Cooler size for a quartered white-tail?

[zuren]

After nearly 14 years of deer hunting and being good about managing storage temps, this year is the first time I have lost meat to spoilage. I lost the hind quarters to the doe I shot during muzzleloader season. Life and all of it's distractions got the better of me and I just wasn't watching the ice level very well in the one cooler. It was stupid and lazy on my part since I knew that cooler doesn't retain cold like my Yeti.

This year was tough for hanging deer. It was too warm through most of firearm then temps. plummeted around the start of muzzleloader. I did not get mine quartered before she froze solid as a brick. So I need a new solution for next year...

The wife is not wild about a 2nd fridge. Even if put it in the barn or garage, I'm guessing I will have trouble with the interior freezing once ambient temps. start dropping below freezing, right? My next thought is a new Cabela's Polar Cap cooler (Yeti competitor) but how large a cooler would I need to contain the front and hind quarters, plus ice? Despite their cost, I'm thinking a cooler will be an easier sell to my better half (has other uses, doesn't use electricity, etc.). My "big" cooler that failed me I believe is a Coleman 48 qt. and held the hind quarters. My Yeti is 50 qt. and had the front quarters. The Yeti does not have the interior length to handle a full rear quarter. I'm guessing an 80 qt. cooler would be plenty big but I'm wondering if I could get away with a 60 qt.?

http://www.cabelas.com/product/home/cabela-s-coolers|/pc/105625080/c/1062648180/cabela-s-polar-cap-174-equalizer-cooler/2063244.uts?destination=/browse.cmd?categoryId=1062648180

I would be interested in hearing what size coolers work for everyone?

Thanks!

 

[Bluecollaroutdoors]

I bought a 120 qt for $50 bucks for salmon fishing tournaments and found out it is more valuable for a quick skin and quarter of a deer. All kinds of room and I have frozen milk jugs on hand so its plenty cold in there.

I have a couple of racks that sit an inch of the floor of the cooler. That way in the morning you dont wake up to your meat soaking in an inch of blood at the bottom of the cooler. Works the same way for salmon fillets if you dont get to vaccuum sealing right away.


We put a 180 lb 10 pt in that cooler and that was with the entire chest cavity still in one piece. If you took the 15 minutes to at least process the ribs/brisket you would have had a ton of free space in there.

 

[bigbendmarine]

Big fan of the 165 qt igloo marine... likely a bit bigger than what you really need but kind of like a gun safe, nice to have that extra space if you ever need it / you can't make a smaller one fit more things in!

I kept a field dressed hog that weighed in just under 100lbs before dressing in mine this summer for a few days before processing, and that was WITHOUT quartering it.

Above said, reason I bought it honestly had nothing to do with land game. Like to saltwater fish and cobia are my preferred target and you can't keep a cobia until it's OVER 36 inches, so if fishing with a friend and we want to keep a couple a really big cooler is the order of the day.

 

[bigbendmarine]

Above shared, if put to regular / hard use, the igloos won't last a lifetime. But sure easier paying somewhere around $80 to $90 for one and using it 10 years or so than shelling out almost 10 x more for a Yeti.

 

[MoBuckChaser]

For what some of these coolers cost nowadays, you can buy a 3'x4' freezer and a cheap generator.....

 

[swat1018]

Window A/C and a $320 cool-bot and you can build a walk-in.

 

[tooln]

There are all kinds of used fridge's out there. Check Craig's list. Lots of people remodel and get new appliances and get rid of the old working ones. Like MO said a cheap generator if needed will be a lot cheaper than a new cooler that size. If your set on a cooler Rtic is half the price of a Yeti and just as good.

 

[Bluecollaroutdoors]

I will stick with the $50 dollar cooler and the 25 cent water bill, but I see what you guys are getting at. I gave my friend the business when he showed up with a Yetti once for fishing. He said it was a wedding git, no way he was spending $400 on a plastic box.