This is a quite satisfactory light duty shredder. It is not difficult to assemble. I gave it quite a workout, and stalled it a few times, but on the whole it worked quite well on a lot of leaves, mostly maple and oak, and the occasional twig. I recommend using the heaviest allowable string. Because it must be connected to an electrical source, the leaves must be brought to it, something of a problem on a large place such as we have.