What is a Straight-Cut Shredder?
In this Information Age we live in, there is no shortage of people trying to get our private information for their own uses. Anyone who's had his identity stolen understands the hassle and agony of putting his life and reputation back together after his credit and finances have been ruined. There are simple and effective ways to prevent others from getting your sensitive information, using fairly cheap equipment. One such piece of equipment is the straight-cut shredder.
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Straight-Cut Shredder
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The straight-cut shredder is a piece of office machinery that does just what its name says--it shreds. Two rotating and interlocking cams, with shredding blades attached, spin when activated, drawing the paper in the slot when the cams roll against each other. As the paper rolls through, the blades rip into the paper, so very thin strips of paper exit the other side of the slot.
Purpose
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The straight-cut shredder is used to destroy papers with personal or other sensitive information on them, information that is too private or important to be seen by people who could be in contact with your recyclables, for instance, or real identity robbers who look for personal information in other people's trash.
Proprietary company information, tax information, sensitive national information, all those things can wind up being shredded for fear the information might get in the wrong hands.
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Models
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There are different kinds of straight-cut shredders, depending on the budget, volume of paper, frequency of use and space needs of the user. Some come fully equipped with their own waste receptacles, while others consist of just the shredder mechanism to be positioned over the trash can. Some can shred many papers at once, while others can do just one at a time. Some are even portable for those who travel around a lot, while others are high-volume ones that are shared by many in the same office, or department.
Other Uses
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There aren't many other uses for straight-cut shredders, as they are built primarily for that one purpose. But some shredders can be used to shred expired credit or identification cards as well, to lessen the risk of someone using your numbers fraudulently.
Sometimes straight-cut shredders are handy for arts and crafts, where paper needs to be shredded for craft projects, and sometimes shredders can be used to shred paper for animal bedding and the like.
Disadvantages
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While effective, sometimes even a straight-cut shredder can't deter a determined criminal, who could take it upon himself to piece the paper together, even after it's been shredded. Some numbers and names may still be readable.
Also, straight cut shredders may jam, with the paper getting stuck between the blades on its way through, particularly if the trash receptacle is full and the paper has nowhere to go. For this reason, and also for added privacy, sometimes a cross-cut shredder, which has the additional feature of cutting paper into confetti-size pieces may be more useful.
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References
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- Photo Credit Paper shredder image by patrimonio designs from Fotolia.com
