Patent ID: RE40030

Claim:
A method of stuffing natural casings with sausage emulsion, comprising, preloading each of the casings on an elongated hollow open ended sleeve shorter than the casings with the sleeve having a first end and an open end which is of constant uninterrupted diameter between the first end and the open end and having diameter less than the casings by telescoping the casing on the outer surface of the sleeve, and extending an open end of the casing toward the open end of the sleeve, slidably mounting the sleeve over an open end of a meat stuffing tube of a sausage encasing machine, extruding meat emulsion through the stuffing tube into the casing mounted on the sleeve until the casing is slidably removed from the tube caused in part by the movement of meat emulsion entering the casing, repeating the use of the sleeve by preloading the sleeve with another natural casing, and sequentially filling the casing on the preloaded sleeve with meat emulsion in accordance with the foregoing steps , and wherein the stuffing tube is moved longitudinally to a twisting and linking station when a pre - loaded sleeve is mounted thereon, a brake element is moved into operative contact with the sleeve, the brake element selectively holding the sleeve against longitudinal movement while permitting the sleeve to all from supporting condition on the stuffing tube .