Sun Joe CJ602E-GRY 15 Amp Electric Wood Chipper/Shredder, Grey

I needed a small shredder/chipper for my home gardening needs. This one worked well to chip some small branches so I could use the chips in my garden. Using it for dry leaves was not as good as I hoped though, but it did shred them but it took some effort to get them to go through the blades - required shoving a lot in stuffing the hopper and the using the plunger to get them through.

So this is my fourth time at a review. At first I was pretty happy. I could take a pile of brush and make a pile of chips to use for compost or spread out over some paths. Very useful, I have 2 acres, lots of trees and I found I really need a chipper. I can make a wagon load of chips in about 30 minutes, as long as I don't get a bad clog. A one inch hickory can choke this, you can see a couple examples of branches that choked this thing where well within 1.5 inches. The only 1.5 inch wood this can handle would have to be mostly rotted or a really soft wood. OK, still have lots of branches that fall from trees that I can feed this thing. I've made about 8 wagon loads of chips to date. It really helps if you have long branches so you can pull them out and let the machine come back to speed before pushing them in again. Slow but it can get some of the bigger branches chopped that way.This does not do well at all with leaves or leaf heavy trimmings. They don't shred all that well and tend to clog in addition to being really tough to force into the machine. If you have to use the push tool they give you, you probably shouldn't be putting it in there. If you have long straight half inch to one inch diameter pieces, save them to the side, they work best for helping move pieces that get stuck.The first thing you will come to hate is the red knob that has to be hand turned about 30 times to get off and again to put on. And you will have to open this up. Stuff gets wedged in the blade or between the blade and the housing. OK, still useful and I was still happy enough to give this 4 stars.A week ago, right about 3 months into using this it shut off suddenly. I noticed a stick wedged in the top and finally had to take out the 14 screws holding the base together to open it up. Wow, full of sticks and one of the wires pulled off a clip. I cleaned it out, connected the clip and started using it again. Yesterday I opened it up to take a good look, 14 screws again, and saw that the housing was cracked and a large opening was allowing chips to fill the electrical housing. Not repairable.I called the tech support number and got a hold of someone very quickly and they are sending me a new unit and I'll return the old one in the new box that comes with the preprinted label. So I'm torn on the rating. Was the crack a rare occurrence or is thin plastic just not up to the job of high speed blades shoving wood around it? We'll see. I'm a little more experienced on what can get shoved into this.Honestly, I just don't see this lasting all that long. I'm not sure any of the other electric chippers are better since they are plastic too. I didn't want to mess with a gas chipper, and they have their issues too, but that's probably what I need considering how much I use this. I even bought some new blades figuring I'd be using this a while. Now I'm not so sure it will outlast the blades. I will be sure to post an update. I have several piles of sticks waiting on the new machine.UPDATE - got the new unit and have run a couple wagon loads through it, about 1 hour use and no issues. We'll see if I can get more than the 8 wagon loads I got from the first unit.UPDATE 2 - got through about 10 wagon loads and no issues. Definitely some wear and tear on the plastic inside the housing but nothing cracked yet.UPDATE 3 - probably another 10 wagon loads through this which is about 5 hours of chipping. I'm getting pretty good at figuring out what this thing will eat and not eat. Its pretty good at branches that have been dead a while and fallen out of the tree. Anything over an inch needs to be pretty soft. Hickory is a real challenge, tulip poplars go through like butter, even fresh cut. I seldom get a jam now. You also need to avoid wood that shreds into string that wraps around the blade. I have a burn pile and a shred pile. You just have to be selective on what you shred. Throw the push tool away. If you think you need it, your putting the wrong stuff into the machine.Update 4 I'm still using the chipper and have run many more wagon loads. I'm taking this to 4 stars now that I finally realize that I'm using this to make wood chips, not disposing of branches. If I want to dispose of branches, the fire pit is way more efficient. So now I sort my wood and only use branches I know will chip well. To get the most chips, a good thick soft wood is the most efficient. Either start with the thick end of a long branch and then push it in, pull it out as the blade slows, then push back in after giving a little rotation. On thicker stuff I'll start with the thin end and work it until it starts to choke and throw the rest into the fire pile. I also don't mess putting anything in that's thinner than a pencil. It just doesn't chip at all. If you want to make wood chips, this will do the job with the right material. If you're trying to chip up all your wood waste, this won't be up to the task.

