I am looking into getting an extruder for both caramel pieces and ganaches. Right now the front runner is the Savage Carousel
Pros:
-This machine can do both caramel or ganache (no more hand portioning with a scoop!)
-They have stock shapes or will custom make any shape or size for you
-Footprint (size) of the machine -- tabletop and small
-Support, reliability, and reputation of Savage Bros
Cons:
-Expensive (Around $8K US) and haven't been able to get ahold of one used
-Output is only 1 piece at a time. I would prefer something still small (tabletop size) but capable of maybe 3-5 pieces with a small conveyor. Maybe such a thing doesn't exist.
I do like their depositor but it's for liquid. I need the function of the extruder/cutter in the form of the depositor I guess 
I have the Savage Firemixer 14 and couldn't live without it now. Savage makes a good, solid product in my opinion and my experience so far. Also great support from the company. The down side is they are expensive. And with only getting one piece out at a time I will save some time but it's truly a middle step given that at some point my production increase will require me to get multiple pieces at once and with less manual intervention.
All of this said.... does anyone have this machine, or a comparable piece of equipment? What are your thoughts, cautions, and recommendations? Is there another company with a device similar in size and output (or better output!) with a lower price tag? Does anyone have one they absolutely love?
updated by @shannon-campbell: 04/10/15 03:42:02
