Line Spools

[Pinch]

Hi All,

I am looking to put together a spool for practicing laying 6mm poly line. Does anyone have any preferred spools or know of anywhere I can buy one from. I have seen/ used a wide metal spool (like in the CDG manual) but not sure were to obtain one.

Any advice/ help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and Regards

Dave

[Juz]

Kent tooling probably have what you're after - www.divingproducts.co.uk


Juz

[Duncan Price]

Originally Posted by Pinch

I am looking to put together a spool for practicing laying 6mm poly line. Does anyone have any preferred spools or know of anywhere I can buy one from. I have seen/ used a wide metal spool (like in the CDG manual) but not sure were to obtain one.

A plastic spool liberated from B&Q works a treat - you can knock up some handles from plumbing parts. If B&Q aren't cooperative ask in a climbing shop for any old reels.

This photo shows line reel with end of line attached (note loop of line so that you can cut old reel off to leave a tail to attach the next line to).

This photo shows the process of tagging line between two posts 5 m apart.

This photo shows a close up of one post with the tags (insulation tape flags with numbers marked on them for distance held on by cable ties through the lay of the line).

Expensive metal line reels are all very nice until you break them down a cave or have to leave them there in the middle of doing some exploring. Plastic ones will break as well but don't cost as much (or even anything). The technical reels you see open water divers using don't hold much proper line. My best reels are made from spools of welder's wire with the cores cut out. You can get 100-150 m of 6 mm line on them and use your arm as the handle - just let it rotate over your forearm as you are laying it out.

Rewind handles are optional - usually I just wrap it over the reel and untangle it when I get out.

[AMW]

Have a look at:
http://www.burgessae.co.uk/eshop/en-gb/dept_44.html

Electric fencing reels for farming

Mini SI Reel
£19.07
Rutland - Electric Shepherd

Holds 250m polywire or 100m 12mm tape.
3B 19-180

Hand Mounting SI Reel
£28.71
Rutland - Electric Shepher
Holds up to 750Mtrs of poly wire
3B 19-190A

Polywire is about 3mm dia.
I have a couple for cave diving ,you need to cut of a few bits to stream line them. Other farming stores stock them (Countrywide etc).
Andrew.

[Duncan Price]

Originally Posted by AMW

Polywire is about 3mm dia.

Yes and makes ideal cave diving line as its bloody tough.

PS. You don't have anymore welder's reels do you? One of mine is in Agen Allwedd, the other in Linley and the last one got washed away down the Clydach...

[AMW]

I will see what I can do
Andrew.

[johnv]

Originally Posted by AMW

Have a look at:
Electric fencing reels for farming

Duncan, next time I see some poly tape sticking out of PYC, I'm going to connect an "electric shepherd" to the end and see what happens :-))


John

[Duncan Price]

Originally Posted by AMW

I will see what I can do.

More importantly, my pump is buggered and I've got a load of out of test tanks to fill. Do you still have a man what fixes them? Could do with a service - like its owner.

Originally Posted by johnv

Duncan, next time I see some poly tape sticking out of PYC, I'm going to connect an "electric shepherd" to the end and see what happens.

Could save laying a telephone cable into Daren? Not me though, Rick was using some - like cheese wire would cut through your gloves if not take your hand off.

P.S. I'm trying to turn this thread into my private CDG message board.

[AMW]

Electric fencing wire , can not cut it can not see it (white or silver and 3mm) although it is cheap Km of it all over the fields of England attached to reels.
I think I will stick with 6mm in the UK. :-)
Any one after line try
http://www.ropesandtwines.com/default.asp

Ropes and Twines look under Polypropylene Rope » 3 Strand Polypropylene Rope
Sells 4mm and 6mm Polypro in 220m lengths (aprox £4 for 220m plus P&P).

On the comp I will see if Dave is still about.
Andrew.

[AMW]

Just an update on reels.
A couple of line reels these are both from a farm suppliers and cost about £10 each. You need to cut a couple of bits off but a straight forward job. The have a good sized handle and even a stop mechanism (although some cave divers cut them off). the gray reel takes about 100M of 4mm and the blue one 170M. they are also very strong the gray one was left in Ogof Blaen Hepste (a cave in south Wales) and survived five years of being washed around a boulder choke they also seem to take the hard ship of being dragged (in a tackle bag with other gear) through dry passage to a sump.A nice cheap alternative to custom reels.
Andrew.