As other reviewers have mentioned, this isn’t an industrial gas powered beast that’ll dispatch large branches with ease. If you’re looking for that, keep on looking. That being said, if you’re a backyard gardening enthusiast with a modest sized lot (ie no forest), then this may be a good fit for you.Assembly was pretty straightforward, I’m no handyman but things came together in about 20 minutes. I bought this to handle wood chipping the branches off 2 medium sized trees. For the larger trunk sized pieces, I sawed them up and put them in the recycling bin. For everything under an inch in diameter, into the chipper they went. While you do need to be mindful of the workload that you put through this machine, for the price it handles things well. Pro tip, try to rotate some dryer branches with wetter branches, it seemed to help the machine hum along better. By the end of the job, we had some nice wood chips to spread around our plants. Don’t expect anything amazing, and you’ll be pleased with the outcome.

Works okay for Goldilocks jobs—not too big, not too small. Stuff that's reedy or partly green will clog it. It also has a tendency to shred small stuff into long strips, which also clogs it. It's easy to unclog, but you need to stop everything and open it up, and it's already a fairly slow tool to use.Basically its wheelhouse is dry woody twigs, about the size that you could snap with your hands. I could see this being an okay purchase for suburban homeowners with a few trees in their yard, so they can pull it out a couple times a year to turn the sticks that fall into a bucket of mulch. However, I'm not sure it's powerful, fast, or versatile enough to be worth the real estate it takes up in my garage.

Updated Review - The chipper I purchased in early July malfunctioned causing internal damage to the casing. I contacted Snow Joe, and they shipped a new one - hassle free. When the first one jammed, I had to take the splash guard off (shown above) I actually thought I had the wrong tool. The screws holding the guard in had no resistance. I believe this was the reason the jam occurred. My original review stated that the machine would not cut anything smaller than about 3/8 inch. The new one cuts smaller pieces much better. I have also tested it with larger pieces that I would not have put in the first one and it is cutting without any problem.Still, be careful cutting branches that have unusual shapes, especially wide "Y's" or joints. If you are cutting a 1-1/2 in branch, keep the feed as straight as you can.I strongly suggest you check the tightness of the eight screws holding down the aluminum splash guard before using (4 on each side). That was the first thing I did since I believe this was the cause of the issues with the first machine.The chipper does an exceptional job for the price. It chops the wood into smaller pieces which I like because they pack and don't move easily. As with other Snow/Sun Joe products I own, they are durable and always a good value. For working around the yard, this gets the job done and I have a ton of mulch.Photos - Mulch from two evenings work. Splash guard and blades. Close up of screws I was referring to.

This unit is every bit as good as my old. Fast efficient and portable! The feed opening is a bit small for branches with knots or where another branch branches off, but is good for most stuff

En general trabaja bien la máquina; sin embargo, y a pesar que mencionan que puede trozar ramas hasta de 1 3/4" , en realidad su "tope práctico" es de 1", más gruesas le dá trabajo y se atora mucho; hay que darle limpieza frecuentemente para que no se "atragante"; al parecer las hojas no tienen un filo muy duradero; no es una máquina para un trabajo semirudo, más bien doméstico y para ramas no muy gruesas

I've bought two of these over the last few years, I keep one at home and another at my cabin. I use them every summer. They work quite well as long as you understand their limits. While they state they can handle branches up to 1.5 inches, I rarely feed anything over 3/4 of inch into it, and I avoid dry or very hard wood of any size.while it will take larger branches, it will stress the chipper and dull the blades quicker. Which brings me to the negative part and why I removed one star.Ordering replacement blades from Sunjoe to Canada will is pricey, it's around $40 USD for the blades and shipping, you'll also have to pay taxes and fees when they arrive, You can sometimes find the blades on amazon for $20 each. If you're lucky you can sometimes find a 3rd party set for less.If you don't over stress the chipper the blades will last a long time. the blades are also double sided, so they can be flipped, and you can sharpen them as well.

Todo bien, excepto que no llegó el tubo que sostiene las llantas y no se las pude colocar, trate de reportarlo para ver la posibilidad de conseguir otro tubo y pues mientras lo uso sin llantas.

No hardwood and not over 1" in diameter