Friday, January 18, 2013

KitchenAid Commercial Stand Mixer Purchased


As some of you know I have had more than my share of bad luck with the KitchenAid lift bowl stand mixers. The first KitchenAid Lift Bowl Stand Mixer I purchased was in the late 80’s at a cost of $400.00 plus all the attachments for it at another $250.00. At that time I was deep into making my own pizza, so much so that I was thinking hard about opening my own pizza restaurant. I didn’t, but now wish I would have. Anyway the first KitchenAid lift bowl stand mixer got quite a workout making a lot of pizza dough and never gave an ounce of trouble or complaining about kneading all that dough I forced it to mix and knead! And that also included the meat grinder attachment from which I made all my own sausage and the slicing attachment to slice all the mushrooms, olives, onions, peppers etc. including shredding all the mozzarella and other cheeses for toppings. This machine had its butt worked off and never complained.

Well, the original mixer never complained until I got into Prepping and Survival baking! After a couple years of milling my own grain and kneading 100% whole wheat bread it began to overheat and eventually I could not knead for more than 2 minutes before an automatic thermal shut-down stopped the mixer and I had to finish kneading the bread by hand.

It was about 2 years ago when the first KitchenAid mixer died and I bought a new KitchenAid “Professional 5” lift bowl mixer with a lot more power than the old one. It turned out to be a piece of junk, the gear box literally screamed at such a high and loud pitch there were times I had to wear shooters earmuffs if I needed to stay in the kitchen when it was milling grain. KitchenAid said that was normal!!!! However after 3 months it was getting worse and I insisted KitchenAid take it back and send me a new one. Surprisingly they did that without a complaint. Unfortunately the brand new replacement was no better and after 18 months the gear box totally failed and yes it was out of warrantee. The mixer ended up at the curb for the garbage man to toss in the back of the garbage truck! $300.00 gone!

That makes three KitchenAid mixers that failed, now what to do?

I looked very seriously at commercial stand mixers like the Hobart N-50 with a price tag of $2,500.00 it was simply out of consideration. Changing mixer brands means I’d lose all the attachments including my grain mill. Replacing all these attachments with self-powered stand alone appliances would be very expensive to say the least.

The decision I made was to try one more time with KitchenAid and purchase their top model, the “Commercial NSF” model.

Manufacturers Product Description:
The KitchenAid KSM7990WH NSF 7 qt. commercial stand mixer is ready to handle all of your jobs, large or small - up to 16 cups of flour at a time! Its powerful 500 watt, 1.3 hp DC motor is KitchenAid's longest lasting power train, featuring precise all metal gears and advanced electronic controls that communicate with the motor 15,000 times per second to ensure optimum torque, less heat buildup and smooth, quiet operation. Delivering plenty of mixing power for everything from a slow stir to a fast whip, this high efficiency motor with 10 speed slide control is perfect for use in your bakery or commercial kitchen!

A glossy white finish and all metal touch points give a professional look to any mixing station while a 7 qt. burnished stainless steel bowl with "J" style handle and flanged edges can hold enough dough for up to 8 1/2 loaves of bread at once! The unit features a professional bowl lift design to raise and secure the bowl while using any professional or commercial style KitchenAid attachment. A professional-style attachment power hub is compatible with all KitchenAid attachments for added versatility. For additional security, speed control protection reduces the risk of turning on the unit during cleaning.

The KSM7990WH NSF 7 qt. commercial stand mixer comes with an 11 wire whip, flat beater, bowl and Power Knead dough hook, all constructed of durable, dishwasher-safe stainless steel. This mixer requires a 120V connection and comes with a 48" long orange commercial power cord and NEMA 5-15P plug. The cord's bright orange color lets your health inspector see right away that this is not a residential unit. Please consult the Specification Sheet for additional details. NSF Listed.

Summary:
The mixer is expensive at $899.00 list price. Most online prices range from $699 to $650. I managed to find one online restaurant supply store and paid $546.75 with free shipping. If it truly is a commercial use machine it should outlast me.
Web store I purchased from, they will e-mail the price to you:


At this time the mixer only comes in white, they say they are going to add colors later in 2013.

The attachments are strong and all stainless steel with an interesting design of the wire whip, see the photos below.

The metal gears are truly quiet even at the highest speed setting, a giant improvement over the Professional 5 mixers.

I did a two loaf test batch of whole wheat bread. The mixer milled the grain and mixed and kneaded the dough effortlessly. No moaning and groaning.

As my luck would have it the mixer arrived with the bowl handle broken off the bowl and lying in the bottom of the box. The shipping box didn’t indicate any really rough handling. I have contacted the seller; they are contacting the factory for a replacement bowl.

I also noticed the speed control knob appears not to be screwed on all the way. I tried to tighten it but more than likely they use a thread locker on it and now I’d have to force it to screw it on further, I’m afraid I may break it so I have sent photos to KitchenAid and waiting for their response.

We are witnessing what was a strong, proud, high quality American company’s total destruction by a pack of nitwit college jerks focused on profit rather than pride and quality. KitchenAid is a prime example of why China, India, Vietnam and many other countries take our jobs away. KitchenAid no longer makes their product in the USA, they only assemble it from all the parts they purchase off-shore.

