STX INTERNATIONALTurboforce 3000 Series 5-in-1 Electric Meat Grinder | 3000W Max | 3-Speed | Size #12 | 5 Grinding Plates | 3 Stainless Steel Blades | Sausage Stuffer | Kubbe Maker & More Included

I bought this machine following the national "pink slime" disclosure when I found out my local Safeway was content to spike their hamburger meat with stuff that used to only go into animal feed. While I continue to wonder what other liberties they are taking with the food they sell while staying just inside the line of legality, I thought I would take the leap and custom prepare my own ground beef and sausage so that I know what goes into it. God knows we eat enough of it around here.This STX 3000 turned out to be very nice indeed. Although the vendor was out of stock when I ordered it, they ultimately shipped it 10 days ahead of their outside promise. Also, perhaps some advertising copywriters got confused or carried away with the grinder's model number of 3000 but this is NOT a 3000 watt appliance. 3000 watts would not be driven by a 20 amp residential electrical circuit ..... which brings me to another matter, that being how powerful is it really? Some sources claim 1800 watts which is more plausible but I find no rating marks on the motor base (including no UL label which doesn't bother me), only a "Q.C. Passed" sticker similar to what is generally found on Chinese products. I'm mindful that some reviews I read online boasted the STX is American made. I doubt it but that doesn't make much difference.The fit and finish are just fine and the grinding blades, dies and housings have perfectly fine tolerances .... and the unit doesn't make an undue amount of noise. Included are fine and coarse grinding plates -- apparently of hardened steel -- as well as a third plate with extra roomy pass throughs for extruding sausage into casings (accessories supplied for this as well). There are also three identical cutting blades permitting one to be permanently matched to each plate so that they can properly "seat" with each other over time. Nice touch.I ran a test 3 lb chuck roast through to see how it shakes out. I trimmed the meat into strips sized so that they would fit through the feed tube. I then laid them out on a sheet pan and put them into the freezer for 45 minutes. When they were somewhat stiffened but not frozen I ran them through the coarse plate. It worked perfectly. The machine has two forward speeds as well as reverse. I used the low speed intentionally to see if it would bog down under load. Nope. Worked just fine. The meat came out very evenly textured.Clean up is all hand wash as you probably know already. You should never put aluminum into the dishwasher because it dulls terribly. When I disassembled the grinding assembly I found almost no usable meat left behind the plate and only some fat and sinew that collected around the outside of the grinding tube. Everything washed up nicely and I oiled (canola oil) the steel parts lightly to prevent rust before they were stowed away.So, bottom line is this is a fine meat grinder that apparently does all that is expected of it. It is NOT some anemic department store piece of crap. I would recommend it to anyone.

I purchased the STX Turboforce 3000 series grinder to begin my adventures in sausage making. First off, let me say I am very pleased with how quickly the item arrived (6 days before promised date!), and the condition of the item from shipping. The instruction manual that came with the grinder is very clear and concise. It is a MUST read before use, especially if you are new to this stuff like I am. Follow the washing instructions to the letter! Also I think it's important to note that you should wash the grinding plates immediately after use. I left mine out for about an hour prior to washing and oxidation had already started. Silly me to think I could take a break after stuffing prior to cleanup.The grinder works like a charm. It is easy to assemble, and it's very easy to change the grinder plates. I personally liked the pictures that came in the manual to help me put everything in properly. We ground about 12 lb of pork shoulder without any issues. Some sinew was wrapped around the auger at the end, but it did not detract from the performance of the grinder during the operation. The meat came out with a consistent grind and texture.I debated buying a stuffer before this trial run. I thought I would give the grinder a try at it and see how it worked...BIG mistake. While it does stuff sausages, and admittedly it does stuff them well, let me warn you. You will receive quite a workout stuffing the meat through the auger tube. My buddy and I are both in pretty good shape and we got a good tricep workout pushing 10 lb of meat through this.Clean up - other than the previously mentioned mistake I made, cleanup wasn't too terrible on this unit. It comes apart easily. There are several areas that can be difficult to clean. The corner of the "horn" where the auger meets the hole coming in from the top - I spent some time making sure all the meat got out of there. Also, some of the meat made its way into the thread of the tightening piece that holds the grinder plate on it. Next time I might use a toothbrush to help with some of those areas.I like the attachments that come with the unit and am anxious to make some kibbeh - used to eat it a lot in the Dominican Republic when I lived there. Also I appreciate that it comes with three blades.In all this is a great unit. It is somewhat noisy, but not an issue considering it's grinding meat. I don't expect it to be whisper quiet. My only issues would be with the cleanup (would be nice to be able to detach that top tube from the horn) and the effort required to stuff. If you're planning on stuffing more than 3 lb of sausage at a time, get a stuffer.