I wanted a shaved ice machine that wasn't electric or super flimsy so I could take it camping or on a picnic. So far this seems to be perfect for that. I've made shaved ice a few times with it and the adjustable blade is great. Occasionally I needed to open the top and adjust the ice block inside to get it to scrape the blade just right but that doesn't bother me. I ordered a couple extra ice cups and I"m glad I did. One ice cup makes about 1.5 small bowls of shaved ice, so the extra cups were perfect for a family of 3. I haven't tried shaving ice straight from the ice cube tray in my freezer but the instructions say that's an option as well.
This packs down nicely in an included bag and the quality seems fine. My only complaint is that the threading on the post where the crank attaches doesn't perfectly match the nut that holds the crank in place, so the crank has more wiggle in it than I would like when using it. I may chase those threads to try and get a better connection.
