Blender recommendations

[ChocoKitty]

I'm looking to purchase a blender with my tax refund. I don't use blenders enough to warrant dropping the dough on a Vita-Mix (much as I'd like one!), so what are your recommendations? Oster? Waring? Thanks!

[DaveFaris]

Consumer Reports rates the Krups 239 ($40) as a good buy. It has a power-boost feature; the controls are easy to read; and it's quieter than other models tested. The Braun MX2050 ($50) has a unique, uncluttered control panel that makes it easier to clean than other models.

[guajolote]

I have a Kitchen Aid and hate it. It doesn't blend right. I am constanly having to scrape the sides down.

[Dave the Cook]

I read a review of these recently. I want to say it was in Cook's Illustrated, but I can't find it on their site.

In any case, the points I remember were:

- Tall, narrow jars are better than short, fat ones. They blend better, because the blades come in contact with a greater proportion of food -- the result of the vortex formed in the jar, whichis more efficient in a narrow space.

- Don't pay more for lots of speeds. Three or four are sufficient.

- Pay attention to button design (membrane or exposed). It's a cleaning issue.

- Note the button combinations required to turn the thing on and off. Some designs are convoluted, requiring you to punch three buttons to turn it on, or two to turn it off.

- Glass jars are preferred, if weight is not an issue.

- Higher wattage motors are generally less likely to burn out.

- Price is not necessarily an indication of quality

All I can remember for now.

[ChocoKitty]

I have a Kitchen Aid and hate it. It doesn't blend right. I am constanly having to scrape the sides down.

I hated my KitchenAid so much I gave it away. The gasket on the lid never sealed right, and that removable bottom was responsible for more than one major spill when I twisted my wrist just the wrong way. So that's why I'm looking for a new one.

Thanks to all for the advice so far!

[guajolote]

Mine's an older model, same design though. The short, fat vortex thing is exactly the problem. I've also had the bottom fall off

[Dave the Cook]

Mine's an older model, same design though. The short, fat vortex thing is exactly the problem. I've also had the bottom fall off

My brother in law has one, too. And the bottom kept falling off. He apparently soved this by never removing it for cleaning. Over Christmas I went to use it. Through the glass I saw mildew growing between the plastic shroud and the jar. Gack.

[elyse]

I know you don't want to hear this, but I've had a Vita Mix since...'72? I love it, but only use it for shakes and things. Tall, metal, two speeds forwards, two backwards. I don't know if they're pulverize, grind, puree, whip, frappe, or xxx, and I don't care.

[nightscotsman]

I love my Swiss-made Bamix emersion blender. It's different from the other domestic models in that it has more open diverter "fins" at the business end to create the correct liquid vortex that a good blender should produce. It also comes with interchangeable blades for whipping, blending and pureeing.

[SobaAddict70]

Krups, hands down.

SA

[coastcat]

Hey CK! I would have posted this over on the Fool's recipe board, but I like it here better.

America's Test Kitchen rated blenders last year (click here to read the ratings, free registration required - this is probably what Dave The Cook was thinking of), and preferred the lower-end models over the fancy ones. The top rated ones were the Oster 6663 and the Hamilton Beach 54200R, both about $40. I like our Oster, but don't use it for anything more strenuous than the occasional milkshake.

Edited February 6, 2003 by coastcat (log)

[JAZ]

I love my Waring, which Cook's also rated high (the price was their main concern -- at $100 or so, it's a lot more than the Oster they gave top honors to). Tall narrow jar, one-piece design (no gaskets to lose, no jar bottom to fall off), two speeds, purees anything quickly and completely. My only complaint -- and it's extremely minor -- is that the jar sits on the base a bit precariously.

And it looks cool.

[tsquare]

Ode to Waring:

Mine is 53 years old, inherited from my parents wedding!

Chrome base still shines,

original ribbon glass jar and black lid,

two speed is all she needs, and

dinged up blades still do the job.

I was able to find replacement sleeves for the pronges on the base last year, so it sits nice and tight.

[Dave the Cook]

Hey CK! I would have posted this over on the Fool's recipe board, but I like it here better. 

