My niece has one, but I don't know the model. We've used it when her DH gets a deer. Make the bags ourselves and it works well. However, I remember that it did suck out the air very well. Everything stayed good in the freezer. I will ask what model she has next time we talk (or I should say, I will TRY to remember to ask. LOL).

Stoney,
I was going to get one for Christmas last year, but then I found a Reynolds handi-vac in the grocery store during Thanksgiving of last year and have never bothered asking for a Food Saver again. I really like this R. handi-vac.

I had heard that some Food Savers over time loose their "sucking" strength, and I was going to wait until I was sure I wouldn't spend alot of money on something that didn't last long. But now, I am satisfied for the time being with Reynolds Handi-Vac.

Here is a link that might be useful: See how the Handi-Vac works

My mother has a Foodsaver, not sure which model. I think it's a little temperamental. You have to position the bag just right or it won't suck all the air out, it will either just seal the bag or suck some of the air out. You also have to make sure the bag is big enough. I tried sealing part of a brick of cheese in a quart sized bag and couldn't get it to work, but it worked fine when I put it in a gallon sized bag.

You should go up on the Food Saver site and read all the directions. It won't work right if you aren't using it AND the bags correctly. The bag edges have to be clean and dry and have at least several inches of space between the top of the bag and the food, and meat has to be frozen for about an hour before you can seal them as the juices will flow right out of the top of the bag and will not allow sealing. I'm almost positive the site has the directions for use within the pages, that will be valuable info for you.

If you are using it correctly and it still doesn't suck every single bit of air out of the bag, you've got yourself a useless lemon.

I have one and have had it for about six years. I use it *all* the time, several times a week. It is simply wonderful, it has cut way down on waste, never have freezer burn and I can take advantage of sales on meat and freeze it for later use, even years and years later. I recently defrosted some fresh salmon that had been cleaned, then sealed and frozen for three years. It looked, tasted and had the consistance that it did the day we sealed it up. That is quite remarkable. It's worth the money spent.

My only advice is not to store it away where it would, in any way, be inconvenient to get to. I don't store mine on the counter but I do store it on a shelf that is extremely fast and easy to get to, with nothing at all in front of it. I can grab and go with it.

If I had to work to get to it, I simply would never use it. I've learned that for me, this is true about all appliances, even the ones I really want and need to use.

We have one and yes it can be tempermental at times. I do find that food saved in them and frozen really does stay "fresher". I buy our meats in family sizes and then save them in individual portions and some are marinated etc.

Obviously this is the reason they sold it at yard sale for 50 cents! LOL!

It does suck most of the air out, but certainly not all. It's better than when I put the meat in freezer bags and just squish them, so I'll keep on using it til I get a new contraption. I do love the concept ... we frequently buy meat in bulk and I'm always breaking it down into dinner-sized packages.

I'll take a look at that Reynolds Handi-vac too. I want to be able to buy the packaging at Sam's because it's so much cheaper, so I'll need the machine to work with that.

Thanks!

also make sure that the rubber around the vacuum chamber is clean......

I have one--not the same model, though. Mine's a V3800. I found that if you hold the bag up while it's sealing, it helps get the air out. I had a Seal-A-Meal first. It was cheap, but until I found out if I'd use it or not I didn't want to put a lot of $$ in it. That's probably why you got yours so cheap--they didn't use it. Well, I used it so much, pieces of the plastic started coming off.

I don't freeze meat before sealing it. If it's cold the juices don't run. If you want to freeze breads, though, you really do need to freeze first. I sealed some banana bread and it ended up in a little ball of ugliness.

I like the premade bags better than the roll where you make your own. I also like the Seal-A-Meal bags best. Enjoy it. It's a good time of year to find a deal like that with the fruits and veggies ready to freeze.