"I have recently purchased and started to use this small, electric cement mixer. I am building my own house, based largely an natural materials and alternative construction techniques (a straw bale home in South Carolina; not a first, but surely one of only a few). So far, I have used the mixer to whip up a few small batches of cement stucco for use smeared onto foam insulation, just to provide it a bit of protection from mechanical damage. Further on down the project, I will use it to mix some Quickcrete and then even later will come the primary intended use: mixing extremely large amounts of natural (lime putty/clay binder) plasters.
All walls of my house will be hand plastered in this way, inside and out. Typically, owner-builders engaged in straw bale construction will mix up plaster by hand in a wheelbarrow, or so I gather. I think for the price, this little electric mixer will be a great help. The speed with which it can prepare a batch is amazing. And yes, the batches are small, but they are enough to fill a bucket that will last a hand plasterer for an hour.
I have also found so far that it is easier for just one person to handle this little machine and the materials for mixing in it, because it is so light weight. I have had no issues whatsoever with the quality of workmanship or with dependability. So far, it has worked like a champ every time I have used it.
The one reservation that I will express is that assembly was a real pain. It must have taken five hours to assemble the machine, and the instructions (poorly translated from Chinese) were of questionable help. They contain pictures, but many are too distant to really see the detail that you need to recreate. They contain a parts list, but there are no labels on the parts themselves (i.e. nuts, bolts, and washers) to compare to the item #s on the list! Last but not least, the mixing paddles that mount inside the drum just plain did not fit. I managed to attach them flush, but only after rigging up a break and bending some rather thick steel more than just a few degrees.
Would I buy it again? Yes, I still think it has been a good investment. Just don't attempt it if you are prone to violent outbursts of frustration, because you will definitely be pushed to that point during assembly."
What is your level of technical expertise? Beginner