VacMaster Suction Vacuum Sealer

This is a heavy, and seemingly well constructed piece of equipment. I only just received it, replacing a FoodSaver that I'd had for several years, but had used only lightly and off-and-on. The VacMaster PRO350 is a much more "serious" machine and I'm very happy with the purchase. I also have a VacMaster chamber vacuum in shipping/storage, but I'm on a one-year job assignment and won't see my chamber vac for about a year. I was in the middle of starting a long sous vide cook when my FoodSaver died, and I can't imagine not cooking sous vide until I'm reunited with my chamber vac. I compared the Weston 2300 and I also looked at the VacMaster PRO380. It seems the PRO380 is identical except for the wider (16") seal bar. I don't need something so big, thus my choice of the PRO350. The Weston had more and better reviews - it seems like a great choice. However, I had good luck with my VacMaster chamber vacuum, so customer/brand loyalty figured into my decision. I have also read that Ary has great customer service and facilitates repairs remotely. Although I've never needed to contact them, I'm encouraged that they may help me troubleshoot and fix any future problems remotely because I spend much of my time overseas. The pump on the PRO350 pulls to 27.5 Hg, which is at the high end of what I saw in suction machines (I believe the Weston is rated at 28 Hg, but that seems like a negligible difference). It has three presets for vacuum strength, or you can set the Hg level manually. You can also do a manual seal at any point during the vacuum process. The seal time defaults to 2.5 seconds, but you can adjust that if needed (2.5 sec works fine in my experience). It has a big, 5mm seal that even sealed through a bit of moisture when I was sealing some beef brisket the other night. It has an accessory port and comes with a hose, which is nice for sealing canisters and marinating. To summarize: Pros Quality build - this feels very well built and I'm optimistic I'll get several years of heavy use out of it. Strength - about as strong a pump as you can get. Customer service - I haven't needed Ary's customer service, but haven't seen many gripes and have read many accolades. Customizable - vacuum strength, seal time, manual seal...just about anything you might want to change, you can. Cons It's heavy (I believe around 17 lbs, but double check if that's important to you) It's big (although not much bigger than my FoodSaver; it doesn't seem excessive, it just needs to be big to do its job) It's arguably a bit expensive. However, if you want a vacuum sealer, I think this should be your bottom-end price consideration. If your budget doesn't support this, and you are cooking sous vide (my main application), then use Ziplock bags and the water displacement method; I've had good luck with that. All-in-all, I think this is a great product at a fair price. I'm very pleased with it and highly recommend it.