Doc, the "justified amount" of a lot, would depend on your ability to keep up with the girls getting cut down. In my case, I couldn't keep up with the product coming in :hubba: You can always get helpers, but that can lead to other problems.
I would rent one once, and see if the investment fits your needs(I paid bout $500 US). The rubber fingers are a pain to clean up, I use 98% ISO, or acetone....but wear gloves, the stuff is not good for you. I also made a fitting for a drill attachment, so no hand cranking was needed.
Last year, I casually kept a time study of trimming quantities. It took 2 peeps, 2 hrs. to trim 4 oz.
So:2 peeps x 2 hrs. = 4 oz or
1 oz. per man hr..
With the trimmer: 1 man x 2 minutes = 2 oz. or
60 oz. per man hr.
Huge time difference in production, purely based on your needs. I have no affiliation with the company, just reporting my findings. The time savings was unbelievable, left more time for relaxation and enjoyment of the nuggets :icon_smile:
Once again, if you have big sweet cola's for personal use....just hand trim. But if buried in hanging plants....SpinPro baby
I'll load up some pics today, got some xmas shopping to do