Vacuum sealers. I want one, but which one?

[Big slick]

I like the idea of cooking a lot of BBQ and then freezing the leftovers for future dinners. I see alot of you using vacuum sealers and i went looking online this morning and realized that I am way over my head. I had no idea there were so many different sealers available. I also didn't realize how costly they can get. So my question to all of you is which one would you recommend? Is it worth 150+ dollars to buy an expensive sealer or can I get by buying a cheaper one? Educate me please before I spend more than I have to.

Thanks,

Nick

[Skidder]

I would have to recommend do a search to find the model with the options or price your looking for then do a complete review on it. Amazon usually has reviews

[bobaftt]

Honestly I would stay away from the foodsaver brand. If you have the money to spend I would get one that doesn't need the special bags. If you use it very much those bags are expensive enough that you can more then make up the cost difference on the units by using the cheaper bags...

[Jason TQ]

Check out Ebay. I bought an older model used Foodsaver there for $20. It isn't one of the big fancy models where the bags actually stay in the unit, but works great. Also the bags I buy are a generic brand you can get at Walmart. The Foodsaver brand bags are more expensive, but other bags do work in there.

There are other brands of vacuum sealers that work really well too and I'm not loyal to foodsaver it is just what I bought because I found a great price on ebay.

Freezing leftover BBQ is great. There are so may instances where i want some pulled pork to make ABT's or pulled chicken to make some sandwiches and I don't have time too just simply start cooking an entire butt or whatever.

[aquablue22]

I have a Foodsaver model V2040 and love it, use it all the time for exactly what you want to. Load up the smoker and suck and freeze the leftovers, plus I buy meat when they are on sale and do the same. I buy rolls of bags material from some dude on Ebay and make my own bags, much more cost effective.

[1FUNVET]

I have a Foodsaver brand i bought at Wal-mart and i think it was around that price.I'm not sure of model number because I'm at work.I buy the rolls instead of the pre-sized bags and the rolls are great cause you cut only as much as ya need. Stay away from the bags,not worth the money.You can buy the rolls on e-bay but i think someone on this firum also sells em. Used mine last night putting up ground meat in 1# packs.

[Ron_L]

I hate to break it to you, but $150 is not an expensive model :)

The Weston sealers (also sold by Cabelas) are the cream of the crop in home sealers, but they are in the $400 range. I keep threatening to buy one but other things keep taking precedence.

[Big slick]

There isn't a chance in Hell that I would ever spend $400 on a vacuum sealer. 150ish is on the high end of my list. I will stop at walmart and take a look. How do these rolls you all mention work?

[Ron_L]

Originally Posted by Big slick

There isn't a chance in Hell that I would ever spend $400 on a vacuum sealer. 150ish is on the high end of my list. I will stop at walmart and take a look. How do these rolls you all mention work?

That's why i don't have one yet :) It would be nice for sealing whole briskets or butts, and whole racks of ribs.

The rolls are basically a tube of the bag material on a roll. You seal one end, cut off the length that you need, put in the food and then vac seal.

Look at Sam's or Costco if you haven't already. They sometimes have deals on a package with the machine and materials.

[Bassman]

Originally Posted by Big slick

There isn't a chance in Hell that I would ever spend $400 on a vacuum sealer. 150ish is on the high end of my list. I will stop at walmart and take a look. How do these rolls you all mention work?

You just cut to the length you need, seal one end, put your product in and vacuum and seal the other end. If you keep an eye on Foodsaver, they have sales on occasion that will save you a lot of money on bag material. My last purchase was 8 rolls for just a bit over $40.00 with free shipping.

[AUradar]

i wish i knew what brand/model mine was. I use the rolls, but hate using the thing. It doesn't have a "seal only" function. So to seal one end of hte roll to make a bag, it goes through the vacuum cycle first and then seals. Takes forever. Big annonance when doing a lot of meat.

Don't know if any have a "seal only" function, but if so it would deff be worth it.

[1FUNVET]

Originally Posted by AUradar

i wish i knew what brand/model mine was. I use the rolls, but hate using the thing. It doesn't have a "seal only" function. So to seal one end of hte roll to make a bag, it goes through the vacuum cycle first and then seals. Takes forever. Big annonance when doing a lot of meat.

Don't know if any have a "seal only" function, but if so it would deff be worth it.

Mine has the"seal only" function and you are right about it being worth it.

[KC_Bobby]

If you want to throw away $50, buy the Rival brand. Each time I attempt to use mine, I think of the scene from Office Space where they bash the hell out of the printer.

It sucks ... well actually it doesn't suck and that's a big problem when it comes to a vacuum sealer. I've come to the conclusion that spending $50 on something that doesn't work worth a damn is a bigger expense than spending $100 on something that works great.

[KC_Bobby]

Originally Posted by AUradar

i wish i knew what brand/model mine was. I use the rolls, but hate using the thing. It doesn't have a "seal only" function. So to seal one end of hte roll to make a bag, it goes through the vacuum cycle first and then seals. Takes forever. Big annonance when doing a lot of meat.

Don't know if any have a "seal only" function, but if so it would deff be worth it.

Sounds like the Rival I bought.

[Warthog]

This is what you want. Will last for years and replacement parts are always available.

Tilia FOODSAVER SET w/ 2 Cannisters + 2 Jar Sealers - eBay (item 130505838351 end time Apr-13-11 17:50:38 PDT)