When it came time to fix a bad breaker button on my power chord reel I decided I would prefer a larger reel. Functionality was important. Looks was not. I managed to build a monster sized power reel that can hold hundreds of feet of chord with wheels from stuff I had around the shop. It ain't purdee but it works!

Step 1:

The first thing I made was the frame for the reel. I used a couple of pieces of 2x6 put together with lag bolts. For the reel axle I found some 3/4" pipe. I cut a long piece, around two feet, and another about six inches. I connected them with an elbow and mounted them on the frame with lag bolts. The vertical piece gives strength to the axle. The wheels I found were quite handy. I mounted them on the bottom of the frame and then screwed a cross piece for stability. Finally I mounted a handle using a couple of lag bolts. The handle came from an old generator.

Step 2:

To make the reel I made a hub out of some plywood and a couple of squares of 2x6. I cut holes in the centers of the 2x6 squares and screwed pieces of plywood to them. I left an inset on the front of the hub for electrical chord access. I cut two larger pieces of plywood about 20" square for the sides. I simply cut a hole in the center of one and mounted it over the hole in the back of the hub. I cut a square section out of the other side to work over the inset of the hub. I screwed the sides down, staggering the corners so they would hold the chord on the reel.

To mount the reel on the frame I simply put a couple of rubber washers I had on hand on the axle, slipped the reel on and put two more rubber washers. I hole through the end of the axle holds a nail that serves as a pin. I also drilled a hole through the bottom of the pipe elbow and inserted a pin so it would not sway back and forth.

Rather than going to the trouble of wiring in a plug I decided just to install a power strip. I drilled a hole through the hub for the plug and mounted the strip on the side of the reel. I made a turn handle from part of an old paint roller, an eye bolt and a couple of nuts. The last thing I did was screw down a hook on the base to route chord to the reel.

Step 3:

With our not so pretty but very usable chord dolly finished we rounded up our hundred foot chords and spooled them on there. Should come in handy very soon!