Why I switched from band saw to breaking down primals by hand

For years I used the band saw for everything, but last month I had a big order of beef forequarters and the blade kept wandering on me. I decided to break them down by hand with a good scimitar and a saw, and it was way faster and cleaner with less waste. Has anyone else found hand cutting beats the machine for certain jobs?

2 comments

2 Comments

angela431d ago

That part about "less waste" really hits home for me. When I switched from the band saw to breaking down primals by hand, I realized how much meat I was losing to the blade's kerf and all those misaligned cuts. It's like the machine just chews up bits you could have saved for stews or grinding. I remember a big beef ribeye primal I did last fall with a sharp scimitar and a handsaw, and I got those clean, straight lines the band saw never gave me. The control you have with a knife is something a machine just can't match when you get down to it.

charles6781d ago

Am I the only one who thinks the band saw isn't the problem though Angela43? I've been using one for years and I honestly don't notice much waste if you take the time to set up your cuts right. That kerf loss might add up over a whole case of primals, but the speed and consistency it gives me means I'm not fighting with a handsaw for an hour.