Guide
Which wire and cable makers take reels back
Several large wire and cable makers run reel return programs, including Southwire, Service Wire, CommScope and Corning, but each takes only its own reels and most set truckload minimums and condition rules.
Maker programs are the cheapest route for the reels they cover, because the maker sends the truck. They are also narrow: one brand, a minimum load and a checklist. Here is what the published programs say, and what to do with everything they leave out.
Published programs
| Maker | Takes | Main conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Service Wire | Its own labelled reels only | Full truckloads; nailed wood, 30 to 72-inch flange; sound wood, undamaged arbor hole, at least 75% of drum staves intact |
| Southwire | Reels from participating customers | Started with a form on Southwire's site; ships on both steel and wooden reels |
| CommScope | Its own reels | Truckload minimums |
| Corning | Its own reels | Truckload minimums; all cable removed before pickup |
What the programs have in common
- Only the maker's own reels. A Corning program will not take a Southwire reel.
- A minimum load, often a full truck, so small lots wait.
- Condition rules: broken reels are refused.
- Cable fully removed.
- A request or form, not a phone call to a driver.
Filling a truckload
A full truck is a lot of reels, more than most single jobs produce. Contractors who use maker programs well gather one maker's reels from several jobs into one yard over weeks or months, then call. Distributors sometimes act as collection points. If your volume never reaches a truck, the program may not be practical, and the maker's customer service can say whether smaller pickups are possible.
What falls outside every program
Mixed brands, small lots, other makers' one-way reels and broken reels. That leftover is most of what a typical yard holds. Those are the reels we take: one-way ones bought, broken ones recycled, all on one ticket, while the maker reels wait for their own truck.
Before you call a maker
- Count reels by maker and flange size.
- Note reel numbers from tags or stencils.
- Photograph a few, both faces.
- Confirm all cable is off.
- Have the yard address, gate hours and loading equipment ready.
Holding reels for a program
Waiting weeks to fill a truck means storing reels well in the meantime: on edge, chocked, off the ground and tags out. A program that refuses rotted reels will refuse ones that rotted while waiting. Pick a corner of the yard for each maker and keep it tidy.
Reading a program's checklist
Condition rules repeat across programs because they protect the next cable: sound wood, an undamaged arbor hole so the reel turns true on a stand, enough staves for the drum to carry a wind, and no cable left on. A reel that fails the checklist is refused at pickup, so check before booking. Broken maker reels that a program will not accept should be reported to the maker, not sold.
Smaller makers and suppliers
Plenty of makers and suppliers have no public program but will still collect their returnable reels from a regular customer. Rope suppliers, specialty cable makers and rental reel companies often work this way. The reel's stencil or tag is the starting point; their customer service desk is the next.
Questions
Do wire manufacturers take back their reels?
Some do, through programs for their own reels with minimums and condition rules. Many one-way reels are never collected by anyone.
Can you deliver reels to a maker's program for me?
We list and sort them and tell you how to start the program. The maker's own truck collects them.
Are these programs free?
Service Wire describes its reel return as free. For the others, read the maker's current terms, which change from time to time.
Is there a program that takes every brand?
Not from the makers. Mixed brands are what independent reel buyers and recyclers take.
Reel words on this page
- Returnable reel
- A reel its maker expects back, usually stencilled or tagged to say so.
- Reel tag
- The label or plate carrying the maker, the reel number and sometimes the return terms.
- 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.
- 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.
More reel guides
- What empty reels are worth
Size, build and condition decide it. What gets paid for, and what does not.
- Do supply houses take reels back?
When the counter or the maker behind it takes reels, and what happens to the rest.
- Returnable vs one-way reels
Reading the tag, the stencils and the build to know whose reel it is.
- Reel sizes explained
Flange, drum and traverse, with a size chart from 24 to 96 inches.
- Measuring a reel
Four measurements, one tape and a minute per reel.
- Nailed vs bolted reels
How each is built, why bolted reels make more trips, and how each is handled.
- When a reel can't be reused
The defects that end a reel's working life, drawn and explained.
- Disposing of wooden reels
Four ways out for a wooden reel, with the dumpster last.
- Staging reels for pickup
Stand, chock, sort and leave room for the forks.
- Reel weights by size
Empty weights worked out from the wood, and what each means for loading.
- The reel capacity formula
How much cable fits on a reel, worked through step by step.
Reels to clear or a size to find?
Tell us what you have or what you need. One work order covers pickup, buyback, recycling and supply.
Or write to info@chicagowoodenspools.com with the count, flange sizes and a photo of the stack.