I just purchased a new product from John Kohler who as usual is ahead of the curve.... a $200 hydraulic juice press similar to the unit on the back half of a Norwalk juicer or the Welles Press... the former selling for $2500... the latter for $400.

In case you hadn't seen John's review... here's the link [www.youtube.com] [www.discountjuicers.com]. These are unsolicited btw. Oh and the original manufacturer is [www.myjuicepress.com] charging about $20 more than John. ($220 vs. $200). So your call. I bought from John before I knew about the OM site...would have bought from John anyway... John is John and $20 is $20.

The unit arrived double packaged in an inner box and an outbox with bubble wrap. When opened the unit was undamaged with a complete set of wrapping clothes, instruction manual and folder for the clothes.

Putting the unit together is easy and intuitive. except for positioning the plate and cloth and putting in the handle to the hydraulic unit, it's completely assembled and ready to go.

Tried it on Super Angel pulp... and as I suspected a complete waste of time. I got about 1 ml of residual juice per cup of pulp.... but thats for a top of the line juicer.. If you have a Greenstar Elite or a Super Angel and all you want to do is squeeze the last drop out... this isn't cost effective. I'm planning on using it on my centrifugal juicer pulp and nut mylk pulp for higher yields. Also for straight press on easy fruits like lemons, limes, oranges, melons, grapes and pineapple.

The unit itself is heavy (over 10 lbs easy) and constructed of oak laminated board and steel. the press plates are steel as well. Heavy duty construction that creaks like floor boards when you press it. Supposedly at 4000 psi... a number that doesn't mean much since you get the last drop well below it.

In the end, 5 out of 5 stars... not recommended if you have a twin gear juicer.. any twin gear juicer and are just trying to get the pulp juice out. Highly recommended for centrifugal juicers, single auger juicers, nut mylks, anyone interested in Gerson therapy. Overall, thumbs up. won't be running my twin gear pulp through it again though, a fool's errand.

Paul



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/14/2012 06:54PM by pborst.

pborst Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
.....In the end, 5 out of 5 stars... not recommended if you have a twin gear juicer..

I owned a Norwalk Press Juicer many years ago. That experience ranks as one of my biggest Mistakes ever, and I've made quite a few. But as the old saying goes..."You have to kiss a lot of Frogs before you meet Prince Charming".
I could go on-and-on, but I'll cut to the Chase. Notice how much darker the juice is when pressed with the Juice Buddy, as compared to the juice from the centrifugal L'equip 110.5...a clear sign that oxygen has been pressed into the folding cloth, and Oxidation has occured. I had the same problem with my Norwalk.
The Bottom Line....You may get more juice from a Press, but it isn't fit to drink......WY

Darkness of the juice is a sign of oxidation? Based on what? Mostly likely the centrifugal juicer oxidized the juice more than the press. [www.discountjuicers.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/15/2012 12:30AM by pborst.

pborst Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
.....Mostly likely the centrifugal juicer oxidized the juice more than the press.

Paul....Have we ever agreed on anything? LOL...and that's okay. I'm just going by my experience...the color of the juice, and the taste. I've never had a heat issue with any of the centrifugal juicers I've used. I think one reason for that is the fact it only takes a minute to juice with a centrifugal. The carrot juice has always been a bright orange, with a fresh taste. Whenever I have run the pulp back through, or pressed it, the juice turns Brown, and has a strange taste. Try it for yourself......WY

We agree on a lot Henry. Probably more than you think. But not this I'm afraid. John K has said and Norwalk has tested that pressed juice is some of the highest quality possible which is why it is specified for Gerson therapy. So, agree to disagree on this one.

Update: I wouldn't recommend this for seed mylks. I got nothing from my poppy seed pulp. Might work better on nut pulps like almonds. It worked extremely well though on Omega VRT pulp. I got 10 ounces of pulp juice against 26 ounces of juicer juice... a 38 percent return. I don't know if that says that the Juicing Buddy is a good press or the VRT is a bad juicer (maybe both). But the VRT leaving that much nutrition in the pulp (it was beets and purple cabbage), concerns me. I don't buy that single auger is better than twin auger anymore. Cheaper, easier to clean, yes. But lower yields as the trade off.

