"Scrape-a-bowl"/"Beater blade" attachment for Kitchenaid

Help! Someone bright out there invented these wonderful rubber attachments that apparently slide onto the flat "beater" blade for Kitchenaid stand mixers. (Here's an illustration on Amazon's website.) The attachment is designed to take up that dead space that the beater blade misses, effectively scraping the bowl clean even as the blade mixes. A wonderful invention.

But I've got a Kitchenaid stand mixer that was produced sometime back in the Dark Ages. It's a 4.5 quart "bowl lift" model (as opposed to the "tilt-head" model; K4SS not K45SS). I have searched high and low and cannot seem to find an attachment for the 4.5 quart "bowl lift" model (only the tilt-head). Yet it gnaws at me that there must be lots and lots of folks out there whose models are old, too (maybe not as old as mine but old nonethless). So: can anyone tell me if I'm on a fool's errand or if, maybe, I should entertain some hope?

not sure where you can get one for your machine but after I bought the one we have started reading about the extra strain it puts on the machine--can hear ours groan when it is being used--so it is not being used anymore--our KA darn near 20yrs old and starting to show its age!

Hmmm. That's interesting. Thanks for the post. I did notice that a number of companies make them in varying configurations. It seems entirely plausible that some might be better designed than others in that regard but certainly something to keep an eye on. On the other hand, if I can't find one that fits, it'll be academic for me.

Gypsy,

Beater Blade says the KA-5L fits the K4SS model. http://www.beaterblade.com/categories/w ... _need_.htm

This model is widely available on the internet.

Tim

The mixed reviews on the attachment scared me away, so I went with this spatula instead.

I bought one of these for the Chow Poodle a couple Christmases ago. She used it once and was less than thrilled with its performance. It's sat idle ever since. YMMV

Thank you, all!

Tim: Shoulda checked the mfr's website. The Amazon page says only that it fits all 5 quart models. It didn't provide a specific list, as the mfr's site does. Very helpful, thanks.

Pucca: Fascinating. Hadn't thought of something like this. Time to do some more in-depth research. I love the idea of the attachment fitting onto the blade, but I sure would hate to burn out the motor. The machine is probably 25 years old and has been reliable, dependable, etc. Guess I should be cautious.

Steve: Has it been idle because it didn't work, because she didn't like it, or because it caused problems with the machine?

Gypsy Boy wrote:Steve: Has it been idle because it didn't work, because she didn't like it, or because it caused problems with the machine?

All of the above. It didn't work very well, made the motor work extra hard and she swore that one of the silicon teeth broke off in her cookie dough (although it never turned up in the bowl or any cookies as far as we know).

Our beaterblade was scraping a little too low and hard in the bowl, so we just fiddled with the adjustment screw and raised the beater a little bit.

Yup, I have one of the ones with teeth, it seems to be working fine and I like it - we did have to fiddle a slight bit. My one pet peeve - it collects all the dough and it's tough to scrape it free.

TODG tried one a year ago on her then 2-yr-old Kitchen Aid. She loves it, and we've bought then as presents for other baking pals. IIRC, Cook's (or someone else similarly authorititive) tested the beater on new K-A's and saw no problem with motor strain. On older models, YMMV.

Geo

Gypsy,

I think the 4.5 Qt. bowl is exactly the same shape as the 5 Qt. bowl on the newer machines. Many websites show the Beater Blade fits both machines and this makes sense.

My wife has used her Beater Blade for years to make large amounts of heavy gingerbread for houses. She also uses it for royal icing, cookie dough and mixing egg whites. She says the frosting is much lighter and mixes in half the time. It is much easier, faster and cleaner than the original blade which sits in the drawer unused.

fyi, she purchased two incorrectly sized blades before finally buying the same blade that fits your machine.

Tim