Metrokane L-Press Citrus Juicer

The Metrokane L-Press manual juicer looks good and draws kudos from experts, but owners warn that it sometimes leaves juice un-squeezed. They also say you shouldn't expect it to last very long at all -- it seems that everything that can go wrong with it, does.

The bottom line

Experts say the Metrokane L-Press extracts lots of juice -- if the fruit is sized right. However, nobody can agree quite where the sweet spot is, and owners complain about it leaving so much juice behind, they can extract significantly more by hand-squeezing the fruit. Owners are also beyond disappointed about this juicer's poor durability.

If you prefer manual juicers, the plastic Oxo Good Grips Citrus Juicer (*Est. $15) earns much better reviews, and costs just a fraction of the price. The Black & Decker CitrusMate Plus CJ625 (*Est. $20) is an electric reamer that, again, gets more positive reviews. If you're willing to splurge for a distinguished-looking metal model, the Breville Die-Cast Citrus Press 800CPXL (*Est. $200) combines an electric reamer with a manual lever in one terrific-looking package.

Performance

Experts love it, owners don't. In a review for The Wall Street Journal, Joseph De Avila points out that the Metrokane L-Press's long handle gives it lots of leverage to make squeezing all the juice from any citrus easy. The editors of Bon Appétit agree, noting that the Metrokane actually has dual handles (together, they form the "L" shape it's named for). They also note that the Metrokane L-Press can handle larger fruits that might not fit into a smaller juicer.

But fruit size might be the reason for some extremely low rankings this juicer receives from Amazon.com users (the only real source of owner commentary about it). Several say that the L-Press's top doesn't come down far enough, leaving a lot of juice un-squeezed. "You will waste about 25% of the juice," says one reviewer. "This problem is so obvious that I can take the juiced halves and squeeze more juice out with my bare hand." Another Amazon user writes: "When you press down on the handle the base flexes and the head backs away from the fruit resulting in minimal juice extracted."

Ease of use

Easy and simple -- when it works. De Avila notes that this press is lighter than other similarly sized models and says that cleaning "is a breeze." Users agree that it's simple enough to use (as long as you can get the citrus half properly balanced on the juicer before you squeeze the top down over it).

Durability

Owners say it's cheaply made. Even with products that show a spotty reliability record, compliments are usually the norm and complaints in the minority. It's exactly the opposite for the Metrokane L-Press; experts don't comment about its durability, but Amazon.com reviewers have plenty to say in their place. "The unit is cheaply made, and literally bows outward when used," says one. "Product is worthless as it will only last three months," writes another, warning that "customer service just mocks you." Almost every reviewer has a different, major complaint, so it's harder to identify any single trouble area. The only real upside in users' eyes seems to be that the Metrokane L-Press looks sleek and handsome when left on the counter.