Paul

pborst Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
...... I don't buy that single auger is better than twin auger anymore. Cheaper, easier to clean, yes. But lower yields as the trade off.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
With the centrifugal style juicers, I'm going to continue using my Omega 4000, even though Omega has come out with a superior model...the BMJ390, that produces more juice, has more power, and is easier to use (with a 3" feed chute)......WY

"I owned a Norwalk Press Juicer many years ago. That experience ranks as one of my biggest Mistakes ever, and I've made quite a few. But as the old saying goes..."You have to kiss a lot of Frogs before you meet Prince Charming".
I could go on-and-on, but I'll cut to the Chase. Notice how much darker the juice is when pressed with the Juice Buddy, as compared to the juice from the centrifugal L'equip 110.5...a clear sign that oxygen has been pressed into the folding cloth, and Oxidation has occured. I had the same problem with my Norwalk.
The Bottom Line....You may get more juice from a Press, but it isn't fit to drink......WY"
Wheatgrassyogi what is your logic? Why you think pressed juice taste bad? How much experience do you have with it? I have been using Omega 8004 which is a dual stage single auger juice for several years and been pressing it with hydraulic press from the start. The pressed juice is superior in taste by far and lighter in color then the augered juice. See the color difference in my video. [youtu.be] It keeps for two days in sealed glass pints and continues to have very high quality taste. The color can vary from pale green or clear with cucks, very bright orange with just carrots to purple green with just kale

timeconnors Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
....Wheatgrassyogi what is your logic? Why you think pressed juice taste bad? How much experience do you have with it?

Right after I bought my Norwalk Press Juicer, I noticed a strange taste in the Carrot Juice I made with it. I tracked the culprit to the bags and cloths used to press the juice. Repeated calls to the President of the Norwalk Company revealed they use a food-grade Nylon. He went on to say that they originally used Hemp, but the juice acids dissolved the bags and cloths. I decided I didn't want any juice that was squeezed through plastic, and gave up my Juice Press. Besides, that's a lot of work for just 20% more juice......WY

Thanks for the response WY. I guess to each their own. I choose to trust the Gerson Institute's "research" and the study called the "Comparison of Juice Extractors: Enzymes" by Michael Donaldson, Ph.D. Hallelujah Acres Foundation.

Quoting from the study which is a good read "The results with the Norwalk and People’s Press demonstrate that high-speed juice
extraction does not necessarily deactivate enzymes. The speed of the motor or cutting blades does not reveal how much degradation will occur using a specific machine. The
generation of heat by the high speed does not appear to cause any loss in enzymatic
activity. This makes sense, since enzymes are heat stable at least to body temperature (37°C / ~99°F). No juicer heated the juice to this extent. Rather, it is the introduction of
air into the juice extraction process that is the more important question. Centrifugaljuicers pull copious amounts of air through the machine during the juicing process.
The amount of foam produced during juicing is very critical. The Norwalk and People’s Press generate very little foam with most of the bubbles being large in diameter. Other juicers produce more foam with much smaller bubbles. The more foam and smaller the bubbles, the greater the exposure to air and thus oxidation. There is a tremendous amount of surface area in foam for oxidation to take place. Any juicer that squeezes juice through a metal screen will cause substantial amounts of foam, resulting in greater losses of nutrients due to oxidation."

Gerson claims without pressing the juice you miss out on a lot of benifits and they have not seen one person "cure cancer" without pressing.
Here is the link to the study on enzymes [www.hacres.com]

WY I would like to see the study and science on how and why pressing juice through a nylon or polyester cloth is harmful and not just a thought in one's head which then makes the juice seem to taste different or "bad".

I'm confused....you say the juice is much greener from the Juice Buddy, then you say juice from a press is unfit to drink. Isn't the juice buddy a press?

Have you ever used the [www.shahogenjuicepresses.com] press? Its also cheaper than the other ones. I use it and have had great success.

taylor123 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Have you ever used the
> [www.shahogenjuicepresses.com] press? Its
> also cheaper than the other ones. I use it and
> have had great success.

I hope this is the last of taylor123's ads on various threads for the crappy juice press he doesn't have yet - as stated in this thread.

[www.rawfoodsupport.com]

There are many types of presses out there. All with there unique design & way they operate.

