# Anyone butchered a steer



## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

I buddy and I are thinking about raising a steer to butcher. I'm thinking that cutting up a steer can't be any worse then 2 elk at the same time by myself so I'm thinking that we could process it ourselves. Anything I should know about butchering a steer that's different from an elk?


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## Dunkem (May 8, 2012)

First off, big difference-- steer on the hoof lots bigger than an elk, ever slaughtered a steer? Need a good setup just to gut and skin, need a place to hang for a while (Tenderness and flavor), little more to cutting a beef over an elk, same principal, only lots bigger. Without knowledge in these areas I would not attempt it. My 2 cents.


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## Packout (Nov 20, 2007)

Butchers charge less to cut up a steer than they charge for an elk. So much less that it just isn't worth it to do it on your own. But that is just my opinion.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

A good butcher size steer is around 1000 - 1200 lbs live weight. That will give you the best yield and flavor.

With a critter that size, you will be man-handling 125 lb quarters. Just something to think about...


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## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

Ya I realize there big but I don't think it's any more daunting then having 8 elk quarters and 2 bags of loose meat staring me in the face.

My buddy can get a tractor to pick it up and move quarters, I was figuring on hanging the quarters with the tractor and removing what muscle groups I could with it hanging to reduce the weight. I wasn't planning on doing a lot of fancy stuff as when you get right down to it we eat a lot of burger so some good steaks, a few roasts, maybe some ribs and a lot of burger.

My biggest issue would be hanging it. Not sure how long it needs to hang for best results? We would have to time the kill right with the weather to make sure we had good hanging temps. Another issue would be freezer and cold storage space to keep stuff cold while processing and enough freezer space to be able to freeze the finished product efficiently without stacking pounds of meat on top of pounds of meat.

I'm still just kicking this around, I'll check butcher prices as well to see what they want a pound to cut and wrap.


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## riptheirlips (Jun 30, 2008)

My 2 cents, I raise beef and have butchered many. You can and will save money doing it yourself. However after killing the beef you need to let it hang in a controlled temperature for 10-14 days it will affect your taste and tenderness. For a butcher to cut and wrap it for you the price varies just depending on who you have do it. I know some that are 45 cents and some that are 60 cents per hanging weight. Some butchers will not take a killed beef that a person just shoots and brings in, there are farm kill tags and more paper work for farm kill, brand inspection etc. Some butchers wrap in freezer paper and a few will double vacum seal. I have no doubt you can get it done but it is a job.
The concern I would have going by what you stated is raising ONE beef, one beef will tend to want to wonder more and test your fences which need to be good because cattle will test them, grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Different brands of beef will test them more than others. 
Be careful what you buy, fix your fence and good luck.


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## Huge29 (Sep 17, 2007)

Rip has numerous good points, another point with a single head of beef is they generally dont do as well, goes for many types of animals, especially pigs. The trickiest part is defnitely the hanging time. Ive got two I am raising now to slaughter next fall and used to slaughter a lot of them in a family owned butcher shop. Unfortunately, all of the equipment has been pilfered away or I would do as you suggest. Do you have a grinder, bandsaw, wrapper or vacuum packer? Lots of equipment that makes it much more manageable. I think the general figure is hoof weight to rack rate is about 65%, so likely to have around 700 lbs of meat to process. Good time of year to buy a grinder, CAbela's seems to have them on sale regularly now. Best of luck, let me know how it goes, I hadnt thought of this myself, but would probably save $400 or so. Ill just invite Dunkem to come down for the day and buy him a 12-pack and give him a burger.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Just do the gutless method and you'll be fine.

.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

If you're going to DIY and hang the animal for a couple weeks it's important to properly "bleed out" the steer. Stun the cow first with a small caliber round like a 142 grain 6.5 Creedmoor and then cut it's throat while the heart is still pumping.

.


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

wyogoob said:


> If you're going to DIY and hang the animal for a couple weeks it's important to properly "bleed out" the steer. Stun the cow first with a small caliber round like a 142 grain 6.5 Creedmoor and then cut it's throat while the heart is still pumping.
> 
> .


