I Gave Away Kitchenaid Mixers For Gifts This Year

WeberWho

After collecting Kitchenaid mixers off Craigslist for the past year I finally had the opportunity to give them as gifts! I can't even tell you how many hours I have into each one of them. I broke each mixer down and removed all of Kitchenaids **** grease they use to lubricate them. Absolute garbage grease. If you don't use the mixer enough the grease will break down and become a liquid. Meaning it won't lubricate the gears properly and cause potential damage. Kitchenaid continues to use the crappy grease. Why? So you can bring the mixer into their service center and charge you $80+ for a new crappy grease job that will eventually break down again. Kitchenaid especially loves it when the consumer thinks the mixer is broken because it's leaking oil and they go out and buy a new $300+ Kitchenaid mixer! Thiefs or geniuses depending on who you ask. So I went with Tri-Flow food safe synthetic grease. What I've read is that the synthetic grease won't break down. I've used it on my Kitchenaid mixer and seems to be quality grease. Two of the four are Hobart Kitchenaid mixers and the other two are Whirlpool Kitchenaids. The two Hobarts went to my sister and Mom. They will probably see the most work. The Whirlpools went to my other sister and sister-in-law. I decided to do the one Whirlpool Kitchenaid with purple high gloss paint. My one sister isn't a huge baker since she is fresh out of college but I figured I could make it a little girly looking for her. So I stripped, sandblasted, painted, and baked the plantary, attachment cap, and knobs. I also did one of the Hobarts plantary in high gloss black. The plantary had some chipped paint so I thought I might clean it up while at it. Two of the Kitchenaid bands were showing their age so I bought a couple new replacements. With a little elbow grease they all cleaned up great. It was a fun project while stressful at times but definitely worth the reward when seeing their face light up opening it. I took a couple pics of the end products

DaveRichardson

Damn! I want to ship my 2 year old one to you for a clean out and paint job!

theyolksonyou

How do I get on your Christmas list? Really cool project and gifts.

Jeremiah

This is a great post. Are the hobarts better? What do I look for when hunting? Is there a particular model that I should look for? ie artisan? I've been wanting one and this could be a fun project at the same time. Thanks

lkapigian

@WeberWho?‌ very nice!... For those that have KitchenAide to help keep the OEM grease from doing as @WeberWho?‌ says, use your kitchenaide don't let it sit. heck just turn it on periodically . And if your going to do heavy use such as heavier doughs, make sure to get an appropriate model for such duty...so lack of use and heat will cause the OEM grease to separate ..this can happen in anything gear driven ... Great Post @WeberWho?‌

Mickey

=D> ^:)^ =D> ^:)^ =D> ^:)^

WeberWho

DaveRichardson said:

Damn! I want to ship my 2 year old one to you for a clean out and paint job!

@DaveRichardson‌
Haha thanks! Your grease will be good. Just make sure you flip on the mixer for a few minutes a couple times a month if not using it regularly. Like @Ikapigian mentions above, just don't over work the mixer and get it hot where the grease will separate. More less of a rant from me about such an easy simple solution fix but too much of a money maker for Kitchenaid to do anything about it

WeberWho

theyolksonyou said:

How do I get on your Christmas list? Really cool project and gifts.

@theyolksonyou‌
Thanks! It was overall a fun project. Time consuming but worth it in the end.

rtt121

I like this idea.  What were not working Kitchen Aids going for on CL?

logchief

Wow, that's impressive, nice work.

WeberWho

Jeremiah said:

This is a great post. Are the hobarts better? What do I look for when hunting? Is there a particular model that I should look for? ie artisan? I've been wanting one and this could be a fun project at the same time. Thanks

@Jeremiah
I believe the older Hobart/Kitchenaid mixers were built to last. (I remember reading a quote when doing research on Hobart/Kitchenaids that went like this, ”Hobart/Kitchenaids mixers were built to last forever plus one additional day”. Which I completely agree with. I also believe the motors were built with more quality components accompanied by all steel gearing. (The older Hobart motor purrs along when in use and the newer Whirlpool motors let you know they are in use) The Kitchenaid Pro Series still uses all steel gearing and a beefier motor. I would imagine this would be comparable to a Hobart/Kitchenaid pre 1990's. I think retail for a Kitchenaid Pro is $600+ now a days.

Whirlpool bought out Kitchenaid from Hobart in the late 80's. The first couple years of ownership under Whirlpool they continued to manufacture Kitchenaids through Hobart. A couple years later Whirlpool started to use their own parts inside Kitchenaid mixers. Whirlpool started to use smaller motors with nylon gearing. The nylon gearing is a ”safety feature” they say. Which is true because the gear will snap and break so it doesn't burn and stress out the motor. Which is good but why change out to a smaller motor in the first place? Probably cheaper to manufacture. I did read that there were so many complaints and issues with the newer Whirlpool motors that they had some big lawsuit pending against them. I hear the motor is a little better quality now a days from a few years ago. Most people don't use their mixer that often anyways. I've probably put in way too much time and energy for a stupid mixer! I'm sure the average Kitchenaid mixer is more than good for your average Joe baker.

