Game care tips & a lightweight gambrel

[Freedivr2]

I don't know about you guys, but when I'm out hunting, I never want to hoist my 2 plus pound Cabella's gambrel and hoist around in the field. If I end up skinning and hanging the deer in the field, I'm using a stick for a spreader and rope. Don't laugh, I'm not alone I'm sure.

Never again. A couple of months ago I went to our Hunter Education Instructor's annual conference (in Santa Maria), and the guest speaker this year was a Warden who backpacks it in for Elk every year. One of the items he had was a gambrel that he made out of PVC and stainless cable that he has been using for a few years now. I made one just like his, and posted it on my homepage for you guys. This warden also gave us a lot of good tips and tools on game care, including how to make your own boning bags (no biggie, just basically small game bags made out of breathable camo), his favorite tools for boning elk and deer out in the field, advice on never to use a white game bag when hanging game overnight in the field (white sticks out in the forest like a sore thumb, and magpies have gotten to know what's in those white bags, and birds attract other bigger critters, you get the pic)....he makes his own game bags out of that breathable camo material (bad mill run remnants from clothing marts, I've got some addresses is anyone wants them, email me). I also made a sketch of this gambrel, but the file was too big to post on my homepage. I can e-mail the sketch to anyone who needs it, but I think the instructions I put on the homepage should work for ya.

Anyway, here's the URL where I posted a couple of pictures of the gambrel that I made, along with some instructions on how to make it;

http://hometown.aol.com/freedivr2/myhomepage/gambrel.html

Anyway, just thought I'd "spread" this info to some good guys here. Hope it helps.

 

[QALHNTR]

<font face="Comic Sans MS">Good idea - it'll give me something to do waiting for the dove opener.  What's the quarter for ?</font>  :smile-big-blue:

 

[Hogskin]

Haven't you ever heard of quartering a deer?

Man, that was bad.  :roll-eyes-green:

Regards,
Paul

 

[sportyg]

Thanks I'm going to make one..

 

[Freedivr2]

I’ve received a few e-mails asking more about game care, tools, about where to get the camo fabric remnants, etc., so here’s some more information that I hope helps. BTW, I'm in no way associated with the sale of any of these items or associated with any of these companies in any way shape or form. I just was lucky enough to get all of this information and am passing it on to you guys as well as passing it on to my Hunter Education students.

Game and boning bags; Basically cut the material to the size you want (for pig, deer, elk). At the minimum, a finished game bag for deer or pig should be approx. 5 feet long and 3 feet wide. Error on the size of large, no deer will fit in a sock. The finished boning bags I saw were approx. (9) inches in diameter and (15) inches in length. The draw string can be parachute cord as it will slide through the fabric easier than twine. The bags are simple to make, simply double the width of the finished bag, and cut a piece of material, then double stitch the sides (but leave the top 1” unstitched for now) and the bottom with sturdy thread. Fold over the top 1” of the bag and double stitch a hem as a pocket for the parachute cord drawstring to go thru (don’t forget to leave it open on the ends so you can work the drawstring cord through it). Thread the cord through the bag and you’re done. Here’s some resources where you can get breathable camo fabric remnants from really, really cheap. Tell them you’re looking for “bad mill runs” (where the fabric pattern isn’t perfect, where the mill messed up somewhere, put a pink stripe down it or something of that nature). NOTE: Make sure that you get BREATHEABLE camo material, which is a very lightweight and tight mesh, NOT  “T-shirt” material. REMEMBER; you want the air and wind to blow through the material to cool down the meat. The last thing you want to do is to put something to break the air circulation flow.  

1. Fabric Lace and Trim, 975 E. Willow Street, Signal Hill, Ca. (562-436-3043) This is the place for cheap stuff, but you got to dig.
2. Mill End Fabrics Inc., 1745 Kuenzli. St., Reno, NV, 89502 (775-332-7127)
3. Florence Fabrics, 23104 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance, Ca. (310-375-2526)
4. Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts (all over CA)
5. Garment district, down town L.A.

Block and tackle; For lightweight, small, durable (stainless steel) and inexpensive block & tackle; ask for Harkin 16mm micro blocks (4 or 5 line rig with #120 tuna twine, 4mm or 3/16 braided nylon line) rig for a 12’ run. http://www.harkin.com. or try West Marine (all over CA) or any boating supply place. These are used for sailboats and such and are plentiful at boat supply houses.

Butchering Knives; 6” narrow straight boner, 10-12” breaker, 7” butcher and 9-10” fillet. Good steel. Best brand is Dexter-Russell “Sani-Safe” or Florschner. Best sharpener is the “SpyderCo” triangle ceramic sticks.

Butchering supplies;

1. South Bay/Abrahams Butcher Manufacturing and Distribution, 15662 Producer Lane, Huntington Beach, Ca. 92649 (800-852-2806) http://www.southbayabrams.com  (all supplies, including seasonings, rolled roast mesh, butcher boards and knives)
2. Allied Kenco Sales, 26 Lyerly Stl, Houston, Tx. 77022 (800-356-5189) http://www.alliedkenco.com (all supplies, including seasonings, butcher boards, rolled roast mesh and knives)
3. L.E.M. Products, Inc., P.O. Box 244 6055 St. Rt. 126 Suite 2 Mimamitown, OH 45042 (800-536-7763) http://www.lemproductos.com (all supplies, including seasonings, butcher boards, sausage making and knives)
4. L.A. Marine Hardware 345 Beacon St., San Pedro, CA 90731 (800-734-1819) (knives, twine, line and light sticks)
5. Cross Creek Trading Co. P.O. Box 1603 / 625 Penn Stl, Chinook, MT, 59523 (800-488-5075) http://www.crosscreektrading.com (game sacks, hoists, gambrel and packs)

Lastly, a few important words to remember when dressing or butchering your game;

1. Remember the (3) P’s; Potable, Palatable and Presentable. Potable = Safe to eat, free of unwanted bacteria and external contamination. Palatable = Tastes good, free of scent, body fluid, body content and external contamination. Presentable = Clean, free of hair, dirt, gut or fecal and/or scent contamination, looks like something you want to eat. The meat product produced should require minimal to no work before cooking (just like store bought).
2. Remember the (7) P’s; Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Products; Plan ahead for the meat you may get. Have the equipment you need to care for the meat and know where you are going to take it for each step from kill to the plate. Meat spoilage is in part caused by the Proteies bacteria which produces urea in an anaerobic environment that turns to uric acid.
3. If you won’t eat it, don’t give it away. If you won’t eat it do not kill it. Give the animal you kill th erespect it deserves, edible meat should not be wasted.
4. There are many ways to accomplish the goals of field meat care. Develop a system that meets your needs and the way you hunt.
5. Do not drag a carcass before you gut it. This infuses contaminated body fluids through the wound channel, particularly if the animal has a ruptured digestive tract (gut shot). Put pressure on the body cavity and smell the wound channel, if it smells gut shot, it is gut shot.
6. When gutting do not split the hams / pelvis. This allows for contamination and a good shot at puncturing the bladder.

P.S. No Hogskin, that was actually pretty "cleaver". The quarter is just to show how small the gambrel is when broken down. Will fit easily into a fanny pack. Also might be a good candleholder, eh?