Back to Basics IC10885 4-Quart Plastic Ice-Cream Maker Review

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(More customer reviews)My aunt purchased one of these machines from K-Mart and had never used it and agreed to let me try it out since I had been wanting to make home made ice cream. Everyone raved about how I had made the most creamiest and delicious home-made ice cream with this machine on my first try. So I went to K-Mart and bought one for myself which was on sale for $20. I made the same recipe and had followed the same routine of pre-freezing the canister, paddle, and lid as well as chilling my ice cream. This time there was a lot of crystals on the bottom of the ice cream maker, but it still came out nicely. But when I go to use my machine for the second time it continuously stopped rotating during the beginning of the process so I couldn't actually make any ice cream. I tried time and time again to reposition the canister, but it would rotate once or twice, then stop. Also this time chunks of rock salt and ice would pop out of the machine and the ice even caused huge dents in the canister so I had to return it. It isn't worth it if the machine works maybe a handful of times. Having to worry about keeping the motor dry and away from melting ice, plus dealing with cleaning up all the ice and rock salt which was horrible on my hands is having me look into other machines such as the one offered by Cusinart. Very disappointed this didn't continue to work properly since it would've been nice to have a large 4-quart maker.

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Add to the festive mood of any barbecue, birthday party, picnic, or other fun gathering with this electric ice-cream maker. Housed in durable plastic, the appliance combines an easy-to-use design with modern technology to quickly produce up to 4 quarts of delicious homemade ice cream at a time. Make a creamy batch of chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry, or create custom flavors by mixing any combination of favorite ingredients--it also works great for fruity sherbet or low-fat frozen yogurt. The ice-cream maker uses ice and rock salt to cool the ingredients below freezing, while its motorized mixing paddle thoroughly blends to the perfect consistency. A handy instruction manual comes included, complete with great-tasting recipes ideas (appliance can also be used with prepackaged ice-cream mixes). With an oblong shape that takes up minimal counter space and stores compactly when not in use, the 50-watt ice-cream maker measures 7-1/2 by 11 by 7-1/2 inches and carries a one-year warranty.

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Back to Basics IC10804 Milk-Shake Maker Review

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(More customer reviews)How do they dare call this a "Milk-shake Maker"? IT'S NOT!!!
It's simply a Drink Mixer. There are many other Drink Mixers on the market that are well known quality brands. The reason I chose this product is that I expected, like any restaurant Milk-shake maker, that it would be able to break up the ice necessary for a milkshake. It doesn't. In fact, the directions warn to only use crushed ice, not ice cubes. The whole purpose of a milkshake maker is to brake down and blend ice to be used with the ingredients. Any common blender would do better at making milkshakes than this thing. This is deceptive advertising. Only buy this if you have difficulty stirring drinks with a spoon.

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Enjoying 1950s-style soda-fountain drinks does not have to be a memory of the past thanks to this easy-to-use countertop appliance. The retro-style milk-shake maker works great for blending up anything from old-fashioned chocolate shakes to thick vanilla malts and anything in between. The unit provides an aluminum mixing cup and two speed settings to choose from--low or high to ensure the proper consistency depending on the task at hand. Even more, its tilt-head design allows for effortlessly removing the mixing cup, which cleans up easily by hand or in the dishwasher. With a simple pull-down motion, the spindle also removes for quick cleanup. An instruction manual with delicious recipe ideas comes included for getting started. The milk-shake maker measures 7 by 6 by 14-1/2 inches and carries a one-year warranty.

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Vita-Mix 1300 TurboBlend 4500 Review

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(More customer reviews)I have owned the Vita-Mix Super 5000 since 1997, and I love it. I can grind flour, make juice, soup, ice cream (the fruit smoothies I make with this are to die for)--in short, every kind of food processing you can imagine. This baby is built to last and has a 7-year warranty.
In 2004, a couple weeks after the 7 years were up, I was very upset when it broke down. I thought, "Isn't that just the way these things tend to go with warranties?" I searched for Vita-Mix on the web (the URL is their name, and there is a link on this page, to them, too). I clicked on the button for service, got their 800 number, and called them at 6:00 p.m. Eastern time, and they were there. The service rep was friendly and knowledgeable. She asked me to describe in detail the symptoms of my ailing Vita-Mix. She then said, when I asked about it, that even though I was past the window period to do so, the company would still allow me to buy a three-year extended warranty for $120. I jumped at that, and found out that I could use it to cover the parts (and shipping) to fix the problem. She said I needed an "assembly piece" that sold for $75 without a warranty, a "drive socket" worth $12.00 and the shipping of $9.95 would be no charge to me. She said she was including a small wrench and instructions and I can fix it myself. So right off the bat I used most of the $120 to fix my first problem.
I've never seen anything like this kind of service. When our tabletop water distiller broke, we had to send it in for warrantied repair, which cost $50 shipping (we paid), and weeks to get back. I think shipping the Vita-Mix to the company might have cost nearly that much, so I was delighted to have this option of getting the parts in 10 days to fix it myself and have my beloved Vita-Mix back working within a week and a half.
If you are ever in the market for a food processor that is professional quality that works great with amazing customer service, this is it. The price is very competitive for what you get, and the product itself is fabulous. (Only one tiny little caveat--which is true for =any= blender--wear earplugs when you do the very high speeds or you could hurt your ears.)
Update March 23, 2009: I've owned the Vita-Mix 12 years now, and I still love it! See my comment to this review with today's date which contains information on my experiences with the sales personnel of the Vita-Mix company today.


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Vita-Mix TurboBlend 4500 is a heavy-duty, commercial-quality blender that delivers optimum performance and power.Superior engineering strengthens each part, ensuring a product that will last.

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