Customer Reviews

Fellowes(R) OD500C Personal Confetti-Cut Shredder

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My dad bought a paper shredder many years ago and I thought it was overkill until I got my own place and realized just how much junk-mail includes personal information. After looking around for a long time I found a good deal at Office Depot on the OD500C Confetti-Cut Shredder and have been amazed. Although I thought of tiny squares when I read confetti-cut, it actually creates 5/32" x 2" strips. This is much better than simply cutting verticle strips since there are many more pieces to assemble if someone was to actually go through your waste. Also, the smaller rectangles sit better in the wastebasket. Finally, this unit features an auto-on switch so that it can automatically engage whenever you stick a piece of paper into the slot. If you're looking for a decently priced shredder that will handle a causal amount of work and even the occasional staple this is definitely the shredder for you.

I bought this shredder for home use because of the cross-cutting and capacity for 5 sheets at a time. Well, it does cross-cut as promised, but good luck getting more than 2 sheets through at once. Maybe Fellowes meant 5 sheets of tissue paper. I wouldn't dare run a staple through despite Fellowes' claims that you can. The shredder automatically runs for 2 sec. after the paper has run through, to help clear the cutters, but after running a dozen sheets through -- one sheet at a time -- there was a massive clump of shredded paper jammimg the cutters on the underside. I don't need to shred a lot of paper, but even for small quantities, this machine just doesn't cut it -- literally. Spend a little more and buy something more heavy-duty than this little puppy.

I cannot imagine there being a worse shredder than the Fellowes OD500C. A pair of cheap scissors would shred faster once you factor in the time spent clearing the jammed mass of paper that will accumulate after only 3 or 4 sheets of paper are fed through one at a time. I have no idea why, but paper circles back up into the blades creating a tightly bound mass that shuts the motor off. It is terribly annoying, and to make matters worse, little bits of paper gets everywhere when you try to free the mess from the blades. Avoid this shredder like the plague. I wish there were negative stars.