far. Our first elk was a decent sized bull that yielded a little over 200 pounds of meat cut and wrapped, not including bones we kept for making stock. That took us the better part of two days. Yesterday we processed a cow elk that took 12 hours. Included in that time is cutting, wrapping, grinding as well as me cleaning game bags and coolers. What is a reasonable time for two people to process an elk? How much faster will we get with experience?

 

[Dos Perros]

I figure 24 man*hours on a bull elk. I wish I could say I’m getting faster but that doesn’t seem to be the case. The greatest aid in speed is a sharp knife, IMO.

 

[Conrad101st]

I used to do my own elk processing but have come to the conclusion the most cost effective thing is to bone out the elk to get it off the mountain, then take the meat to the local butcher for processing. Keep the back straps and let them cut the roasts and grind the burger.

Why spend a whole day messing with it when we can pay a pro to cut and wrap it for a couple hours of wages.

 

[spike camp]

I used to do my own elk processing but have come to the conclusion the most cost effective thing is to bone out the elk to get it off the mountain, then take the meat to the local butcher for processing. Keep the back straps and let them cut the roasts and grind the burger.

Why spend a whole day messing with it when we can pay a pro to cut and wrap it for a couple hours of wages.

I don’t like using a butcher because there is about a 99% chance another animals meat gets mixed in, however much or little it may be.

Additionally, in areas where CWD is prevalent, there is a high likelihood of getting infectious prions back in/on your meat.

The level of quality and care one takes with processing their own will never be what a butcher can provide and for me, there is a huge sense of pride with each package I place in my chest freezer.

 

[JohnB]

It's about the same for me but I'm a noob that probably cares too much about what I'm doing.

 

[go_deep]

A deboned elk from start to finish by myself takes me 8 hours. 4 hours if my 2 kids help, but as they get older they're speeding up some.

 

[ahlgringo]

I am interested in you guys that are getting it done in one sitting (one day). I have always processed (cleaned, trimmed, and separated) and then let it sit for a day or 2 in the fridge in metal pans with the mesh racks frequently rotating in order to drain. I then wrap roasts, cut and wrap the straps and grind the burger.

Do you not drain? I usually get about a half gallon or more of "blood water" as runoff.

 

[go_deep]

I am interested in you guys that are getting it done in one sitting (one day). I have always processed (cleaned, trimmed, and separated) and then let it sit for a day or 2 in the fridge in metal pans with the mesh racks frequently rotating in order to drain. I then wrap roasts, cut and wrap the straps and grind the burger.

Do you not drain? I usually get about a half gallon or more of "blood water" as runoff.

I generally hang my meat for anything from 3-7 days and don't get bleed out during processing.
When I hang meat its deboned, and the meat groups are semi-seperated which allows it to drain and bleed out.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Its all fun and games till a processor gives you back 90lbs of rank burger you feed to the dogs.
Id say 6-9 hrs.
Multiple people and a good grinder go along way.
My old grinder it took about 7 hrs just to double grind 40lbs.
The new grinder was about 42 minutes

 

[Customweld]

It takes me cutting and my wife wrapping roughly 8 hours for an elk. I’ve got a walk in cooler in my shop, so I can do it at my leisure. We usually wait until the last season is over before we grind and make sausage and burger. It is something that I actually enjoy. Put some tunes on and drink a couple of beers while we work through it.

 

[mtnlomo]

I personally will never take my wild game to a butcher, I enjoy the process and work it is to break down and process my deer and elk. Take your time, make sure every little piece even for burger is free of fascia, dirt, hair and blood shot. It takes a long time, about a full day for two people, likely more, but the results are absolutely worth it.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

For an elk I spend around 18 hours (working alone) broken up over 2-3 days. The best thing I've done to speed up the process is to buy a good grinder. I limped along for years with a Kitchenaid grinder attachment before upgrading to a 1.5 hp Meat Your Maker grinder this year. It wasn't cheap, but it's a huge improvement and shaves hours off my total processing time.

 

[Laramie]

My wife and I can process, wrap, and freeze aN elk in about 6 hours from boned out quarters. If starting with a skin on hanging carcass, it takes about 8 hours. I do most of the trimming & cutting work while she goes over everything pulling hair and fine trimming as needed. We wrap together. I wrap in plastic and pad to get for freezer paper and labeling.

