KitchenAid model 38 stand mixer

[texaskirbyguy]

I rescued this from the curb a few weeks back, along with a load of other antiques.
It looks well used and was stored a long time but it still works flawlessly.
I did not see a ratings plate but it draws 148 watts, which is reasonable for mixers of that era. It uses a mechanical speed control that worked surprisingly well. The beater even articulates just like on the modern KA units.
Paint is flaking and cord could use a replacement but overall it is a sound (and heavy) machine.

One interesting thing is that it has a CAST aluminum bowl that locks into the base.
No coatings, just plain thick aluminum - never seen that before. I figured it would have been too porous for this application.

Another observation that KA was part of the Hobart company that made commercial equipment for food establishments. Heck I remember that name from my elementary school cafeteria...

Anyone know what year these were made and if there were other beaters available? All this had was the wire whisk-looking thing. It looks to have a PTO shaft hidden under the front cover for other attachments.
I could not find any reliable info online regarding the 38.

Not sure what I will do with this yet.
I am a Sunbeam MixMaster guy, and prefer all-chrome appliances only, but having one KA is cool too.
IF there are any KA collectors here who want it for their collection, it can be had for cost of shipping. I have a storage problem here that only seems to get worse, lol...

It was quite disheartening to see this and the truckload of other nice stuff being thrown away. I was in the right place at the right time with my truck so all were saved. Best items were a big White-Rotary swing machine and an Edison stand-up 78 reproducer, both from around 1910. Those went to my friend's thrift store as I had no way to move them or to store them. They will eventually find good homes.

 

[human]

Nice save for sure!

My grandmother had a Kitchenaid mixer like that. It was blue. I have no idea what became of it. If I recall correctly, that wire whisk beater was the only one it had, or at least it was the only one I remember seeing.

When I worked at Pizza Hut in the early '80s, we made pizza dough with a Hobart mixer that was a scaled-up version of the larger Kitchenaid that held the mixing bowl on a pair of arms. It stood about five feet high. I'm not sure when Hobart Mfg. sold or spun off Kitchenaid.

I've got a friend who would probably be thrilled to have that mixer, if you want to get rid of it.

 

[texaskirbyguy]

I had also seen another comment that the wire whisk was the only known attachment, so this may very well be true. It looks like it will do the job.
Ask your friend if he wants it and if so, send me his zip code so I can estimate a shipping amount.
I really have too much stuff and would be happy to make someone else even happier.

 

[human]

I just emailed you my zip code.

 

[texaskirbyguy]

Hey Edgar,
Please email me again; I have your shipping quote ready.
My stupid outlook deleted your message after I had closed it (common bug in this crapware).
Your email is not in your profile.
Thanks.

 

[bikerray]

That would be a KitchenAid 3B from the 1940s.
The owners manual covered the 3A and 3B models.

 

[texaskirbyguy]

Thanks for the correction, Ray. That B sure looked like an 8, especially after my brain was cooking in the Texas heat.
This explains why I did not find any hard facts on a 38...

 

[human]

Mixer has a new (temporary) home

The above mentioned mixer has now found a new, albeit temporary, home with me. I'll be restoring it for a friend of mine, whose dream kitchen appliance is a red Kitchenaid mixer. Needless to say, this will require considerable cleaning, sanding, and priming before it gets that new crimson paint job. I'll also be re-greasing it and replacing the cord, which is completely encased in black electrical tape. Thanks to Amazon Prime Day, I've already ordered a 4oz tub of food grade grease, and I managed to source a cord from my spare vacuum parts at no cost. I had kept a damaged cord from my Sanitaire S645, and there's more than enough good footage on the plug end to cut off about four feet and put on the mixer. Reusing that cord will save me at least $20, over buying a replacement cord, which is a really good deal, considerding that I only paid $12 for the vacuum cleaner it came from. And the gray cord will look very fetching with the red paint job. Speaking of paint, it appears someone gave this mixer a slap-dash re-spray in the past, just masking it off and having a go with a rattle can. It does not appear that any sanding or priming took place. Nicks and chips are visible under the paint, and there's a little over-spray on the handle. I'm no expert in that area, but I will be taking the time to disassemble everything and do a proper job of it with at least two coats of primer and two of paint with wet sanding in between.

My plan is to have the mixer ready to give to my friend as a Christmas gift, so I will be taking my time with it over the next few months. I'll post updates along the way, and definitely some 'after' photos once it's re-painted, re-greased, and re-corded, so stay tuned...

 

[human]

So, last night I finally plugged the mixer in and turned it on. I only ran it for a minute, because I'm a bit leery of the tape-wrapped cord, but I was quite impressed at how smoothly it ran on all ten speeds, no grinding, squealing, chattering, etc., just whisper quiet operation. I would almost consider not re-greasing it, but since I have to take it apart to paint it, which will involve de-greasing, I guess I'll have to. Besides, I already have the grease.

In doing a little research on this model, it appears to have been introduced in 1944, which I find strange, since World War II was still raging at that point, and domestic manufacturing was completely devoted to the war effort. It's sort of surprising Hobart wasn't making machine guns or something for the military, instead of turning out new models of household mixers. I also discovered that the wire whisk beater attachment was the only type available for that model, no dough hooks or paddles. And that cast aluminum bowl is the correct one for that model, although a glass one was also available. It's going to be an interesting project, much more than just a Saturday afternoon.

 

[texaskirbyguy]

Edwin, glad you are having good luck with the mixer. I was also surprised how well it ran with zero work.

DO replace the grease as it isliquefying due to age. I had it sideways in the truck bed and it leaked a little. Not bad for its age, but it needs to be done to give another 80 years of service!