I'm no pro but what I look for when searching for a Hobart/Kitchenaid mixer is: Color, band, locking plate, and bowl. The color of the mixer helps drastically. My two Hobart mixers are dead giveaways. 1970's yellow and green. My moms Hobart is white so not always the color. If you notice the band on my mixers they have a black boarder around them. Pretty good chance they are an older Kitchenaid model. Some bands will say built by Hobart Division on them. (Mine don't but my moms band did before I replaced it.) The bowl will also help from a quick glance at a picture. Newer Kitchenaids mixers come with handles on them. I'm not saying that it's going to be a Hobart if it doesn't have a handle but better chance that it might be. The attachment cap is the same way. If the cap has the words Kitchenaid on it probably not going to be a Hobart. The older Hobarts came with flat plain chrome covers. The bowl locking plate sometimes will say built by Hobart Divisions on them. I took a picture what mine says. My moms white Hobart locking plate didn't have any writing on it. So not always guaranteed to say Hobart. The last and only way is when you take one apart. No nylon gearing. All steel. That's the absolute 100% knowing you have an official Hobart/Kitchenaid mixer!

NPHuskerFL

Awesome! Some of DQs I service have the old Hobart KA mixers and they were built much heavier. I like my KA Husker Scarlet Mixer it fits my needs and does very well on even heavier large batches of pizza & pretzel dough.

Jeremiah

Wow. Thank you for the information! I'll be hunting one now.

NPHuskerFL

Jeremiah said:

Wow. Thank you for the information! I'll be hunting one now.

Yep can't go wrong with a Husker Scarlet/Red Artisan

WeberWho

rtt121 said:

I like this idea.  What were not working Kitchen Aids going for on CL?

@rtt121‌
All the mixers I've picked up were under $50 except my yellow Hobart mixer. I think I paid $75 for it. It looked like it was hardly ever used. Mint condition. So I jumped on it. Two Hobarts and one average Kitchenaid I picked up for $25 a piece. I got super lucky for a few weeks. The other 2 were $50. You're doing really good if you can find one for $50. Like I mentioned earlier, most think they are going to break down any minute when they see brown liquid leaking from them. Just broken down grease. All good mixers but just needed a new grease job.

WeberWho

lkapigian said:

@WeberWho?‌ very nice!... For those that have KitchenAide to help keep the OEM grease from doing as @WeberWho?‌ says, use your kitchenaide don't let it sit. heck just turn it on periodically . And if your going to do heavy use such as heavier doughs, make sure to get an appropriate model for such duty...so lack of use and heat will cause the OEM grease to separate ..this can happen in anything gear driven ...

Great Post @WeberWho?‌

@ikapigian
Thank you! You are absolutely right about the gease

WeberWho

Mickey said:

=D> ^:)^ =D> ^:)^ =D> ^:)^

Too nice Mickey!

RRP

Very nice of you! I am having no problem with my KA 600, but if I wanted to how much trouble is it to change the grease? Also where do you find this Tri-Flow grease?

WeberWho

NPHuskerFL said:

Awesome! Some of DQs I service have the old Hobart KA mixers and they were built much heavier. I like my KA Husker Scarlet Mixer it fits my needs and does very well on even heavier large batches of pizza & pretzel dough.

Thanks! @NPHuskerFL
I can't believe DQ uses a Hobart Kitchenaid mixer. If must see some light work compared to the other commercial mixers in store

NPHuskerFL

@WeberWho?‌ they use it for the ice cream cake toppings/icing etc. Most of the mixers I see are Hobart big boys.

Jeremiah

@WeberWho?‌ what's a decent price on crsiglist for the hobarts? Looks like $125-$225 on eBay today.

bboulier

What a wonderful project and set of gifts!

WeberWho

RRP said:

Very nice of you! I am having no problem with my KA 600, but if I wanted to how much trouble is it to change the grease? Also where do you find this Tri-Flow grease?

@RRP
The Kitchenaid 600 is a nice Kitchenaid mixer. The 600 is considered the pro series correct? It should have all steel gears with the bigger motor. The changing of the grease is fairly easy. The most challenging part is removing the plantary pin. If you have a set of small punches that definitely makes the world of difference. All basic standard tools. Small punches, standard/phillips screwdrivers, small hammer, etc. You will need lots of paper towels to clean up the old grease. If you're anal like me grab some old toothbrushes, toothpicks, q tips, and anything else to remove 99.5% of the old brown grease. I remove the worm gear and degrease it. You can even degrease the housing. You can use the video below for a reference. The way he does it is pretty crude. I wouldn't use the screwdriver to pry, lift, or remove any parts in fear of scratching or chipping the paint. We sharpened a wooden dowel flat to resemble a standard screwdriver to help get the trim ring off. Plus he kind of slaps new grease over old crappy grease. Not my style. I degrease all the gears with degreaser. I'm maybe anal but I want it done right the first time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eKHVvNX5eY&feature=youtube_gdata_player


The Tri-Flow food safe grease I've bought off Amazon in the past. Not many places carry it. Not very cheap either. Runs about $25 a tube after shipping. It will do 3 mixers worth. What's nice is that it won't break down and hopefully won't need to be replaced. Sure beats Kitchenaids $18 grease before shipping that will need to be replaced again!

Before and after pics below with changing grease

grege345

Very informative. Thanks

WeberWho

Jeremiah said:

@WeberWho?‌ what's a decent price on crsiglist for the hobarts? Looks like $125-$225 on eBay today.

@Jeremiah The most I've paid was $75 for my yellow Hobart mixer. It looked like it was hardly ever used. Immaculate condition. So I jumped on it. The two other Hobarts I picked up for $25 a piece. (I probably won't ever find them again for that price. Super lucky few Weeks). I would keep your eyes peeled and check Craigslist often.

WeberWho

bboulier said:

What a wonderful project and set of gifts!

Thank you! @bboulier

WeberWho

grege345 said:

Very informative. Thanks

@grege345 You're welcome! I try to help when I can

Jeremiah

Thanks again.

itsmce

Nice gifts!

RRP

Thanks! That video was very informative and when the time comes I know I can tackle that project.

jlsm

Fantastic! Really, really thoughtful.