An Office Shredder That We've Not Managed To Destroy--YET!

Author's Rating:

Pros: Shreds well; fits the purpose; is a bit noisy.

Cons: It's not idiot-proof.

The Bottom Line: 
User-friendly controls would be nice as well as text on the machine itself for common functions (like the box is full) would make this a better machine.

Author's Review
After years of disposing of documents through a commercial service, someone got the bright idea to save a bit of money and buy an office shredder. Of course, being in government, we had minimal funds to purchase one. The first model was a glorified home version—it didn’t last a year. The new one looks sturdier and it’s past the one-year mark so I’m hopeful. (If you need a great home shredder see that one I use--http://www.epinions.com/content_105897496196).

I didn’t select this one, and without doing some research on them I can’t tell you if this is the one I would have picked. What I can tell you is my experience with it.

This is a crosscut shredder, which means that the shredding is done in a manner that’s hard for a dumpster-diver to put it back together. Unfortunately, many businesses found out the hard way that strip cutters can sometimes actually make it easier for a creep to steal the confidential information being shredded as the strip can contain a full line of information in all its glory. Crosscut cures the strip blues.

We shred massive amounts of documents—this machine handles them well, jams only when operator error is involved, and crosscuts well. I mention operator error as that seems to be our major problem. Staples, paper clips, items that are too big or too thick, and a full box catcher are our most frequent problems. The most common one is the too-full refuse box. While the box holds nearly 19 gallons of shredded paper people refuse to open up the unit, pull the box out, and check the level before shredding—one of those office things no one can explain—like leaving the copier jammed. Anyway, if the box is too full the machine will continue to shred leaving the newly shredded material within the shred head—eventually it jams completely and you must unplug the machine and manually remove all the paper from the head. This is VERY time consuming and frustrating. The machine actually tells you when it’s time to change it (both the red and green light come on simultaneously) but NO ONE has ever read the instruction manual and there’s no hint on the machine that that’s what it means. In addition, it keeps working so no one notices the lights anyway.

The person who purchased this model wasn’t thinking—the entry for the machine can only handle up to 10”—for larger items you’ll have to fold them in half. They make other models that can take larger sizes, which would have been nice.

It has indicator lights which let you know the unit is on, and if it’s jammed (as if the motors stopping isn’t indication enough). It does run on long after the shredding is done (ok, so it’s only 3 seconds but it seems like a long time as it’s noisy!) as it’s supposed to—it has an infrared unit that lets it know when the paper path is empty. A rocker switch on top of the unit allows you to turn it on/off and to back out jammed paper.

Installation is easy—you’ll have to attach the casters proved to the underneath of the unit—thank goodness for those casters! Plug in the power cord and make sure the ventilation slots are free and clear. Put a trash bag inside the lovely cardboard box which is included and slip it inside the unit to catch the shreds.

It’s able to shred approximately 14 sheets of 20# (standard) paper at a feed—not bad! It has a ¼ hp motor and so far it’s performed exactly as stated. It’s a massive machine that weights 70 pounds.

There’s not much more one can say about a shredder—it works, it works well, and people are it’s greatest enemy. Train them and all will be well.

SPECIFICATIONS

Shred Size 5/32 x1-1/2”
Dimension 32-3/8” high x 17-3/4” W x 16” D

WARRANTY
1-year on all parts and labor
5-years parts and labor on cutting cylinders

More Shredder Reviews:

Fellowes P400C-2 Confetti-Cut Shredder
http://www.epinions.com/content_109081955972

Fellowes PS60-2 Strip-Cut Shredder
http://www.epinions.com/content_105902608004

Fellowes PS60C-2 Confetti-Cut Shredder
http://www.epinions.com/content_105897496196

Fellowes FS5 Shredder
http://www.epinions.com/content_105900510852