January 24, 2010 - 11:21am
Kitchen Scales
Has anyone on this forum used this scale? The "My Weigh KD-8000 "Baker's Math" Scale"? I found this scale at the following web site http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/my-weigh-kd8000.aspx and thought to myself, "well how cool is that for those of us that are mathematically challenged." Before I order it I wanted to check here first to see if any one has used one of these scales and if you have any problems with it? Is there a better scale out there within the same price range? Thank you for your input.
Cheers,
Francine
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I bought this one for the price. And it measures smaller quantities than the one I have now. I also went to the My Weigh website and maybe I read it wrong but this is a better model even though lower model number then the 8,000 ?
=== I also went to the My Weigh website and maybe I read it wrong but this is a better model even though lower model number then the 8,000 ? ===
As far as I can tell the KD7000 is 7000g/1g; the KD8000 is 8000g/1g with the built-in bakers math. Otherwise they appear to be the same scale. BUT - MyWeigh is constantly bringing out new models and upgrading older ones, so read the specs carefully.
sPh
I just recevied my second MyWeigh scale purchased from OWKSC, and I have to say that MyWeigh is one of the few companies left in the consumer market that delivers a product that does exactly what it says it will do, consistently, for a reasonable price, and lasts a long time (in the case of my iWeigh 5000, even after being dropped on a tile floor).
So if you have read the manual (linked on the OWKSC page) and think that feature would help you then you can be certain that the scale you receive will do exactly that. And will also be a useful and accurate scale as well.
With that said, and having read through the manual, I suspect that unless you are making simple straight dough formulas in large quantities that in the end you will find this feature doesn't really help all that much. The first problem is that the definition of bakers percentage is agreed-upon for straight dough recipes with one mixing cycle, but falls apart (and schisms into multiple religions!) when you add preferments (poolish/biga/old dough), sourdough, Reinhart multiple premixes, etc.
And that will also be the problem generally: unless you are making baguettes by the ton you are always going to be wanting to try something a bit different, tweak a new process, etc, and what you are playing with won't fit the standard bakers percentage models exactly - making a computerized version of same useless. I find a tablet of old columner paper, a 4-function calculator, and an 1880s textbook on caculating ratios to be of more use than various computerized approaches.
Still, this is a nice 8000g/1g scale with a stainless tray that should be easy to clean and all the features of MyWeigh kitchen scales. At only $12 more than the KD7000 why not give it a try? You'll still have the basic scale.
OWKSC has provided reasonable customer service, but I suspect that "they" are one guy who likes playing with scales and web sites who has an international credit line and a contract with a 3rd party fullfillment warehouse. As good as anyone you will deal with on the Internet, but not I think a large operation like King Arthur.
sPh
Thank you so much for everyone's input, this has been a great help to me. I already have two really good scales one digital; however, it has a small weight limit. The other scale is a retro type balance scale; very pretty, but only weighs in oz/lbs. I will go back and read the manual first. IF this scale has functions other than the bakers math I will probably give it a try.
Thank you,
Francine
Amazon has it cheaper with free shipping. I just got one this week. Limited usage but so far so good. Certainly a good deal at under $45.
I try to purchase products from smaller companies, but with Amazon, that's a twenty dollar difference (including shipping to my area).
Found some good testimonies on Chowhound:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/586164
and
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/575823
When I finally buy a digital scale (all I have is my trusty non-digital one, that has been very good for me, just the same), this is the one I'm getting.
This very math-challenged baker thanks you, Francine, for posting your question.
Lynne