KitchenAid K-45 Mixer -- How Old Is It?

[appnut]

Ralph, my 4C does not look like your above.  I've only known my to be referred to as a 4C, not a K4C.  It doesn't have as large motor as yours does.  It's a lighter duty, more of a medium duty.  Yours comes with a dough hook so you can do bread dough.  Mine doesn't .  That doesn't bother me at all.  Since I have an option for making dough, I am very pleased with what my mixer can do for me.  I don't think the K4C is the same as the K4. there's a little portion of my 1982 Sunbeam LeChef food processor.  that's what I use to make bread dough in.

 

 

[appnut]

Here it is with the original glass bowl which came with these models.  They were made form like 1961 until 1977.   Not the difference in the mxing attachment.  It's an all-purpose, universal type of function.  It's very similar to the Combi-bowl, which was a 3 quart bowl for lift-bowl design models which had its own beater and looks similar--so what's old is new again.

 

[rp2813]

Thanks Bob.  My research indicates that the K4's date back to the 1940's and were originally 3-speed machines.  I think Hobart probably dropped the K4 in 1962 when the K45's were introduced.   I think by that time the K4's were up to 10 speeds or close to it, so that's why I'd like a later one, probably a K4-C.

 

So from what you've stated about the 4-C, just about any 4-C is likely to be newer than any K4, which is not what I would have expected. Your 4-C is very nice looking in that silver color.

 

Strange how the K4's had that weird way of attaching the bowl to the pedestal.  It seems no other model before or since had that same arrangement.

 

[pearlsgirl52]

Kitchen Aid mixer K45

This is on the bottom of the mixer, I can’t find a serial number. How can I find out how old this is?

 

[rp2813]

Hi Linda,

 

 

There doesn't seem to be any sure way to determine a K45's age.  What does the logo look like on yours and what does the knob for the attachment hub look like?  Pictures of those may help somewhat.

 

[lordkenmore]

How can I find out how old this is?

Others know KitchenAid better than I do. As Ralph said, others might come up with a date with more photos of the mixer.

But I can say I'd assume it's no newer than 1980-something because the plate says "Hobart", which sold KitchenAid in the 1980s to Whirlpool.

 

[louvac]

Look under

Look under the mixer inside the neck. There may be a white rectangular piece of paper sticker with purplish numbers on it. It looks like an unimportant manufacturing sticker.

Let me know what you find!

 

[fisherpaykel]

clues to age of Kitchenaid

Maybe the UL or CSA ratings organizations can state when standard voltage changed from 115 volts to 120 volts per their small appliance rating plates to at least narrow the age range.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I first saw the 4C on the French Chef in the 60s, when Julia wanted to be able to show what was happening in the glass bowl.

 

I have used mine next to the K45SS for making two pound cakes at a time. I used to bake 8 cakes in Bundt pans at a time. They went into the ovens 20 minutes apart. After the last cakes were put to baking, I got all of the prep stuff started washing in the KDS18. By the time I got the counters cleaned up, it was time to take the first two out of the oven and that process continued every 20 minutes until they were all done. While the finished cakes look the same, the 4c produced a batter that is much thinner than the thicker batter of the 45. I don't know why. I bought the metal bowl & white plastic pouring shield for the 4C so, except for a different beater, they are outfitted the same. It must be the different beater that makes the difference.

 

I had some trouble with the speed control of my original 45. After high speed mixing, like to get the eggs incorporated thoroughly, it did not want to slow down completely when shifted to the lowest setting to fold in the flour. I had it made into a 45SS by Hobart.

 

[stevet]

How old is your mixer?

It has to have been made prior to 1974 because Hobart Manufacturing Co. became Hobart Corporation in 1974. The possibility exists that there were left over bowl clamps like yours that continued on the assembly line but they probably changed over to say Hobart Corp at least by 1975.

I still use my 3B/4C mixer that was from the 40's and it still works like a charm. Turns out the silkiest, smoothest cakes even from store bought mixes. Just the right size and lighter than my K45's.

 

[norgeway]

The K

Came out about 37 and was a 3 qt Then the K4 These replaced the much heavier bulkier model G which is the same as a Hobart N50 ...the 3 A and B were made for lighter duty to compete with Sunbeam, The 3B was replaced by the 3C in 1950 then the 4C whick had a larger bowl, The K4 was built until the K45 came out Its a heavier duty machine than the 4C,, The K and K4 both have tinned steel bowls, but yes The K4 is basically a K45

 

[vacerator]

Excellent Hans,

I didn't know the timeline of their product evolution. My high school buds mom had a K5a from about 1976, and the nylon drive gear in the head stripped after onyly a year or 2 of use. The repiar center fixed it no charge though. Do you kniow when they stopped using all metal gearing? We go to an ice cream parlor where they use liquid nitrogen, and they have the commercial ones. You can tell they must have all metal gears as the sound is totally different.

 

[philr]

Anyone knows if there's a serial number stamped somewhere on these? My 4C says Hobart MFG which I assume makes it older than 1975? There's a hand written note under the base, is that a date code?

 

[mayeb]

Fix it help

Trying to get this lovely back up and running. Think the head needs adjustment and any guides to attachments that might fit? The attachment seems to need a slightly larger opening hang than some of the paddles sent with it. Also seems the head is tilted a bit too far down. Worth fixing I think. Motor is fine just not fitting the bowl and again think head is too far forward.

 

[rp2813]

Neither of those attachments appear to be the correct size for your mixer.   The one with the white coating looks like it's for a larger mixing bowl and the burnished one looks like it belongs on a smaller model of mixer.