Bottom Line:
It did knead a two loaf test batch of whole wheat dough today and it quietly and powerfully kneaded it. It’s promising and we’ll see how it goes from here.

I hope it does hold up but if it fails while under the 2 year warrantee I will take the new replacement and immediately sell it then go the Hobart route.







The three attachments that comes with the mixer.


Here’s the wire whip, notice it has an oval shape and not the typical round shape. I’m looking forward to trying this new shape out.






Milling the grain and doing it very quietly at maximum speed.


Kneading the whole wheat dough with ease.


The handle broken off the spot welds.




The speed control knob that looks like it’s not screwed on all the way and can’t screw it on or off now. Waiting for a response from KitchenAid.


13 comments:

  1. It can be so frustrating to have shoddy workmanship for something you paid so much for. I'm hoping the company will quickly replace what you need without problems.

    I do agree that things have changed in NA. What used to be great products and quality craftmanship in many companies seems to have gone by the wayside. Though we still pay for the "name" we often don't get the same quality.

    I hope this commercial grade mixer is the last one you'll ever need. Please keep us posted because there are those of us that want to upgrade some day. My wish would be to make more than 2 loaves of bread at a time and freeze it just so I don't have to bake so often.

    Good luck.

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  2. I'm hoping it lasts also. The two issues I have now I hope aren't a sign of things to come!

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  3. Could the dust from milling clog up some type of air vent or screen around the motor and cause the burn out? Sure hope you have good luck w/ this model. If you don't want to open a pizza shop, why not investigate selling 1-pie sized packets of dough to local stores.

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  4. LyndaKay, Dust was not the problem on my first KA. I took that motor apart and was going to order a new replacement field winding and armature motor parts but the two replacement parts cost as much as a new mixer.

    I also hope that I have better luck with this one or this will be the last KA I will ever own.

    I have looked into supplying the dough and basic ingredients in a kit form that would be assembled and baked at home but I can’t compete with the assembled frozen pizza manufacturers in price. And most people do not have enough skill to make their own or want to put any more effort into a pizza than they have to. Most just want to call and get one delivered or just toss a frozen one in the oven and eat it.

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  5. Hi There

    I have just purchased this mixer
    in England, here it is called the
    6-9 litre artisan or the 6.9 litre
    HD.
    The speed controler switch on
    mine looks like your's except mine
    is also crooked,I bought this mixer because it is supposed to be
    able to knead 8 pounds of bread dough but I tried to knead a three
    loaf batch using bread flour and it
    started to hesitate every now and
    then.
    So needless to say I am a bit
    disappointed. It will be interesting to see how your machine
    copes with larger batches.


    Chris.

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  6. Chris thanks for stopping by and your comment!
    I have yet to try a 4 loaf batch (12 cups of flour) so I’m not sure what to expect at this time. I did make a 2 loaf batch of whole wheat bread from freshly milled grain which is the most difficult dough to knead and the mixer handled it without any sign of a strain, (unlike all the others) which was encouraging for me.
    I can only see myself making 4 loaf batches if I had to bake for friends should TSHTF because naturally they are not prepared to be without food for as little as 2 weeks.
    I can say if this KA mixer fails performs poorly over the next 2-3 years I’m seriously considering working with my attorney to put together a class action suit against KA. This is my 4th mixer and I have many comments from other disappointed owners so I believe a case can be made that will keep the attorneys happy with cash. I know I would want all my money back plus a lot more for all the years of aggravation and the knowingly deceptive advertising of KA.

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  7. I don't have a pro one but I do have the regular home model. Most of my knobs brok off so I just have the metal peices to deal with. The thing is loud and at time sound like its going to die or rocket to the moon!
    Personally when it does die and I have to replace it I plan to buy quality hand tools instead. Hubs wants the extra attachments for our kitchen aid, I'd rather start collecting hand kitchen tools instead!

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  8. MM,
    I have gone through the same thing you are now. I would have never purchased another KitchenAid if it wouldn’t have been for all the attachments I already have, especially my grain mill that the KA powers. I hope my new one lasts, so far it seems good and has lots of power for kneading my whole wheat bread.

    Quality built hand kitchen tools are a pleasure to use and for the Survivalist when the power goes out it will be no inconvenience to you.

    I would go with the quality hand tools!

    Mike

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  9. Good purchase on your part. Commercial mixers are good for both the home & the commercial kitchen setting. How is yours holding up?

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  10. So far it is working OK. I recently made a two loaf batch of whole wheat bread and I could sense it was beginning to strain, not a good sign! I plan on making a 4 loaf batch, something it is supposed to be capable of. If it fails I will send it back to KA for a new replacement then sell the new replacement and get another heavy duty commercial brand.

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  11. I'm curious, the mixer says not to use attachments. However, I see you using your mill? How are they working? I've hesitated to ever buy any but would love to try them out. Thanks!

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  12. Anon 9:41am
    I'm not sure where you read not to use attachments with the KA mixer but it's not in my book. KA sells a number of attachments for it like the meat grinder and the shredder/slicer that I use on a regular basis. The grain mill works great, so far I have milled over 300 lbs. of wheat grain with it and it's still like new.

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    ReplyDelete