Simple Device For Cracking Pecans

Simple Device For Cracking Pecans FARM HOME Food 23-2-34 I've come up with a simple device for cracking pecans that works much faster than hand held units and is much less expensive than electric-driven commercial models. It lets me crack a 5-gal. pail of pecans in just a little more than 15 minutes. It bolts onto any flat surface and consists of a corrugated 10-in. dia. steel disc with a steel funnel and spout mounted alongside. An 8-in. long lever attaches to the disc. As nuts are poured into the spout they fall into a hole on either side of the funnel. The funnel is 1 1/2 in. wide at the top but only 1/2 in. wide at the bottom. Also, the sides angle inward toward the bottom. As a result, the nuts get packed together tighter and tighter as they slide down the funnel. To crack the nuts I simply move the lever back and forth. The corrugation on the disc grips the nuts and forces them to move with the motion of the disc so that the hulls get cracked. The cracked nuts then drop into a container. I then have to manually separate the nuts from the hulls. A big advantage of my pecan cracker is that the nuts don't have to be pregraded or pre-sized. It works on most types of pecans, and I've found that it also works on Brazil and English nuts. The hull gets cracked but normally stays with the nut, although I've found that with some nut varieties 95 percent of the hulls fall off. Sells for $89.95 plus tax and $12 to $14 S&H. I also sell a model equipped with a 16-in. dia. disc that has almost twice as much capacity and can be motorized for commercial use. It sells for $125 plus S&H. I'm looking for a distributor. (Karl Spencer, 1763 S. Green River Rd., Cowpens, S.C. 29330 ph 864 489-6611)

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