That $200 commercial mixer was a complete disaster

Bought a used Hobart clone off Craigslist last month. Paid $200 cash. Thought I was saving money. The thing seized up on my third batch of cookie dough. Motor burned out. Smelled like electric fire. Took it to a repair shop and they said the gears were stripped. Parts alone would be $400. Should have just saved up for a real one. Has anyone else tried to go cheap on a mixer and regretted it?

3 comments

3 Comments

mileslane3d agoMost Upvoted

Man I learned that lesson the hard way too with a similar looking machine from a restaurant supply store. Those Hobart clones look the part but the internal gearing is just cheap pot metal instead of cast iron. If you can find a used Hobart A200 on Facebook Marketplace for around $500 that's the sweet spot, those things will outlive you. Or check if any local bakery schools are upgrading their equipment and selling off old stock. The repair shop quote is brutal but honestly they're right that fixing it doesn't make sense when parts cost double what you paid.

jordan_henderson133d ago

Did you end up grabbing a used A200 after that or stick with the cheap ones?

wader713d ago

Bought a $150 off-brand mixer off Amazon and the dough hook snapped clean off first use.