Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I'm a long-time, multiple Stir Crazy user (45+ years, I think), but I am incredibly disappointed with this new model. It purports to fix many of the minor irritations with my old Stir Crazy, but it does not make satisfactory popcorn. My first Stir Crazy Deluxe did not work at all. West Bend customer service then sent me the wrong model (Kettle Krazy) as a replacement. I finally received a second Stir Crazy Deluxe after more calls (missing one of the bumpers on the feet and with an on/off switch that failed to light up when on). The second unit ran with wild swings in temperature and did not pop the corn properly. West Bend sent me a third unit that they took out of the box and tested before shipping. This unit did have all of the parts and appeared to work as designed. It did not make satisfactory popcorn. This popper uses a halogen heating element, similar to those used on certain solid-surface cooktops. A halogen element heats up instantly, but the output level cannot be adjusted, so it must be cycled on and off to maintain a specific temperature. I've never had much luck keeping a consistent temperature on halogen cooktops and this popper is no exception. My old Stir Crazy, with a standard electric heating element, takes a little while to get to temperature, but then almost all of the corn pops at once. The new Stir Crazy Deluxe begins to pop the corn and then the heating element cycles off. Although the latest unit I've received does pop the corn more-or-less continuously, the kernels are not fully popped. I feel this is because they are being overheated at a variable temperature. I am also left with an excessive number of unpopped kernels and a significant amount of burned kernels, burned popcorn, and burned bits of chaff. I have never had any of these problems with my old Stir Crazy. I'm using Orville Redenbacher popcorn and comparing the old and new products side-by-side with the same amount of popcorn and oil as recommended in the manuals. I am not pre-heating either unit. My stir rod does not reverse. There is nothing in the manual or on the carton about this feature, although it is mentioned in the product description on the manufacturer's Web site. The Stir Crazy poppers have come with 1,000 watt heating elements as far back as I can remember, so the 1,000 watts offered by this model is nothing special. The stir rod is not removable and the bits of popcorn that get caught under the cap that holds it in place are hard to dislodge. There's a gap between the popping plate and the base that allows bits of popcorn and oil to get into the base where they are very difficult to remove. Halogen heating elements tend to be very sensitive to contaminants, so I wonder about the life of this heating element. There is a subtle design change in the dimensions of this product that make it far less effective than my older Stir Crazy model. The outer edge of the popping plate tilts up to keep the kernels on the horizontal surface. There is a "shoulder" between the horizontal surface and the angled outer edge to help with this. My old Stir Crazy has a 9/16" shoulder while the new Deluxe model has a 3/8" shoulder. This is not sufficient to keep the kernels on the horizontal surface and a substantial number of them are shoved onto the angled outer edge by the stir rod, do not get enough heat, and do not pop properly. Just to top off my frustrations, the Stir Crazy Deluxe emits a horrible, very strong, chemical odor when it heats up. This permeated my entire home and actually made me ill--not very conducive to enjoying popcorn. The response from Customer Service was that the odor should dissipate after I use the popper ten times or so. The third unit had a somewhat diminished chemical smell, but between this smell and the burned bits, the popcorn had an off taste in addition to not being completely popped. This product is a total mistake--do not buy it.