Customer Reviews

Chef's Choice 662 International Professional Electric Food Slicer with 8.6-Inch Diameter Blade

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I first ordered ( November 2003) a model 645 Veri-tilt unit but was disapointed because the "travel" on the slicer was not adaquate to slice my much loved prosciutto.The blade was only 7 inches and was serrated. It also lacked a blade cover so I was sure it would "drag" when slicing. (At $20.00 a pound for good prosciutto I didn't even try!)

In December 2003, I bought the The larger model 662 with the 8.6 inch smooth blade was a far better choice! It had a covered blade that only exposes the cutting edge of the blade to the meat surface. This is also a much safer configuration then the "exposed" blades found on the less expensive models.

The unit is solidly built and appears to be of a very high quality. The travel on the slicing cariage is long enough to cut most meats. The "rump" side of the average prosciutto is still a bit larger than the travle distance of the slicer but this is easily overcome by trimming the sides of the meat to slightly narrow it.

I have been thrilled with how thin this slicer can can "shave" a piece of meat. I can actually read through some of the slices. I have used this slicer to cut Roast beef, salami,turkey,chicken, tomatoes,onions, prosciutto, and even limes! It has never failed to perform as I had hoped. This is truly a "deli" quality slicer even if it is a bit small. Don't get me wrong, it is still a rather large machine and needs a bit of counter and storage space to operate. I actually am happy that it will fit in my cabinet, because my wife wasen't thrilled with the idea of this thing being on the countertop all of the time!

Having this machine has saved me both time and money when entertaining friends. (We throw parties a few times a year and it has made quite an impression on our guests!)

I have not tried the included blade sharpener yet but the instruction are clear and quite simple. I'll post again once I have tried the sharpener.

Thanks, Amazon for a great product and a gracious return policy!

Well it is now the Friday before Super Bowl 42 (4 years later, Feb. 2008) and I said I would let you know how the 662 blade sharpener has performed. Sorry to tell you that I can't do so because I have not had to sharpen the blade yet!! This machine still cuts like new! I have used this slicer on MANY occasions and am still pleased with its overall performance. I will use it again this weekend.

As others have noted clean-up takes a few minutes. The sliding carriage can be put in the dish washer if you like, but the rest is clean by hand!

As far as durability is concerned I have to replace the small plastic "slice-stopper" that keeps items from getting sucked into the blade. This is not dangerous but it can add to clean-up time.

I would still score this "home" slicer at 95/100. Enjoy.

The 662 is a decent unit although I've never owned another electric food slicer to compare it to. Cleaning is definately an issue. But after many uses I've got it down to about 10 - 15 mins. To clean, it requires an Allen wrench (provided) and a Phillips screwdriver. You have to semi-disassemble the unit and I plop it in the sink, hoze down the food particles, spray with disinfectant and let sit, then hoze down again then dry with paper towels. It's a bit heavy and awkward, but again just figure on 10 - 15 mins to clean.

As for use, it cuts remarkably. You can get razor thin slices and will cut an entire ham in minutes. I have an autistic son who won't eat anything but ham sandwiches at school, so I use this about every week. It helps to have other uses because I store it in the garage (no way to store it even on my ample counter space because of the size) and when you figure on set-up and cleaning that's at least 20 minutes. I love beef jerky, so I use this to carve up whatever meat I will use. I'm not at a place in my life where I can afford the $300 proscuttio side so I continue to drive to Federal Hill in Providence, RI for that in small quantities, but hopefully someday.

The main drawback in use is when the meat comes off the blade. It just kind of sits on the back of the unit and thin slices can get stuck between the blade and the cover. A small acrylic dish is provided, but I use that to catch the dripping juices of beef that collect underneath the unit.

The final drawback for me is that lighter items have a hard time returning to position after each passing slice.

In summary, it works for me because I use it often enough, but I have to put up with some hassle to do so.

I purchased this slicer for use in the hospitality rooms of conventions, which entails slicing a few hundred pounds of meat over the course of a couple of days.

The unit performed flawlessly, cutting the final piece of meat just as smoothly as the first. The motor ran cool and quiet, the meat slider was smooth and fluid, and the blade cleanly cut everything from pastrami to provalone.

Cleaning can be an issue as the clearances under the blade are small, but I was able to keep it at the same state that I maintained my professional slicer years ago at a sandwich shop I worked for. I recommend completely dismantling it after heavy use for sanitation and longevity.

Summary: It's not a $1500 slicer, but for $400 it can't be beat. I would say that you could probably even get away with this unit at a small deli with how admirably it performed under the grueling trial I put it through last weekend. It might be a touch overkill for the average home chef though.

Excellent machine; fulfills all the representations made in the product description. Large blade is great but still need to trim down large items like proscuitto. Didn't give it 5 stars because it is quite heavy and bulky and a tad difficult to clean spotlessly-----minor inconveniences compared to its performance.

This is an excellent slicer, and works well. It is extremely well built. The tools it comes with makes it easy to use. My previous slicer was a Krups and this one is so much better. If anyone has worked with professional grade slicers you should know they aren't a snap to clean, and this one is no different. However, for what it is cleanup is quick and easy. I smoke meat and this machine handled brisket and turkey with ease, producing thin sliced meat quietly, quickly and tastily!

this slicer is almost big enough but not quite, the workmanship is fine but the blade guard is to thin and product gets stuck on lip of blade.
poor design very hard to clean.
lastly the value is just not here for another $100-$150 full size 10-12" slicers are available elsewhere.

Very powerful but a SOB to clean. Additionly - the sliding table tends to bind unless the food being sliced is positioned to put pressure in the center. Plus small items and ends are impossible to manage - resulting in a lot of waste. Still... if you don't mind putting up with a little inconvenienc, the slicer does everything it's supposed to do and with plenty of power. A good buy for the money.

Like really like this slicer though it is my first so take what I say with a grain of salt. The only drawback is the the fence design. The solid fence connected to the machine has a slight give to it at the top (If you you look at the picture of the rear of the machine you can see the fence is held by three screws at he bottom, there should be a solid arm coming up to hold it in place, probably a 1K feature). This makes it hard to slice hard items extremely thin. It could be problem with my technique as well. Really pleased overall.

Everything about the slicer is excellent except for the fact that blood from whatever meat you just sliced gets through housing openings into the bottom section of the slicer.To clean this fluid you must take the bottom cover off.This makes cleanup way to time consuming.

I have been using this device for three weeks, and so far it has been performing adequately. As has been mentioned before this device is a bear to clean. To prevent mildew it must be cleaned, and doing so is a chore. Beyond this it slices cheese and meats very well. It does cut bread well, but it's push device does not go out far enough for a standard loaf, or even a standard length cheddar block.

On the push device it has teeth, these teeth can get gunked up quite easily, using a sponge will tear the sponge up so you must use a brush, Brushing it out is a test of dexterity.

The feed out on the device is adequate, but quite often a slice will get stuck, requiring a power down, widening of the blade, removal of the item, resetting the blade. Rinse and repeat. This can get tedious, and really this device requires another person on the post cut side to ensure proper feed out. If without a second person, the whole operation can take quite a while.

However, the cuts themselves are nice. And if you can deal with the inconvenience (rather than dropping the duckets for a genuine pro slicer) this is something I would recommend for someone who does a lot of slicing on low margins.