not to hijack the other popular thread. has anyone tried the winkleman zipvaz system?

reynolds had a similar system out but quit making the bags. this zipvac seems to look very durable and i like the oneway check valve. saw the box at the fisherman's marine awhile back. had no cash to buy and try. anyways heres' the link.

http://zip-vac.com/Testimonials.aspx?playVideo=true

zipvac.net

the choice of big bags is a cool option.

Looks like it might work in a pinch but I would'nt rely on it for my seasons precious Springer chatch. Besides, I NEVER reuse my vac bags anyway. Looks like a glorified Ziplock from the promo ad.

Zipvaz system?

Reynolds had a similar system out but quit making the bags.


I have both systems, the Zipvaz uses a locking valve with its bag.

The Reynolds is much easier to use, I wondered why I couldn't find the bags at any of the stores I tried that previously had them. It was a lot less expensive than the Babe Winkleman system. I think it was around $40, the Reynolds about $10.

Ziplock makes one too, but it is a hand pump manual unit which seems like it would be awkward to use.

Unfortunately the bags of all three are not interchangeable.

These units are handy for packaging left overs, small amounts of fish, clams, etc.. but if I am packaging several fish, I'll go to my Foodsaver system.

i am just sick and tired of my FS sealed bags losing the airtight seal and freezer burning my october kings!

Putting a double seal on each end of the bag prevents that sometimes. 1/8 of an inch apart.

Thanks Aunty M, I gave it a try. with the Ziplog bags and the Reynolds sealer ,it worked fine.

I also used the Zipvac manual pump with the Ziplock bags and it sealed things tight, but I wouldn't want to package a lot of fish with that method

Brewer if your vacuum packed bags of fish are stacked in the freezer, the seal can break if the packages are banged together or dropped when frozen.

I've seen this even with commercial vacuum unit processed packages.

I don't think the Zipvac would be an improvement over the FS.

The absolute best is to be able to flash freeze fish with a coating of ice, but that is hard to do unless you have the right equipment.

I've been aboard a commercial troller that flash froze his fish within two hours of hitting the fish box. He used a large livestock watering tub and the temperature was minus 45 degrees.

It took seconds to get the fish ice coated and basically once done, the fish was preserved as being two hours old until thawed.

I been using a ZipVac for a couple of years now. For smaller items that will fit in the quart and gallon size bags, it is my preferred vacuum sealer. Being able to take out a few items and then re-vacuum, seal the bag easily, quickly, is a real plus. Can't do this with the Food Saver as easy, plus bag size decreases ever time it's resealed. The ZipVac bags are expensive though. So I do reuse them by running them through the dishwasher, top rack. To keep the ZipVac bags cleaner to begin with, I'll put my items into a Ziploc bag first, then into the ZipVac bag. Makes clean up of the ZipVac bags much easier and the items have even better protection.

For extra large items, for extended storage. I'll still use my Food Saver, but that has been very little the last couple of years.

I'm pretty much in the same situation as Grayghost, but prefer the Reynolds over the ZipVac.

Either works and are really handy for doing a bag or two.

Now that I know I can use Ziplock bags with my Reynolds as AuntyM suggested, I'll go back to using it for small projects. The Ziplock bags are less expensive than FS bags, but not quite as sturdy. I have used them with my FS by cutting of the top of the bag and used the FS to vacuum and seal.

Brewer, do you still service reels. I don't need the Zipvac, I have, but have a cranky Daiwa Millonaire that could stand a cleaning and lube if you are interested in a trade.

If so PM me, I don't have any bags for it, except a couple that have been washed and re-used.

Personally I think you would be just as well to get a Reynolds and use the Ziplock bags, which is what I am going to do now that I know that works.

I have a FS and my son-in-law who lives 20 minutes away has one of those $1,000 commercial units so access to vacuum packing is not a problem for me.

I read somewhere that the best way to freeze fish in vacuum bags was to freeze the fish first and then vacuum seal the bags. I think it had to do with dry versus wet inside when the bag was sealed. They also recommended dipping the pieces of fish in unflavored gelatin before freezing. I think the idea there was to get a smoother surface and to keep freezer burn off the fish. Anyone tried this method?

i have to be brutally honest with many of you. i'm going to admit something very personal and painfull to express. i hate preparing my catch for freezing. i believe this is buried in my subconcious. cause it only surfaces after fishing trips where i've been successfull. by the time the fishing has ended and everthing is packed back into the pinto. i'm back home, i have zero intrest or patience to prepare the catch for freezing. so by the time i get everything done to get the catch into the freezer i've invested alot of effort. so to find the FS bags have lost seale. i'm more than pissed!!!! to see the burn really chaps my asss!!! i generall just send those packages down to my motherinlaw.

Zipvac-I love it. It's cost has come down since it was introduced. BTW, the ads say it won Best Fishing Accessory product at the industry trade show. What I like about it is that it works, and the bags are reusable. The Reynolds system never caught on and is pretty well gone. Plus, Foodsaver is way more expensive and you can't reuse the bags. At the Fred Hall show in Cal. they had a really cheap package for about $10. Granted it was the manual pump, but I like that better because a couple of pumps and it's done. Although we nailed a ton of crappie and had to use the electric pump because otherwise, we'd have cramped up our hands with the manual. Used an electric knife that days as well. My wife likes keeping her granola mix in it too. ZipLoc bags are good, but they don't vacuum pack. No way am I going to ruin quail breasts in a ziploc bag. The ZipVac is a real deal. Saves money and gets the job done. Works for me.

I always make sure that I pat dry the fish before sealing and then I will pack it in half rack cardboard beer boxes so I'm not pawing through a bunch of packages to find what I want. Since I started doing this the amount of unsealed packages has dropped to near zero.