Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

For me and for my wife, cooking is a kind of a hobby. Before buying a meat grinder, we analyzed several models. The first conclusion: the most important feature of a meat grinder is the motor power. This STX has a powerful 1,800 watts motor, more than enough to do all of the duties of a home kitchen (and maybe even of a small restaurant). Other meat grinders with smaller motors, such as 500W or 800W, will not fit for heavy duty (10 or more pounds at once), nor will be able to deal with some kinds of meat. After some research, we ordered it from Amazon. The delivery time was as promised. The machine was very well packed in a so protective box. Our first test of the product revealed that we made the right choice. Some points to highlight: 1. Most parts are polished aluminum. So easy for cleaning, very nice appearance; 2. The finishing is careful at every detail. It is clearly a good quality product; 3. It works wonderfully. The powerful motor is far more than enough for regular meat; 4. The ground meat texture results very similar to that from a supermarket grinder. I've seen other home meat grinders that produced a kind of a paste. This one, however, preserves the texture as it should be: perfect for hamburgers, tartar beef and so on; 5. It is so easy to assemble/disassemble and to operate. Impossible to mistake; 6. Despite we didn't use it yet, the sausage kit will be very helpful. In short, this is a 5 stars product, no doubts about that. But we had a problem: the aluminum parts are NOT dishwasher safe. We didn't notice that, and what went to the dishwasher was damaged: the shining was gone and those parts became some rough to touch. So, I contacted the seller (The Mercantile Station) and asked them the price of the replacing parts, since I would buy them. What a pleasant surprise: they promptly sent me an email asking for my address, and they kindly offered to send the parts for free (despite, I must stress, the damage was caused by me). What an elegant attitude! So, would Amazon allow it, the seller would deserve SIX stars. IMPORTANT NOTE: a few months after we bought our STX, the motor was improved to 2,000 watts, i.e, an increase of about 11%. I'd guess that, with this new and more powerful motor, the machine will able to perform an even heavier duty. My one is still working so fine, no complaints at all. AN ADDITIONAL NOTE AFTER ALMOST 2 YEARS OF USE: the machine is still perfect, as when it was new. No problems at all. I am really impressed with the superior quality. A great deal!