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(More customer reviews)Waring blenders -- and KitchenAid mixers -- used to last a lifetime. But, in the same way that KitchenAid is not what it was before being sold to Whirlpool, Waring is not what it was since being sold to ConAir (yes, ConAir, the hairdryer people).
The RB75 is a great-looking blender. Very retro. Very Flash Gordon. And the motor seems to be as good as Waring's ever were. Unfortunately, the blade assembly design is bizarre, to say the least, and what is not metal soon disintegrates (six weeks for me, a couple of weeks for a previous reviewer). When this happens, the blade no longer turns even though the spindle whirs merrily along.
I gave this blender one star to warn off those who haven't bought it. Those who have bought it and have had it for less than 30 days ought to get a refund ASAP. They're living on borrowed time. But for those, like me, who've had it for more than 30 days and can't get a refund, there may be a way to "fix" the problem without spending megabucks on shipping (which would only provide you with the same albeit a new blade assembly) and/or a new jar (which, again, would only postpone the inevitable).
To "fix" the problem (I won't know for a while how long this fix will last), wrap the business end of pliers with tape to protect the cap nut that holds the blade down. Remove this nut. Pull off the blade (this may take some jimmying; be patient; it's sharp). There may or may not be shreds of whatever used to be there to keep the blade moving. Remove all of that.
Now turn the jar on its side and look thru the glass at the blade assembly. If you turn the bolt from below, you'll note that the threaded portion of the bolt is flat on two sides, making an ovoid shape. The hole in the center of the blade corresponds to this shape. This is what make the blade turn. However, you will also notice that there is a smooth, round, 2mm space on the shank between the threaded portion of the bolt and the part that disappears into the various gaskets and so forth which hold all of this to the bottom of the blender jar. If there is nothing in this 2mm space to hold the blade in place against the threaded, ovoid portion, the blade drops down to this smooth, round portion and just sits there. You can tighten the cap nut, and you may get some stirring action, but this won't even puree a banana.
I don't know what occupied that 2mm space before and don't particularly care since it disintegrated. But I'm not ready to toss a blender that cost me over a hundred bucks, either. So, I went to the hardware store (in my city, Ace sells washers, o-rings, nuts and so forth loose) and got an o-ring -- metric -- that was 2.5mm thick with an inside diameter (ID) of 5mm and an outside diameter (OD) of 8mm. I also bought two stainless flat washers with the same ID and OD.
Now, the threaded portion of the bolt has a diameter of 5mm. But it then flares out slightly to 7mm. The easy way to stretch your 5mm ID o-ring over this 7mm shaft is to slip the o-ring over the threaded portion of the shaft, replace the blade, replace the cap nut, and screw down the cap nut. As you tighten this, the o-ring will be forced down and stretched over the wider portion of the bolt. This will help prevent leaking.
Now remove the cap nut again and jimmy off the blade. Slip your two stainless washers over the threaded portion of the bolt so that they occupy that 2mm round space. Replace the blade and the cap nut. Tighten everything up.
Of course, this takes much longer to explain that it takes to do. Once you have the o-ring and washers, you ought to be able to accomplish all of this in ten minutes or less.
On the other hand, if you don't care about the money and don't want to mess with any of this, you have no choice but to buy a "vintage" Waring made before the company was sold, unless you want to be taking it back again and again. Your best bet will likely be a Waring from the 40s or 50s. These can be found on eBay just about any time, and generally go for around 40 or 50 dollars. This will also be your only recourse if you want a "real" KitchenAid mixer. Hobart does now sell a countertop model for the home, but it's considerably more expensive than the current Whirlpool/KitchenAid mixers, which are in turn more expensive than the real KitchenAids available on eBay.
The moral to this is that if you have something that you bought a long time ago, like an old KitchenAid mixer or an old Black&Decker power tool (before B&D started manufacturing junk), and it still works, don't get rid of it.
Update, Nov 9:
I've used this blender for over four months now after "fixing" it (see my review of June 29) and I couldn't be happier. Not only does it perform like a Waring is supposed to perform, but I've had no further problems after my 59 cent fix.
I'm raising my rating to 3 stars from one (that is, I would if I could) because the blender now works the way it's supposed to, but I'm not rating it "5" because the buyer shouldn't have to fool with a homemade fix at all. But if you know your way around a pair of pliers, this is an excellent blender.
About that burning smell that a couple of reviewers complained about. I can't be sure, but I suspect that the smell comes from using too low a speed for whatever is being done. If the motor has to labor, it may give off that odor. Just kick it up a notch and see if the odor goes away.
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