I don't care who you are that right there is funny. (Hint--do not read that comment with a mouthfull of hot coffee)


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## Kevin D (Sep 15, 2007)

Beef slaughtered in the big slaughter houses (i.e. the beef you buy in the store) isn't aged for 10-14 days before being processed. Nope, they kill them one day, hang and cool them overnight, then cut and package them the next day. Typically within 24 to 36 hours after a beef is killed it's been boxed, loaded onto a refrigerated truck, and on its way to your local grocery store.


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## riptheirlips (Jun 30, 2008)

Kevin D said:


> Beef slaughtered in the big slaughter houses (i.e. the beef you buy in the store) isn't aged for 10-14 days before being processed. Nope, they kill them one day, hang and cool them overnight, then cut and package them the next day. Typically within 24 to 36 hours after a beef is killed it's been boxed, loaded onto a refrigerated truck, and on its way to your local grocery store.


And that is just one reason of many why store bought beef is not worth a ship.


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## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

wyogoob said:


> Just do the gutless method and you'll be fine.
> 
> .


I was thinking that the gutless would be a way to get the legs off in a manageable package then remove the neck and hang the ribs and spine as one piece.

I have everything but a band saw. Grinder, stuffer, vacuum packer with 400 to 500 feet of bags, roll of paper on a cutter, roll of plastic wrap, meat lugs, 1000 1 pound polly ground meat bags, hand meat saw plus other little tools that make things quicker. I have the toys covered but I'm lacking on the cold storage.

Had to purchase a fridge this last weekend and while I was shopping around I came across an upright freezer or fridge for $450. Guess the unit can be set to either refrigerate or freeze and it is a nice size for meat lugs, it almost came home with me but I held off as the fridge price about gave me a stroke.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

*I need to work on my delivery*



muddydogs said:


> I was thinking that the gutless would be a way to get the legs off in a manageable package then remove the neck and hang the ribs and spine as one piece.
> *
> Uh...I was joking. I'm thinking I need to work on my delivery.*
> 
> ...


*see red*


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Kevin D said:


> Beef slaughtered in the big slaughter houses (i.e. the beef you buy in the store) isn't aged for 10-14 days before being processed. Nope, they kill them one day, hang and cool them overnight, then cut and package them the next day. Typically within 24 to 36 hours after a beef is killed it's been boxed, loaded onto a refrigerated truck, and on its way to your local grocery store.


That is correct. The meat is cut and boxed before rigor mortis sets in. By the time the boxed meat, say a sirloin knuckle, hits the grocery store butcher room the rigor mortis has subsided.

It's not uncommon for boxed beef, like a knuckle or a loin, to sit in a cooler for 10 days before it's cut and packaged for the grocer's meat counter. There's an allotted amount of time before it's "outdated" by USDA rule. Dunkem would know.

.


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## mtnrunner260 (Feb 15, 2010)

Could your field set up handle 2 steers?
Sell one and use profit to cover cost of butchering the other?


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## Dunkem (May 8, 2012)

Huge29 said:


> Rip has numerous good points, another point with a single head of beef is they generally dont do as well, goes for many types of animals, especially pigs. The trickiest part is defnitely the hanging time. Ive got two I am raising now to slaughter next fall and used to slaughter a lot of them in a family owned butcher shop. Unfortunately, all of the equipment has been pilfered away or I would do as you suggest. Do you have a grinder, bandsaw, wrapper or vacuum packer? Lots of equipment that makes it much more manageable. I think the general figure is hoof weight to rack rate is about 65%, so likely to have around 700 lbs of meat to process. Good time of year to buy a grinder, CAbela's seems to have them on sale regularly now. Best of luck, let me know how it goes, I hadnt thought of this myself, but would probably save $400 or so. Ill just invite Dunkem to come down for the day and buy him a 12-pack and give him a burger.


Just make sure that it's Mountain Dew!!


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## Dunkem (May 8, 2012)

wyogoob said:


> That is correct. The meat is cut and boxed before rigor mortis sets in. By the time the boxed meat, say a sirloin knuckle, hits the grocery store butcher room the rigor mortis has subsided.
> 
> It's not uncommon for boxed beef, like a knuckle or a loin, to sit in a cooler for 10 days before it's cut and packaged for the grocer's meat counter. There's an allotted amount of time before it's "outdated" by USDA rule. Dunkem would know.
> 
> .


