Hamilton Beach 64651 Classic Hand and Stand Mixer

Design

The main unit is brushed stainless steel, while the stand and turntable are made of plastic. The bowl is constructed of stainless steel, as are the beaters, hooks, and whisks.

The stand may appear flimsy due to its plastic construction, but it is strong enough to support the entire assembly. The beaters and hooks are significantly smaller than those found on power horse mixers. Durability, of course, is contingent upon how frequently you use it, what you use it for, and how you use it.

This product requires little counter or cabinet space. It is lightweight and compact, making it easy to transport and store in cabinets. The mixer, beaters, hooks, and whisk fit inside the mixing bowl, saving even more storage space.

Performance

The Hamilton Beach Classic Stand Mixer features six speeds and a quick burst mode for added speed. It appears, however, that the differences in speed are minimal. As you increase the contrast, the difference becomes less pronounced.

Even at the lowest setting, the rate seems a little high. This doesn’t bother me at all. The low speed on my hand mixer is also too high, but it hasn’t caused any issues so far.

This stand mixer can easily mix light to medium-weight mixtures such as cake batter, eggs, cream, or butter. If you plan to use it to make cookies, we recommend that you purchase straight wire beaters or twisted wire beaters designed for thick batters and cookie dough. You’ll need to buy this separately because it isn’t included in the box.

Volume is critical, whether it’s a cake, an egg, or a cookie. It would be best to switch to a hand mixer for small quantities, such as one egg or a cup of cream because the volume will not reach the beaters sufficiently in stand mixer mode to achieve proper mixing. Keeping your mixer on the stand is a disadvantage because it requires detaching and reattaching.

Let us discuss bread dough. This is the trickiest and most challenging dough for mixers to handle for apparent reasons. This mixer comes equipped with dough hooks, and the manual indicates that it can produce one loaf.

However, if using a stand mixer, do not use the dough hooks; instead, use a hand mixer. Perhaps this is why some users succeed with bread dough while others have difficulty.

We would avoid using the Hamilton Beach 6-speed Classic Stand Mixer 64650 for bread making. I believe it will not last. However, allow me to add that working with bread dough is not entirely about the mixer.

Even with the most expensive models, you will run into issues. You’d need to experiment with different techniques and the recipe as a whole.

If you’re a frequent baker, this mixer is not for you. If you’re only going to do light mixing once a day or baking a few days a week, you’re fine.

Should you buy

At nearly $40, this is a highly affordable all-in-one stand and hand mixer. At this price point, I wouldn’t expect it to match the functionality and performance of stand mixers costing $300 or more. However, functionality and price should align with your requirements, as every dollar spent should be well spent.

As several reviewers have stated, it does the job well for the price.