I replaced a 22 year old Cuisinart DLC 8 plus with this model -- what a number of improvements -- and I was able to continue using all of the blades and the whisk attachment I had purchased years ago for that machine. They are essentially identical to the ones used for this machine (save for those being made in Japan and the new ones in China). It has a much bigger feed tube so a medium sized onion or tomato goes in whole. The size of the unit (for me) is ideal. Perhaps for very large families the 14 cup unit would be the way to go. It is of essentially the same design; however, the blades are not interchangeable between those units.
What I really like is the redesign of the locking mechanism. In the old unit (the DLC 8 plus) [and also some current Cuisinart models] the locking mechanism to prevent start up of the machine unless the unit is assembled is controlled by a beam type latch made out of polycarbonate. I think this design is more prone to cracking. The new unit has a stainless steel beam which when inserted locks the unit. It is a great design.
Another great impovement is redesign of the small feed tube. It is now made of polycarbonate. That material is much more indestructible than whatever lesser plastic was used to design the older small feed tubes. Bounce an old one off the floor and wham -- the locking tabs would break off of it. That is not likely to happen with polycarbonate -- the material used to produce canopies for fighter jets -- it is very impact resistant.
On top of everything else this model with the shape of its bowl and cover is much easier to clean than the old model. I only clean it in the sink though. I would not run this through the dishwaher repeatedly -- especially with fully heated drying. After hundreds of cycles I just can't believe the parts will come out in as good of shape as they would with hand washing. If you have plenty of cash then run them through the dishwasher and then replace parts in five to ten years. I am trying not to. My old unit suffered scratches in the bowl and cracks in the cover assembly and I am not sure dishwashing helped.
Cuisinart offers a very wide range of discs (including a juliene, a french fry cutting disc and a fine grater disc) and a whisk attachment for this unit. If you buy a unit from another manufacturer without the range of this unit (made possible by all of the attachments) I think you may have shortchanged yourself.
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