Kitchen Aid A-9 Coffee Grinder reissue production dates

[sarahperdue]

Hi All,

Does anyone know what years the Kitchen Aid A-9 reissue coffee grinder was in production? I'm about to list mine on eBay and would like to know as much about it as possible. (Besides the fact that it was a pretty poor excuse for a coffee grinder. I already know that. It's why I'm selling mine.)

Sarah

 

[hooverwheelaway]

I bought mine at the end of 2006, when I was working for Hoover. It was within that brief period when Hoover and Maytag had just been purchased by Whirlpool, and I was able to purchase it through Whirlpool's "employee purchase program". I remember that was near the end of it, as they had very limited color options and quantities in their warehouse. In fact, the first one I was sent was defective - and they had a heck of a time tracking another one down, in white. In the end, I got it, now it sits in a cabinet; the pink one that Robert bought at Dayton's is the one that sits on the counter and we actually use. Not sure when they first started the reissue, though. Hope that helps!

 

[petek]

Why do you say it's not that great?

 

[kb0nes]

The reproductions aren't nearly as good as the originals...

Mine vibrates fairly badly and must be held while it runs to prevent it from creeping across the counter. The new cast logo door flapper seems to work to spread the grounds around making a big mess whenever I use mine. I think the real issue is that they are just WAY too high speed, there is no reason to spin the burs that fast. I have a vendor that does electronic spin balancing, I've considered having them have a go at the rotating parts. I also have trouble with mine with its grind consistency, even with the burrs backed way off I get a lot of fines that plug up the vacuum pots. I've had mine apart a few times trying to sort it out.

Because of all that mine sits on the counter and looks pretty and oversees me grinding coffee in a simple coffee chopper. I really need to find one of the KitchenAid Pro line grinders, those fixed all the woes of the new A-9's although they are pricey and take up more counter space.

 

[rp2813]

These machines render a fairly coarse grind even on the finest setting.  I found a re-issued one in black at Goodwill over a year ago and ended up giving it to my sister.  These are very powerful grinders.  Unless the chute is thoroughly cleaned out after each use,  grounds will get sprayed all over your counter.  I've seen suggestions to hold the flap closed until the motor begins to strain and then let the grounds escape, but have not tried this.

 

One thing such a grinder has going for it is that it's lightning fast.  It will render six cups worth of beans in mere seconds.  If I ground my own beans and brewed coffee in large batches, I'd put up with the shortcomings associated with this model.  It's far easier to use than the typical grinder that requires inverting it and removing the cap, and inevitably brushing out the grinding chamber and the lid to get everything out.  Let's not even discuss the static electricity issue when emptying/brushing out the lid.  Plus, the KA is a much more substantial and handsome looking device than the average cheap plastic cylinder type, and can be kept out on the counter.

 

[sarahperdue]

A little harsh, maybe

Thanks y'all. "Poor Excuse" was probably a bit harsh. The thing is handsome, built like a tank and, as rp said, lightning fast.

I couldn't get a fine or consistent enough grind for my Coffeemaster Vac pot. On fine grinds, the chute can clog up. Oh, woe to one who tries to clear it by lifting the cover flap while the machine is still running. I know, that was, in retrospect, a really bad idea. I think I've still got coffee grounds in the molding.

 

[kb0nes]

Out of curiosity why are you selling yours Sarah? Did you find a different grinder or do you just not grind your own coffee much?

I've seen other comments such as the one Ralph posted, I have a hunch that there is a lot of sample to sample variation on the reproduction units. I've attempted to adjust the burrs on mine about 3 times now and I can never get anything consistent from it. I only wish I could get a courser grind from mine. More inconsistency...

I have a small Braun branded coffee chopper that I use every morning to grind coffee at work. I'm the only coffee drinker there so I grind 1/2 pot batches making the chopper use suitable. I tried to estimate the amount of coffee that it has ground in 10+ years, I'm guessing its about 250 lbs now. Its been an amazing little $20 appliance but I have a hunch the bearings are failing now. I've tried a couple other choppers and they all had the annoying static issues Ralph mentioned. I keep watching ebay hoping to find another.

Without a doubt the best grinder I ever used was a Bunn G2 that we had at the pool hall I managed. Its a bit much for home use though

For my small batch use I'm starting to think the right thing would be a hand crank ceramic burr Hario unit like this one.

 

[rp2813]

I have a hand-crank (metal) burr grinder and used it for a while, but once I started having a long commute, continuing to use it became too time-consuming.  It's a heavy cast iron antique-looking piece with a somewhat funnel shaped hopper, has a white ceramic cup below to catch the grounds, and a large spherical wooden knob on the top-mounted crank.  A very simple mechanism.  It grinds the beans to the right fineness for a pour-over drip filter, but if I happened to be making several cups on a weekend morning, I'd be at that thing for a good ten minutes.

 

It's been on a high shelf in a cabinet for many years now.

 

I'd be interested in hearing about how the Hario performs.  I might use something like that for doing Turkish if it would produce a powdery enough grind.  I haven't read much about the advantages of ceramic burrs, and now I'm curious.

 

[paulg]

Two Kitchenaid defectives here.

I have both the original Kitchenaid coffee grinder and the reproduction.
The original works perfectly to this day. Both mine and my friend's reproduction units both failed in the same way shortly after purchase.
It appears that the reproduction units have a weakness in the motor governor. Intermittently the units go into hyper-speed causing coffee grounds to be ejected, or blown forcefully out the chute and onto the counter. My friend's did the same thing.
You'll know it when it happens. You'll be grinding coffee and all of a sudden you'll be saying, "AAAHHH There's coffee blowing EVERYWHERE! "
If your units are working, bully for you. However my unit is being retained for parts as the jars are interchangeable with the old - a nice feature. Currently I use a Braun grinder and am quite happy with it.

 

[sarahperdue]

Why I'm selling...

Mostly, I don't grind much anymore. I use Cafe Bustello espresso grind which is an excellent grind for my Sunbeam C-30 and also works well in the infrequently used espresso maker. Mine was a decision made by price and convenience. Also, I never got the right grind in the KA.

Regarding static in the chopper grinders, the instructions for our son's inhaler spacer prescribe washing in a very dilute solution of soapy water then air drying without rinsing. The given reason for not rinsing is that the light layer of soap reduces static. Wonder if washing the chopper cups in this way would help.

Sarah