Mixers

[nissanneill]

RT,
you sound like a man after my own heart.

O.K., I've done it.....I Just purchased the Bosch Universal Plus, should be here in a few days. In true American fashion - I over bought, I think the only items I didn't buy were the grain mill and its attachments.

I am thinking around one of these BUT I am also aimed a smallish commercial unit. The 5Kg Hobart sells here for Aus$3100 which is in my case unjustifiable, however a good but older Hobart 10Kg for around $500 to $800 is a much more feasible option.
With that said, a new US made 'Anvil 10quart for Aus$1250, and Chinese commercial machines for Aus$800.
I would like a 'Diving arm" mixer but they are almost impossible to find let alone buy new. (See the picture). These have supposedly the best kneading action and don't increase excessively the dough temperature.
Quite simple to make, 2 counter rotating gear or chain driven sprockets, 2 paddles with shaped ends and fixed on the other ends. All you then need to do us rotate the bowl for the 2 arms to collect fresh dough, squeeze and knead it.
When you get your new Bosch, put it to the test and let's know of it's performance (including temperature increase on a normal dough mix) before your wife finds out that you purchased one and wraps it around you after she finds out how much you spent!

Neill

[egalecki]

RT- I have a KA- it's a couple of years old, so it's among the ones most people seem to hate. I don't hate mine at all. Dinah's a little loud, but I use her all the time, for bread, cake, cookies, meat grinding, sausage stuffing and ice cream making. I want a pasta roller next.

She's never failed me and I've used her pretty hard at times...

[jmhepworth]

We have the pasta roller for the KA and use it a lot. I think that's my favorite attachment. It really beats the hand crank. But $99 is a steep price to pay for being too lazy to crank by hand.

Joe

[DrakeRemoray]

I use the pasta roller on my KA too, I love it.

Drake

[gjbingham]

Fun thread. I think I've read this years ago, but I'm too lazy to go back and read the whole thing again.
I love my KA mixer for bread, but I seriously think I'm going to kill it with bread dough. I have pasta and ice cream attachments for it so I try to take it easy on the old girl with the bread dough.
CJim did a wonderful job discussing (bitching out) the KA mixer on another thread. I'm certain, at least in my own limited mind, that the electrolux dough mixer DLX 2000 (?) was the best for bread dough, in limited quantities. Somewhere around 500 bucks, but makes wonderful dough, and leaves the KA mixer for simpler tasks - whipping egg whites, cutting pasta and making gelati (ice creams).

While mine has withstood my abuses so far, I firmly believe that the burning electrical smells that eminate from my mixer indicate that the KA is not the best machine for bread dough. CJim's stated frustration clearly point that out.

Just a thought.

[egalecki]

Burning electrical smells!?!

Holy cow. Dinah has never smelled remotely like that. If she did, I'd stop using her immediately. The last appliance I used that smelled like it was on fire WAS on fire. A hair dryer. Luckily, I was not also on fire.

Does your mixer smell funny when you use it for other things? Or just bread?

[jimmaria]

Hello:

I have a Bosch Universal Mixer. It is built like a rock, and I have no doubt that it will last a long time. The one hesitation I would have in recommending it is that, even on the lowest speed, the rotations are very fast and, in my experience, can quickly heat the dough beyond where I want it to be (i.e., 78 degrees F or less). I have actually hooked up a light dimmer switch to the power cord so that I can slow it down, which helps a bit, but is not perfect (at slow speeds the motor will often just stop upon resistance).

I feel it is important to keep the temp of the dough down so that it does not lose flavor or become over-oxidized. (It is possible I am placing too much emphasis on this, and I have not done a side by side comparision in this regard).

I would say that, other than the temp issue, the mixer does a great job developing the dough at full speed.

Jim

[nissanneill]

Well, it's done, collected and only needs to be installed, (once I get the bench tops done.
I have been sourcing several commercial dough mixers over the past week. I have read this thread from beginning to end, decided that a Bosch mixer would suffice, try to source one here NONE AVAILABLE!.The next best thing was good secondhand Hobart. Only 20 quart sizes available - way too big for this little duck, so a new one?? A 5 quart Hobart is a minimum of Aus$3200 and the smallest commercial ones are $800 PLUS freight (another couple of hundred bucks).
I purchased a new (albeit a Chinese model) 10 quart (5Kg) model, 2 speed with a whisk, beater but NO DOUGH HOOK! It is a very heavy duty (and weight of 70kg) so the next task is to make one to fit. The importer dropped $200 from his initial price for me to source one, but I recon I can make one for less than $5 using some 5/8" stainless bar and buying a 4" billet of 1 1/4" stainless for the coupling.
It should do me well for the few times that I need it.
The wife won't let it in the house, so I guess it'll live outside in the new kitchen.

Neill

[ERASMO]

Jim

I just received a new Bosch universal plus. I will mainly be mixing caputo pizza dough and some basic bread doughs. What do you find is the most comfortable quantity of flour for the mixer? Also, In what order do you add the ingredients?

Does anyone else have any advice for this mixer?

Thanks

[Archena]

Neil,

Sorry, but I have to go with your wife on this one. That thing is just ugly. I think you're lucky she lets it live in the outdoor kitchen. I hope it works better than it looks...