I know this may seem like an odd question, but my husband is talking about getting me a new stand mixer. The one I currently have is a KitchenAid ProLine, 5 qt bowl. You have to move the bowl up and down to the beater. We are trying to decide to stay with KitchenAid but with a 7 qt bowl or go with a Viking with a 7 qt bowl. I've been happy with the Kitchenaid except for the fact that I can't lift the head of the mixer out of the way to put ingredients in - I always have to lower the bowl. My current mixer is about 20-25 years old. I've never had a Viking before, so don't know how good it is or isn't. I was hoping that since most everyone on this site has had to use a mixer, that maybe you could give me some info to help make the decision easier for me. What type have you used and are you happy with it? Any suggestions? Thanks for your input.

I have two KA Artisans and an old bowl-lift model. One of the Artisans works well. I bought it new and have taken great care of it. The other one, which I bought on craigslist because it matched my new kitchen, has a little oil leak and sounds kind of unhappy sometimes. The old bowl-lift seems like it will keep on going forever and ever...it's made better than the newer ones.

The Artisan ones have the tilt head and it's not that convenient either...you've got to unlock it and tip it up to add ingredients...but sometimes they come with a pouring shield and that helps a lot.

I am also interested in the replies here as Im going to ask for a stand mixer for Christmas. I thought I would definitely go with the KA but maybe I will look at the Viking now too.

I have 2 KA's. 4 1/2 qt and 6 qt. One is a tilt and the other a lift, I LOVE them both!!! Started out with the smaller one, and upgraded to the larger one. I still use both depending on what I am making. I thought I would sell the smaller one, but found I can't live without it!

Gerle, If you've got a 20-25 yr old KA, you'll never find another one like it at a store. I bought my last KA on eBay just to get an older (Hobart) model. I have it (a 5QT lift-bowl model) and a Bosch. Love 'em both.

So has anyone here ever used a Viking? I don't know much about them and have been happy with my KA, but would like one with a larger bowl capacity. My husband saw a Viking in a cake supply store and he was told they are good mixers. So he's trying to decide between the 2. I know they don't make appliances like they use to and I've never had a problem with my KA. We even have some of the attachments for it for other functions (grinding meat for one) and I'm leaning more in that direction. I appreciate all of your input.

Kansaslaura, you said you also have a Bosch? How is that one? Haven't heard of it much, but I haven't been looking for a new mixer in a while, either!

You say you've been happy with your KitchenAid? I say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"! lol I've had a KitchenAid for years, and LOVE it. My first one was the basic one, with the tilt head. My sister recently surpised me with an upgrade. Pro Series, maybe? Too lazy to go look. lol This one has the bowl lift and came with the pouring shield. I passed my old one over to my son. They last forever! I've never used a Viking or Bosch, so can't offer help there. I'm a very loyal KA user.

Oops! Sorry, she surprised me, not surpised....

I was just looking up the Viking mixers...that's going to be my next one...few years from now

It says it's got all metal gears, which I don't think the KA's do anymore.

I'm sure they still do have all metal gears. Whenever the KA lady is on QVC, she still always says that.

This is the plastic part that they talk about having to replace http://appliancehelp.com/Catalog_Detail.aspx?Inventory=1491159&SourceCode=1&imgID=2

The KA Professional models apparently have all metal, but not all of the others do.

KA's have problems with the gears, except for the professional ones. Plastic, it's all plastic. An engineer friend of mine opened one up. He didn't understand why his wife was always breaking them. Only the very old Kitchen Aids were meant to last forever. They sold the company and after that it was not the same anymore.

Kansaslaura... I wish I had a Bosch. You're lucky.

Since I couldn't get a Bosch, I got what I think it's the very best after that. A Cuisinart 7 qt, 1,000 watts motor with a timer. It's a beauty. I love that timer.

I made sure I did my research. My other option was the Viking.

I started with a KA 4.5 qt. Artisan -- still have it and use it a lot. Then, the more I baked, I thought I needed a bigger mixer so I got a KA Pro 600 (qt.) The thing never worked quite like I expected it to. You'd think it would be a workhorse. The first time I mixed a batch of Sugarshack's buttercream, it died on me -- I was in the middle of a wedding cake! Called KA and they said not to run it on that high of a speed (6) for a long time. Well, I was disappointed. I had only had it a couple months. I still continued to use it until (about 2 years) I was mixing up cookie dough and it started skipping gears. My husband ordered me a Viking 7 qt. and my dad ended up replacing the gears in the KA and fixed it. From the looks of the gears (all the parts were metal) he didn't think the thing looked like it ever ran like it was supposed to.

