Sphere Clear Ice Cube Tray - Silicone Ice Ball Maker Mold,Crystal Clear Round Ice for Whiskey and Cocktail

It does take several trials to ascertain how long to leave the device in your freezer, of course, but on the third trial, we had a tray-full of crystal-clear ice balls for our cocktails. They really are lovely and very entertaining. Don't forget to show admirers that they're tiny ice lenses and project a real image (a kind of image) of a light source. Cool cocktails and entrainment for cheap: what's not to like?

This does make small, clear ice spheres that look great in drinks. However, the outer closed cell foam body appears unfinished and is comprised of layers of foam that are glued together unevenly. It needs an outer plastic body to give it more rigidity and to give it a finished look. Looks cheap. The excessive flexibility of the unit over its length makes it more challenging to transfer this into the freezer without spilling water once it is filled. The individual molds are of silicone rubber but the space between molds is open air rather than solid silicone, like some other molds. This space tends to get filled with overflow water and creates a layer of ice that makes extraction of the top half of the mold more difficult.

At first glance this appears to be a cheap knock-off type purchase; it's as if someone was making it their garage or basement. However, the lack of a flashy or gloss finish doesn't make this any less effective than other similar items. The technology is the same: directional freezing.It took a try or two until I had this working. You don't have to use hot water, warm water does help because it aids in the directional freezing.Note: if you have one, put the whole thing in a plastic container because it drips or overflows.I fill the base about 2/3 full then put in the bottom gasket. I add a little more water, maybe 1/2 way up the gasket, before adding the top gasket. I press on the markings in the middle and around the side to fasten the two before pouring water into the holes in the top of the spheres.I use a turkey baster to suction out water that pools in the top.Also, I find something in the freezer to put on top to hold it down because the gaskets do float.Don't let your curiosity get the best of you: if you peek before it's fully frozen, the ice won't be clear. The gaskets are tougher than they appear. This doesn't mean tear them off; however, you can pull a bit to release the spheres. It might help to set it out for a bit, or work a corner loose and pour some warm water under the lower gasket.Enjoy.

I bought these because they make quite a few at once and the price was right. They do a terrific job as far as the balls being crystal clear, but it is a pain to use, even if you follow the instructions precisely. Here's what works best for me. 1) Put some strong rubber bands around the foam insulation to snug it up to the tub. 2) Fill the tub with warm tap water about halfway up. Insert the lower tray and you should see just a little of the warm water coming through the holes. 3) Fill the lower tray with cool tap or the water of your choice. 4) Insert the upper tray and make sure it seats well. You can attempt to fill the individual holes which takes a while, or just fill the upper tray until the water is above the level of the holes and let it run into each hole until full. You can siphon off the excess with a turkey baster, or just let it freeze on top then break it out later. When they say it needs 24 hours to freeze, they are not kidding! I usually wait double that. I then remove the entire block of ice from the tub, and let it sit in the sink for 30-60 minutes. It is very difficult to separate the trays if you try to do it quicker, and it still is not easy to separate them from the block of ice even after thawing a bit. A plastic spatula can help separate them when you're ready. It's a lot of work, but at least you get 10 crystal clear balls at a time for all of that trouble! I figure if I do it 2-3 times a week and zip lock them, it's worth it.

Ok, so this budget friendly mold was the only one with cubes which would fit in my glencairn glasses so I gave it a chance (I have a larger more expensive mold for my regular whiskey glasses) and am glad I did. Yes, the outer carton is a bit flimsy, but expected for the price versus other clear ice molds. The trick is to use hot tap water, not warm, not cold, not boiling - HOT tap water. Fill the bottom 1/2 way, insert bottom tray, fill with water to the top of the cube mold, then put the top tray on - next you can fill each ball a little until the water overflows from the top hole (use a food funnel) Put in the freezer with some weight on top (to keep top mold from drifting a bit as the water freezes and expands (I used an ice pack)). freeze 16 hours, take the tray out, leave on the counter for 3 mins, then they pop right out. Made 2 trays since getting with no issues. It works - just be realistic with quality of materials (you need to exercise care in your cleaning and handling) for the price. I do recommend

made clear ice spheres for a few trys, but plastic container has straight sides and the ice cracked it

I definitely had my doubts, but it turns out this really works!The setup takes same time, and also removing the ice cubes (spheres) out was not very easy, but I understand why it needs to work that way for the desired result.Also, they didn't come out completely round, this can probably be improved with some more experience, but you can leave them out of the freezer for a few minutes and they become perfectly round!I added two regular ice cubes to the second picture so you can see the insane difference!I love this!

The few ice balls I was able to make were great shape and pretty clear, however out of 4 batches I got 4 good ice balls. I followed the instruction to the T however it's just to problematic and leaked all over the floor and freezer.