58limited
Well-known member
I've been wanting to grind my own meat for sausage and hamburgers for quite awhile and I've been watching vintage grinders in ebay - they are pretty expensive. One seller dropped his price and then accepted a low ball offer from me so I purchased a Hobart Model 4312 last month. It was originally used in a grocery store in Sioux Falls, SD in the late 1940s or early 1950s.
I honestly did not realize how BIG this grinder is, it weighs at least 100 lbs, stands 15" tall, the motor is 9" in diameter and about 15.5" long from the back to where the grinder attaches. The grinder attachment is a model 12, which uses plates 2 3/4" in diameter.
A friend killed some deer this year and wanted to blend the venison with some pork. We ended up with 62 lbs of meat and this Hobart ground it all in 12 minutes with a 1/4" plate.
He gave me a deer also and I blended it with packer brisket and a pork belly. I ended up with 72 lbs of meat (ground 3/16") which I used to make the best Italian meatballs and grilled hamburgers I have ever made.
I have also made over 80 lbs of sausage in the last month: Italian, andouille (two versions because I decided the first recipe had too much thyme and tasted like breakfast sausage), Central Texas style sausage, and green onion sausage.
I next plan to make some authentic German bratwurst (anyone got a recipe?) and a good Louisiana boudain.

I honestly did not realize how BIG this grinder is, it weighs at least 100 lbs, stands 15" tall, the motor is 9" in diameter and about 15.5" long from the back to where the grinder attaches. The grinder attachment is a model 12, which uses plates 2 3/4" in diameter.
A friend killed some deer this year and wanted to blend the venison with some pork. We ended up with 62 lbs of meat and this Hobart ground it all in 12 minutes with a 1/4" plate.
He gave me a deer also and I blended it with packer brisket and a pork belly. I ended up with 72 lbs of meat (ground 3/16") which I used to make the best Italian meatballs and grilled hamburgers I have ever made.
I have also made over 80 lbs of sausage in the last month: Italian, andouille (two versions because I decided the first recipe had too much thyme and tasted like breakfast sausage), Central Texas style sausage, and green onion sausage.
I next plan to make some authentic German bratwurst (anyone got a recipe?) and a good Louisiana boudain.