Well, I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Viking. I sold my 6 qt. KA. I think KA is a good brand and I probably just got a lemon. My 4.5 qt is still going strong and I run it on 6 for a long time.

Oh, did I say that I found a page with pages and pages of complaints about the KAs? I lost track of how many I read, but that made me decide on something else.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/kitchenaid_mixers.html

The list is still being updated with new problems. It got me really scared.

Kansaslaura, my boyfriend did get me a Bosch stove. I love that one too.

My boyfriend bought me the Breville mixer for my birthday this year. I haven't had it long, but so far I love it! It is only a 5 quart (sorry, Gerle, I know you are looking for something larger) but it is 550 watts. It has a timer that counts up or down and also includes a scraper/beater blade. It uses a dial to change speeds, rather than the lever that the KitchenAids have - maybe it is just me but I always had issues with moving that lever and not accidentally jerking it up to a higher speed. The real reason I got the Breville is a little silly though - my boyfriend liked that it matched the Breville toaster oven he is planning to buy, and since I am also a little nutty about wanting everything to match, his logic made perfect sense.

I have 2 Kitchen Aids, my first is the artisan with the tile head and she is my old faithful.

I also have the KA Pro 5 qt and it has the crank handle to lower and lift the bowl

Both have never failed me and honestly tilt vs. lift , both have draw backs as well as benefits.

The pour shield does help but I find it get in my way most times. Took me a while to get used to the lift but love my KA ladies ( yes I'v named them both Lucille and Daisy).

Cant comment on the viking mixer have never used one... but for me it's KA all the way!

got the 6 quart KA and cant imagine my life without it!

Originally bought a 5 qt KA and loved it until I got a little more serious into cakes. Then I found it wasn't big enough. Still have the 5 qt but my go to mixer is the 6 qt. KA. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT and would highly recommend it!

We have 2 - 5qt KA mixers and they have worked great, but we are making so many cakes we really wanted something bigger. A few weeks ago I got an email from a customer saying her mother had a very old 30qt stand mixer that used to be used in a school cafeteria and she wanted to sell it. She was only asking 100.00 and it works GREAT! It did however, look like it just came off of the titanic so I gave it a fun makeover! I love old stuff and things today are not built the way they used to be!

Before and after picture

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/photo.php?pid=4969459&id=152325623859

I used to have one like that at my first restaurant. It however, was green and I called it The Beast! LOVE the make-over! Did you have an auto shop do that?

Thanks! We named ours Big Bertha! LOL

I painted her myself.

Well, now I'm not sure what to do. My current KA is still working fine and it is old. But after getting on a site that was posted on this board and reading all the bad things everyone is saying about KA, I don't know if I want to purchase a currently manufactured one. Also found a few bad reviews about Viking, so maybe I'll look at the Bosch and see what's said about it. I really don't want to get into a major problem with a new mixer. I use mine too often to have those kinds of problems!! Especially now that I'm getting into cake decorating!!! So...on to more research!

I bought a Wolfgang Puck at Sam's a few years ago before I started cake decorating. I bought a Cuisinart at year or two ago and I LOVE IT. I hardly ever use my WP anymore. I use Sugarshack's recipe, and the Cuisinart has a timer so I can just let it run. I was too impatient to order and wait on the 7 qt, so I bought the 5 1/2. I still want to get the 7 qt some day.

The old KAs are great. The new ones, not so much. I have one old one, 2 new ones and a 20qt Hobart. Love the Hobart! I burned out 3 Pro KAs in 4 months. Got to know the UPS guy quite well as he kept delivering replacement mixers. After the 3rd one died, I asked for my $ back and KA sent it. Then I got two Kenwoods. They're good, but LOUD.

But then a few years later and Kohl's had a huge sale, so I bought two more KAs. I'll never learn.

Leah!! Get thyself to eBay and purchase and old KA. One made by Hobart!!

I bought a Wolfgang Puck at Sam's a few years ago before I started cake decorating. I bought a Cuisinart at year or two ago and I LOVE IT. I hardly ever use my WP anymore. I use Sugarshack's recipe, and the Cuisinart has a timer so I can just let it run. I was too impatient to order and wait on the 7 qt, so I bought the 5 1/2. I still want to get the 7 qt some day.

kansas, WHERE?

There are some 5 qt Hobarts, but the cheapest is $650. Too many pages of KAs to plow thru.