Omega VRT350 Slow Masticating Juicer

I had them too, I wondered never juicing before if I should spend as much as Omega requires romstepminto the Vrt. Would it serve my juicing needs? I did all the hours of research most modern consumers do, and narrowed it down to the VRT 350, the 8006, and the Green Power Kempo. What I wanted was a great juicer with longevity that I could throw a variety of produce at. I don't care for making my own nut butters or sorbets, I just wanted incredible juice. I plan on doing about 60% greens and veggies, and the rest fruit. Does the VRT deliver? A resounding YES! Better than you would believe, there hasn't been a produce item yet that it hasn't squeezed the life out of into tasty juice. We've been running the juice gauntlet ever since it arrived a few days ago, spinach, carrots, celery, cucumber, pineapple, oranges, apples, ginger, and garlic are just some of what our Vrt has chewed on. It has handled all of it from the soft fruits to the leafy spinach it works like a champ. I'm sure there are a variety of juicers out there that would do the same, but I know I picked the right one for our household. Overall I'm very pleased, and had a friend come over who has a juice fountain centrifugal design and was amazed. Y the quietness, the yield, and the quality. The Omega puts out the best tasting juice you've ever had. Here's some questions I had in the beginning, I'm not sure they are yours but they would've helped me being a new juicer, they are curiosities I didn't see the answer to during my search for juice. 1. Is there a ton of pulp? I saw mixed reviews on this and wasn't sure what to expect, I'm not a huge pulp fan, but I don't hate it unless it overpowers the texture of the entire glass. The VRT comes with a large and small strainer and I've never used anything but the small/fine screen. If you've ever ordered fresh squeezed OJ at a restaurant and know what it's like you can expect less pulp than that. If you bought a store bought juice the VRT produced it would probably say "some pulp." it's not pulp free but it doesn't get in the way either. I've been pouring my juices over ice and I don't even notice the pulp. It lead me to believe that some people want a lack of pulp on the level of something packaged that isn't even juice, like a vitamin water or Gatorade. I was taken aback by the first glass, as it was so smooth I can't figure out what people are complaining about. If you must have a pulp free juice a cone masticating juicer like the 8006 or centrifugal juicer is probably better. personally I think the vrt outs out a rich flavor and a glass that's easy to drink. In short no one I've handed a glass to has mentioned the pulp. 2. Preparation and cleaning time, is it a hassle? Again I say, these can't e serious complaints. I'm a person in a rush like many of us are and taking the minimal time to prepare juice has been beyond easy, let's take cucumber, carrot, celery and spinach. That's one I like, basically I chop the cuke and celery in under a minute, lop off the tops of the carrots, and start stuffing spinach in the thing. There are some great tips on juicing out there, especially by John over at discountjuicers.com --- nothing has ever gotten stuck on me and while I don't feed everything I possibly can into the thing at full speed it chomps through produce very quickly. I simply listen to it chew up the previous item as I toss the next one in, it's really fast though, and I find myself lagging behind the juicer frequently. Cleanup is a snap, see my forest sentence here, there is no complaint, it takes no time at all. One caver is if you are utterly lazy, the parts on the Omega say they cannot be thrown into the dishwasher or it will be damaged. I'm not going to do that anyway with an appliance this pricey. I'll time myself in the future but right now prep and cleanup has to be under 5 minutes it's quicker than making a cup of coffee. 3. Is it worth the admission? That friend I told yo about with the breville, well we had a juice off last night and the difference in quality and yield was astounding, not to mention that we were all laughing at the lawnmower like sound the juice fountain produced. In contrast I was running the vrt on the counter next to our barstools with music playing from an iPhone and conversation going. Then I heard "what are you doing, you can't juice spinach" as I lumped a handful together. The quality of the juice, and what it can juice is simply amazing. It's so consistent in the glass it's like you bought something off the shelf or went to a juice bar, except that it's even better! I do a lot of exercise and meditation and I like to think I know my body, and like most Americans i have too much fat, refined flour, and processed food in my diet. I'm an organic consumer, go to farmers markets, but I don't kid myself, I know what my modern diet is doing to me. The first glass of carrot and spinach changed me into a complete believer, I instantly felt a prolonged sense of energy throughout the day. Already I find myself craving a glass of juice in the middle of the day. If you are struggling with the finance, maybe do what I did and tell your friends you would like an amazon card to put toward better health. This was our Christmas present to my wife and I this year, and for the price of good health it can't be beat. 4. Is juicing expensive? It looks that way, especially if you watch the videos of the vrt where John is using 3 pounds of carrots :) in truth you can build a glass or two for yourself with as little as, 3 carrots, 2 apples, one celery stalk. I was ale to find 3 pound bags of organic apples for $3 at a regular store, carrots for a $1 per pound, and the yield with the VRT is so high you don't need a ton of reduce. The first couple times I actually made far too much following juice recipes online. Besides those bacon and eggs I like so much are equally expensive if not more so. It's only been a few days but I feel like we made the best choice going down the path of slow juicing. I'll try to check back in a fe months and report my progress. Right now I feel the choice should have been a no brainer with a lot less deliberation, but hindsight is always 20/20. It may not be the right juicer for you, but I feel like any juicer in this range is going to be a boon to your health. For me, that is the VRT 350, and I'm utterly pleased I watched all those comparisons on the web and pulled the trigger. Best of luck to you and your juice!