I just talked to a sales person about the differences in the Bosch and the Electrolux. I am still in a quandry, as I was pretty much set on the DLX, but after talking to the sales person that owns both I am second guessing myself.
Points she brought up in favor of the Bosch included, better customer service, less learning curve, and price. The only real con she brought up was it is slightly more difficult to clean. I have read elsewhere the Bosch has difficulty with smaller batches. The DLX seems to have very poor customer service, a higher price, and a much greater learning curve, especially when you don't know anyone that has the machine to help demonstrate it. When I asked her if both broke and she could replace it with only one, which would she choose, she said the Bosch.
Once again, I ask, why, besides price, did you choose the one you did?
I also learned there is to be a $50 increase in the DLX very soon, so if anyone has made up their mind they want a that brand, now might be the time to take the plunge.
A friend sells both the Bosch and Electrolux and tells me she makes a lot more on the Bosch than the Electrolux. She has seen other dealers say, and do, all sorts of outrageous things to steer people to the Bosch.
Some people who claim to have both aren't even Electrolux dealers, they just say they are so they can get people to their web pages.
Some people will tell you the Electrolux isn't good for making bread, which is patent nonesense. Some will tell you the flexing of the Bosch plastic bowl simulates hand kneading, which again is total nonsense.
I've owned both. I sold my Bosch on eBay. A friend who has an Electrolux and needed a second mixer. She was reluctant to spend that much again, so she got a Bosch. She sold it on eBay after using it twice and bought an Electrolux.
When I had a Bosch in my bakery, all the employees who used it begged me to get rid of it.
My observations were that the Bosch overworked the dough pretty quickly, and overheated it. The Electrolux handles larger loads, and is gentler on the dough.
If you look around at TFL, I think you'll see several threads that go something like this. Someone bought an Electrolux and hates it. They are ready to sell it for enough to buy a Bosch. A few Electrolux fans make suggestions. A week later someone asks if the Electrolux is still for sale as they're not too far away. The original poster has by this time figured out how to use the DLX and won't be parted from it at any price,
Overall, I think they're both good mixers, but the Electrolux is better, and I've never heard of anyone who stayed unhappy about buying an Electrolux.
Mike
I bought my Bosch right before the newest model came came out, mostly because the store wanted to make room for the new and almost gave it away. I've owned just about every home machine but the DLX and a few comercial ones.
In addition to my regular weekly two loaf batches of bread, I make a small batch (about 1.25 lb) of pizza dough twice a week. It works great for both. I've heard others say that the Bosch won't handle small batches before, but never got an explaination. From where I stand that is not true.
As far as clean-up goes, I understand that on the new model the center section sort of snaps out for easy cleaning. On my model, if you get dough down the center section (and you will with a very wet large batch) you have to remove the 4 screws at the bottom of the shaft to clean it; takes me about a 60 seconds. Your time may vary.
I don't thing you'll be disappointed in either the Bosch or DLX. Happy shopping!
Dave
AnnieT, Dave is right about the center post. On the newer model, the post does snap out. I guess there are teeth that hold the whipper blade and sometimes you have to take a little brush to them, but the lady I talked to said it was no big deal.
I guess I am still a bit undecided and need to decide right away if I lean to the DLX. Terry
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/electroluxvideo.html
qahtan
that is one amazing machine...
Amaz.
"omnia vincit amor"
I have the DLX. I have my doubts that there's any better machine for bread, unless you need professional quantities.
For me it was also a choice between the DLX and the Bosch. I had originally planned just to upgrade to the 6 qt KitchenAid, but after reading more about it I decided I needed to find something better. One reason I went for the DLX was the Bosch's small batch issue (I'm not going to debate whether it's true, just saying I read it and the woman at the company I ended up ordering from confirmed it and it was a factor in my decision). I should add that this issue turned out to be a non-issue for me anyway, as I've found that when I make a single loaf batch I usually just do it by hand anyway. The bigger reasons for my decision to go with the DLX were:
That said, I haven't quite gotten the hang of everything on the DLX yet (got mine in March of this year). I've only tried creaming butter twice so far, once in the big bowl using the roller/scraper and once in the whisk bowl. In the big bowl, it wasn't quite as simple as it had been in my KitchenAid. I spent a bunch of time getting butter out of the roller's grooves so it would mix in with the other ingredients. In the whisk bowl, creaming butter and sugar and then making banana bread worked OK, but the center post required a good deal of scraping down and it wasn't very convenient to get at to scrape.
