Cable reels by the load

Planning a load

A trailer load is limited by space first and weight second. Small reels stack on pallets; mid-size reels stand on edge in rows; large reels take floor space fast. A 53-foot trailer holds far more 36-inch reels than 72-inch ones, and very large reels can reach the weight limit before the trailer is full.

Tell us the sizes and the count you want, and we plan the load to the trailer and confirm what fits. The reel weights guide has empty weights for each size.

Matched or mixed

Matched loads (all the same flange, drum and traverse) take longer to build, because they depend on pickups bringing in enough of one size. Mixed loads go sooner. If your use can take a range, say "48 to 60-inch flanges, any drum over 24 inches", and we build the load faster.

At your end

• A forklift rated for the largest reel, or a loading dock.
• Firm, level ground for the truck to stand on.
• Somewhere to stage the reels on edge, chocked, on dunnage.
• Your empties ready to go back on the truck.

Freight details

Loads go out on flatbeds or step-decks for large reels, and on box trailers or straight trucks for palletised small ones. Large reels are strapped through the arbor or chocked with blocking so they can't roll in transit; small ones are shrink-wrapped to their pallets.

Receiving crews should check every strap and chock before releasing them, and unload from the side with the forks spread wide under the flange. A reel that starts rolling on a trailer deck is very hard to stop.

Example loads

We confirm the actual count, sizes and estimated weight before the truck is loaded, so nothing arrives that your forks can't lift.

Repeat orders

Resellers and plants that buy every month can have a standing order: a set mix delivered on a set corridor day, with that month's empties collected on the same visit. The mix can change month to month as needs change.

Questions

How many reels fit on a trailer?

It depends on the sizes. Hundreds of small reels on pallets, dozens of mid-size reels, or only a handful of 84 or 96-inch reels before weight becomes the limit.

Can a load be all one size?

Yes, but it takes longer to build. Mixed loads go sooner.

Do you deliver to resellers?

Yes. Loads go to anyone buying in volume, with the same checks on every reel.

Can I get a standing monthly order?

Yes. A set mix on a set corridor day, with empties collected on the same visit.

Will you confirm weights before delivery?

Yes. We confirm count, sizes and estimated weight before loading so your equipment can handle it.

Do you sell to buyers outside Chicagoland?

Our trucks run the metro and Lake County, Indiana. Buyers further away can collect a load with their own carrier from a pickup point we agree, or arrange freight themselves.

Reel words on this page

Flange

The round side discs that hold the cable in. Flange diameter, edge to edge, is the size a reel is known by.

Traverse

The inside width between the flanges: how wide a layer of cable can be.

Drum (barrel)

The cylinder between the flanges that the cable winds around.

Arbor hole

The centre hole a spindle, shaft or payoff bar passes through.

One-way reel

A reel nobody is collecting. Once empty, it belongs to whoever holds it.

Nailed vs bolted

Nailed reels are held together with nails and built for one trip; bolted reels have through-bolts and steel plates for many.

Lagging / staves

The boards nailed around the drum, and the protective boards sometimes nailed across the flanges over finished cable.

Payoff

The stand or trailer a reel turns on while cable is pulled off it.

Reel tag

The label or plate carrying the maker, the reel number and sometimes the return terms.