Avantco SL512 12" Manual Gravity Feed Meat Slicer - 1/2 hp

I was a little nervous about buying this slicer because i didn't know much about this brand. But I'm glad i took a chance it is very good quality I thought it was going to be light but it has some good weight to it. Ive had it over a year now and still works great. I am definitely a fan of the Avantco slicer.

We needed a heavy duty, commercial meat slicer but only for occasional use so we didn't want to spend a lot. For the price, this is exactly what we were hoping for! It does the job perfectly and is easy to clean too just as a commercial one should. The only issue we had was trying to clean around the blade guard. So we decided to take the entire blade off every time we clean it to be sure. Also we had to get a Berkel cover for it that is a little over-sized since I couldn't find one specific to this.

I'm having trouble adjusting the cutting edge height for my slicer. The knob goes 0-4, but then feels like it runs into a lock. What am I missing here? Is there a lock on the height control knob? I'm a beginner with a meat slicer and have tried to push, pull, twist on the knob but I'm feeling defeated. Can someone help me out by giving me some pointers, the manual is less than helpful on the matter and I can't find anything online. The videos just tell me how awesome it is, but I have yet to feel that excitement. Help, please. I just want to cut some ham and bacon.

I operate a BBQ restaurant we needed a slicer for Brisket. After searching the local restaurant supply business and needing a good quality product we chose the SL512 12". Price was within our budget and delivery was only 3 days. The package was damaged but slicer was in good shape. After using the slicer to slice 320 lb. of brisket, at one time, which took several hours of use, slicer held up well. Clean up was easy just requires a few tools, as mentioned in other reviews. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a medium use slicer. CM Smoke Artisan BBQ

Writing to speed up the search comparisons for everyone. The boxes typically ship with some cardboard damage because the package is VERY heavy and it is easy to damage the box in shipping. You will understand when you pick the box up with a friend off your porch. The adjuster to my meat slicing depth operates off a plastic cam wheel under the unit and mine was broken when it arrived. I am betting the mfr. ships these set hard to stop vibration which makes them prone to break during shipping. If yours comes and the depth adjuster seems to not work check the cam. Webstaurant did great, I sent a picture of the broken part and a replacement cam was sent but you must figure out how to replace it. Some quick QA for the low end home/recreational user. Can it slice the dreaded cheeses everyone uses for comparisons and meats and (anything) for hours on end? YES. The blade is massive and heavy, the inertia of the blade alone does a lot of the work, the entire unit is very heavy, my wife could never lift this thing. Picture your local deli, look at the slicer, and then you will understand. You will (not) be moving this item either at all once it is in place. I'm 6'4 and quite strong and this thing stays in one place as its forever home - so please don't accidentally kid yourself that you will be taking it in and out of storage when you need it. Set it in place, cover with a cloth or towel. Forever home and I mean it. Why is it cheaper? It is made with more simplistic construction. Nuts, bolts, belts etc. It all works fabulously together but does best if the operator is fine with adjustments with wrenches to make it "perfect". It absolutely shaves from zero (not slicing anything) to 1/4 inch with infinite adjustment inbetween. The reason it is not more expensive? The unit is (not) designed well for rapid complete disassemby. Those higher end commercial units come apart with only big knobs (no drivers or wrenches needed) for daily disassembly or rapid cleaning between different meats or cheeses. The blade removal on this unit is a little scary. No handle to attach, you grab, lift and carefully wash. So if you are a smaller business, doing limited business or home processing you will be elated and happy. It is impressive and effective for slicing any food. If you are paying employees to stay and clean or must do total cleaning daily and or several times a day then you should bite the bullet and pay double or more to get a rapid teardown, clean, and reassemble unit. I'm a home use guy and this product works far beyond my expectations and I have time to clean slowly and patiently. All the other silly retail store slicers or "add on" slicers to your other kitchen appliances are a joke in comparison. I could probably have gotten by with a lower horsepower unit for my home smoking and cooking - but I felt like splurging on myself and I am not disappointed.

For the price, an excellent value. The motor runs strong, cool, and quiet. The blade as it comes is sharp and seems to maintain its edge. It is overall easy to clean. We run cheddar cheese through it for hours at a time and it has no trouble keeping up.

This slicer was a replacement for a couple of really old Hobart machines that got too expensive to keep repairing. The Avantco arrived with some freight damage, but the folks at Webstaurantstore replaced the parts that were damaged. The slicer works great. It does take some getting used too as far as cleaning, but once you get used to removing the blade it's not too bad at all. A great value considering a Hobart is more than triple the price.

Fine piece of equipment here, we use it for a bunch of different items, never has failed us. Easy to clean and by far my favorite slicer made! Great buy!

This truly is not for a food service business. This machine has way to many parts to clean, does not open very wide. It is a great machine to use occasionally, price is right. If you are looking to a machine to use on daily basis, invest a little bit more money will be worth it.

wow, this avantco sl512 12' manual gravity feed meat slicer is very good, you can slice a lot of different things on this too, strongly recommend this product.

I was nervous buying our first slicer but this thing is doing a great job for us. We slice all of our meats and cheese's for our toasted fresh and this thing works great.

This machine is very useful because it cuts meats at different sizes. It is sturdy and easy to use. It is very good for deli meats and has a variety of sizes one could choose from.

This slicer is great, It not only cuts every type of lunch meat you throw at it, it is also powerful enough to slice most block cheese that is 4x4, or 4x6 square inches or less. I have used this slicer for more than 8 meat loaves thus far and it still is as sharp as when I purchased it new. Have not even had a chance to use the included sharpener.

