Westmark Germany Manual Ice Crusher (Grey)

My husband always wanted one of these because his parents used to have one, that was about 40 years ago! When I found this one, I just had to buy it for him. I think the price was a little high for what it is, but it does work, and he's happy with it. He uses it to make martinis...he just crushes a couple of ice cubes at a time and it saves a lot of time. Easy to use once you get the two sides hinged together. It's a cool kitchen item and people always ask about it when we pull it out.

I’ve discovered that ice crushers vary tremendously in their output. While some produce finely shaved ice that can be used for a sno-cone, this crushes an ice cube into several pieces (the size of peanuts- walnuts). It’s fine for most cold drinks and cocktails (but of course, not for a frozen daiquiri, which must be blended). The key here is that it’s small, manual, fits in a drawer, and it easily cleaned and stored. I’m lazy, and I think twice before taking a large electric ice crusher out of my cabinet just for 1-2 drinks. But this device is so easy to use that I don’t think twice about it. And with the “leverage” principle, it’s actually easy to crush the ice cube - so grip strength is not an issue. Bottom line - this makes “crumbled” ice, but not “crushed” ice or “snow” - but it’s fine to use to prepare a few quick chilled drinks.

I use this crusher multiple times per day! It’s easy to crush and the size if ice after use is perfect. I bought this bc I remembered my mom using one to crush us ice when my brother and I were little. This was the only manual one i could find. The lack of a 5 star rating is because tiny paint chips are in every glass of water. Im pretty sure they are safe and they are tiny, so I don’t mind but Id rather not drink paint chips. Otherwise great product

O.K., it's a little odd looking, and you only can crush 2 crescent cubes at a time, but it is so much fun to use! Put the cubes in, press the handles together, it goes CRUNCH, and you have crushed ice. You get an irregular crush, but none of the pieces are too large. It does work better if it's slightly wet. It really doesn't take that much hand strength to use - I'm a small woman and it works fine for me. The only downside is that the two pieces of the crusher just hook together at the top and come apart really easily if you're not paying attention.

So the ad said it crushed ice. It doesn't. It breaks ice in two. The ribs inside the device do not extend far enough, engaging adequate to crush the ice, it simply breaks a typical "half moon" ice cube in half, instead of crushing it into pieces, like you'd expect from a fountain drink machine. If you buy ice trays that make small ice cubes, it won't even break those, because their too small. I thought the idea of crushing an ice cube by hand was too good to be true, and this device confirms it. The device also comes apart too easy when you open it to put in an ice cube. Half of the device detaches and falls on the ground. This requires a special technique, having you support the detachable half with something else, like your leg while sitting, or the counter-top (awkward), to prevent the other half from detaching and dropping to the floor. Even if it did work, seems like too much work to get crushed ice IMO. I think a tenderizing hammer would work better, inside a cast iron skillet. Quicker too.

I wanted a simple ice cracker and this works great. Our LG refrigerator makes ice cubes, not cracked ice. This cracks 1 or 2 cubes. It is easy to use and easy to clean. I have used it for a few months with no problems.

[EDIT: After a couple of weeks of use, I can't recommend this product. As I stated in the original review, it is good for "1 SMALL ICE CUBE" only -- and let me emphasize the word small. I am not weak, but even I have a lot of trouble and find it almost impossible to crush a "normal-sized" ice cube. To really work nicely, the ice cubes MUST be small, so small that is is hardly worth crushing them. SO I CAN'T REALLY RECOMMEND THIS PRODUCT AND PLAN ON DUMPING MINE (any offers) -- but am going to leave the product with my generous 3-star rating.]Three stars (it's OK) is a little generous, but two stars (I don't like it) is not fair. OK, I read a lot of the reviews and realized that I was getting a product that was only good for crushing ONE ICE CUBE. Well, guess what -- the ice cube had better not be a somewhat large/normal sized ice cube you get out of an normal ice tray -- because it will barely fit in the crusher and the handles are separated so far that it is almost impossible to get a good grip in order to squeeze and crush the ice cube (unless, of course, you are Andre the Giant, who is no longer with us).This is a single drink only ice crusher -- i.e. I got this just for me, for an occasional something-on-the-rocks drink. Forget about your wife using it (most wives) as it requires a lot of force -- but if you don't fill your ice tray to the top to get normal/somewhat large ice cubes, it will work OK. On the other hand, this is kind of defeating the whole purpose of the crusher -- I could have just filled my ice tray halfway up (or less) if I really wanted small ice for my drinks.So beware -- only use with single, rather small ice cubes -- and I think you will be OK.ron in round rock

Easy to use. Use for one cube at a time when don't want a lot of ice from the ice maker.