Danger!!!......K'Aid Grinder Attachment Can Kill Your K'Aid Stand Mixer!!!

[Corey123]

Hi, everyone!

I just had a bad stroke of luck!

I just used the K'Aid grinder attachment for the first time on Friday evening, and it killed the mixer - my new beautiful white K5SSWH model!!

I was grinding some raw beef stew meat to make Sloppy Joes. In the middle of doing it, the mixer began to labor seriously. I immediately turned it off. But the damage was already done! Luckily, my smaller K45SS was there to help finish the job. But that one could have seized also!

I later tried the machine with nothing attached to it and it seemed to pick up speed, but it again began to labor.

I just got off the phone with the appliance repairman at the place where I'm to send the machine for repairs. He told me that using the grinder attachment, especially for meat, causes fluids to back up into the power drive hub and could seize that part and the tansmission, so now, I have to send the machine to him and he'll fix it for me.

The motor is still good. It just can't work well now with the tranny being seized like it is. I'm also going to send the grinder attachment back to Cooking.com after I call them later in the week!

So please, be aware of this the next time that you want to use your K'Aid grinder attachment with your mixer! I'm just going to use the food processor the next time I want to grind any meat!

 

[-DEADLY SUSHI-]

AWWWWW geeez. Im sorry to hear that. One would think they have some warning for this.

 

[mugsy27]

speaking of using a food processor for grinding meat...i have had great success doing that with salmon to make salmon burgers.

has anyone ever tried to grind red meat in a food processor?? like say get a chuck steak and grind it?

if so, what method did you use? did u cut it into say....1 inch cubes and which blad did u use??

TIA!!

 

[Uncle Bob]

In my opinion a food proccesor is not the tool for grinding meat...period.
You will have a mushy goo!...Not a grind...The texture after cooking might be on the "different' side...However if you want to try it..I would cube it up into smaller pieces...
Again...this is just one man's opinion...

Enjoy!

 

[Uncle Bob]

Corey...

I used one of those grinders for years...heavy duty use..proccessing deer etc...I never had that problem...

I find the comment by the repairman..."using the grinder attachment especially for meat"...odd/strange...Ah. what esle would you use it for? Is that not the prrmary purpose of the attachment? These of course are rhetorical questions. I went to the kitchen to look at mine...but can't find it...I bought a stand alone heavier grinder last year...I guess the KA attachment has been stored out of my site!

No matter...I am not there...and am certainly not a repairman....my point is this should not have happened...I would "demand" repair/replacement at KA's expense!

Give them the "devil"

 

[mugsy27]

thats what i was thinking (about the gooo part). i usually just pick out a nice looking chuck steak, and get the supermarket butcher to grind it for me.

he always gives me this annoyed look like "we have an entire ground meat section"

...and i am looking for ways to do it myself without having to buy an expensive and hard to clean grinder...

 

[Uncle Bob]

Cleaning a grinder...be it a KA attachement or a stand alone type can be somewhat of a chore...Grinding small amounts of meat sometimes make it not worth the hassle....I know when I drag out my stand alone machine I have some serious grinding to do...at least 10 lbs or more...sometimes 40 lb...So then it is worth the time/effort to clean.

Edit...Mugsy...there are manual(inexpensive) models..Can be hard to crank at times..but they do work. Sad to say they have to be cleaned too!

 

[Candocook]

I don't get this. What speed were you using on the mixer to grind the meat?
I have had my KA mixer for 35 years and ground all kinds of stuff. There is something wrong with this picture.

 

[CharlieD]

Wow, interesting. I've used my meat grinder attachment for years, never had any problem. Better be carefull next time.

 

[Corey123]

This particular machine, he says, has been a victim of the grinder attachment. I've used speed 4 as the manual suggests.

i'm not going to use the grinder any more, so I'm going to arrange to send it back for a refund.

Incidently, the grinder attachment is the one that causes the machine to draw the most power. He even said the fruit / veggie strainer also is a danger to the mixer!

According to what he told me, every attachment is ok to use except the grinder. The food processor, like I said, will be used to grind meat from now on.

 

[kitchenelf]

I have used my grinder attachment for meat many times (I grind the little part that pulls away from a whole tenderloin many times to make "hamburger").

I LOVE to make gazpacho with the food grinder attachment too.

To clean it after you grind the meat just run a few slices of bread through it to push the meat out. Soak it and the bread will then come out easily.

Corey, did you shove too much meat down it, therefore causing the strain?

 

[Corey123]

I have used my grinder attachment for meat many times (I grind the little part that pulls away from a whole tenderloin many times to make "hamburger").

I LOVE to make gazpacho with the food grinder attachment too.

