Mainstays compact home/office paper shredder Review

Several years ago we purchased a Mainstays home office paper shredder (model # WM6X) for use in our home to destroy sensitive documents.  We wanted an easy way to make it harder for someone to go through our trash and find any kind of information that they could use for identity theft.  A paper shredder seemed like a sound investment, and this one has worked reliably all that time.  I think we got a good bargain, because this wasn't very expensive to begin with.

This Mainstays model # WM6X comes with a waste basket to collect the shredded bits.  The shredder will cross-cut, meaning that instead of just long thin strips, you get smaller bits of paper (say, an inch-and-a-half to 2-inches long) that are much more difficult to piece back together.  This helps ensure that names, addresses, credit card numbers on statements, account numbers on bank statements, etc., are all harder for someone else to reconstruct.

The shredder indicates that it can shred a maximum of 6 pages at a time; however, I find that 4 pages is about all I want to put through at once, so that the motor doesn't sound like it is working too hard or jamming.  There is a reverse option so that if something does become stuck, you can run it in reverse to clear the jam.  The paper feed slot is narrow enough that you should never have to worry about your finger accidentally slipping into the cutting blades.