America's Test Kitchen rated blenders last year (click here to read the ratings,  free registration required - this is probably what Dave The Cook was thinking of), and preferred the lower-end models over the fancy ones. The top rated ones were the Oster 6663 and the Hamilton Beach 54200R, both about $40. I like our Oster, but don't use it for anything more strenuous than the occasional milkshake.

Yes, that's it. I lost all my cookies recently, and apparently I wasn't logged in. That's why I couldn't find it, I guess. D'Oh.

Edited February 7, 2003 by Dave the Cook (log)

[Marlene]

When Black and Decker was making the Kitchen Tools brand, they had a great blender that came with both a glass jar and a metal one. I still have that one on my bar downstairs. My current blender is a Cusinart combination blender/food processor. I haven't had any problems with it, and it generally blends quite well.

[scubadoo97]

I have had good results with Waring and Oster. I have a Kitchen Aid that is by far the worst and most expensive of the bunch. I think the problem with the KA is the shape of the jar. a funnel or tappered shaped jar will help pull food to the blades for better blending. Opt for higher power if you will be blending frozen treats.

[slarochelle]

I had the same Kitchen Aid mentioned above....fat jar, leaky bottom. I purchased it ~5 years ago, and KA has since changed the design of the jar. Still fat, but the leak problem is gone.

The old jar was attached to a collar (for lack of a better term), which then attached to the base/motor. All that held the jar to the collar was 1/4 turn of the jar in the collar with tabs then holding the jar and collar together. One wrong move after blending and the jar moves off the tabs...suddenly everything in the jar is on its way out, via the bottom. KA fixed the problems by creating a new collar that screws onto the jar, ~2 revolutions need to affix the jar to the collar, not 1/4.

Anyway, I emailed KA customer service to ask if they would replace my old jar and collar for a new jar and collar. After some cordial back and forth (responses w/in a couple days), they offered to replace my blender for a refurbished newer design. Two weeks later I had the new model in hand, and the old one back to them. No shipping cost on my side, they didn't even ask for a credit card to insure return.

[Clerkenwellian]

My ancient Moulinex blender is above to die on me and I'm looking for a replacement. I have Bamix immersion blender, but it never seems to get to quite as silky a blend as the worktop models can.

So I'm undecided between a Waring (the stainless steel one half way down the page) and a Magimix.

I'm up for spending £150 or so, but I'm not about to go crazy.

Any suggestions?

[emmalish]

Anybody have any new recs on the blender front?

I've finally reached the point where I don't care how much I paid for my KA blender, I'm sick of it. I don't have the problem with it leaking from the bottom as many of you have, but it just doesn't blend well. Plus I have one of the older ones without a spout, so when I pour it always dribbles down the side. So I'm sick of it. Sick of it I say!

I checked out the test kitchen thread posted upthread -- great info there. Anyone else have a blender they absolutely love? (bonus if it looks good too)

[CaliPoutine]

I had the same Kitchen Aid mentioned above....fat jar, leaky bottom.  I purchased it ~5 years ago, and KA has since changed the design of the jar.  Still fat, but the leak problem is gone.

The old jar was attached to a collar (for lack of a better term), which then attached to the base/motor.  All that held the jar to the collar was 1/4 turn of the jar in the collar with tabs then holding the jar and collar together.  One wrong move after blending and the jar moves off the tabs...suddenly everything in the jar is on its way out, via the bottom.  KA fixed the problems by creating a new collar that screws onto the jar, ~2 revolutions need to affix the jar to the collar, not 1/4.

Anyway, I emailed KA customer service to ask if they would replace my old jar and collar for a new jar and collar.  After some cordial back and forth (responses w/in a couple days), they offered to replace my blender for a refurbished newer design.  Two weeks later I had the new model in hand, and the old one back to them.  No shipping cost on my side, they didn't even ask for a credit card to insure return.

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I have the same KA and I hate it. It doesnt even have a pouring lip. I think its time to write customer service and see what they can do.

[Moopheus]

I have an old two-speed Oster Classic that works great. It doesn't see a huge amount of work but has always done whatever I've put into it. But the newer ones of the same design seem more cheaply made (and at half the retail price we paid, and made in China, most likely are); I'm not sure I'd buy the same one again.

[emmalish]

Well this is interesting.

