Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My Flowtron was delivered very promptly. After reading the reviews and actually glancing briefly at the operation manual, I jumped right in on the assembly. It's not the easiest thingy I've ever put together but it's still not as bad as a bicycle or a swing set. Anyway, I decided to add a few 1/8" pop rivets w/ back-up washers to the funnel where it joins together and this seems to have helped keep it together. The stand did not work for me, I put the whole contraption on top of a large municipal garbage can on wheels and just dump the mulch around the yard. I change the strings after each can full, it only takes a minute and no tools are needed. Don't forget to clean the air filter by beating it up against the nearest downwind tree. The replacement strings ("blades"?) don't have to be purchased from Flowtron, just use any trimmer line with the correct diameter (.080 I think). (HINT: two strands of .040 work just as good as a single strand of .080). Anyway, the unit performs like a champ as long as you don't try to push it too far. I had no problems whatsoever with it. If you overload it by jamming too much at one time down it's throat or putting pine cones or large twings into it, it will surely bust something. Use as much protective equipment as you can jam on your body...I used a top quality respirator (not a cheap paper dust mask), the whole operation is very dusty. I also used ear plugs and gloves. Eye protection is an absolute must, the machine throws out lots of debris. I really like this little machine, it beats the heck out of expensive clear leaf bags and the resulting mulch is free. My wife did most of the raking and I took care of the dusty, noisy part. I would say go ahead and get one but remember it's limitations and take it slowly until you get the hang of it.