 Usually there is at least 3 to 4 weeks of date on the meat. Packers do it this way now because of space available and shrink among other things. Olden days I could go to the packing house, pick out the beef I wanted and they would age it for me (They would weigh it while I was there, and I would pay the weight of it then and I would absorb the shrink.) Meat in the bag will age, but takes abit longer. I would always buy extra add items and let them age. I think most meat managers nowdays will try to keep everything new as you will have alot of purge in meat you let age in the bag, and as we all know it is all about the dollar in the end anymore.


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## muddydogs (Oct 7, 2007)

wyogoob said:


> *see red*


I got your joke but when you get right down to it why not skin and quarter on the ground. Might not get the exact cut of meat here or there by doing it this way but it's one way to handle the weight and size. Works on a moose.

This idea isn't totally out as my buddy has a small out building that could be turned into a walk in cooler. Cost to benefit needs to be weighted and never having butchered a steer and not knowing if we would ever want to do it again factors in. Our thinking is it wouldn't be bad to be able to do a steer every couple years and maybe a couple pigs every few years plus have a place to hang our game animals. The costs and unknown are starting to out way our enthusiast.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

wyogoob said:


> If you're going to DIY and hang the animal for a couple weeks it's important to properly "bleed out" the steer. Stun the cow first with a small caliber round like a 142 grain 6.5 Creedmoor and then cut it's throat while the heart is still pumping.


I would have said a .30-.30, but I suppose that would work as well...


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

High Desert Elk said:


> I would have said a .30-.30, but I suppose that would work as well...


Ah, ha, ha

We used a .22 long rifle to stun.

You stun, then bleed while heart's still pumping.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

We custom slaughter at our plant, so some of the "rules" don't apply but most do. Customer's beef will hang for around 12 to 14 days because 1) that's what they want, and 2) it is backlogged that far because of season business.

Beef goes from pen, to knocking box, to hoist and rail, to cooler. Carcass is cut in half and hung on the highrail with 14' ceiling.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

wyogoob said:


> Ah, ha, ha
> 
> We used a .22 long rifle to stun.
> 
> You stun, then bleed while heart's still pumping.


Anymore we use a 22 mag and the 30-30 on the big 'ol HB bulls - sometimes a big stubborn thick headed sow or boar.

We've had the big critters look at us and blow raspberries with the .22 LR.


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## Huge29 (Sep 17, 2007)

High Desert Elk said:


> Anymore we use a 22 mag and the 30-30 on the big 'ol HB bulls - sometimes a big stubborn thick headed sow or boar.
> 
> We've had the big critters look at us and blow raspberries with the .22 LR.


My butcher still uses 22lr on everything but the bulls, they get the dirty dirty.


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## Packout (Nov 20, 2007)

wyogoob said:


> Stun the cow first with a small caliber round like a 142 grain 6.5 Creedmoor and then cut it's throat while the heart is still pumping..


This might be the single best line posted on the Forum in Nov. 6.5 Creedmoor and "stun"... haha

The butcher I know uses 22 shorts on everything, even buffalo. 
An old neighbor would put the cows in a squeeze chute and cut their throat to bleed completely. Kind of a mess though......

..


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

High Desert Elk said:


> I would have said a .30-.30, but I suppose that would work as well...


Don't forget that it needs a 200 grain bullet.

I have friends that raise beef and also hunt. They have no problems butchering 1, 2 or even 3 elk in a season but when it comes time to kill and process the beef they take it to town to have it done.


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## Springville Shooter (Oct 15, 2010)

Critter said:


> Don't forget that it needs a 200 grain bullet.
> 
> I have friends that raise beef and also hunt. They have no problems butchering 1, 2 or even 3 elk in a season but when it comes time to kill and process the beef they take it to town to have it done.


Haven't you heard of the new 6.5 MM 200 grain LAMF bullets? They leave the muzzle of the Creedmoor at 550fps and require a 1/1 twist barrel. They have a BC of 5 gagillion though and the bullets actually rise and speed up as they fly down range!!----SS


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## JerryH (Jun 17, 2014)

It is very common that boxed beef have 2 weeks of age before it gets delivered to a store. I see it on a weekly basis. 

Be sure to watch a couple of YouTube videos and have a dull knife or 2 on hand


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