I have made my own Jerky. What I did was to buy some beef cut it up in to nice size pieces, then I put salt on them and dried them outside in the sun. I live in GA, so we got sun year around, as for u sleazy, I have no idea where arnold Shadow is? California is too wide of an area to find someone's location. After drying that in the sun for about a week or so I add the spice of my choice to it, then dry it on top of my fire place in a basket. Later on during my bad times, when I am broke, I take it out and tenderize it by using something like a hammer or a piston.