Reels · types
Nailed wood reels
Nailed wood reels are built from boards: two plies nailed at right angles for each flange and a ring of staves for the drum. They are the strongest wooden reels, the one build every published take-back program accepts, and the reels most worth reusing once the cable is gone.
From the reel desk · Checked 9 November 2026
How they are built
Southwire's packaging document describes its all-wood reels plainly: flanges of two plies nailed together at 90 degrees, and drums of shaped wooden staves. Through-bolts or tie rods hold the flanges to the drum, and on heavier reels a steel hub is pressed into the arbor hole to take the shaft load. The result is a reel that can carry thousands of pounds of copper or aluminium and still be repaired when a board breaks.
Where they come from here
Almost every kind of job in the region empties nailed reels:
- Utility work. Southwire's A series, nailed reels for bare aluminium and ACSR conductor, is the standard reel for overhead line. Pepco, BGE, SMECO, Potomac Edison and Dominion contractors leave them by the dozen.
- Data-centre campuses in Loudoun and Prince William, where copper feeders and medium-voltage cable arrive on C-series and other nailed reels from 36 to 72 inches.
- Commercial buildings, where feeders to switchgear and risers come on 42 to 60 inch nailed reels.
Take-back
Nailed wood is the only build AFL's program accepts. Service Wire's guidelines name nailed wood reels from 30 to 72 inches. Sonoco EcoReel collects nailed wood and polyfiber. So if any reel in your yard has a route back to a maker, it is a nailed one, provided it is sound, at least 30 inches, and part of a full truckload, often of one maker's reels.
The conditions are the same across programs: flanges at least 1½ inches thick and not warped, no boards broken through both plies, arbor holes undamaged, drive holes not torn out, about three-quarters of the staves intact, and empty.
Reuse value
A sound nailed reel is the most reusable thing in a yard. It can go back on a reel stand and carry cable again, stand on end as a table for years outdoors once sealed, hold hose or fencing on a farm, or come apart into seasoned boards. That is why the desk can often buy nailed reels and only collect others.
What ruins them
Lying flat on wet ground: the lower flange rots from the edge. Being dropped off a tailgate onto a flange edge: boards split along the nails. Being dragged by one flange with a sling: the flange pulls off the drum. Stand them on their flanges on timbers and they keep.
Reels you are likely to have
| Reel | Build | Flange | Traverse | Drum | Lb | Usually carries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C-5 | Nailed wood | 23 | 17 | 12 | 34 | Copper building wire, grounding |
| A-10 | Nailed wood | 30 | 22 | 16 | 66 | Service drop, bare aluminium |
| N-24 | Nailed wood | 36 | 28 | 14 | 83 | Insulated and multiplex cable |
| A-29 | Nailed wood | 42 | 28 | 21 | 154 | Overhead conductor, feeders |
| A-38 | Nailed wood | 48 | 28 | 24 | 212 | Aluminium and ACSR, large feeders |
| A-62 | Nailed wood | 60 | 28 | 28 | 397 | Utility conductor |
| A-76 | Nailed wood | 66 | 28 | 30 | 473 | Heavy conductor |
| S-120 | Steel, returnable | 84 | 36 | 42 | 895 | Transmission and medium voltage |
Other makers' reels differ by an inch or two. All flange sizes · How to measure
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 |
What to put in a request
- Count and measure. Count the reels and measure the largest flange edge to edge across the face. A photo with the tape in it is better than a guess.
- Check the build. Nailed lumber, plywood sheet, steel or plastic. Look for a stencil or tag naming the maker and the reel number.
- Set aside steel and tagged returnables with their serial numbers. Those go back to the maker, not to the desk.
- Say where they stand: yard, dock, garage level, alley or curb, plus clearance, gate hours, badging or escort a driver needs.
- Say what loads them: forklift, pallet jack, loader, ramp, or only people. Reels over 42 inches weigh more than 100 lb empty.
- Say how often: one time, weekly, monthly or at each job close-out.
- Buying instead? Give the flange and height you want, how many, and how the reel gets from the truck to where it will sit.
- No form handy? Email info@dcwoodenspools.com with the same details and a few photos.
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
- 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
- Service Wire, Reel Return: Service Wire labelled nailed wood reels with 30 to 72 in flanges, full truckloads only
- Sonoco, EcoReel Recycling Program: free pickup of truckloads of viable nailed wood and polyfiber reels; reels repaired and returned to wire and cable makers; reels-per-truckload table