Does my K45SS need service? (wobbly)

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It sounds and looks like the latch/hinge for the tilt head is loose. When you hold it with your hand, it seems fine.
 
The head lock works fine .. in the vid when I hold it, it still wobbles .. watch my arm jiggle when I am holding it.
 
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The head locking mechanism should be secure enough to prevent wobble and all that should be visible with heavy dough in the bowl is slight flexing around the hinge pin. You should be able to pick up a locked mixer by its head without feeling any movement.

Check the hinge pin and make sure it is secure. The lock screw is accessible through the neck of the mixer base.

When the pin is secure, do a bowl to beater adjustment using a “dime test” There is KitchenAid videos on You Tube that illustrate how it done for a K45SS.

When bowl to beater clearance is OK and the hinge pin is tight, the lock lever should lock the head securely. If it does not, there may be some damage or wear on the either the mixer base of the lock plunger.

It does not take much change in bowl adjustment to reduce locking capacity on a tilt head and care should be taken if an adjustment is made to accommodate a silicone edged beater.
 
The only way my mixer is 'stable' is if I turn the adjuster screw out until the head locking latch is set so the Head will not move at all when locked. But that means the beater clearance is much higher then it should be. If I 'dime' adjust the beater .. the head wobbles around. I've taken apart the hinge pin stuff, and the pin was straight & had no bents. I reset the pin in a different spot then before .. and still wobbles when 'dime' adjusted.
 
I am wondering if the locking latch is worn down or something. I've taken her fully apart, nothing is bent, missing, loose, worn, no metal shavings, grease is very new looking .. etc.

Like I said the only way it does not wobble is if I adjust the head so the Locks w/o movement. If I 'dime' adjust it, as it should be, it wobbles.
 
It doesn't sound right, there is something off that is causing that ruckus, and all the wobbles. They are not supposed to be making that grinding gears noise.

If your car was acting like that, would you get it looked at, or just "dime" adjust things and hope for the best?
 
If your car was acting like that, would you get it looked at, or just "dime" adjust things and hope for the best?

I don't normally drive my mixer down the freeway at 80MPH... :LOL:

I would suspect there is a worn gear, and adjusting things is moving you off the worn spot. Might be time for that new worm gear.
 
The only way for me to get it looked at is to spend $15 (each way) for S&H to somewhere, or drive 2 hours to a certified KA service center.

I might order new locking latch stuff .. as it seems that might be worn down or something.
 
I had another look at the wobblyness. I think the pivot hole in the head part might be slightly worn out. I can slightly wiggle it side to side with my hand in Lock. It seems to wiggle slightly more with the head is tilted back.
 
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