Marvel 61HK Kegerator?

[Pfish88]

My search for a kegerator has now lead me to the marvel brand. It seems nice enough and should be for the price (around $1700). Someone made mention that the Marvel brand tends to have an oversized compressor, which might go a long way in solving some of the cooling issues (except the tower).

Does anyone have any other comments on Marvel? Are they worth the extra $1000.00??

[lunkhead]

Don't know anything about that unit, but for $1700 it should cool the tower and heat your house in the winter too!! The cooling issues you've read about here this forum is not due to lack of compressor size, but the temp control built into the units from the manufacturers. My danby could freeze a 2.5 gal bucket of water solid if I let the compressor run solid for a day. And it would be quiet doing it.

[Pfish88]

You are correct. The Marvel unit is expensive. I went so far as to call Marvel and ask them directly what made the thing worth the bucks. The person I spoke to was a repair technician. He didn't have much of an answer, nor have any of the retailers I've queried.

Some of the price difference is from the fact that this is an undercounter unit, and therefore vents in front. Summit makes the same kind of thing for just under a grand. No explanation for the other $600-$700 they want for the Marvel unit.

I figured if I could get a reliable, attractive looking unit without "issues" it might be worth it. I suspect that the lack of reviews is likely due to the fact that no one is willing to pay that much.

Anyway, thanks for the input.

[edramshaw]

I've sold a few of the Marvel units. They are a solid unit refrigeration wise but the tower isn't cooled and it is plastic. I was a little disappointed in that. To their credit, I've never had a complaint about foam issues. Mostly it is the style and the ability to cool well that you are probably paying for.

[jackstraw]

I bought the Marvel 61HK last year and am very happy with it. I did a pretty major remodel on my house and built in a bar off the dining room. I bought the Marvel, simply because I wanted a built-in, under-counter, zero clearance kegerator that would accept an appliance panel. The finished product is beautiful. My cabinet maker built a front panel for it, so you don't even notice it. It just looks like another cabinet. I have granite counters with the draft arm mounted right to the granite. I even bought a stainless steel drip tray that sits on the counter. My one complaint is, the draft arm that shipped with the kegerator is a piece of crap. It's all plastic with some cheap chrome laminate. After seeing it, I dished out another $100 for a polished stainless steel tower, which looks great. You'd think Marvel would have stepped it up a little for this amount of money. BTW, I shopped around online and I think I paid about $1400.

The Marvel was an upgrade for me from my Kenmore kegerator that I bought 12 years ago... which is still running great (I gave it to my neighbor).

[Pfish88]

Thanks for the input. I mulled the decision over for days and days. I really liked the look of the Marvel product, but just could not justify the extra $$. The kicker was when I phoned Marvel and aksed directly why they felt their product justified the extra expense. They really had no answer. I too needed an undercounter unit requiring zero clearance. There aren't that many products available for that really, not without raising the height of the cabintes and countertop above 35", which I did not want to do.

So... I ended up purchasing a Summit twin tap unit. I figured even if I have to make a few modifications I'll still finish ahead of where I'd be with Marvel. I gather from reading through the forum here this is a bit of a crap shoot. Many people complain of problems, and others not so much. In any event, I'm confident I'll work it out one way or another. I'll let you know.

[cubby_swans]

Originally Posted by Pfish88

Thanks for the input. I mulled the decision over for days and days. I really liked the look of the Marvel product, but just could not justify the extra $$. The kicker was when I phoned Marvel and aksed directly why they felt their product justified the extra expense. They really had no answer. I too needed an undercounter unit requiring zero clearance. There aren't that many products available for that really, not without raising the height of the cabintes and countertop above 35", which I did not want to do.

So... I ended up purchasing a Summit twin tap unit. I figured even if I have to make a few modifications I'll still finish ahead of where I'd be with Marvel. I gather from reading through the forum here this is a bit of a crap shoot. Many people complain of problems, and others not so much. In any event, I'm confident I'll work it out one way or another. I'll let you know.

In my experience, people generally start visiting sites like this when they have problems, with anything. MOST people don't look for advice or report when they have no problems. I bet the majority of Summit owners are quite pleased. I think your odds are better than a crap shoot. Most likely you'll probably want to add a blower/fan to cool the tower and that's about it.