Do you plan to sandblast it or chemical strip the paint off? I stripped an old Emerson fan by dipping it in carburetor cleaner. Worked great!

Looking forward to seeing it get restored and it will be all worth it.

 

[human]

I will absolutely be re-greasing it. There's no reason not to, since I'm already taking it apart to paint it, and I already have the grease. For it to run as well as it does, I'd say it's a safe bet that grease hasn't in there isn't from the '40s. Unfortunately, I don't have the facility to sandblast it; I was just planning to hand sand it as best I can, but you're right that a chemical stripper would expedite things. I'll have to look into that.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Have you ever heard of

"Stripeeze"?  or is it "stripease"?  I've used it on woodwork.


 Wear gloves.

 

[human]

Thanks for the tip

I've not heard of it. I'll have to check into it. I've never really used chemical strippers before, so this is new territory for me.

 

[human]

It has begun...

So, I went to Lowe's today and bought two cans of Rustoleum "Gloss Apple" paint+primer in one, a roll of painters' tape, a 120 grit 3M sanding sponge and some 800 grit sandpaper. Once the sun began to set and the temperature dropped somewhere close to tolerable, I sat out on the deck and started sanding the base for about 45 minutes or maybe an hour. The sanding sponge really did the trick. It rapidly took most of the heavily nicked spots down to bare metal, leaving a relatively smooth surface. At this point, I think I've taken most of the respray coat off and have sufficiently roughed up the original paint. Interestingly, it appears the two layers of paint are slightly different shades. The respray coat is a bright white, while the original is a bit warmer, more eggshell than egg custard.

I'm not looking to take the whole thing to bare metal, so I'm skipping the chemical stripper. My goal is just to do some decent surface prep where the paint will stick and look okay when I'm done. I think the base will probably need another sanding session before it's ready to spray, but it's getting close. There's a lot more that needs to be done to the head before it's anywhere near ready for paint, but I may go ahead and finish sanding the base and shoot it, just to feel like I've accomplished something.

I did make an interesting discovery, though. Before I started sanding, I put a wire brush on my drill and went over the plate where the bowl sits, exposing the ratings information and the serial number, 3B08464, which had been hidden under some silver paint, There was also some surface rust underneath the paint, which I have mostly removed. I was originally thinking I'd paint that plate to pretty it up, but now I'm thinking I'll clean it some more with the wire brush, then shoot a couple coats of clear on it to preserve the appearance 'rat rod' style, rather than cover up the lettering again. I'm also fighting the temptation to put some flame decals on the head after I've painted it. We'll see...

 

[human]

I talked with my friend on the phone last night and she agreed a coat of clear was the best option for the ratings plate, so that's what I'll do. I'm thinking I'll hit it with some naval jelly first to completely remove the rust. I'm not going to have time to sand on it again today, so that'll have to wait until maybe next weekend. I've got plenty of time, as her birthday is in early January and this will be a combined Christmas and birthday gift.

Looking over my sanding job, the main cause for concern at this point is a couple of spots with multiple pinpoint nicks that are in tight places because of the contours of the base. I'm thinking I may try to get those with my Dremel. The only other ugly spot is an old paint run down the neck of the stand from the previous respray. I'll do a little more work to smooth it out, maybe scrape it off with a razor blade and sand it some more, but I could also see just letting it stay to help tell the mixer's story.

I've decided to go ahead and paint the base, just to see how I like that 'gloss apple' paint. I figure three or four coats with an 800 grit wet sanding in between each coat will give it a nice finish. I figure having the stand done will motivate me to work on the head, which is going to be a lot more involved, including dismantling, de-greasing, re-greasing, replacing the cord, sanding, painting, and reassembly. I've just got to be slow and methodical about it.

 

[texaskirbyguy]

Sounds like you are really into it now! Post some pictures of the progress when you can. Nice that you found the ratings plate. I looked for it but could not find it - never thought it would have been painted over!
This thing will look sweet when you are done with it!

 

[human]

Yeah, I'm having some fun with it.

At this point, I have a fairly clear idea of what I want to do to it and how I want to accomplish it, including a couple of custom touches, like spraying the decorative plate on the handle with red, then wet sanding it to both shine the metal up and restore the lettering (see photo 3 in the initial post), which was originally black and is now mostly gone, but will look mighty sharp in red. I've got the ratings plate looking almost like new after a treatment with naval jelly and a couple coats of clear. Although it looks nice all cleaned up, I sort of wish I had skipped the naval jelly and just cleared it to preserve the patina. If the temperature is tolerable outside tomorrow, I plan to do some more sanding on the stand and the rear cover of the head, and maybe even get the first coat of red on them. There's not much to see right now, but I'll definitely be posting some photos as progresses happens. Seeing parts of it in red, even if it's just the first coat, I think will give me a clearer idea of what the finished product will look like and will help motivate me to keep moving forward on the project.

 

[human]

First coat of red!

So, I got out on the deck with the stand and rear motor cover and did a little more sanding, then I gave those pieces their first coat of red. I'm doing very light coats, so right now, the spots that were sanded down to metal are showing through a little darker, but I think after another couple of coats, maybe three or four total, it will be less obvious. I'm really pleased with how the paint is going down so glossy. I'm thinking the need for wet sanding between coats will be minimal, just spots where there's a little texture that shouldn't be there. The color is a bit more vibrant than what Kitchenaid uses on their current red mixers, but it'll be fine. The sun is nice and bright today, so the paint is drying fast. I may be able to put on a second coat in a couple of hours.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Let's take a moment to say......................

"WOW"!


 I'm sure that's going to be great when you're finished.