Swissmar V-Prep™ Mandoline Slicer – Versatile Kitchen Slicer for Julienne, Shred, Cube & Slice – Includes Multi-Function Bowl & Safety Holder – Essential Kitchen Gadget – White

I've had a couple of mandolines in the past, and my experience was that they were super cheap and didn't work at all. They were complete piles of junk, and dangerous because they didn't cut well, causing it to stick and your hand to slip. This one slices extremely well, it's almost scary. When I first got it, I did a trial slice of a red potato. I didn't think it was working properly because there was no force needed at all. I looked down and half the potato was sliced already. When I say no force needed, I don't mean a little force, or hardly any force. I mean it felt like nothing was happening. I got this because I recently purchased a dehydrator, and need thin, even slices of food. This definitely does the trick. It's pretty well made, has enough attachments to do any thickness I want, and has the julienne slicers at two thicknesses. The thick straight slice is great for just about anything, and the thin slicer is paper thin. Super thin red onions are great for pizzas, sandwiches, or salads. I am pretty decent with a knife, but I can't slice this thin. Although the manual specifically warns against it, I tried out the 'spin it 90 degrees' trick to see if it would dice, and it definitely works. Pull it back over the julienne prongs, then twist it, then go down, repeat... Perfect little cubes. Try dicing an onion like that with the smallest julienne attachment... tiny little onion cubes, works GREAT in meatloaf. The hand guard thing works pretty well, and normally I feel pretty confident with it.. however I was slicing bananas, and they were just too squishy to use the hand guard. I started doing it without the guard, got distracted for a split second, and almost took off the tip of my finger. Two weeks and about 12 fingertip bandages, and it still looks pretty bad. It's pretty obvious, but this thing is sharp! If you're an easily distracted monkey like me, don't try to do bananas without the guard. I ended up buying Chef'n Bananza Banana Slicer specifically for that purpose. I'm a musician, so would prefer to keep my fingertips. Anyway, with more solid foods (onions, potatoes, apples, whatever...) it works very well and is very secure. The fact that it's self contained and has a tray to catch the food, with a lid, is great. I'm super happy with this slicer.

This will be a lengthy review as I have been a user of the original V-Slicer since 1988. Yes it lasted that long, almost 30 years! I was hoping to make it 30 years and then replace, but I dropped the large Julienne insert on its nose and it cracked right down the blade line (it was already cracking a bit, this just speeded up the process.) This is the insert I use the most so I couldn't live without it. So I bought the new V 5000. In all respects it looks like a very similar design to the original. The original included most of the accessories you can buy extra now including the grater, the thin julienne vegetable decorations maker, The waffle fry maker (was really too small) and the peeler tool set. I broke my peeler using the lemon twist maker item on the side of the peeler. This was the only deficit in the set. The new peeler tool comes with another tool that I'm not familiar with but all these are extra now. But as you can see by the pictures (with the old and new items) the blade positions seem to be exactly the same even though the old inserts do not fit in the new frame. The new inserts lock a bit into the frame, where the old ones did not really "lock" in per se, but they were secure enough. They are more so now. The food holder cup is of a similar design and has some kind of like the serrated edges on the raised lip guards that I think have a function but I don't know what it is. The V 5000 includes a catcher and storage box for your cut items. That is a nice addition, Why I bought this set v.s the others. I wouldn't buy any of the other sets that didn't include this. So most of the other reviews will speak for this item and the fact that I have been using my old one for nearly 30 years. It is simply the best mandolin out there. No, you cannot vary the thickness of the slicing more than two, but this is of little concern. The thin slicing, while not paper thin, is pretty much thin enough for almost anything. The thick setting is good enough for thinner French fries and if you needed it twice as thick or more than that, you would use a knife anyway. As many others have said, the blades are extremely sharp, so if you are using this without the holder you have to be EXTREMELY careful. I have never cut myself because I'm so afraid of how sharp this is that I take extreme care every single time if I'm not using the holder. Overall, I have been extremely satisfied with this mandolin. Apparently, they are discontinuing the insert version and going to an adjustable sickness version I'm not sure how the julienne setting will work but I'm sure will be similar to the other mandolins that are coming out with multiple adjustments on the frame. With nearly 30 years of experience with this product is absolutely the best value that I've ever seen for any cooking tool.

I grew up with the Borner. My mom picked hers up at a yard sale for a buck or two some twenty-odd years ago, and she still has it. Still loves it. Still uses it all the time. When I finally grew up enough to need my own mandoline, my mom again sang the praises of Borner, but hers looked a little dowdy and old-fashioned. (The really old ones were kind-of almond colored with a brown case.) Plus, what did she know, right? So I scoured the market, with a spending limit up to $100. Many were prettier, almost all of them were more expensive, but few could match the positive reviews of Swissmar. Plus I knew they held up to regular use over decades. So, just like my mom, I bought a Borner. And now I see what all her fuss was about: they really are easy to clean, easy to use, easy to love. That said, I'm glad I bought the V-5000. The box underneath does take up a little more counter space, but I can keep going without needing to reposition the mandoline like my mom always does when she slices onto a plate. Plus, I didn't want it sliding around on top of a random bowl, the way I remember hers doing when I was a girl. (This could have been more due to my inexperience than a flaw in the Borner, I really don't know.) At any rate, I'm sold on mine. But one cut when I was twelve was enough to teach me: I'll never get sloppy and forego using the vegetable-holder-thingy. So not worth it.

Muy práctico para mi trabajo en la cocina

This is the second time we have bought this product. The previous one lasted over 10 years. We changed it as the blades were no longer as sharp, and the plastic body had got scratched --- but it still performed beautifully. We have in total purchased 6 times --- the other 4 have been gifted to family --- and ALL are very happy with the product

As a home cook, I've got decent knife skills, but it is still time consuming prepping meals. The Swissmar Borner V slicer helps alot, especially with salads. Look up the American Kitchens review on YouTube for the details. In summary is you can get french fries, julienne carrots, make slaws, dice onions, get zucchini ribbons, etc in seconds. The base is sturdy, change out blades is quick and its very safe to use with the handle provided. You do need to apply some pressure and speed with harder vegetables, but I quickly got the hang of it. Like any sharp steel blades, unfortunately the diswasher is out of the question. Using a dishwashing brush is ideal for longevity. From my homework, this is still the best mandoline on the market, very sturdy, and everyone should have one in their kitchen.

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Most mandolines sold anywhere are horrible products that just waste your time and you'd instead be better having a sharp knife to cut your veggies.... But not this one ! This one is actually good. I want to leave a prop to the seller Swissmar who sent me a new mandoline under warranty after I sent pictures of a defect in the manufacture of the blade of the first I received. I was passed my Amazon return window having not actually tested my mandoline right away and I was afraid I'd have no recourse but they replaced the whole mandoline under warranty. I was very pleased with the customer service and that made the whole difference for me. I recommend making a close inspection of the product as you receive it in case you'd suffer a similar defect. The first unit I received had blades that were like warped in two places. The new one I received fulfilled my expectations. The Borner German made blades are very high quality and stay sharp a long time. I have had several Borner mandolines over the years and even my 5+ years old ones are still way sharper than most competing products in a brand new state. No other brand compare. You can cut very fast and very precise cuts that makes using such a tool actually faster than a food processor. I really like the box it comes in both to protect against children putting their fingers on these ultra sharp blades and also during the preparation, you can cut horizontally and fill the box and use it to carry your slices veggies.