The head on my mixer will not go back - Sunbeam Heritage 2346 Stand Mixer

Try harder, the screw needs to go back in. The screw is the head height adjuster, nothing else is going to fix it.

Do you mean the beater is not touching the bottom of the bowl? AS in there is a gap between the beater and the bottom of the bowl so it is not mixing all the ingriedients?
If you have a Tilt-head style mixer, you can adjust the beater/bowl clearance by turning out the adjusting screw. Place your bowl on the bowl screw cap, Place the flat beater on the agitator shaft and lower the head of the mixer so the beater is at the bottom of the bowl. There should be a 1/16" clearance between the bowl and the beater, if the beater is too close to the bowl turn in the adjusting screw, and if the beater is too far away turn out the adjusting screw. The adjusting screw can be located by tilting the head of the mixer back, and in the neck of the mixer you will see a flat head adjusting screw.
However if you have a bowl lift mixer and the bowl is too far from the mixer there are a few different way to fix that problem. If the bowl and beater are too far apart start by adjusting the adjustment screw. On this mixer the adjustment screw is under the head. Remove the bowl, and beater and lay the mixer on its back. You should be able to see under the head a screw sticking out, it does not have a head, but a little slot in the screw, use a flat head screw and adjust the beat 1/4 turn. Put the beater and bowl back on and test mixer to see if it the beater has a 1/16" clearance. If it doesn't adjust the screw and 1/4 turn. If after adjusting the screw the beater and bowl still have too much clearance use a mallet and tap both sides of the yoke arm up evenly until 1/16" beater to bowl clearance is met.
You can use the same dime test in the bowl to make sure you have the correct 1/16" measurement for the beater/bowl distance.
Thank you,
Colleen
MendingShed.com
800-339-9297

did you turn your mixer over and unscrew the set screw on the hinge shaft before trying to put back in? there is a small set screw that holds the hinge pin in place during normal operation. the screw sometimes comes loose and the shaft will vibrate out of it's normal operating position but when you try to push it back in the screw now stops the hinge shaft from going in, You have to turn the mixer upside down and look into the base cavity and you will see the set screw in the middle. Loosen first, return hinge shaft to normal operating position and the re tighten the setscrews, you can be firm with this screw, let us know if this helped

The KSM5 and the KSM150 are different mixers. They are both 5 quart mixers and use the same gearing and motor. However the bowl design is different. The KSM5 is a 5 quart bowl lift, which means the bowl locks into the arms of the mixer and raises towards the head of the mixer, where the ksm150 mixer is a artisan mixer, which is also a 5quart mixer, but the head of the mixer tilts back and the bowl twists into the base ring to lock into place. These two mixers will take different bowls and beaters.
Thank you,
Colleen
Customer Service
MendingShed.com

If it is a tilt head mixer then adjust the screw which can be seen by tipping the head back and looking into the pivot point. Turn the screw CCW to raise the head and prevent the paddle from hitting the bottom of the bowl.

If it is a lift bowl mixer there is an adjusting screw on the frame of the stand behind the bowl holder mechanism. It rurns a cam which adjusts the height of the mixer.
See pg. 13 of the owners manual for bowl height adjustment procedure:

http://shared.whirlpoolcorp.com/assets/pdfs/literature/Use%20and%20Care%20Guide%20-%209707917.pdf

clockwise to lower the head and counterclockwise to raise the head for more clearance for the beaters.

http://shared.whirlpoolcorp.com/assets/pdfs/literature/Repair%20Part%20List%20-%208212057.pdf

has a diagram of the locking mechanism item 9. The screw you removed was probably item 8. Look at the parts and you should be able to figure out how to get it back together.

It sounds like the pin that holds the head on is not in the correct place. IT should not stick out on either side, if it is, knock it back so it is flush with the sides. Turn the mixer over and tighten the screw that holds the pin in place.

The second problem is that the head is too low. This can happen over time. There is a screw that can be accessed when you lift the head up. It is in the middle of the hinge. Adjusting this will lower and raise the head position when the head is lowered back into place.

If the bolt is the hinge pin that the head swivels on when tilting it up, it can be pushed back in when the head latch is released and the mixer head is lifted slightly.

You may need to remove the head from the base to find the problem.  This is a simple procedure, and is easily reversed, so if it doesn't help you, you can just put it back and take it to a repair shop later.
To remove the head:

First, make sure to unplug the mixer unit!
Next, turn the unit upside down.  Inside the neck, you will see a screw.  Use a slotted screwdriver to loosen (turn counter-clockwise) the screw a few turns.  This will release the pivot pin on which the head swivels.
Push the pin out from one side using a long, slender implement (a screwdriver, pen, etc.).  With the pin removed, the head will lift off of the base, and you may be able to determine the problem from there.
Best of luck!

I had this happen while I was finishing my Christmas cookies. (note: unplug the mixer!) After reading some other posts, I undid the screws on the back of the mixer and removed the plastic parts to look at the inside. The nut on the bolt that connects the stand to the mixer body was really loose. I used a set of needle nose pliers to tighten the nut to the locking washer. Once I did that the button to release the body worked just fine! I put the reassembled the back parts and plugged it in to make sure it worked. There were 8 screws I had to take out before I could remove the knob assembly and get to that bolt and nut. Hope this helps!