Let’s be honest here, the major story about this juicer is its torque power. The 200-watt motor of the Tribest Slowstar Vertical Juicer features the equivalent of nine horsepower. It appears to be this major feature which places the Tribest Slowstar above many of its vertical masticating competitors.
In this article, you will learn more about the effect of this juicer’s nine horsepower motor. We will also explore some of the more basic features and functions of this machine as we work together to see if it may the right juicer for you and your needs.
The Ups and Downs of Masticating Juicers
Let’s begin with a quick review of the differences between masticating and centrifugal juicers. Of course, more information can be found in the information articles included on this website, but it can be helpful to our conversation to review the major points of those articles here as well.
Masticating juicers work by slowly grinding and squeezing the juice from fruits and vegetables as they work their way through. This process is much slower than the slicing and dicing process used in centrifugal juicers, but it also does not create as much heat. The heat created by centrifugal juicers is believed to break down and kill enzymes which help us digest our foods. A major advantage of masticating juicers is that, although they take a long time to process foods, they never get hot enough to destroy those important enzymes.
Masticating juicers can easily break down leafy greens. They can also create a large assortment of other types of foods, such as nut butters, salsas, sorbets, and sauces. The Tribest Slowstar is fully capable of living up to each of these popular masticating advantages. Unfortunately, while some masticating juicers are able to create pastas, this particular juicer is not.
Going Vertical
A vertical masticating juicer is slightly different from a traditional horizontal masticating juicer in that runs food downward instead of horizontally. The vertical process utilizes the power of gravity to assist its processing of foods.
The vertical process has two major differences from the horizontal process. First, it is more difficult to process certain foods (such as celery) in a vertical juicer. Second, you can run water through a vertical juicer to clean many interior parts. Of course, it will be your decision as to which of those things matters most in your juicer.
Another difference between a vertical juicer and a horizontal juicer is that whereas horizontal juicers take up more counter space, vertical juicers require more space between countertops and upper cabinets or within cupboards.
Faster and Slower All At Once
How can a juicer be both faster and slower than its competitors? Answering this question brings us back to the 200-watt, nine horsepower motor. The Tribest Slowstar works at a slower cycle of revolutions per minute (RPM) than most masticating juicers, but actually gets the job done quicker. Whereas most masticating juicers work at about 80 RPM, the Slowstar functions at about 45 RPM.
One may expect that fewer RPMs would mean an even slower juicing process, especially since masticating juicers work slower than centrifugal juicers which can feature up to 16,000 RPM. However, the strong motor in the Tribest Slowstar allows it to add even more pressure to the crushing and squeezing process, meaning that more juice is extracted from the food as it moves through the machine. Therefore, although the auger spins slower, the entire process actually takes less time than it would with a comparable masticating juicer.
Concluding Remarks
In all honesty, aside from the nine horsepower motor and incredible crushing power of this juicer, I wasn’t able to find much to set it apart from other vertical masticating juicers. Of course, its popularity also weighs into this discussion. This juicer wouldn’t have even been featured on this website if it wasn’t extremely popular in the juicer world.
Consumers have had plenty of good things to say about this juicer’s quality, longevity, and performance. It appears to be a well-built piece of machinery. It boasts all of the advantages of most other masticating juicers with the addition of working much quicker. That being said, it also features the disadvantages of other masticating juicers, with the clogging problems known to affect only masticating juicers.
