Mike Rininger's homemade Whizbang plucker. (Photo by Harvey Ussery) David Schafer's Featherman Pro plucker, featuring a high-density molded plastic tub, 1 hp motor, water spray ring, and feather chute. (Photo courtesy of http://featherman.net) The Featherman Pro in use. (Photo courtesy of http://featherman.net) One of Eli Reiff's Poultryman pluckers in action. (Photo by Harvey Ussery)

If you slaughter a lot of birds, a mechanical plucker can speed the work considerably. Most models feature the same stiff rubber "fingers" (available from suppliers of poultry accessories) inset into a rotating plate or drum, which "slap" the feathers off the scalded bird.

The simplest homemade versions feature a small rotating head with the "fingers" inset, mounted on the shaft of a castoff electric motor or a shop drill. A good example is shown on page 63.

A good example of a purchased plucker for home use is my Pickwick HOM-PIK D, shown on page 59, which plucks one hand-held bird at a time.

You might prefer a tub style plucker if you frequently process large batches of birds: Just drop in four or more scalded birds, switch on the motor, and in a few seconds put the plucked carcasses on the worktable.

For serious do-it-yourselfers, Herrick Kimball sells Anyone Can Build a Tub-Style Mechanical Chicken Plucker, detailed plans for his "Whizbang" plucker ($15) at http://www.whizbangbooks.com. My friend Mike Rininger built a Whizbang, a project shared with readers in two articles in the June/July, 2008 issue (now available at http://themodernhomestead.us/article/Whizbang+Plucker.html and http://themodernhomestead.us/article/Building+Plucker.html.) See ad on page 41.

If you want to buy a tub style plucker, the best among the more affordable options is David Schafer's Featherman Pro (http://featherman.net/pluckers.html#pro). At close to $1,000, it is a significant investment; but my correspondents in the American Pastured Poultry Producers Association (www.apppa.org) who use Featherman pluckers report that it is an effective and durable unit, even with heavy use to serve their broiler markets.

Should you join the growing ranks of small farmers serving local markets, you might want to step up to a top-of-the-line stainless steel plucker. Eli Reiff of Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania, sells a series of pluckers (and scalders) he designed to fit the needs of pastured poultry producers. See his Poultryman pluckers ($1260 to $3255) at http://chickenpickers.com/page10.html; or call Eli at 570-966-0769.