Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I'd actually go with 3 1/2 stars. [edit] No, I wouldn't. 1 star. What this is: it is an electric string-trimmer (like a weed-eater) mounted on legs with a large funnel, designed to shred dry leaves. Use: you dump leaves (not sticks) in from the top, a shower of "mulch" shredded leaves falls out the bottom. Positives: it does what it's supposed to fairly well, can even handle moderately small sticks. Negatives: the biggest negatives hav to do with the motor. The electric motor is air-cooled, and has a small air-filter to keep it clean. Unfortunately it becomes clogged pretty fast. (see photos) The air filter is a rectangular black foam sponge. It traps dust and leaf particles, keeping them out of the motor. Unfortunately - at least on mine - the funnel leaks right over the air filter, so it clogs quickly causing the motor to overheat and shut down. What I've done: I made a PVC pipe rack that fits a 96Gal rolling trash bin, that the Shredder sits on. I cut up a rubber floor mat to fit over some of the open parts of the trash can, to keep dust down. I used blue painter's tape (it was handy) to tape over areas that "leaked" leaf particles to help keep the filter clean, I also used clear box tape to tape the funnel to the body of the shredder. Working this way I was able to shred for about 2 hours straight without the motor having problems at all, before that it shut down with a clogged air filter in less than 30 minutes. [edit] After using it for a second season, it began overheating in minutes. I've kept sticks out of it, but the few small ones caused the ALL PLASTIC HOUSING to CRACK and SHATTER. This allowed leaf shreds and dust to be sucked into the motor. Upon taking the housing apart to clean inside, I find that the power leads to the brushes for the motor aren't even connected properly. They could have spent 2 cents more soldering the contacts/clips that hold the brushes in place onto the power wires - but they didn't. It's hard to see here (last two photos) but the contact wires are balled-up with the brush wires and sandwiched with the clip that holds the brush-springs in place. That the plastic housing broke as it did is a debatable flaw; that the power feeds are improperly attached is laziness and shortcuts in manufacturing.