I would love to get a Vitamix or other comparable blender but that isn't happening any time soon.

I just purchased for myself 'Oster Beehive Chrome Blender' from Target. It was on sale for $50. It claims 600 watts and has a glass carafe. It has two speeds - on and off. It has continuous on and pulse - I think that is what they actually consider to be its 2 speeds.

Yes, it is loud but I am very impressed with its power for the price. No, I don't work for Oster or Target. I just thought I would share this for those who can't afford something expensive but need some power for smoothies and such.

Patty

I ditto this recommendation! :-))) I just purchased this blender on craigslist. I found a brand new one for a great deal. This is a good time of year to scour craiglist and ebay as people are offloading duplicate holiday gifts. That's how I got mine for a cheap price.

I love this blender. It's turning my kitchen into an airport runway when I turn it on, but it makes some spectacular green smoothies. I can hang with the loudness until I get my vita-mix, which is probably loud also. Is there such a thing as a quiet blender?


RawAngel

AGREED!! I have one too. It's the best/sturdiest/durable blender for this PRICE that I know of. I am looking forward to getting a vita-prep or blendtec in the future. If anyone is on a budget, don't wait until you can afford the expensive one--get this oster for now.

I purchased the Oster Beehive also, it's my first blender, and I am very pleased th us far. My smoothies taste amazing. My only gripe is I have to add ingredients slowly or else it clogs up. But I've seen folks with Blendtecs/Vitamix's use the same technique.
I hope this blender lasts a long time. Maybe I'll start a Vitamix piggy bank now so when the day comes I want to purchase one I won't feel the payment.

Another even lower cost suggestion is to haunt yard sales, flea markets, used appliance stores, Goodwill shops, etc..

Look for the Oster Osterizer blenders manufactured during the 60's, 70's, & early 80's..

They can usually be purchased for under $20.00, sometimes for as little as $5.00..

The carafe & blade design, & the vortex that they create, is as good as the current high-powered models from Vita-Mix & Waring..

They just are not very powerful, so sequentially adding tough to blend ingredients is a must..

Cutting up tough, fibrous greens & hard veggies such as carrots into small pieces will take a LOT of the stress off the motor & avoid bogging the motor down..

NOT putting large pieces of frozen fruit or ice, such as whole strawberries & 1 inch square ice cubes, will also remove a lot of stress from the motor that could, & probably will damage the motor eventually..

Good luck!!..

Bruce

sewraw Wrote:
-----------------------------------------------------
> I just purchased for myself 'Oster Beehive Chrome
> Blender' from Target. It was on sale for $50. It
> claims 600 watts and has a glass carafe.
I bought the same blender at Wal-Mart for my
Mother. She loves it. Not everyone is ready for a Vita-Prep 3....WY

It was funny when I bought my Mother a little red Oster Beehive with a glass carafe. I told her I had a plastic container (Vita-Prep 3) and she said "Why did you buy a cheap one?" Moms are all one-of-a-kind......WY
[i.walmartimages.com]

Hi I'm Pete: I was thinking of getting the beehive as well - is it true that the oster blender blade assembly gits snugly onto a standard mason jar? If that's true, it would make this blender the ultimate personal blender as well - who doesn't have a ton of mason jars, and if not, they are super cheap!

I have this one and it is very inexpensive and works great:

[www.oster.com]

Hard Work Always Equals Results.

[www.arizonakettlebelltraining.com]

that's the one i have too alwaysbelieve, it burned up after about 4 months, i'm pretty hard on them though, so i think i'm going to get the beehive - it has a little more umph have a good day

Pete, You just totally made my day!

The blender blade perfectly fits onto a standard Mason jar (not the wide mouth). Imagine that...blend it, close the top and out the door to work. I didn't try blending anything in it but I put it together. This is awesome. Kinda like my own Magic Bullet.

Thank you!

Patty

Here's a nice Blender that I just saw at Wal-Mart for $49.96. I'm buying it for a friend who wants to eat better. It has plenty of power (800 Watts) and I particularly like the way the Glass Carafe sits on the Base. It's a 'solid' feel.....WY
[www.walmart.com]

This is my first post.

This is my firs year as a member of the Green Smoothie Revolution.

I have the Oster Classic Chrome Beehive as well as a Waring Pro PBB212 (Retro Green).

The Oster brings back fond memories of a childhood when my parents entertained, made daiquiris and other concoctions on their Osterizer while I enjoyed malted milk shakes and a home version of Coca-cola Icees. The only drawback is cavitation as the viscosity increases.

But my Waring Pro with the 40oz Cloverleaf Glass Carafe is a top-notch beverage blender, That "little" 390 watt motor creates quite the vortex and masticates the fruits, greens and ice very efficiently. It cost almost twice as much as the Oster, but I believe it to be a superior blender.

Now, there are four of us enjoying smoothies at least twice a day, so it makes sense to go for a high-powered blender. I am truly torn between the Vita Mix VitaPrep 3 and the Waring MX1200XT. Right now, I am leaning toward the Waring MX1200XT with the VitaPrep Container. I will be using my (and my companion's) stimulus money for the investment. But I will not retire my Waring, it's one of those things that I enjoy looking at as well as using.

My Oster has been retrofitted with the milkshake blade for those green "relapse" moments where a milkshake and a grilled cheese sandwich is the perfect comfort meal :^)

The Oster Classic cost me $48 (incl shipping) on ebay, and the Waring Pro was $89 (back in 2004).

Those of you who own the Oster Beehive Blender, can it make a green smoothie real smooth? Can it break down the leafy structure of kale so there are no kale chunks left behind?

I realize the Oster is no Blendtec, but if I can make a green smoothie that is real smooth for less than $50, I'm in.

Thanks in advance for the advice.

-Rod

I also use and love the Oster. I've used mine heavily (up to 3 smoothies every day), and it's lasted a year and a half so far. I did need to order new blades after a year. You can get them real cheap on ebay. I also got an extra carafe. Two new blade sets and a rectangular glass carafe were 40 some bucks, shipped. It definitely gets kale totally smooth. Sometimes I've noticed with other greens I really have to let it blend for awhile, or there are bits, but really maybe it isn't that long...a minute or so, maybe? It can do certain really thick things, but you have to pause periodically and remove the carafe and shake it up and down to release air pockets, put it back on the base and blend some more, then repeat until you get the results you want.

Does anyone have a Vitamix AND this Oster Beehive? How do the two compare? I'm tempted to get the vitamix for things like liquidless blending, but then I wonder, will it REALLY be much better than my Oster Beehive? Anyone?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/2009 02:05AM by musicbebe.

Yogi i totally love that you buy blenders and equipment for friends and family you are truly spreading the love

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

Jgunn Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yogi i totally love that you buy blenders and
> equipment for friends and family you are truly
> spreading the love
Thanks Jodi...that's kind of you. But you'll notice
that I'm only buying 'el cheapos' for other people. I reserve
the Best for myself....WY

hehe its still cool tho and if they get bittin by the juice bug well then they can look at investing in better equipment

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist