Well, that was a VERY hard decision for me. I just ordered a refurb Gloss Cinnamon Professional 600⢠6-qt. Bowl-Lift Bowl Stand Mixer. I hope I made the right choice! I wanted pretty. But I wanted function, more. I decided if I'm going to CHANGE from my classic 1987 model then I may as well CHANGE. So I opted for a lot more muscle, in case I start to make artisan breads (I have an awesome Zojirushi breadmaker that makes terrific normal breads and my previous 250 watt kitchenaid mixer really wasn't up to kneading much so I never pursued it, plus I never liked the way the "C" hook kneaded, so I wanted to upgrade to a machine with the spiral hook), or use accessories. Then, I decided to go for the soft start, as one of my biggest pet peeves is slopping flour! I can't imagine I'll ever be using this thing for huge batches of things, so I should have way more power and a hefty safety margin on bread kneading for how I'll actually use it. I would like the capacity to fool around with artisan breads, though! I LOVE the grenadine color, but the gloss cinnamon will work just fine too, and while I have a back-in-time vibe to my kitchen, the non-metallic look is actually a bit more appropriate as my vintage vibe is more toward antique than toward mid-century diner/50s where metallic would really resonate.

WOW!!!! I was the original poster back in--------May 2002??!!!! Can't believe this is still going! For the "rest of the story"-----I never did purchase a KA stand mixer after giving it much thought, but ended up buying a very nice GE hand mixer which I have been happy with and for me, seems to be all I need. I use a bread maker just to knead my bread and then I shape the kneaded dough, let rise, and bake in the oven. Glad my original question has been useful for comment for so many others in the last 10 1/2 years. I really appreciate all of these forums on GardenWeb and have learned so much over the years from all of you.

I have had a KA for years and just love it. However, I am one of those folks who like the workout by kneading by hand. I can really feel the dough and see what stage it is at by doing so. Yes, I am also one of those fools who won't make pie crust in the food processor or mixer (even though I have tried it and it is much faster). I do it by hand. I like to get a feel for the dough and not have it be overdone. So, that being said, the Cuisinart 5.5 just was reviewed in Cooks Magazine in their Holiday issue. They liked it over the KA Pro 600. That was their favorite (Cuisinart 5.5). They did state the KA has recently redesigned their dough hook and it kneads een better and flatter. Best of luck. You probably can't go wrong with either. What a sweet boyfriend! Sounds like he is a keeper!

Oh how I love my old K-5. We bought it as a Christmas present in 1976 and I paid $165.00. When they started making them in colors I was so tempted - but I could never pick a color so I just stayed with my old white model. When we remodeled the kitchen a few years ago I started checking out all the colors again until I read the complaints about the motor breaking when mixing bread dough - and these were bakers following recipes in the KA guide. I now have a new appreciation for my old Hobart mixer. Here is a link that might be useful: New 5 quart Hobart mixer