Mine managed a bowlful of very stiff fruitcake dough without any problems - and it was mixing that for 15+ minutes. I’m not sure how long divinity must mix, but surely it’s lighter than fruitcake (longer, but lighter batter might be equivalent to shorter but tougher dough).
A slight hijack: Those of you who have one of the lifting-bowl varieties, how does that work with getting the bowlful of batter/dough away? Surely this requires tilting the bowl? do you have to remove the blade to get the bowl away? or does the bowl really lower enough for the blade to clear w/o tilting the bowl?
It just seems like it would be awfully messy to have to stick your hand in there and remove the blade, and tilting would lead to spilling. This was a big part of why we went for a “lower-end” one back when we bought ours in 95 or so… I like that the head itself tilts up and out of the way but I do sort of covet the larger bowl capacity!
Really? How do I learn more about how to fix it? I’d love to fix my old one… the new one is good, but there’s times I would like the old one working as well.
I have a K5SS (I think). What happens is there is a lever that drops the bowl down, so you have easy access to the blade, whip or whatever. Here’sMyMixer
I’d love it in stainless since that would “go” better in my kitchen after the remodel, but there is no reason to get rid of my white one. The accessories are 20% off right now for Xmas. And use the shopkitchenaid.com website to find this stuff, not kitchenaid.com.
Look on both sides of the motor. There should be screw out plugs. Unscrew them and pull out the brushes. Be careful they are attached to springs. You should be able to tell if they are used up, they should have at least 1/8 to 1/4 inch or more of brush (think carbon looking material) left to be operable.Below is a picture and ordering info… http://www.goodmans.net/get_item_ka-010_motor-brush-and-spring-fits-kitchenaid-mixers.htm
Does the motor sound like it is working but the mixer does not “mix”? In that case you may have stripped your drive gear, also replaceable. (Yes Rick I conceed that it is nylon and designed to strip :smack: ) It can also be replaced…here is the part.
You beat me to it, including the link to Mending Shed. I stripped the worm gear this spring, and had to replace it. There is a cap in the front of the mixer that is held by a capped screw; the hole under the cap is to attach peripherals such as a meat grinder.
MAKE SURE THAT YOU KEEP THAT SCREW TIGHTENED, AND CHECK IT PERIODICALLY!
It is not uncommon for the screw to loosen and the cap to fall in the bowl while mixing; it will lock up the beater and strip the wormgear in nothing flat. If this happens, you will need to:
Access the inside of the mixer. This is tough unless you know the secret. There is a locking pin on the spindle that sticks down, and you’ll need to drive it out with a nail set.
Remove the gasket, ruined worm gear and a metric butt-load of grease.
Replace the wormgear. I found it easier to replace the whole assembly than just the wormgear.
You will need to buy more grease, as the grease that was there is now full of shredded wormgear. In my case, the wormgear was metal and there were metal filings everywhere. So they haven’t always been nylon, and I don’t think that mine is a Hobart.
Replace the gasket. If the old one is still okay, use that. Otherwise get a new one.
I don’t think that it really matters how you take it apart, but I was careful in reassembling to tighten the screws evenly so that the gasket stayed tight and formed a good seal.
Plynck, I just experienced that feeling mothers must get when their children are lost in the store–abject panic followed by an immediate rush to fix whatever is wrong. And it was loose! LOOSE!
To the OP: I have a 300 watt Kitchenaid and it only struggles when I’m making bread. A single loaf is no trouble, but I always make double batches because bread is such a pain in the ass to make right, and I might as well get double the product. It will “walk”, and like another poster said, you might have to set it on the ground to keep it falling off the counter.
Come on up! Mr. Athena just stocked the beer fridge, and there’s plenty o’ sled dogs around.
I tried to pull out the brushes. One came right out, the other is stuck. The spring came off, and the brush part won’t come out. What’s that trick for opening up the sealed part of the mixer again? I’m afraid I’ll have to go in from the inside to push out the brush, and I’m a girl, so words like “spindle” and “nail set” mean nothing to me.
Rick…opp’s…my bad. Sometimes I am easily confused, but YES the 600w mixer does have Alloy as opposed to nylon drive gears…you can still shred them though.
Oh good. The Upper Peninsula in winter. Well, I’ve done worse for free beer…
I don’t think that you have to go through all of my procedure to get the brushes out, but it’s been awhile. As I recall, the back (where the power cord attaches) is attached with a couple of screws, and you may be able to get to the brushes that way. Perhaps with a long screwdriver. After you uplug the mixer, of course…
<off topic> You know, you all do a lot of SledDoggin’ up there too…Doug Swingley will be missed by some at this years Iditarod…hope to see him back in 2009
IIRC, Emeril admitted, on air, to destroying several KitchenAid mixers with divinity (he didn’t say “KitchenAid” but his hand was resting on one at the time)
If I ever get the guts to make the stuff I’m buying a cheap mixer to sacrifice rather than risk the wrath of the wife (in 3D!)
We recently bought the Professional 600 Series as the older one we had was not big enough to do all we wanted and its motor was showing signs of giving out after lots of fudge, divinity, peanut butter candy, cookies, bread, rugela and fruitcake. The old one’s motor was like 275 watts. I don’t recall Divinity being a problem for it.
We keep the new one on the kitchen table in a dedicated spot and it gets used enough to earn its spot. It can handle a quadruple batch of fruitcake batter (not including fruit and nuts which are added by hand.) The Artisan was in close running but the extra bowl capacity and the bowl lift mechanism won us over.
