Cabela’s built its dehydrator around the same crowd it built its hunting gear for — people processing real quantities of game meat, not just the occasional bag of dried apples. The 10-Tray Deluxe leans hard into capacity and horizontal airflow, though it makes one notable tradeoff to get there that’s worth knowing before you buy.
Pros
- 900W rear-mounted heater with horizontal airflow — no tray rotation needed
- Large 1,409 sq. in. of drying space across 10 trays
- Fold-down door with magnetic closure and a viewing window
- Polypropylene trays resist the brittleness some plastic trays develop over time
- Wide 80–160°F thermostat range
Cons
- Trays and drip tray are hand-wash only, not dishwasher safe
- Large footprint at 20.5" x 14.4" x 16.2"
- Plastic construction throughout — no stainless steel option in this line
In This Article
Key Specs
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Drying Space | 1,409 sq. in. across 10 trays |
| Tray Material | Polypropylene |
| Temperature Range | 80–160°F, adjustable |
| Power | 900W, 6.5" rear-mounted fan |
| Airflow Design | Horizontal, side-mounted exhaust slots |
| Dimensions | 20.5"L x 14.4"W x 16.2"H, 20.9 lbs |
| Cleaning | Hand wash only — not dishwasher safe |
Drying Performance
The 900W heater and horizontal airflow design push hot air across each tray from the rear toward the core, which Cabela’s specifically markets as eliminating the need for tray rotation. In practice this puts it in the same performance category as Excalibur’s horizontal Parallex system, reviewed in my Excalibur 10-Tray review — both prioritize even drying at full capacity over the simpler top-down or bottom-up airflow found on cheaper stacked units.
The 80–160°F range comfortably covers everything from low-temperature herb drying up through jerky, and the higher wattage relative to plastic-bodied competitors means it comes up to temperature and clears a full 10-tray load reasonably quickly for a plastic unit.
Cabela’s sells separate fruit roll-up trays for liquid-based foods — the standard trays aren’t designed for purees. If you’re making fruit leather regularly, budget for that add-on or use a solid liner sheet cut to fit instead.
Build Quality
Polypropylene trays hold up better against warping than the thinner plastic used on budget units, which matters given the size of this machine’s footprint. The real limitation is the hand-wash-only cleaning requirement — a genuine inconvenience at 10 trays per batch, especially compared to the dishwasher-safe trays on both the Excalibur and LEM BigBite.
Cabela’s manual specifically warns against using vegetable oil directly on the tray surface and against dehydrating foods marinated in alcohol — both can degrade the polypropylene over time. Worth keeping in mind if you’re working from jerky marinade recipes that include either.
How It Compares
Against Excalibur’s 10-tray line, Cabela’s offers a comparable horizontal-airflow design at a generally lower price point, but gives up the dishwasher-safe convenience and the stainless steel construction option. Against LEM’s BigBite 10-Tray, Cabela’s has more raw drying space (1,409 sq. in. vs. roughly 1,440 sq. in. for LEM — close enough to be a wash) but again loses on cleanup convenience and long-term tray durability, since stainless steel simply outlasts plastic under repeated heavy use.
Who This Is For
- Good fit: hunters processing seasonal game meat in bulk, anyone who wants Excalibur-style horizontal airflow at a lower price and is fine hand-washing trays.
- Not a fit: anyone who dehydrates often enough that hand-washing 10 trays repeatedly becomes a real chore — the stainless, dishwasher-safe options are worth the premium at that frequency.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Cabela’s specifies hand washing only for the trays and drip tray, unlike some competing stainless steel models that are fully dishwasher safe.
No. The horizontal airflow design is specifically built to dry evenly across all 10 trays without needing rotation, similar to Excalibur’s Parallex system.
Yes, but the standard trays aren’t designed for liquids. Use Cabela’s separately sold fruit roll-up trays or a solid liner sheet cut to fit the standard trays.
Bottom Line
The Cabela’s Deluxe 10-Tray Dehydrator delivers genuinely even, horizontal-airflow drying at a strong capacity for the price, making it a solid pick for hunters and bulk processors. The tradeoff is cleanup: hand-washing 10 polypropylene trays after every batch is the real cost of the lower price tag versus stainless steel competitors.
