Good Enough Starter Unit

I have been looking for a juicer for awhile because I like interesting fresh juices from Odwalla but I do not like the price. Its just juice for gosh sakes! Secondly, I got the blood pressure and cholesterol speech from my doctor an I figured the juice could help with the fruits and veggie intake RDA that I need. Thus my quest.

Like I said I have been looking for a quality juicer but the prices for good juicers are up there and I feel I am in the experimental stage with juicing. I ran across this juicer at less that half the price so I went with it.

-First Impressions Out of the Box
I like the compact design with the pulp receptacle integrated into the back side. Its small and seems solid enough. Upon disassembly for washing, I checked out the cutter strainer and it appears small. I mean, its less than half the size of the Jack LaLane cutter/strainer setup.

-First Juicing
OK, this is my first experience with a juicer. I fire this thing up and it becomes readily apparent that anything that enters the chute is doomed. Its fairly quiet and smooth for something running so fast. The items that I juiced were easily processed and the amount of juice was adequate.

-Juicing Process
I felt that I had to cut the fruit and vegetable items too much. The chute is small because the cutter area is small. Nonetheless, the speed of the cutter/strainer handled what ever I put down it. That being said, there is a particular order different items should be processed to maximize efficiency. Citrus should be last because the pith will clog the strainer.

-Cleanup
Pulp seems to cling to the upper shroud. I have been taking the upper shroud and pulp receptacle off and the same time because pulp will fall out onto the counter if I don't. If pulp would stay off the base unit, this cleanup would be a snap - but I still get a little bit there. The juicer should come with a clean up brush for the cutter strainer. There is no better or safer way to clean this than with a toothbrush. Keep your fingers away from the sharp points. Carrot immediately and permanently stains the unit the first time carrot is processed.

-The Juice
Ah, yes the ultimate reason for all this verbosity. Not bad. More pulp in the juice than I expected but I like it. Not too much foam either. I think I will stick with it.

-Conclusion
I think I will stick with it; yes. 'It' being this juicer until it dies and 'Juicing' in general. This unit will let me learn how to incorporate fresh juices into my daily diet and let me know what to look for when buying my next juicer.