SwissmarV-Prep™ Mandoline Slicer – Versatile Kitchen Slicer for Julienne, Shred, Cube & Slice – Includes Multi-Function Bowl & Safety Holder – Essential Kitchen Gadget – White

I am a gadget person. Over the past 40 years, I have owned many kitchen mandolins. This is without doubt the best.As a total gadget freak, on Prime Day I went hunting to see if there might be something better. The simple answer is "no," there is not. While looking I also noticed that my current Swissmar, purchased on May 30, 2013, had just passed its 10th birthday. It seemed a good time to write a review of a product that has stood the test of time.During the past 10 years, I have used it on average about once a day. It has, without a doubt, been the kitchen tool that has been the single most used, best-value kitchen tool I have. (And I pretty much have them all.)For most of the past 10 years, it has been sitting on my kitchen counter where it has been exposed to sunlight. I also wash it in the dishwasher sometimes. As a result, the top and the standard blade I use 90% of the time have yellowed somewhat. Besides that, it is little changed from when I received it 10 years ago. The two blades I use less frequently are still quite pristine looking because they are stored in the mandolin container box out of the sun. (They have both had several hundred uses.)After 10 years of daily use, it seems absurd to claim the blades are just as sharp today as when I received the mandolin. However, whatever dulling has occurred, it is too little to notice. After 10 years of daily use, there is no issue whatsoever with the blades being dull. They *seem* just as sharp as the day I received it.Safety: I am a klutz. I am absent-minded and easily distracted. Yet, after literally several thousand uses I have yet to cut myself while either using or washing it. (I can not say that about my kitchen knives.) Yes, like any sharp kitchen tool, it should be kept away from young kids and it should be used with suitable care. Personally, I worry far more about cutting myself with my knives than with this mandolin.Cleaning: I have purchased some fancier mandolins with adjustable blades and/or safety shoots. They are fun for a bit and if doing a fair amount of cutting they can be a bit faster on the cutting end. But "oh my God," the cleanup on all those adjustable parts takes longer than cutting veggies up the old-fashioned way by hand with a knife. I use my fancier, "safer," adjustable mandolin only every few months because getting into all the nooks and crannies is too time-consuming.Cleanup on the Swissmar is really quite easy. Use any kitchen brush, soap, scrub back and forth parallel with the blades, rinse and you are done. There are no nooks and crannies for yuk to hide in.The pictures up-loaded are of my 10-year-old Swissmar mandolin which goes in the dishwasher, is stored on the counter where it is exposed to sunlight, and is used on a daily basis. You will see that the mounted blade is a bit yellowed, but that the others are not. If this concerns you, then store your unit out of the sunlight.5 or 7 pieces?: I would never consider not getting the 7-piece version. All the cuttings go in this holder, none on the floor. It saves a mess every use. I have no doubt that it has paid for itself several times in rolls of paper towels not used for cleanup. And also again in bits of food that did not escape to the floor. (Sorry doggies!)Also - this is my first review. Quality reviews short of 6 months seem silly to me.

This will be a lengthy review as I have been a user of the original V-Slicer since 1988. Yes it lasted that long, almost 30 years! I was hoping to make it 30 years and then replace, but I dropped the large Julienne insert on its nose and it cracked right down the blade line (it was already cracking a bit, this just speeded up the process.) This is the insert I use the most so I couldn't live without it. So I bought the new V 5000. In all respects it looks like a very similar design to the original. The original included most of the accessories you can buy extra now including the grater, the thin julienne vegetable decorations maker, The waffle fry maker (was really too small) and the peeler tool set. I broke my peeler using the lemon twist maker item on the side of the peeler. This was the only deficit in the set. The new peeler tool comes with another tool that I'm not familiar with but all these are extra now. But as you can see by the pictures (with the old and new items) the blade positions seem to be exactly the same even though the old inserts do not fit in the new frame. The new inserts lock a bit into the frame, where the old ones did not really "lock" in per se, but they were secure enough. They are more so now. The food holder cup is of a similar design and has some kind of like the serrated edges on the raised lip guards that I think have a function but I don't know what it is. The V 5000 includes a catcher and storage box for your cut items. That is a nice addition, Why I bought this set v.s the others. I wouldn't buy any of the other sets that didn't include this.So most of the other reviews will speak for this item and the fact that I have been using my old one for nearly 30 years. It is simply the best mandolin out there. No, you cannot vary the thickness of the slicing more than two, but this is of little concern. The thin slicing, while not paper thin, is pretty much thin enough for almost anything. The thick setting is good enough for thinner French fries and if you needed it twice as thick or more than that, you would use a knife anyway. As many others have said, the blades are extremely sharp, so if you are using this without the holder you have to be EXTREMELY careful. I have never cut myself because I'm so afraid of how sharp this is that I take extreme care every single time if I'm not using the holder.Overall, I have been extremely satisfied with this mandolin. Apparently, they are discontinuing the insert version and going to an adjustable sickness version I'm not sure how the julienne setting will work but I'm sure will be similar to the other mandolins that are coming out with multiple adjustments on the frame. With nearly 30 years of experience with this product is absolutely the best value that I've ever seen for any cooking tool.

I started using this exact same slicer over 40 years ago. I use it every day love it the frame finally cracked after all these years of use. Even with running it through the dishwasher, at least once a week rinsing it with soapy water or hot water immediately after using it, it is always stayed sharp as can be. I even bought a bowl with it and a grading device back in 84. I cannot say enough for the slicer.Over the years, I have even given them to my daughter, my daughter-in-law, my nephews, my niece, and others in the family. Most handy item I’ve ever had, and put away my Cuisinart food processor.