A paint mixer or mortar mixer does in two minutes what a trowel and bucket take twenty to do badly, and it saves a drill that was never built for the load. This collection carries dedicated mixing drills from Festool, Bosch Professional, Einhell and Hikoki, from stirrers for paint and filler to 1800W twin-paddle machines for plaster, tile adhesive and screed.
Choosing a paint mixer or mortar mixer
- Power to match the material. Paint, varnish and wall filler mix happily on a lighter machine such as the Festool MX 1000 or Einhell TC-MX 1400-2 E. Mortar, plaster and tile adhesive want more motor, where the Festool MX 1600/2, Einhell 1700W TP-MX 1700-2 CE and Hikoki 1800W UM22VYST sit.
- Single or double paddle. The Hikoki double mixer and the Festool MX 1600/2 REQ DUO drive two counter-rotating paddles, which stops the bucket spinning and mixes heavy material faster.
- Speed control. Two-speed gearboxes (the "-2" and "/2" models) give a slow start that keeps paint off the ceiling and a faster second gear for thinner mixes.
- Paddle fitting. Festool stirrers use the ErgoFix quick-change system and ship with a stirring rod (the HS2 or HS3R suffix tells you which). Bosch, Einhell and Hikoki take M14 threaded paddles, the common site standard.
Festool stirrer or site mixer?
Festool stirrers are built for painters and plasterers who mix all day and want the ErgoFix height adjustment and smooth soft-start. The Bosch GRW 12E and GRW 18-2E and the Einhell and Hikoki machines are straightforward site tools that take the same abuse at a lower price. Spare and replacement paddles are in mixing paddles, the full Festool line is under Festool mixers, and battery options in cordless mixers.
In stock in Cape Town with nationwide delivery, free over R2000. Call 021 674 2119 to size a mixer to your material.
