How to Buy the Right Meat Slicing Machine

Continuing our series on how to buy the right machines for your business, we bring you this article on buying the right meat slicing machine.  We originally published portions of this article as a Knol on Google , but wanted to share it with you here as well. 

The first thing you should consider when buying a slicing machine is what you are going to cut.  Is it low, medium, or high volume?  Does it include hard to slice foods such as frozen meats or soft cheeses?  Do you need extremely high precision cutting for prosciutto or avant garde cuisine?

The answers to these questions, combined with your budgetary requirements and space concerns, will help you to pick the ideal slicing machine for your establishment.  With this, be sure to bear in mind the potential for your business to expand.  If you are starting with medium volumes but anticipate higher volumes in the future, it may be worthwhile to invest in a better quality machine.

If you will be cutting low volume and not cutting anything difficult, you may want to consider a compact slicer.  These are especially good for space-conscious establishments, and come in 9”, 10”, and 11” varieties.  Compact slicers are inexpensive, lighter-weight (good if you may need to transport it regularly or lift it onto a shelf from a storage space), and perfect for low volume cutting.  One thing to note is that you may have to cut your meats in half for them to fit on the slicer, as commercially packaged deli meats, such as Boars Head, are sold with 12”  models in mind. Top companies that manufacture compact meat slicers include Tor-Rey and Omcan Food Machinery of America.

If you will be cutting low, medium, or medium-high volume, not too much cheese, and nothing frozen, you can consider a belt-drive slicer.  These are highly affordable.  Standard size meats and cheeses are designed for 12” slicers, so you can buy this size to reduce prep time.  In order to minimize waste and maximize precision, look for models with Gravity-Feed.  Top companies that manufacture belt-drive slicers are Tor-Rey and Omcan Food Machinery of America.  (Globe Chefmate slicers are also belt drive, so do not mistake them for classic Globe slicers!)

If you will be cutting high volume or difficult foods such as frozen foods or large amounts of cheese, or if you want a top of the line machine for extreme precision you should look for gear-drive, Gravity Feed slicers.  These are more costly, but will last for years and years, paying back the investment in the long term. Quality Gear Drive slicing machines come in standard 12” and 13” sizes.  Because they are stronger, they are also very precise.  Globe is the iconic manufacturer of gear-drive slicers (although beware of Globe Chefmate slicers, which are belt-drive and often not gravity feed).  We sell new, demo (meaning it was used in a demonstration or as a floor model but is practically new) and rebuilt Globe Slicers; our rebuilt Globes are older models in which everything that was not perfect has been replaced.  They are tested extensively by our mechanics and guaranteed to work like new!  Tor-Rey also makes some very high quality Gear Drive slicers such as the R-300, which is available at lower cost than a new Globe.

If you will be cutting very high volume and are not under severe budgetary constraints, you may want to consider an automatic slicing machine.  Automatic slicers provide continuous cutting capabilities and may cut down on labor time because they operate on their own without manual assistance.  The majority of automatic slicers are gear-drive and gravity feed, and therefore capable of processing hard-to-cut foods as well.

If you use these guidelines to buy a slicing machine and you maintain your machine properly, it should last you for years of easy, precise slicing!  

Feel free to reply to this post with any questions you may have about buying slicing machines, or to let us know if there is a machine you would like profiled in this series!