Buy reels
Wooden spools and cable reels for sale
Wooden spools and used cable reels from Chicagoland pickups, checked and delivered on corridor days. One spool for a table or a garden, reels sized for rewinding and storage, or a trailer load for a plant or reseller.
- Wooden spools
One spool or a few, 24 to 96 inches, for tables, displays, gardens and shops.
See sizes - Large wooden spools
60 to 96 inch flanges: weights, moving them, and what they get used for.
See sizes - Used cable reels
Reels checked for flange, lagging, arbor and drive holes, ready to carry cable again.
See sizes - Empty cable reels
One-way reels only, sized by flange and traverse, with no maker claim on them.
See sizes - Reels by the load
Trailer loads for contractors, plants and resellers, matched or mixed sizes.
See sizes - A spool for a table
Height, flange size, sanding and the reels to keep out of the living room.
See sizes
Every size, at a glance
| Flange | Traverse | Drum | Empty weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 in | 12–16 in | 10–14 in | 25–70 lb |
| 30 in | 14–18 in | 12–16 in | 50–110 lb |
| 36 in | 18–24 in | 14–20 in | 70–190 lb |
| 42 in | 20–28 in | 18–24 in | 110–260 lb |
| 48 in | 24–32 in | 20–28 in | 150–380 lb |
| 60 in | 28–36 in | 28–36 in | 300–600 lb |
| 72 in | 32–42 in | 32–42 in | 450–900 lb |
| 84 in | 36–48 in | 40–48 in | 700–1,350 lb |
| 96 in | 42–54 in | 48–60 in | 950–2,000 lb |
Weights are worked out from the wood volume at 28 to 40 pounds per cubic foot; a particular reel can be lighter or heavier.
How buying works
- Tell us the size, or the job: a table height, a cable length, a display.
- We reply with what we have from recent pickups, or when the size is likely.
- We agree the price and the corridor day for your ZIP.
- The driver delivers to the driveway, curb, dock or job site, and takes any empties you have back.
Who buys reels
Contractors rewinding leftover cable. Plants storing spare runs and stocking maintenance crews. Rewinders and resellers buying by the trailer. And people making things: tables, planters, shop benches, window displays, wedding sets and play areas. Each of them needs something different from a reel, which is why we ask what it is for.
Where our reels come from
Every reel we sell came off a pickup in the region: an electrician's yard in Cicero, a data-centre laydown area in Elk Grove Village, a warehouse truck court in Bolingbrook, a branch in Glenview. That is why sizes come and go, and why weathering and old stencils are normal. It is also why buying here keeps sound wood working instead of sending it to a grinder.
What we don't sell
- Reels that belong to a cable maker or a utility, whatever their condition.
- Reels with cable still on them; we don't deal in cable.
- New reels; every reel is used and checked.
- Hose reels, fishing reels, thread spools and other things called reels.
Questions
Where can I buy wooden spools in Chicago?
Here. We deliver checked used spools from 24 to 96 inches across the city, the suburbs and Northwest Indiana on corridor days.
Do you publish prices?
No. Price depends on size, build and condition, and on what pickups have brought in. Ask for the size you want and we quote.
How soon can I get a spool?
Common sizes, 30 to 48 inches, usually go out on the next corridor day for your area. Rarer sizes wait for a pickup to bring one in.
Do you deliver to Indiana?
Yes, across Lake County on the Northwest Indiana run.
Reel words, for buyers
- Flange
- The round side discs that hold the cable in. Flange diameter, edge to edge, is the size a reel is known by.
- Drum (barrel)
- The cylinder between the flanges that the cable winds around.
- Traverse
- The inside width between the flanges: how wide a layer of cable can be.
- Arbor hole
- The centre hole a spindle, shaft or payoff bar passes through.
- Lagging / staves
- The boards nailed around the drum, and the protective boards sometimes nailed across the flanges over finished cable.
- One-way reel
- A reel nobody is collecting. Once empty, it belongs to whoever holds it.
- Returnable reel
- A reel its maker expects back, usually stencilled or tagged to say so.
- Payoff
- The stand or trailer a reel turns on while cable is pulled off it.
Ask for a spool or a quote
Work order received
- Reference
- Request
Next we read what you sent, sort the reels by tag and condition, and come back with what we buy, where returnables go, and a pickup day for your corridor. If it helps, reply with a photo of the stack and the reel tags.