To clean it after you grind the meat just run a few slices of bread through it to push the meat out. Soak it and the bread will then come out easily.

Corey, did you shove too much meat down it, therefore causing the strain?

No. After each piece of meat, I waited first for it to finish being processed.

I cut the meat in strips as per the manual's suggestions. And yes, I DID run a half slice of bread through it to get the last part of the meat out.

Again, it seemed to work well with the smaller 20-year-old K45SS mixer. I was going to use the food processor to finish the job, but I got out the smaller mixer instead, since the grinder was already used and was still dirty from the first half of the meat.

I just don't want to ruin THIS ONE, hence the reason to send it back.

 

[Candocook]

What speed did you use?

 

[Corey123]

Speed 4, as the manual suggests.

 

[subfuscpersona]

The old adage they don't make 'em like they used to is really true for Kitchenaid mixers. In the mid-80s, Whirlpool bought Kitchenaid from Hobart (the original manufacturer). Since then, there have been continuous reports of problems with many Kitchenaid models.

I have 2 KA mixers, both by Hobart (K5A and K5SS), along with numerous attachments, most of which are also from the Hobart era. The two attachments that put the heaviest load on the mixer are the grain mill and meat grinder. Both have seen frequent use for 30 years and I have never had a problem.

I have noticed that, over time, the attachments also have declined in quality (particularly noticeable in the meat grinder - the Whirlpool model is significantly lighter and less sturdy than the older Hobart-era one). The newer stainless steel bowls, though they look identical to the older ones, have also gotten lighter.

About 1-1/2 years ago, both my mixers were completely reconditioned at an authorized KA service center. The store owner wanted to buy my broken K5A model! He said that small businesses (like a restaurant or small bakery) often come to him seeking the Hobart KA models so there is always a market for them, regardless of condition. He said that once Whirlpool acquired KA, the quality of KA mixers significantly declined.

If I were in the market for a Kitchenaid mixer today, I'd get one of the earlier models that were manufactured by Hobart (they appear on eBay at times) rather than buy new.

 

[Corey123]

Nufsed did that. He's even repainted it to give it a fresh new look!

Yes, I, also, feel the same way about K'Aid products. It seems that the quality just isn't there like it was when Hobart had the division.

But my K'Aid mixer probaly never would have failed had I not used the ill-fated grinder attachment! As far as I'm concerned, that accessory is now a debacle with me, as I will never use it again.

And yes, you're so right about the K'Aid Stand Mixers that were made during the Hobart era! My 20-year-old K45SS Stand Mixer, which I will NEVER part with, seemed to handle the grinder task fairly well, vs. the Whirlpool-made K5SSHW! But yet and still, I'm not using the grinder any more.

The guy that I spoke to on the phone yesterday morning, said that I'd be better off getting a separate electric grinder, such as a Waring or something.

Incidently, I DID buy a separate electric grain mill. So I imagine that a grinder would hurt. My Electrolux Assistant can also use a grinder as an accessory.
But for now, the food processor is the next best thing!

 

[subfuscpersona]

...my K'Aid mixer probaly never would have failed had I not used the ill-fated grinder attachment! As far as I'm concerned, that accessory is now a debacle with me, as I will never use it again...The guy that I spoke to on the phone yesterday morning, said that I'd be better off getting a separate electric grinder

You use a KA attachment on a KA mixer according to instructions. Your mixer breaks. Though they haven't actually looked at the mixer yet, the KA service center tells you that this KA attachment is so poorly designed it damages their mixer. You are out the cost of the attachment (at a minimum).

Sounds similar to this post - Kitchenaid Let Down by Crusty Old Crumb

Geeeez - what does this say about the quality of Whirlpool/KA mixers, attachments and customer service?

 

[Candocook]

I think this really needs to be addressed by the KA corporation. And I grew up in the town where it is and know/knew all the executives--before it was bought, first by Dart andKraft, and then by Whirlpool. I truly would write a letter to the president, with a copy of this thread and the other one.

 

[jabbur]

I was thinking about getting the grinder attachment for my KA mixer but will continue to use my grandma's ancient hand crank grinder. It does what I need and I don't want to ruin my mixer.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I purchased a cheap meat grinder curing the holidays and have used it several times, with some pretty difficult meat. It isn't the fastest grinder on the planet, but it is much faster than my hand-crank model. And, it's very easy to assemple, take apart, and clean. And for around $20, I can't complain about the price. It does the job and has to grinder disks, one for coarse, and one for medium grind. It also comes with a sasage stuffing attachement.

I have an ancient Montgomery Wards brand stand mixer that has a grinding attachment. It works, but is easily bogged down by grinding. The motor gets very hot, but hasn't failed yet. But I worry about it and so purchased the meat grinder. So far, so good.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North