Guides · reel types
Wood vs steel cable reels
Checked 9 November 2026 — Wood reels are cheaper, one-way and the buyer's to keep; steel reels are heavier, stronger, reused for years and almost always returnable to the maker. So when a job ends, steel goes back to whoever made it and wood goes to a take-back program, a buyer or the desk.
From the reel desk · Checked 9 November 2026
Side by side
| Wooden reels | Steel reels | |
|---|---|---|
| Sizes in Southwire's catalogue | about 12 to 68 in | 60 to 158 in |
| Typical arbor hole | 3⅛ in | 3 to 7⅝ in |
| Weight at 60 in | A-62, about 397 lb | S-62, 340 lb |
| Ownership after delivery | Non-returnable, no deposit (Southwire) | Returnable, with a charge |
| Take-back | Sound nailed reels by the truckload | Return to the maker, credit within 12 months (Southwire) |
| Life | One trip, then reuse or refurbish | Many trips |
| What carries on them | Building wire, insulated cable, conductor, feeders | AAC and ACSR, heaviest power cable |
The 60-inch comparison surprises people: Southwire's steel S-62 is listed lighter than its wooden A-62 at the same flange, traverse and drum.
Why makers use each
Wood is cheap to build and cheap to lose. For most cable, the maker would rather ship a one-way reel than track it back. Steel is expensive and strong; it is worth tracking for the largest and heaviest cable, where a wooden reel would need to be huge. A charge on the invoice is how the maker makes sure the reel comes home.
What to do at close-out
- Find the steel. Look at the flange: welded plate or frame, tires on the rim, a serial plate, an RM or RMT code.
- Start its return. Southwire's policy asks for notice by email, website or app (not phone) with consignee, date shipped, reel invoice number and serial numbers, within 12 months of shipment.
- Sort the wood. Count sound nailed reels by maker in case one fills a truck for a program. Set plywood and broken reels apart.
- Send the desk the wood that is left.
Mistakes to avoid
- Scrapping a returnable steel reel. Whoever was billed loses the charge.
- Assuming every steel reel is the same maker's. Read each stencil.
- Leaving steel reels to the end. The 12-month clock on Southwire's credit starts at shipment, not when the cable is pulled.
- Treating wood as worthless. A sound nailed reel has buyers.
Reading the numbers
- Flange
- The diameter of the round end, edge to edge. The size a reel is known by.
- Traverse
- The inside width between the flanges, where cable winds. It sets how tall the reel stands on end.
- Drum
- The diameter of the barrel the cable winds onto. Stiff power cable needs a big drum.
- Arbor hole
- The centre hole for a shaft. 3⅛ in on most wooden reels; 5¼ in and up on heavy steel ones.
- Weight
- Empty, or tare, weight in pounds as the maker publishes it. A tag on the reel gives the same figure.
- Series letter
- Southwire codes the build: A and C nailed, N plywood or nailed, E and G plywood, S steel.
The four programs side by side
| Rule | Sonoco EcoReel | AFL | Service Wire | Southwire |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Which reels | Viable nailed wood and polyfiber | Nailed wood; other brands possibly | Service Wire labelled only | Steel (returnable); wooden reels are one-way |
| Plywood | Not named | No | No (nailed only) | One-way, no deposit |
| Flange range | 36 to 96 in in its load table | 30 in and up | 30 to 72 in | Steel 60 to 158 in |
| Load | Full truckload | Full truckload | Full truckload | Per reel, with notice |
| Cost to you | Free pickup | Free pickup through Sonoco | Not stated | Charge credited within 12 months |
Handling, in short
- Roll only on firm, level ground, pushing from behind the reel, and in the direction of any arrow painted on the flange.
- Chock both flanges every time a reel stands on its rims, front and back.
- Stay uphill. Nobody stands in the path a reel would take if it got away.
- Lift with forks long enough to reach under both flanges, or with a shaft through the arbor hole and a spreader bar so the slings clear the flanges.
- Never drop a reel off a tailgate or a dock edge. A cracked flange turns a reusable reel into scrap.
- Store on rims, on drained gravel or pavement, with walkways between rows. Lay small reels flat only where stacks stay square and low.
- Keep paper with steel. Serial numbers and invoices travel with any returnable reel until its maker has it back.
The details: moving reels, storing reels, readying a pickup.
Sources
Each opened and read on 9 November 2026.
- Southwire, Reel Packaging Information (CableTech Support): reel series, wooden reel dimensions and weights, steel reel dimensions and charges, tag contents; cites NEMA WC26
- Southwire, Steel Reel Policy: steel reels carry a charge, credited if returned within 12 months of shipment
- AFL, Wood Reel Recycling Program: nailed wood only, no plywood; flanges at least 1½ in thick and 30 in across; 75% of staves; full truckloads; mainly East Coast and Midwest