Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've had this unit over 1 1/2 years now and have used it quite a bit, about 100 batches of ice cream. If I'd reviewed it right away I would have given it three or four stars. It basically does the job but I was disappointed in capacity and speed. It's down to one star now because of cleaning issues (more below). At max capacity (3 1/2 to 4 cups liquid) it takes about 55 min for the first batch. A second batch made right away is about 5 min faster. I don't know how people finish a batch in 30 min, there's no way my unit has ever done that. If you start with too much liquid, the frozen ice cream gets on the lid and around the bucket and makes a mess. No big deal but a pain none the less. My main complaint is the build up of slime around the drive shaft in the bucket. I see this is mentioned in Foxrose's review posted since my purchase. There are two holes in the underside of the drive plate that let liquid in. It's impossible to dry this out without disassembling the bucket. The manual says to clean the bucket in soapy water. I don't see what else you could do but cleaning this way leaves water (or diluted ice cream mix) inside the drive mechanism and it never dries out. Over time it molds and slime accumulates. The disgusting part it that it eventually gets in the ice cream itself. I finally discovered all this trying to figure out why a batch of ice cream smelled wrong. When I started this review I put two stars but this is all so gross I just dropped it to one star. I you already have one of these, the bucket does come apart (three screws) and can be cleaned so this isn't a show stopper. Also, it could be that if you only make ice cream every few months it would all dry out and be fine. But, if you make a lot of ice cream, I'd highly recommend disassembling the bucket regularly for a thorough cleaning. If you're thinking of buying this unit, don't. You can make it work but there are much better options.