Nut cracker. Very adjustable
7 Likes
Those are cheap chinese knock offs. Everyone that has one reports major losses.
5 Likes
I can’t remember how many Master nut crackers I bought over the last 20 years, maybe 5 or 6. I gave one to my mother, my daughter gave one to her band teacher, one for my MIL, and two that I still have.
I used one of Fred Blankenship’s crackers at the KY nut growers meeting back around 2005. There are some varieties of black walnut that it does a fantastic job on, shelling out 1/4’s nearly 100% of the time. Stoker black walnut is one that it works very well on.
I used David Griffith’s Hunt cracker in 2003 and easily cracked out black walnuts with high number of 1/4’s recovered. IMO the Master cracker is both faster to use and a bit less work, but I still would love to have a Hunt.
The GGG cracker jcguarneri purchased looks like it has most of the same usage characteristics of the Hunt with a bit less finagling to adjust the bottom anvil.
Poncirusguy’s native American nutcracker is arguably the most efficient with a set it and forget it mode of operation. Unfortunately, I’ve had 0% nutmeat return when using them.
2 Likes
Their site reports they are backordered over 1 year.
1 Like
That’s too bad. Guess I’ll have to ask one of my children to come up with something. Doesn’t look like rocket science.
1 Like
If you are looking to diy, maybe looking for a super heavy duty old school stapler, leather press, or shotgun shell reloader as discussed in this thread Bench Grafter Tool DIY - #20 by Barkslip
2 Likes
That was my first choice, but they are hopelessly backordered. They have a note up on the order form as of Jan 2022 saying no more orders until at least 2023.
There’s something wrong with their homepage (or maybe it’s on purpose). If you add /index.htm to the end of the url, you’ll get the full homepage.
1 Like
It’s not rocket science to get something that will crack it open (a vise will do). The trick is getting something that won’t also smash the kernels, consistently get you quarters, and is a pleasure to use.
4 Likes
That’s another one I was strongly considering! I almost went with that, but I’m leary of old cast iron items that I can’t inspect in person. Would you be willing to post video of it in action? I wasn’t able to find any videos of this model, so I think you’d be doing the internet a huge service!
I’ll try
1 Like
I have a pair of those but I prefer vice grips on my black walnut.
These were perfect for the hazelnuts. The groove I chose left the nuts whole. They were smaller than average and pretty tough. I think those are the 20" pliers, tons of leverage.
Apparently I have 2 pair. They haven’t been very useful on any fasteners I’ve tried, so I was happy to find a good application for them.
1 Like
affordable too!
1 Like
Looks good for thin-shelled nuts, but I’m not convinced it would handle a black walnut. I’d be happy to be proven wrong, of course!
I’ve seen some people say they can crack black walnuts with vise-grips, but I’ve never managed to get that to work.
1 Like
I’ve been quite happy with using a heavy duty 4” speed vise for black walnuts. But it seems all but impossible to get anything but fragments.
I purchased a specific nut cracker for black walnuts many years ago on Amazon but it broke to pieces after cracking a few nuts. Black walnuts are tough!
I will consider any other device if it can make larger pieces with less trouble. But given the internal structure of the black walnut, I doubt it is possible.
1 Like
I don’t like walnuts, so may never know.
These are probably only twice the mechanical advantage of vice grips. But the teeth are also more aggressive, and you can get a good lever length with both hands.
youd think it wouldnt be too hard to make an automatic nut cracker that runs off a motor with rotating drums for a reasonable price. Similar concept to rock crushers no?
1 Like