David52, we have used very juicy plums (Methley, Beauty, and yellow Shiro) and they've done very well. I also use a "potato masher" and squash down the fruit every once in a while. (Know, of course, that every time you lift up the lid you're losing some of the valuable heat/steam.) The prune plums we have don't contain a lot of juice -- so maybe yours are the same. Also, you mentioned that they were "just-ripening" so maybe they hadn't achieved their full, juicy state. You can place the fruit in the basket whole, or you can also make a slice or two in the fruit or puncture it with a fork here and there to aid in the release of juice. We never need 3 hours of simmering. But then I don't always fill the basket completely full at first. If you haven't tossed the pulp you can keep trying. It's an easy procedure (usually), and, depending upon what fruit you've chosen, can yield a nice juice. Good luck, and keep trying.

We have a vita-mix.I too saw the La lanne and wondered if it was all that.I got to preview it's capabilities at a clients house.Jack's machine seperates much of the pulp out of the juice.They have muffin and bread recipes for the ambitious.Our vita-mix won't take an apple whole.I find I have to quarter everything,but the finished drink has all the pulp in it.I like to bake but it's just too hot in Florida to commit to making high fiber bread products year round,so I think I can live with the blender we chose.BTW,mine is easier to clean than the Lalanne model.Sandy

I can't tell you anything about juicing with a Champion but you can make delicious nut butters with it. I roast almonds, cashews, walnuts, etc and run them through. Also another thing we like it for is making frozen fruit "ice cream". We freeze banana chunks and runthem through alternating with chunks of other frozen fruit for a creamy, sweet fruity treat. If you use frozen fruits without the frozen bananas, you get aslushy, icy product that is good but the bananas make it creamy. We also like to add a few pecans and make "butter pecan ice cream". I demonstrate this ice cream at vegan cooking classes that I've held and most folks have a hard time believing it's only frozen fruit.

Raw vegan has amazing health benefits but I find it really difficult to stick with long term. I've tried it and I strive for it but I've never made it more than a few weeks before I eat something cooked. But even a week showed me a profound difference. I had SO much energy, and it was clean energy, not jittery. I was able to stay more focused at work and didn't feel sluggish after meals. My skin cleared up and I dropped 10 pounds in a week and I didn't gain it back afterward. I think the role of nutrition in our society is horribly downplayed. I'm not particularly religious but I believe the earth is intelligently designed to support all life to not only survive but thrive and if we use it as we should, a lot of the rampant diseases and health problems would disappear. Look at scurvy, which killed so many people and is caused by a deficiency of a vitamin that is contained in so many fruits and vegetables. It's a deadly situation that can easily be treated by eating oranges. And I don't think it's limited to just one health condition. These things exist to nourish our bodies and protect them from damage and disease and most people don't eat nearly enough. I know some people where their only vegetables of the day is the lettuce on their cheeseburger and they wonder why they have so many health problems. Juicing is an awesome way to consume many times more produce than you would eat whole.