Hamilton Beach Stack & Press Mini 3-Cup Glass Bowl Food Processor & Vegetable Chopper, Black (72860)

After spending way too much of my clay time trying to condition blocks of FIMO that have been sitting around a long time -- even new ones -- I decided to look into getting a little food processor. I've been using my NEVERknead, which I love, but it's still so time consuming and messy for larger amounts like whole blocks of new clay even when I work with the clay in a ziplock bag to keep the crumbles from going everywhere. I LOVE my NEVERknead but was ready for a more efficient first step on larger jobs.At first I settled on this brand with the same base but with the plastic bowl, which is cheaper. But then before ordering I learned from the comments that there is a model with a glass bowl and that sold me. The extra money is well worth it. I got it yesterday and have only used it twice so far, but it does exactly what I needed.First I cut the block into slices about 1/8" thick and spread them inside the bowl. I pulse until the clay becomes tiny crumbles. Then I dump the clay into a heap inside a clean ziplock bag and reform into a rough mound. This keeps all the tiny bits contained and off my floor and work surface. Then I run an acrylic roller over the bag to form a pancake to bind it enough for handling. It still needs conditioning but now that takes way less time than before and is easier and less messy.Cleanup is pretty easy too. There will be bits still clinging to the bowl, lid and blade, but it was much cleaner than I expected and these can be gathered with another piece of clay. The smooth design of the blade assembly makes it super easy to get at all the bits. The lid has a channel around the circumference that fits over the rim of the bowl, and clay finds its way in there and is a tad harder to get at but a wadded tip of a damp paper towel does the trick. Be sure to clean it all out and then wash the parts because the plastic lid and probably the plastic blade housing look like they are of the kind that isn't compatible with polymer clay longterm. If you leave any raw clay on the plastic surfaces I'm pretty sure it will eventually eat into them.The unit is compact and fits in a corner of my workspace, but I decided to put it back into the box to keep off as much dust as possible. And of course, this is now a fully dedicated polymer clay tool and I'll never use it for food.

**I debated on whether or not to add an appliance to my downsized life. But this one really delivers on many fronts. I'm an old fashioned "a knife will do the job" person, and other than having a large food processor for over 30 years for big jobs, a knife has sufficed. But for several reasons, this little processor came along and I'm really glad I got it.**First, the glass bowl is fantastic. It's very thick glass and quite heavy, which is a good thing. It's easily cleanable and unlike a plastic bowl, it will never look scratched and dull or hazy. The base is plastic, and I'd have preferred a metal one, but the plastic is just fine, as I'm not hard on things nor will I be bashing it about.** I'd rather have the glass bowl than the metal base, if I had to choose one of the two to be a synthetic to make the appliance lighter for shipping--which undoubtedly the reason these days that things are made as light as possible in overseas factories.**The best operating feature is the plastic lid on the glass bowl. The lid fits on easily, and you press it down to turn the machine on! No fiddly buttons on the base to turn on and off with one hand.**That may seem like an unimportant thing, but if you've ever tried to clean around an off and off button on a food processor that might have been handled with food-covered fingers only to have the food become encrusted down in the crevices surrounding the button(s), then you will really enjoy this particular on/off feature!**Even if you don't think you need this and are a downsizing, chef's knife user cook, you may find you will enjoy it and use this very often. And it's so small I can put it right on the dishes shelf above my counter. No storage issues in a small kitchen.**And lastly, it's been great for any kinds of veggies--just a couple of pulses and it's done. Meat, too. And it's gentle enough in one or two rotations to make that kind of finely textured chicken or tuna salad you get at the deli counters. I've yet to find a food item that did not work in this little gem.

Love love!! Bought a huge new cuisinart about a year ago and it has sat on our counter taking up space...used one or two times! My husband would rather chop veggies by hand than mess with this big monstrosity! I saw this mini chopper on Amazon and liked the price (under $25), and I liked the glass bowl! Out of the box and together in seconds.....plugged in and threw in some onions and popped the lid on! Amazingly easy, fast and perfect chop in less than a minute! (Never havi g to look at directions!) The cuisinart is going on eBay! Only thing new one can’t do is “shred” cheese, but we’ll just buy pre-shredded from now on! Just not worth the work! Maybe “milinneals” (sp?) need the big powerful workhorse that had many parts to clean, but for us senior citizens this Hamilton. beach chopper is just right! (And yes, I had an original cuisinart for almost 30 years and wore it out!