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Having recently lost some very hard won venison to maggots I’m seeking a portable meat safe. The two I’ve found so far are
https://www.stoneycreek.co.nz/meat-safe.html
https://www.gamegear.co.nz/products/...31941513347171
Feedback on these? Look to be similar price, weight, size, features.
Are there any others to look at?
Has anyone made a DIY version using Aliexpress mosquito net, zip and short tent poles?
I have the Stoney Creek one, I mainly use it in a tree at home for hanging sheep and deer overnight. Does the job, plenty of length and has loops for pinning the bottom if windy etc so the sides don’t touch the carcass, easy to clean too.
I snapped the end of one of the pieces of the aluminium ring, but it still works fine.
Game Gear products are always well thought out. Take a can of fly spray to spray on the deer skin while its hanging, stops the flys blowing through the mesh
pillow cases work well...just make sure to roll ends enough to keep shut.....shoot animal,break it down and put bits into pillow cases asap...they can hang to air/cool straight away and a flick with switch/branch will stop flies laying on outside of bag.....were I normally hunt the flies are gone as soon as they arrive,the wasps kill them and cart them off for dinner...maggots are one thing that I just dont handle well....makes skin crawl.... trim rapidly and discard... havent lost meat that way for many many years.....deer hung overnight in garage go in sewn up bedsheet with top tied....pepper sprinkled around rolled closure and the pssst flyspay auto can put in garage facing away from carcase...fly spray squirted around doors.....
the lads lost 3 deer a few years back from in one of the above meatsafes...they made mistake of having it too low and rat chewed hole in it which flies got into at first chance..by time they noticed it was too late.
Having maggots on or in the meat does not necessarily mean it is rotten, I have seen blown maggoty carcasses just from the carry back to camp...flick them out with a knife, bone the animal out, bag it up and put it in the creek...maggoty meat looks like salami in the pan, for those with a soft guts it is best consumed in the dark.
I use the old Huntec deer bags, they work well by letting air flow but the flys can't blow through it. I carry a couple of pegs to secure the top from fly's getting in. Light weight and wash up easy after use.
I just get net curtain from spotlight and see it in a tube thread over whole deer or boned out and I tie it at the top and just use small sticks to hold it off the meat. Then tie it at the bottom cheap, light and works well.
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Yes I got my mother in law to sew me one out of curtain netting. It’s about four metres long and about a metre in circumference. It has drawstrings at each end. It works mint. Hang the meat. Cover it with the safe. Weighs nothing.
Attachment 157919
Sorry it’s not the best photo but there’s two red hindquarters hanging in there plus back straps.
awesome photo....makes me want to swing a billy myself,you know if you havent got a lid,that putting small stick across top SOMEHOW stops smokey flavour getting in water???? dont ask me how it works cause Ive never worked it out...but it does.
i just use a duvet cover and some tape
Can’t beat Smokey billy tea mateQuote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
I use a mozzy net. Poke a couple of small branches in to keep the net off the meat . that way flys can't lay their eggs on it. Works well.
If in the bush stuff fern between animal and mesh(sheet ) a good layer works a treat
I bone out and once the meat has set and cooled I use the same pillow case method. Flys don’t blow through and as long as the pillow case is suspended in a cool place preferably with a bit of breeze it’s as good as a fridge.Quote:
Originally Posted by Micky Duck
I’ll take the time to set it up in the perfect spot even if it means it’s a little bit of a walk from camp.
As we shoot more animals we just keep adding to it. Works a treat.
Isn't the idea with these that the mesh is held away from the meat? i.e. no contactQuote:
Originally Posted by Moa Hunter
Yes it is, but you will still get blood dripping onto the bottom of whatever the carcase is in and flys will blow that.Quote:
Originally Posted by uk_exile
The cheapest method of keeping fly's of meat, is to sprinkle fine black pepper all over it, make sure to get in in any folds, in the meat, then hang in a cool place with plenty of air movement.
Ah, so the maggots would grow on the inside of the bottom mesh and then wiggle their way to the meat. GrrrrrQuote:
Originally Posted by Moa Hunter
Flys are bastards because they bring spoilage bacteria with them. The maggots dont eat meat but eat the bacterial soup produced by the bacteria the flys have introduced. Sometimes I think the maggots can transport the bacteria as well.
Hanging the carcase where it gets a drying cold draft is ideal. Once it has a hard dry skin on the meat it will keep well. I dont know how well black pepper works. I guess I could do some double blind trials at home with scraps to test it
Single duvet cover for a whole animal?
Pebo was the best
Germans loved it :-)
Seems like
1) mesh is good for cooling, air flow and ultimately drying the surface of the meat, however needs to be kept off the meat surface as flys can lay through it
2) a pillowcase or duvet cover is thicker and therefore not as good for cooling or drying however the fabric can contact the meat and is adequate for fly/maggot protection.
Correct summary?
At NZDA Auckland last year we were shown meat bags made from weed mat from Bunnings. I bought a roll for around $20 to make some. It may be 2 dense for airflow to keep cool especially if there is any sun on it, not that anyone is going to do that eh? But the material is super light and super strong. Main use is as a meat bag for carry back to camp. Could be useful for hanging in a cool place also.
if its a fallow size it will fit easy i take a single duvet cover and a couple of pillow cases for smaller stuff still seems to do a good job never had maggot problems.Quote:
Originally Posted by MB
