KitchenAid sausage/meat grinder attachment?

[freakaccident]

Is the KitchenAid mixer sausage stuffer and meat grinder attachment durable enough?  It looks like it is made of plastic.  I have the KitchenAid mixer already and don't want to shell out $80+ for the sausage stuffer and meat grinder attachment if it flimsy.  Any experience?

I read in the Sausage a-z thread that the Cabelas grinder is good. 

[Meat tooth]

I looked into one of those. Nice product, but I thought it looked a little flimsy, also, a co worker had one and the motor failed. Not sure if they were using the attachment at the time though. Still looking for a reasonably priced machine that will withstand moderate home use...

Dan

[freakaccident]

I haven't had any trouble with the motor on my KitchenAid.  It is used a lot for making really heavy pizza dough and never bogs down.  Yes I am fat and the mixer weighs a ton too.   ;D   I have the high wattage one though. 

The attachment is what I am worried about.  I wish I could find the attachment in a store to see how it feels in hand.  I may take the trip to Bed Bath and Beyond to see if it is all metal and ceramic coated or plastic.  The pics I see online make it look like plastic.  The actual mixer is all metal, ceramic coated, and at least 25 pounds. 

[Caribou]

Hi there,
I have the KA grinder and it was a bit much for my KA Artisan but no problem for my KA Professional (500W+)

I cannot recommend the stuffing tube though, it's not that it's flimsy it's just that it so dang slow.  I would just invest in a stuffer.

A grinder with a stuffing tube is always going to be slower than a dedicated stuffer. The meat has to travel down the worm to reach the tube, a dedicated stuffer is just a straight shot into the tube with the only resistance being the diameter of the stuffing tube you are using.

Carolyn

[freakaccident]

Hi there,
I have the KA grinder and it was a bit much for my KA Artisan but no problem for my KA Professional (500W+)

I cannot recommend the stuffing tube though, it's not that it's flimsy it's just that it so dang slow.  I would just invest in a stuffer.

A grinder with a stuffing tube is always going to be slower than a dedicated stuffer. The meat has to travel down the worm to reach the tube, a dedicated stuffer is just a straight shot into the tube with the only resistance being the diameter of the stuffing tube you are using.

Carolyn

I have the 500w model too.  

I am not planning on doing a lot of stuffing at this point.  Would it be ok for experimenting?  I need a grinder anyway for burgers and the add on stuffing attachment is only $14.

Is the grinder good for doing burgers for the family?  I'm not doing bulk.  We like to grind our own meat for burgers and I use the food processor now. 

[La Quinta]

Interesting...I have the regular old everyday KA and the grinder attachment and have never had a problem...We make a lot of sausage...but...ok..sounds like I'm on an island here... ???

[freakaccident]

Interesting...I have the regular old everyday KA and the grinder attachment and have never had a problem...We make a lot of sausage...but...ok..sounds like I'm on an island here... ???

Well they have three KA mixers that look almost the same.  One is wimpy and cheaper.  You probably have the better, original 500w one. They also have the brute 650w one which has a different bowl holder. Once they got popular they came out with a I think 350w one.  It's not powerful enough.  So you like the grinder attachment I take it?  How about the $14 stuffer?

[Caribou]

My KA Artisan started smelling hot when I did large batches of grinding.  But we also process a deer or 2 every fall.
A friend of mine processed a steer (800lb hanging weight) and did all the grinding with a 500W KA grinder with no problems.

I did all my stuffing with the KA sausage attachment until I made snack sticks, it took a few hours to stuff 10lbs of sticks.
With my LEM 5lb vertical stuffer, it takes about 20 mins to do the same amount.

Carolyn

[pensrock]

We have ground a lot of sausage with the KA grinder but forget about stuffing with it. JMHO

[GusRobin]

don't have a KA but with everything I have read, you are better off with a different stuffer. If budget restraints prevent you from buying a separate grinder and stuffer, I would look at getting a grinder/stuffer from Cabela's or something similar. you can get these for about $110 or so. I think that would be better value than the KA attachments.

[viper125]

Been using the kitchen aid for over 25 years I guess. Heavy duty mixer 500w grinder and stuffer are great. Use it if im making a 10-15lb batch mostly. Buddy next door  has a butcher shop grinder and stuffer for really bid batches. But mine has been used a lot every year to make sauseage and trail and sticks. No sign of quitting and its plenty fast unless your going into buissness.  Really happy with ours.

[DisplacedCoonass]

One thing to keep in mind with the KitchenAid is that at some point they started using a plastic gear box cover even on the Professional models.  Managed to crack the cover and take out a tooth on one of the gears mixing up some dough with mine.  So yes, while the grinding attachment is plastic, it's heavy duty enough to withstand grinding meat (I speak from a 10lbs or less at a time experience).  The gear box housing on the other hand....well.  If you do have the plastic housing, you should be able to call KA and get the number to their local (to you) service center.  Swapping it out was easy enough and cost me ~$30 w/shipping.

[freakaccident]

One thing to keep in mind with the KitchenAid is that at some point they started using a plastic gear box cover even on the Professional models.  Managed to crack the cover and take out a tooth on one of the gears mixing up some dough with mine.  So yes, while the grinding attachment is plastic, it's heavy duty enough to withstand grinding meat (I speak from a 10lbs or less at a time experience).  The gear box housing on the other hand....well.  If you do have the plastic housing, you should be able to call KA and get the number to their local (to you) service center.  Swapping it out was easy enough and cost me ~$30 w/shipping.

Weird.  My gear box housing is all steel and is only a couple of years old.

Someone mentioned the burning smell earlier.  Mine had that smell for awhile too.  I think it was the manufacturing or packing oil on the motor.  It went away after a bit of use.

Thank You all for the tips.  I have decided to use the KA to start making sausage.  Anyone have a link to a good Bratwurst recipe?

[jiggerjams]

I have the KA Deluxe 500W model and I bought the grinder attachment. I did a 20 lb batch right off the hop with no problems. I read Habenaro Smokers posts on the subject about not forcing the meat too quickly and keeping things cold.

I hope that helps.

[NePaSmoKer]

KA is decent for grinding small batches but sux as a stuffer.