After reading the test kitchen results, the posts above, and getting some more feedback from JAZ, I decided to go with the Waring.

I went to one of my local cookware stores, approached a woman there who I trust to be honest, and asked her what she thought of the blenders they carry. Her response: "Well first off, I wouldn't recommend that one" Yup, she was pointing at the Waring. I asked her to explain why, and she said it's the blender they see returned to the store more often than any other blender they carry. It also has the lowest wattage (360-ish?).

After talking with her further, it sounds like they either got a bad batch (a lot of the returns were in a short period of time last summer), or, it being summer, people were being stupid and trying to use it to crush large quantities of ice (the problem it was having was the motor burning out).

We talked more, and she said that she's done demos in-store with the Waring and she felt it worked great -- the biggest problem she has with it is the fact that so many people had problems with it. On the other hand, she also said it has a three year warranty and they have a great relationship with their rep.

So in the end I decided to trust what many of you here have said and go with my gut. Plus it's the prettiest. I'll be posting later on how I like it.

[emmalish]

I just checked the reviews on amazon (I know, not the most reliable source) and the user reviews seemed to be split between people who absolutely positively love this blender, and people who had problems with it right off the bat, and it sounds like those problems were related to the motor burning out.

In other news, I just made my first smoothie with my Waring, and WOW.

I'm used to having to keep my KA running for several minutes and still ending up with big chunks of fruit. As soon as I turned the Waring on and saw it make quick work of the orange juice and banana, I knew it wouldn't have a problem. I added frozen berries, let it run a few seconds more, poured it into a glass... and there were no chunks. Just a smoooooothie.

Yay!

[beccaboo]

In other news, I just made my first smoothie with my Waring, and WOW. 

I'm used to having to keep my KA running for several minutes and still ending up with big chunks of fruit. As soon as I turned the Waring on and saw it make quick work of the orange juice and banana, I knew it wouldn't have a problem. I added frozen berries, let it run a few seconds more, poured it into a glass... and there were no chunks. Just a smoooooothie.

←

My mother makes one or two smoothies every day out of frozen fruit, and broke the blades of our Waring! I looked into it and found that frozen fruit is really hard on blender blades--ice, being brittle, isn't so bad--and Vita Mixes are the best blenders to get if you're going to blend lots of frozen fruit. They are expensive, but worth it if you're a heavy blender user.

[andiesenji]

In other news, I just made my first smoothie with my Waring, and WOW. 

I'm used to having to keep my KA running for several minutes and still ending up with big chunks of fruit. As soon as I turned the Waring on and saw it make quick work of the orange juice and banana, I knew it wouldn't have a problem. I added frozen berries, let it run a few seconds more, poured it into a glass... and there were no chunks. Just a smoooooothie.

←

My mother makes one or two smoothies every day out of frozen fruit, and broke the blades of our Waring! I looked into it and found that frozen fruit is really hard on blender blades--ice, being brittle, isn't so bad--and Vita Mixes are the best blenders to get if you're going to blend lots of frozen fruit. They are expensive, but worth it if you're a heavy blender user.

←

I have mentioned earlier in this thread and in others about the Vita-Mix and how tough it is.

I do hope you have good results with your Waring. I do know people who have old Waring blenders made for bar use that have to be 30 years old and except for new seals for the bottom of the container they are still working fine with no repairs.

If you ever do decide to spend the bucks on a V-M, you will find that it can do things that no other blender can do but not everyone needs all that power.

Last summer when I was making some plum puree, I missed a plum pit and it ground it up. I had to discard that batch, but something like that would ruin another blender but the V-M handled it just fine.

There have been times when it stalled because something was so thick and stiff in the bottom, but you just turn it off, lift the container off the motor, add a little liquid, stir a bit and give a little turn to the blade (I use the handle of a wooden spoon) and the machine will reset itself after a few minutes and you can start again.

This has happened to me many times when making sambals, which are a very thick paste and occasionally when grinding wet mustard seed as it gets very thick, almost like plaster in the bottom of the container.

Anything else has been handled with no problems whatsoever.

Other than having my 30-so year old one rewired when the cord began to show some cracks (normal in an appliance of this age) I have had no repairs done to any of the ones I have owned.