I hear it won't make pie crust. But then I've never made a pie crust, and I have a food processor to use if I decide to try.
When it comes down to it, I bought the mixer for bread, and it does that very well. I'm very glad to have it. I can't think of any other machine I would be willing to trade it for (unless it was something I could sell and get another DLX and keep a profit - so if you happen to have a Rolls Royce or a Ferrari you've been wanting to trade for used Electrolux DLX, look me up!).
Russ
I have no experience with Electrolux. I bought my used Bosch Universal through Ebay and I couldn't be happier.
Someone mentioned flexing of the bowl? I have not experienced that, but I also never use it without the top ring being in place on the bowl.
I have no problem cleaning it. I just put it in the sink, run water into it and use a small brush where necessary, rinse it out and let it dry. I also run bleach water down the center post about once a month as suggested in the user's manual.
I make small batches in it and it whips the bejesus out of an egg white.
If you want to get into the middle of an ongoing war, log into the Yahoo owners-users group. You would think you stepped into a battle during the Crusades!!!!
Bob
Not sure what you're talking about there. I've only been a member for a few months, but I've scanned the archives a bunch and from what I've seen everyone there is very civil. I'd even say they are careful to the point where they usually avoid saying anything negative about the other mixer (for those who don't know the mixer-owners group is almost completely populated by owners of Bosch and Electrolux mixers).
Russ
Hi would you like to tell us what books information you bought to go with your
D L X...
I have had my DLX 3 years now and really like it... qahtan
Doe's anyone know the difference between the Bosch Universal and Universal Plus other than cosmetics?
AnnieT, congratulations on your purchase. Aren't you excited? They said it would take 3 working days, so I am guessing Tues. or Wed.
I am a bit nervous about using a mixer to make the bread. I have always done it by hand or let the bread machines mix the dough. The thing cost so daggone much I really feel I must learn to use it to it's maximum bread capabilities.
I really wanted to start making some larger quantities so they can be mixed and baked with one oven heating. It will help with summer energy consumption. Instead of turning the oven on ever day or two, I can do several loaves and freeze them. Doing several at once should help keep the utility bills down, thus I am managing to justify, at least in my mind, the large outlay of money.
Agreed, congratulations!
You sound just like me! When I got my DLX, I went back to the (single loaf) 100% WW recipe that almost killed my KA and tripled it as my first bread in the new mixer, then I went and made Floyd's cinnamon raisin oatmeal bread (which is a 3 loaf batch) which overflowed my 4.5 qt KA's bowl and made that in it. Both were handled effortlessly by the DLX.
Russ
I'm sure you will both have fun learning how to use your new tools. Something I discovered is that I wasn't used to being able to actually develop the gluten to a window pain stage before. I probably could have done it with my KA but it takes so long I rarely waited for it to occur. Now with the DLX I routinely get smooth well developed dough that rises well and is not over worked.
The hook on the DLX is a huge time saver. Mike pointed out that with the hook you can set the timer and leave it for some other task. No need to hover over the bowl to make sure it's doing the job you bought it for. I have begun mixing larger batches and delaying baking by refrigerating half the batch. The result is I get better flavor from the extended cold fermenting and it isn't any harder to mix 8 pounds than 4. Floyd's WW Oatmeal Cinnamon raisin is a good example, I mix a double batch and bake it over 2 days.
Eric
Thanks to everyone for your good wishes on our new machines. These are just the encouragement I need. Knowing there will be help out there makes the expenditure not quite so daunting.
I think I am kind of worried about it because I have a small KA and it is such an aggravation to me. I have had it about two years and still usually get out the trusty hand mixer. Maybe the fact that I learned to cook, never using one for 35+ years, has something to do with it. I am just hoping this old dog can still learn some new tricks. Terry
I, also, purchased my mixer at Pleasant Hill and they were kind enough to let me know about the upcoming price increase on the DLX. Terry
Qahtan, I am sorry, I didn't see your post until just now. I purchased the 3 books by Beth Holland. They are supposed to have a lot of very natural, and whole grain kind of recipes. They are not just bread. She is supposed to describe how to make a lot of the recipes in Vol. 2, with the DLX.
I didn't want to take any chances on not being able to figure this machine out, so I also purchased her videos on using it.
Pleasant Hill was kind enough to give me a bit of a discount because I was buying a big ticket item, as well as multiple items at once. I figured with the $50 savings over waiting, and the discount I received, I paid for the books and videos. By purchasing them at the same time as the mixer, I also saved by not having to pay shipping, since I already was purchasing an item over $99. Terry