 

There are owner's and service manuals available to download for a fee (see link).  You should also consider a later style mixing bowl that has a rolled rim.  My K45 had the same scratches on the stand from the edge of bowl rim.  

Small Appliance Library at Automatic Ephemera

 

[6foot8guy]

RE: Look Under

Heya Louvac, just got my mom's old mixer and found these forums and your question. Looked under the mixer and there's a sticker. It is in purple and white and says , 9577.

I'm guessing it was made in 1977.

What say you?

Post# 1049188, Reply# 25 10/28/2019 at 19:02 by Louvac (M)

>Look under the mixer inside the neck. There may be a white rectangular piece of paper sticker with purplish >numbers on it. It looks like an unimportant manufacturing sticker.

>Let me know what you find!



Re: Look Under

 

[hootowl46]

Also wanting to date my K45

I've had a Hobart-made K45 for about three years and have always been curious to figure out just how old it is. I've always estimated it to be from the mid-70s, just based on the color (pale yellow, possibly "Harvest Gold") and condition, although after reading the messages above, I suspect it may be a little older and certainly made before the company changed its name to Hobart Corp.

The plate where the bowl is mounted reads "KITCHENAID DIVISION THE HOBART MFG. CO. TROY, OHIO." It specifies 115 Volts and has the UL seal but not the CSA seal. It also has a line stamped along the lower edge that I have not seen on other plates, reading "CAUTION: UNPLUG BEFORE INSERTING OR REMOVING PAR" (see photo) which is also printed on the band around the motor housing (except the last word is complete).

The sticker inside the base reads "17379" which, if it is a date code of some sort, I cannot easily decipher. (Perhaps "73" is the year?) The bowl has a rolled edge (no significant nicks on the pedestal) and the power cord has two prongs.

I just bought a new Artisan Series mixer, which is scheduled for delivery later on today. I am looking forward to comparing the two machines.

Any guess as to when this machine may have been made? It runs well and passes the try-to-hold-the-beater test. The only reason I bought the new one was so that it would match all the other appliances in my kitchen, and the price was right.

 

[rp2813]

David, your mixer appears to be among the last ones made before the the SS designation.  I would guess it's from the late '70s.  The round knobs for the speed and lock levers provide another clue.  I think it wasn't long after production began on the SS models that the knobs were changed to the style still in use by KA today (compared to your new Artisan).

 

The black brush adjusting screws on the side of your mixer also stem from a design change that (by my estimation) was made around the time the SS models were launched.  The attachment hub cover on your machine appears from the side view to be the later type with the KA logo on it, which likely means the original plain cover was lost at some point.

 

I don't know what to make of the sticker on yours.  Perhaps if you disregard the 1, then July 3, 1979 could be the date of manufacture.  I haven't been able to determine when KA switched from the font style on my mixer in the OP to the style found on yours, but I think it was well before 1979. 

 

Lastly, the "caution" verbiage reeks of advisories and idiot-proofing that began appearing in the late '70s on all sorts of household appliances regardless of manufacturer.

 

[hootowl46]

Thank you, Sannazay, for your assessment. After posting my previous message and thinking more about that sticker, I agree with you that my machine is a 1979 vintage. What threw me off track initially were other messages I had seen that said Hobart had dropped "Manufacturing" from their name in 1974. Either that was incorrect information or my machine was constructed from parts that were remaining in inventory five years after the name change, specifically the locking plate (AKA screw cap kit).

Reinterpreting that sticker without considering the name change leads me to believe that my K45 was made on day 173, or June 22, of 1979. Thus it could indeed have been one of the last of the K45 models to be assembled. I tried to look up the date on which the assembly line switched over to building the K45SS model but couldn't come up with anything.

Incidentally, you were correct about the attachment hub cap having been replaced. It was missing when I acquired the machine from the son of the original owner and I didn't like looking at the gaping hole in the housing. Perhaps I should have bought an original, unadorned cap from someone on eBay, but the one with the KA logo looks very contemporary.

My new Artisan 5 qt. (KSM150OB) is nice and all, but I'm really cheesed off that Whirlpool decided the spring-and-washer assembly on the "agitator" shaft was superfluous and eliminated it sometime around 2016. Without that spring, the flat beater/dough hook/whisk attachment doesn't snap on with authority, thus forcing the user to look to make sure the attachment really is engaged. The original Hobart design showed great attention to detail, the subtlety of which seems to escape the Whirlpool engineers.

You can't buy those parts from Whirlpool parts retailers anymore, so I had to order them individually from other sources so I could "upgrade" my machine to original specs. I couldn't order just one spring and one washer, so I ordered the smallest quantity of each that I could order. I may end up combining the surplus pieces as kits and selling them on eBay for anyone who wants to make their machine whole again. Pulling that planetary assembly is so simple that anyone with a modicum of mechanical ability would be able to install the kit easily.

Over the next week or so I will be cleaning out and repacking the gear grease on my K45 -- using genuine Benalene 930-2 grease, of course. One has to be very careful if using ordinary food-grade grease, as the temperature profile might be completely different.

I haven't decided yet whether to keep the K45 or to sell it to someone who can give it a good home. It is in really great shape but, to be truthful, I really don't have the space to keep two KitchenAid mixers. If I do keep it, however, I might upgrade it to electronic motor control. (The last I knew, America's Test Kitchen still rated the 4.5 qt. KitchenAid mixers as their "Best Buy" in consumer stand mixers.)

 

[hootowl46]

Oops, I meant "Ralph," not "Sannazay."