We used to have a simple but functional wood built juice press.

We have since created a high end stainless steel juice press, something that will really like nice on a kitchen counter top. The press will also have a full warranty. While its going to really stand out among the other presses, we're trying to get the retail price down to around $400.

The press will be available by the Middle of May. You can get an idea for what its like by clicking this link below.

[www.rawfoodsupport.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/19/2014 02:03PM by superfoods.

Good, but needs some improvements



I drink fresh homemade carrot, beet, celery, spinach, cabbage, apple, and garlic juice daily.

If you juice I recommend Norman W. Walker's book: Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Juices very highly! It tells you what benefits there are from each juiced fruit and vegetable, as well as what juices to use for what illnesses.

I gave the Juicing Buddy 4 stars instead of 5 stars for the following reasons.

1) The concept of this juice press is very good, though not very well executed.

2) The owner/builder tends to be non-receptive and inflexible inflexible, but his wife, who runs the customer service part of the business, is very pleasant to deal with and will work with you to resolve ANY issues that you might have to your satisfaction.

If the modifications I added below came standard it would most definitely be a 5 star item!!!!!

I bought this several months ago. Within the first week the base the jack sits in split right down the middle from the pressure. Because of the excellent guarantee it was replaced no questions asked.

When I installed the new base, the first time I used it, it began to flex again and would have split in short order just like it did the first time.

I have made three modifications to my Juicing Buddy at a cost of about $30 and am now very happy with my purchase!!

1) I VERY CAREFULLY bent the pour spout outward about 1/3" to get more juice in the cup.

2) I added a 6 1/2" piece of clear nylon tubing on to the pour spout so that all the pressed juice goes in to the cup.

3) To prevent the base from splitting again I installed six HRS12 Simpson Strong Ties in two rows directly below the jack from side to side using 14- 1 1/4" dry wall screws in each row of braces. This stopped almost completely the base from flexing. I have used it for six months since and have no longer had a problem with the base splitting and with my modifications expect it to last for many, many years.

I would also like to see a wider routed indent to the left of center in the front where your juice container sits so the jack arm is farther from the glass 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup I use.

I hope that the owner/builder will read my review and include my modifications in future builds!!!

Would I recommend buying this???? Most definitely, as long as the modifications I made are added by the purchaser, unless they get incorporated into the product when built.

It comes with a lifetime warranty when bought directly from their website.

If I were buying a press today, I'd go with a Gerson approved stainless steel model. [www.juicepressfactory.com] Myjuicebuddy has an electronic model now. Juice press factory is close to Welles Press prices, but it's stainless steel. Anyway, I bought the my juice press. Works well, but tandem juicing in a twin gear is better. Just feed the pulp from a single auger or centrifugal into a twin gear. Self feeding.

I do an initial juice in a vertical single auger and refeed the pulp into my twin auger while I'm feeding other raw produce through the single auger. Works great.

Paul

I like a lot of aspects of this juice press. Wood is a nice material for this. I also like that with the press plates on top you don't end up needing to clean the press itself. That said, this setup will only really work in conjunction with another juicer, as without relatively dry pulp, the bag will end up soaking in a bath of juice that comes up over the press stones on the bottom.

I personally think the best way to use a press in conjunction with an 8004 (which is what I currently do, using a Welles Press) is to use the blank plate in the 8004 and then put the very wet pulp into the cloths, extracting all juice using the press.

Though I can't complain too much about the Welles Press functionality-wise, it was definitely overpriced for what it is and the materials used to make it.

If I were going to buy a new manual press today, it would be the Das Viking - even though I don't need another press and am currently saving up for a Norwalk I may have to buy one of these in time too as they look amazing:
[www.amazon.com]



I like this wooden press though, and hope that further refinements can be made to make it more ideal for juicing very wet pulp.

Hmmm...I owned two of them and by far the best juice ever. It isnt oxidised and can be kept in the fridge for days with the enzymes still alive instead of have to be drank withing 15 mins. My juice was alway bright...cant for the life of me understand why you even say or think what you did.

Hi,
I am in Toronto, Canada and interested in the $200 hydraulic juice press.
Yet there is no current product or company info. Can anyone give me any up to date information where I may order or purchase?
Thanks,
Michael