Customer Reviews

Manual Wheatgrass Juicer - MJ445 Miracle Hand Juicer Manual Wheat Grass Juicer - One the Best Wheatgrass Juicers and Manual Wheat grass Juicer for Commercial or Home Use

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

 

 

I'm the besotted owner of a Norwalk 275 which by definition means that I'm lucky enough to own the best, most versatile juicer on the planet (not to mention one of the most expensive). And yes, it can juice wheatgrass and the result is of superb quality. The only problem is that it requires quite a lot of grass in order to do a good job, which isn't always practical. Given that I wanted to incorporate wheatgrass into my daily routine (actually, I find that Kamut produces a much nicer juice) and that the $1300 Wheateena of my dreams is beyond my means, I decided to go for something manual. After extensive research, I settled on the Miracle MJ-445.
For the record, this juicer, with the exception of its finish, is identical to one marketed by Tribest called the "Hurricane" (also available through Amazon). The difference is that this one has a satin finish and the Hurricane's is high-polish. I went for this one because I happened to find it used (seemed brand new to me) and so saved quite a bit. For what it's worth, I read online that the Hurricane is Czech-made; this one's from Taiwan.

I really hated the Miracle MJ-445 when I first got it. I fed in the grass, turned the crank ad infinitum, and nothing happened. I then broke down the unit, removed the impacted mat of wet grass, fed it through again, and finally got juice. After repeating this nonsense over the course of a few days, it occurred to me to wad up the grass instead of following my usual procedure and this produced MUCH better results.

My only valid complaints (as opposed to mere kvetching) are that 1) the first pulp ejected is very wet (regardless of how slowly I crank--there's no screw at the end) and 2) it's necessary to feed the pulp through several times in order to wring everything out of it; I understand, though, that this is pretty much SOP with manual wheatgrass juicers. Other than that, I'm as satisfied as someone who'd prefer a top-of-the-line electric model can be given the circumstances. Because it's stainless steel, it's very solid and will never rust, and it's the easiest thing in the world to assemble, break down, and clean. The handle is also easy to turn--I mention this because I've read many complaints about the amount of elbow grease necessary for manual juicing. It's not a factor here.

If you're considering the purchase of this or the Hurricane, be advised that the surface to which you're clamping it must be 1.5" deep AT MOST and I believe you need a surface of at least 2.5" from the edge in order to seat it properly. It comes with a tamper and a plastic wrench for disassembly should the cap be difficult to unscrew. All in all, I think I made a good choice. I'd prefer to rate 4.5 stars but since I can't, its quality and robustness bump it up to a perfect score.
The instruction sheet included claims, in "interesting" English, that the Miracle MJ-445 can also be used for fruits and vegetables. As someone who's been juicing since 1988, my hunch is that this is nonsense. Get yourself a Champion for everything else and use this for what it'll do best--grasses.

The first juicer I purchased was a disaster so I was a bit leary about purchasing another manual juicer. I wanted a reasonably priced juicer that would be durable and easy to use.I am very happy with my purchase. This juicer is made totally out of stainless steel, every part is very good quality. It is easy to assemble and that was important to me since I use it daily. It is a manual juicer so I was a bit concerned but it is very easy to crank. The juice flows from below and the pulp is discharged from the end of the unit which makes cleanup so easy.It has a deep base so it will fit easily on a thick counter edge.

It is a very sturdy juicer, great value for the price, specially because it won't rust. The downfalls of it are that you have to put it apart every time you use it in order to clean it, it is a work out to juice, and I am not sure it extracts the most juice out of the grass. Still, I am new at wheatgrass juicing, but I am almost certain it won't get much better unless you buy a way more expensive electric juicer.

I did my research before purchasing this item and it seems to be the best manual juicer that you'll find out there.

First off, absolutely solid construction. Bulletproof. It could stop bullets. You could juice bullets. If something fits, and you can turn the auger, you can probably juice or grind it into a palpable substance.

And depending on that substance, it's easily cleaned. Running water and 2 minutes is generally enough to clear out the grass bits or coffee grounds and gun powder.

It does take some elbow grease, it's easy enough to turn if you don't overload it, or even if you do, but there's a lot of turning involved and this takes time. Probably not a viable juicer for large quantities and multiple servings.



So, what does it do?

Wheatgrass: Excellent primary design function. It does a really great job at pulling the juice out, minus a few drops, in one pass.

Spinach: There isn't a terrible mount of of juice in spinach leaves to begin with, and the pulp is still wet after mashing it up, but it's better than a centrifuge juicer.

Arugula: It tastes awful.

Ginger Root: Goes well with arugula. Not a bad yield.

Carrots: Eh, it works. It's not practical, there's a lot of waste, and the pulp has to be pressed a few times to make it worthwhile; it's good exercise. Overall a bad idea, but you CAN do it.

Grapes: The pulp is wet, but the juice yield is high. Way too sweet by itself and everything get's sticky if you don't wash it immediately.

Coffee Beans: The beans grind to a good consistency. It's hard to turn if too many are dropped in at the same time so it can be a little slow to grind a large amount.

Peanuts: Yep. Peanut butter. It works. Adds some time to the clean up though.



Honestly, I still want to get a centrifugal juicer or one of those expensive (well, even more expensive) masticating juicers that do all of your fruits and veggies in one pass and juice by the gallon (And take 20 minutes to clean up afterwards...), but this little chunk fills a niche.

(Would have been nice if it came with a juice cup that fits underneath; there isn't much clearance for anything to catch the pulp or juice. I've been using a flat tupperware container and an angled plate.)