Accessories

Oh the baking I'll do!
I had wanted one of these for a long time, but just couldn't bring myself to spend the money. Finally around the holidays last year I saw that the model and color I wanted were on sale so with my Christmas bonus I treated myself to it. I was originally worried that I might not use it enough to warrant me spending so much, but I was completely wrong. I have used the mixer for so many items and not just baked goods. I am now looking forward to purchasing some attachments KitchenAid FPPA Mixer Attachment Pack for Stand Mixers to expand what it is capable of doing. I'm one that doesn't keep it on the counter, but I do keep it in a easily accessible cupboard with a sliding tray so that I can pull it out at a moments notice. KitchenAid is a well known reliable brand and if this is something you've been considering buying I say go for it, you will NOT be disappointed.

Professional necessity
Save strength and save time, I have been not busy and exhausted any more in kneading dough. But one problem with my machine when kneading bread dough at 4 speed, the motor-head shakes(the head is locked of cause), while the dough is not very solid at all. Perhaps my machines' head lock is not locked tightly.

All in all, I think this machine does a fabulous job efficiently and professionally. I strongly recommend it.

inconsistent color
I ordered this mixer as a gift and found the color to be inconsistent between stores even though the color name and model number were the same. The color was so off that the mixer had to be returned. I understand having different colors or models at different stores, but why would there be two colors using the same name and model number? Makes no sense and it was a hassle for both me and the person I gave it to.

Great Mixer But Cost Money to Maintain
We bought our KSM150 in 2004. It works great and we like it but it does have a design flaw that takes skill and money to replace. The transmission casing is metal and all gears except one are metal. The one non-metal gear is a worm gear that is plastic part number W10112253. Jot this number down as you will need to purchase it several times along with replacement grease. When using the mixer for stiff batters or bread dough, you can not push the 2-min limitation given in the manual. If you do, the plastic gear gets hot and fails. When this happens, you need a variety of tools, a specific repair manual and about an hour of time to replace the worm gear with a new one. I've done it three times in four years. I've talked with KitchenAid about this design flaw and they seem unreceptive to making a metal gear for this model as they have done with their professional 600 series which also had the same problem although with a plastic transmission casing instead of a plastic gear as with this model. It seems like they keep trying to push plastic in their mixers and it just doesn't hold up with time. For now, I'll probably keep replacing the plastic worm gear when it fails since I bought it in bulk the last time to save money. However, my next mixer will have all metal transmission and gearing and probably won't be KitchenAid.

Love it
I have wanted this for a long time. After finding the best price here on Amazon.com, I ordered. It is very versatile, especially if you buy some of the attachments. I did. You won't be sorry.