MARCATOMade in Italy Atlas 180 Classic Manual Pasta Machine, Chrome Steel. Makes Lasagne, Fettuccine & Tagliolini.

I bought this to replace a KitchenAid pasta cutter that fried my motor when I made Ramen noodles, which are apparently tougher than egg noodles.I bought the base model which comes with the roller, crank, spaghetti attachment and clamp. There is a motor available as an add on, but dont bother - the base unit is great!The clamp is notched to secure it in the device socket. You will need a pad on the bottom unless you don’t care about marking the underside of the counter you secure it to. Also, the clamp has a easy to twist screw top, but it requires about an inch clearance from the wall of the cabinet or table below the counter so you aren't grinding your fingers or scratching wood as you tighten.Once secured, I had no trouble keeping it in place and fed with pasta dough. The device turns smoothly and easily, even with heavier dough, and my second time out I was able to seal the ends of my pasta sheet into a continuous loop and then crank it and flatten it without stopping to pull and re-load. The dough was also easy to keep straight and fed cleanly through the device. Also, the instructions recommended a ‘sacrificial dough’ to pick up extra oil from the gears that might have gotten on the rollers - I did not need to do that, it was clean when received, and keeping it clean is easy to do with a small brush - unless your dough is flawed and leaks into the mechanism.In short, this is a great device. Would recommend again without reservation. I would like a less awkward clamping mechanism, but that is the only nitpick.

Fun making your own. Don't ever submerge this in water to clean. I've had mine for more than 35 years and have only wiped it off with a dry towel after use. Sure, it squeaks a little, but it gets the job done. I got this for my daughter as a first apartment warming gift. Making your own pasta is a very simple way with your kids to start them on a path of cooking for themselves...and loving it. Simple pasta is the easiest recipe in the world with plenty of potential for modifications.

SITUATIONWe often make pasta by hand, which is laborious. Thus our interest in a pasta roller. The typical 15cm home size pasta roller seemed inadequate. We considered a more robust commercial grade machine, but discarded this option due to our limited kitchen space. After some consultations and considerable deliberation, we finally selected this machine with its 18cm wide rollers. This is my evaluation after about a month of continued use.ROLLER UNITThe Atlas 180 roller unit is secured to a counter top by a clamp (included). The body of the machine is chrome plated steel. There is a screw in the panel of the crank side, which we imagine to be for access to internal mechanism. The gears mesh well, with no slop. When cranked, it has a solid feel. The dial firmly locks the rollers into graduated separations. The rollers are made of an anodized aluminum alloy, and nicely aligned throughout their length (i.e. from dial side to crank side). Excellent results can be easily achieved with this little dough roller. True labor saving device. Very satisfied.CUTTERSThe Atlas 180 cutter unit slides on and off the back of the roller unit. There are screws on the chrome plated side panels, which we imagine must be for internal cleaning and access to the internal mechanism. The cutters appear to be made of the same anodized aluminum alloy as the rollers, and arrived with a little oil on them. The plastic combs underneath the cutters are detatchable, which allow the unit to be cleaned. With some cotton swabs, paper towels, a little alcohol, and due diligence, the rollers cleaned up very nicely.The cutters are more demanding to use than the roller. We found that the dough needs to be firmer for the Atlas cutter, than for cutting by hand with a knife. And as always, a light dusting of flour facilitates the process.The wide cutter produces a classic fetuccine width. The fine cutter produces a noodle width. By adjusting dough thickness to the width of the fine cutter, the final cooked noodle presents a nearly round shape. With due care, truly excellent results can be achieved with the atlas 180 cutters.SUMMARYIf you often make pasta at home, then this little machine merits your consideration. We have no problem recommending this kit for home made pasta.

Bought this after using it in a pasta class in Italy. It’s a great piece of equipment and makes making pasta a breeze. It’s very much a manual process so expect to work up a sweat while having fun.

The first one I got was damaged badly, the legs were bent over. Really bummed me out but I order a replacement and this machine was nearly double that of one I returned and there's a good reason why. It's quality and built well! When I first inserted the handle into the roller, it would not go, I had to give it a good push, but that means no flimsy handle and I like the way it's got a little 'click' when turning. I can easily read the dial numbers, and the mount is okay, better than the cheaper one I returned. I used a wood shim on the underside of the counter to steady it and it slips in easily and so far, so good. I'll eventually get the motor so I don't have to mount it.

I've never made pasta from scratch before getting the Marcato Atlas 180. Going on a basic ratio recipe, I mixed up 2 eggs with 200g flour, then I kneaded it for about 5 minutes until it felt right. Flattened it and started running it through the Marcato. My daughter was eager to help so she cranked while I fed the pasta through. We ended flattening down to level 5, then cutting it for Fettuccine. Boiled up and served with a tasty sauce. Rave reviews.Why only 4 stars? I think this machine is a little over-rated. It functions very nicely, but considering the price and reputation, I expected a little finer finished product. The knob to dial in the thickness was a little rough around the edges. I would expect this to be smooth and feel more substantial. The crank should be designed so that it does not pop out so easily. The clamp that is used to secure the pasta machine to the counter should also be designed to fit better.This is my first pasta machine, but I suspect that it is not worth the premium over other brands. The Imperia looks like a better deal to me.