Sunbeam 2351 Legacy Edition 450-Watt Stand Mixer, Black
by Sunbeam
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Product Summary
Manufacturer: SunbeamBrand: Sunbeam
Model: 002351-030-000
Color: Black
Product features:
- Three way mixing action
- Full Die Cast Metal Construction for stability
- Powerful 450 Watts
- 12 Variable Speed Selections
- Stainless Steel beaters, whisks, and dough hooks
Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Sunbeam 2351 Legacy Edition 450-Watt Stand Mixer, Black
Customer Review: Not impressed!
Summary: 2 Stars
For the past 20+ years I have owned a Krups stand mixer (removable head, small white plastic rotating bowl, and beater attachments that oscillate around and also move from side to center of bowl and back again-a nice design which doesn't seem to be offered anywhere these days). It's a great little machine which has served me well, but the bowl is just too small and, with larger recipes, clean-up becomes difficult when batter wells up into the motor. I'm not a professional baker by any means but I do a fair amount of cookies, cakes, tarts, etc (not much into breads though).
So I first purchased a KitchenAid - way too heavy unless kept on the counter but way too tall to fit under my cabinets on top of the counter. Also, the deep bowl design makes adding ingredients very difficult (I'm not a fan of the splatter shield - too tedious and more items to wash). Just not user-friendly in my opinion. So that went back to the store.
Next I tried the Breville stand mixer (about $300) -seemed like a great quality machine and much more manageable in terms of size/weight, but the same issues with bowl design, splatter shield, etc. So that went back.
I then tried the Sunbeam 2371 (also sold on Amazon) and the Sunbeam 2351 (the above-referenced item). The 2371 is a relatively inexpensive machine but works quite well. I tested both models with the same recipe on the same night - a double batch of chocolate chip cookies which uses almost 10 cups of ingredients, including butter, shortening, sugars, flour, eggs. (See my detailed four-star review on the Sunbeam 2371.)
For some reason, even though the 2351 has a 450 watts motor (versus the 350 watts for the 2371), it did not seem as powerful and also it did not blend the ingredients as well; I had to scrape both the bottom and the sides of the bowl much more frequently with the 2351. The 2371 seemed much better at reaching ingredients at the bottom of the bowl as compared with the 2351. Also the slow start on the 2371 was better - I had a bit of flour dust flying around with the 2351, which is even more noticeable because of its black color. Also, it was almost impossible for me to eject the beaters on the 2351 without using the strength of 2 hands, which means you are unable to catch the beaters when they finally do release - annoying when they're full of batter and are potentially falling into the bowl or onto the turntable if the bowl has already been removed.
In summary, if you want a really powerful machine and you don't mind the deep bowl design, then go with either the KitchenAid or the Breville. (I preferred the Breville because it is lighter and shorter so it can fit under your counter, but it doesn't offer the various attachment possibilities that KitchenAid offers, if that is important to you.) Otherwise go with the Sunbeam 2371 as opposed to the 2351. Although it is not constructed of dye-cast metal, if it does break in the next 2 years, Sunbeam provides a 2-year warranty and at this price, why not try it (unless you're really a professional baker)?
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