An Excellent Shredder at a Reasonable Price
Written: Jan 02 '05 (Updated Jan 02 '05)
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Pros: Easy to operate and assemble, strong cutting heads, accepts staples, cross-cut techniques, small shredded pieces
Cons: loud
The Bottom Line: An excellent shredder for preserving the confidentiality of the shredded papers. Reasonably priced and reliable (so far...)
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| paulphoto's Full Review: Tech Solution TS-4500 Shredder |
When my old shredder quit on me, I decided to give this Tech Solutions TS4500 a try. Compared to other makes and models, the TS4500 is reasonably priced (after a generous rebate at OfficeMax) and with excellent features and specifications (included at the end of this review). The package contains:
- Shredder head with a 5-feet power cord
- waste basket (4 gallons)
- base for waste basket and 6 screws
- instruction/operation sheet and warranty registration card
Installation and Operation
There is not really any major assembling required. Only the waste basket needs to be assembled to its base with the 6 screws supplied with the unit. With the basket placed at a stable area, the shredder head can be set on top the waste cabinet. This can be done by holding the shredder head by its moldings (on both sides) and put it onto the stable assembled waste basket.
It appears that the shredder head will fit in one orientation only, due to the top-fitting design and the hinge for the interlock switchslot. The interlock switchslot has a safety feature that prevents the shredder head from operating even with the power switch turned on. If the switch is turned on and the machine does not operate we know the head is put in the wrong way. Also, if the head is put in the wrong orientation, we can tell it does not sit snugged in. The waste container has an opaque plastic window on one side for checking waste inside the bin, and should be facing the user. With the power cord plugged into the wall socket, the shredder is ready for use.
On top the shredder head, there is a power switch for turning the unit to On/Auto or Rev. When turned on (in On/Auto mode), the green LED lights up. When a paper is inserted into the 9-inch-wide throat, the shredder will start shredding automatically. When cutting is finished, the shredding motor stops, but the system remains on, unless the power switch is turned off. I always turn on the switch to use; when done I turn it off.
The auto sensor on the shredder head is located at the center of the throat. If we need to shred a small sheet, such as a cancellation check, the sheet has to be inserted at the center of the throat.
The Rev (Reverse) switch is for turning the shredder to run in reverse order. This operation can be used when the cutting system is jammed, caused by inserting too much paper. In this mode, the cutting system basically runs in reverse order and frees excess paper. When this happens we should feed less paper into the cutting system to avoid paper jam.
To empty the waste basket, we need to unplug the power cord, remove the shredder head from the waste bin and set it aside; then empty the basket. To reassemble the unit, we basically need to perform the above procedures in reserve order.
The bottom of the shredder head has a lid to cover the cutting assembly (the moving parts). This lid cover will hang downward when the shredder head is set on top the bin again, so that the shredded pieces can pass through the cutter heads.
Performance
The shredder does a pretty good job at cutting confidential papers into unreadable pieces in 5/32x1-21/32 inches. Unlike other shredders that basically cut the papers into long strips, the Tech Solutions TS4500 does a cross-cut of the papers.
The shredder head is made of hardened steel with durable cutter, which is claimed to be able to cut up to 7 sheets of paper in a single pass. I actually bit the bullet and tried to test this claim by inserting 7 sheets of my bank statement papers, which are unusually thick compared to the normal 20-lb printing papers. The shredder grabs the sheets in and cut them easily. However, the rate of cutting is reduced a bit compared to a single-sheet cut.
Because the cutting mechanism does not use wedged blades, but cutting cylinders with claws (like a saw), this shredder can accept staples. Rather than trying to test every claim the manufacturer makes, I have never attempted to insert papers with staples. However, it appears that the moving mechanism is very strong that even a single piece of staple cannot possibly cause the system to jam.
Compared to my previous shredder, the TS4500 is a bit loud during shredding. For shredding a single sheet of paper, and because of its cross cut mechanics, the inserted paper sometimes tends to move to the side; yet the shredder always pulls the paper in and shreds it.
Warranty
The unit is warranted for as long as we own the machine, that is, lifetime warranty. However, there is a limitation to what this lifetime warranty covers. It seems that only the waste basket and other non-moving parts are covered under this lifetime warranty. The shredding cylinders are covered for 5 years; motors, gears, lights and switches are covered for only one year.
We must mail in the registration card to receive this warranty within 10 days after purchase.
My Final Thought
I have been using this unit regularly for over two months now with an average of once a day. It seems quite reliable. I have never had any paper jam, even though there seem to be some shredded pieces in the moving cylinders (cutting mechanism). The shredder does not seem to self clean effectively and may require regular cleaning or maintenance. The cutting system seems durable. And, for $25, this is quite a good shredder for home or light office use.
I really like the fact that shredded pieces are rendered unreadable, so that all the confidential papers remain confidential in a waste basket. The reason we need a shredder is solely for this purpose. This shredder seems to serve this purpose quite well.
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Specifications: Tech Solutions TS4500
Throat width: 9 inches
Shred size: 5/32-in x 1-21/32-in
Sheet capacity: 7 sheets, 20lbs. paper
Motor speed: 18500 RPM
Job Cycle: 2 minutes on / 4 minutes off
Shreds 18 feet per minute
Recommended:
Yes
Purchase Price (if leased, monthly payment): 24.99
Machine age (Months in use): 2.5
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