We needed something to slice blocks of cheese for sandwiches. This is very efficient and works perfectly. We also use it to slice tomatoes and onions. Very happy with this and it has not let us down.

We decided not to open our deli, so we don't use it nearly as much as we intended. However, we do use it periodically to slice turkey and tri-tip for sandwiches and it works great for that. It's a great unit for the price in a light to medium duty applicaiton.

This is by far the best slicer I have ever used. It effortlessly slices through meat, on the thinnest setting it does not shred the meat or cheese. My customers are extremely happy now that we have actual slices instead of pieced together product.

I was so impressed with this meat slicer! It operates so smoothly and the way it comes apart to clean it makes cleaning so easy and fast. I would definitely recommend the slicer.

Poorly constructed. Just a little over a year and it's falling apart already. Knob which holds the carriage slips and is double threaded, which makes it twist off (leaving only the screw in place) but doesn't allow the carriage to come off. Ridiculously hard to clean this thing because of its design. Despite the claims, it will stop when slicing a block of Swiss cheese. Would not recommend or buy again. But that seems to be the norm for Advantco products overall.

We have owned an Avantco SL713MAN for some time, recently upgrading to an automatic slicer. Note that doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the Avantco. In fact, it's quite the opposite. We moved to an automatic slicer for efficiency, but the Avantco has served us well and will be moving to a lower capacity spot. What I can tell you about the Avantco is that A) it is durable and B) it is a joy to work with. In regard to point A, the Avantco has stood up to commercial abuse for 1000s of hours. It has needed maintenance, but one should expect as much. Blade replacement and machine lubrication are easy to handle yourself (directions clearly walk one through the process). Through the hours of work, the Avantco still looks new and, more importantly, functions as such. As to point B, having a unit function near flawlessly whenever called upon, is enough to make me happy. But in a commercial setting, the most important ability is availability, and the Avantco fits the bill perfectly. If you are looking for a unit that will save you both time and money, the Avantco SL713MAN fits the bill. I highly recommend this unit, and if I didn't require an automatic slicer, no other slicer would be on my radar.

Why pay thousands for meat slicers, when you can purchase this Avantco slicer! I have owned very expensive slicers in the past and not a one compare to this one! I highly recommend!

Been using this slicer for about 6 months so far it works great it comes with the sharpener so you can always keep the blade super Sharp. We use it primarily for slicing Pastrami and cheese. This slicer does the cheese better than others I have used I think because the way the blade is shaped the cheese does not stick to it and go flying off of the slicer like some I have used.

Good

What a big bang for your buck! I’ve been using this in my food truck for almost 3 years to slice my tomatoes, onions and shaves my prime rib and marinated meats perfect. It excels at most tasks but kind of sucks for cheese. It’s not a you get what you paid for, you get way more.

We purchased this slicer as an upgrade. We use this slicer primarily for slicing smoked beef brisket. We needed a slicer that could handle large amounts of meat. The first time using it was amazing, I sliced fifteen 15 lbs briskets (cold) in a very short time and I was very pleased with the performance. From the moment I unpacked it I knew I had purchased a quality piece of equipment. Ordering & receiving: The slicer arrived by freight truck on a pallet and packaged very well in a wooden box. I received excellent communications from the freight carrier and set up a time to receive. The driver called 15 minutes before delivery and arrived on time. Unpacking & set up: With the use of a hammer crowbar unpacking was quick and simple. We placed the slicer on a sturdy stainless steel table, washed the slicer down & sterilized ready for slicing. Performance: The slicer runs smooth and quiet. I sliced fifteen 15 lbs briskets with no issues at all. My old slicer would overheat after about 5 briskets but the Avantco performed flawlessly, no overheating. I did lube the slide rail about halfway through the slicing session. Likes: I love the power. I like the way meat can be positioned to make nice square slicing. Dislikes: None

Having only used Hobart and Globe slicers during my 40 year culinary career, I was a bit hesitant to purchase something different for my new business. My experience is in large hotel and country club Garde Mangers. But given the size of my semi-retirement business and the potential use, I decided to take a shot on this lesser expensive Avantco 12" slicer. It's been two months and I do not regret the purchase at all. This slicer has been excellent. It slices meats and cheeses like a champ. The only time the blade slows down is when I try to force thick Chef Salad sized Swiss Cheese slices through. So, I take my time with that and it works as effectively as the Hobarts and Globes of the world. Cleaning any slicer is always a pain. This slicer takes a bit of time to clean but once I came up with a system, it hasn't been a problem. The quality, price and performance are spot on. I have never reviewed any other product, but I felt this slicer would definitely be an asset to any small food business owner. I would recommend this slicer to you and would purchase another without a second thought if I needed a second slicer.

It’s a good thing it comes with 2 sharpening stones! It took one stone to get [ so called] razor sharp blade sharp enough to cut butter. Other than that it seems to work alright.

Great slicer well built

I purchased this slicer for personal use, I have used it several times and it is doing everything as I expected.

I wanted to wait atleast a year and post a review, I have sliced about 100,000 pounds of meat and still not a glitch.. I am on my third blade but besides that defintely got my moneys worth... Is there better slicers out there... of course. But for the money etc it hit the mark. If you are trying to run this more than 4 hours a day don't be cheap and get a bigger model. But most of these reviews that are negative come from cheap owners who buy the cheapest model and expect it to be the best piece of equipment ever...