Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I purchased this Vitamix after reading reviews of the "black flakes" hoping I wouldn't have the same problem. I called Vitamix and the representative assured me that the flake issue was a rare occurrence and urged me to give it a try. Sure enough, as soon as I unboxed it and rinsed it out with water (without even blending it), I had a bowl of black flakes. The black flakes are TEFLON which the government "says" is USDA approved and that it's "okay" to ingest small amounts. I'm not so sure about that. Also, it's gross. Why would I be juicing if I didn't care about what I put in my body? From reading the other reviews, I know that the flakes don't go away after multiple uses and Vitamix has no plan (that the rep knew of) to fix the issue. SHAME ON YOU, Vitamix. $300 for a REFURBISHED machine that releases chunks of toxin into my juice? No thanks. ***UPDATE*** After ordering a NEW Oster VERSA 1400-watt Professional Performance Blender with Low Profile Jar for $199.20 on Amazon.com, my husband and I decided to have a "blend off" between the two. I measured out all the ingredients and we ran each unit at the same speed for the same amount of time (see pics). I had read about another "blend off" on the Vitamix reviews where the Oster got the same end results as the Vitamix, but took about 10 seconds longer. My results were even better than I had hoped...from start to finish, the Oster FAR OUT-PERFORMED the Vitamix. Not only did the Oster effortlessly chew through all the fruits and veggies we threw in, it also didn't sound like it was straining like the Vitamix did. My husband and I both overwhelmingly agreed that Oster is the clear winner. Not only is it a better product than the refurbished Vitamix, but a brand new one is $100 less! AND the Oster doesn't have "black flecks!" It's DEFINITELY a no brainer.