I would never use a processor unless I had no other options. There is a drastic difference in quality of meat imo.

 

[KoolBreeze]

I don’t like using a butcher because there is about a 99% chance another animals meat gets mixed in, however much or little it may be.

Additionally, in areas where CWD is prevalent, there is a high likelihood of getting infectious prions back in/on your meat.

The level of quality and care one takes with processing their own will never be what a butcher can provide and for me, there is a huge sense of pride with each package I place in my chest freezer.

CWD is the very reason I started processing my own deer again. The problem I run into though is that it takes 14 days or so to get the test results back and by that time I've already had to process the meat. The only facility I have for doing so is my kitchen, which is less than idea. If you test for CWD, do you process the meat before you know the results and what precautions do you take?

It generally takes me a total of 6 to 8 hours to process a whitetail deer. I'm sure that's kind of slow. Certainly couldn't make a living doing it.

 

[Indian Summer]

If it’s taking awhile you’re doing it right! I bet when you eat it you’re happy with every bite.

 

[Customweld]

CWD is the very reason I started processing my own deer again. The problem I run into though is that it takes 14 days or so to get the test results back and by that time I've already had to process the meat. The only facility I have for doing so is my kitchen, which is less than idea. If you test for CWD, do you process the meat before you know the results and what precautions do you take?

It generally takes me a total of 6 to 8 hours to process a whitetail deer. I'm sure that's kind of slow. Certainly couldn't make a living doing it.

CWD just showed up in Idaho, ironically in the same drainage that I hunted whitetail in this year. I ended up shooting a buck in there, the same day that IFG declared that they had 2 positive hits. I turned my samples in and it took just a hair under 3 weeks for the results to come back. In the meantime, o just butchered like I normally would and set everything aside in the freezer until I got the results back.

 

[Tmac]

CWD is the very reason I started processing my own deer again. The problem I run into though is that it takes 14 days or so to get the test results back and by that time I've already had to process the meat. The only facility I have for doing so is my kitchen, which is less than idea. If you test for CWD, do you process the meat before you know the results and what precautions do you take?

It generally takes me a total of 6 to 8 hours to process a whitetail deer. I'm sure that's kind of slow. Certainly couldn't make a living doing it.

For our MT deer, in a CWD area, we bone it and freeze it. Wait for the test result and if clear thaw & process it later and re freeze. Works fine.

 

[spike camp]

For our MT deer, in a CWD area, we bone it and freeze it. Wait for the test result and if clear thaw & process it later and re freeze. Works fine.

CWD is the very reason I started processing my own deer again. The problem I run into though is that it takes 14 days or so to get the test results back and by that time I've already had to process the meat. The only facility I have for doing so is my kitchen, which is less than idea. If you test for CWD, do you process the meat before you know the results and what precautions do you take?

It generally takes me a total of 6 to 8 hours to process a whitetail deer. I'm sure that's kind of slow. Certainly couldn't make a living doing it.

We’ve done as Tmac has outlined many times.

Unfortunately, we get 2-3 out of 5 positive every year now..so even minimally processing isn’t minimal enough for comfort.

If you have the space, you can build a 6x6x8 walk in cooler with a wall AC unit and a Coolbot.
That way, you don’t have to process anything except for the tenders, while waiting for test results.

 

[Laramie]

Guessing the majority of people on here have consumed something with CWD. Guarantee I have. Zero evidence it is harmful to humans so I don't test my deer or elk.

 

[zion zig zag]

Guessing the majority of people on here have consumed something with CWD. Guarantee I have. Zero evidence it is harmful to humans so I don't test my deer or elk.

I’ve tested when hunting in CWD areas. But I’ve also been known to eat a tenderloin before the results came back.

Sounds like our 12 hour time is pretty common for an elk. My wife does all of the cutting and she is super careful and doesn’t waste much. We even save and wrap scraps for the dogs. It seems like there is still plenty to do while she is cutting and I’m taking a break from wrapping: sharpen knives, saw bones, tear tape….