My father has had one of these ice cream maker for about 25 years, I got mine about 10 years ago, and just got one for my son & his wife.  After trying some of the 'cheaper' models, I went with what my Dad had and it has worked like a charm.  It has never given me a bad batch of ice cream, and we make it all summer long.  The only thing that I've found with any homemade ice cream is to let it 'sit' for about 30 minutes after the churning is done.  It has a chance to harden up, and the kids always like having the dasher for a pre-taste!