42-inch flange reels
A 42-inch reel carries feeders and heavier power cable for commercial and industrial jobs. About 60 fit a 53-foot flatbed laid flat two high; each weighs 90 to 100 lb empty. It is the largest size we still load flat.
- Empties per 53 ft deck (est.)
- 60
- Empty weight
- 90 to 100 lb
- How it loads
- 2 across, 2 high
- Form answer
- 30 to 47 in
What ships on a 42 inch reel
At 42 inches the reels start to carry industrial cable: larger feeders, medium-voltage cable on short runs, tray cable and multi-conductor power cable for plants. Okonite lists 42 x 26 x 18 builds at 90 and 100 lb, depending on how heavy the reel is built, with capacities up to 3,000 lb. The 40 inch builds are close cousins.
A 42 inch flange is about three and a half feet across, roughly waist to chest height on edge. The drum on Okonite's 42 inch builds is 18 inches, large enough to put an arm through. Most are nailed one-way reels, but bolted versions come from industrial cable makers, and those are worth checking for a stencil before they go anywhere. Measured across the face, not the diagonal, a 42 is easy to confuse with a 40.
How 42 inch reels load
Two 42 inch reels fit across a 102 inch deck and fifteen along a 53 foot one; at about 30 inches wide they stack two high under our 72 inch limit. That is about 60 reels per deck. Larger reels go on edge instead, and a stack of 42s often shares a deck with them, loaded flat at the front.
Resale or recycling
Sound 42 inch reels resell to growers, ranches and contractors, and as large tables. Their staves are heavier and stand up better to weather than smaller reels, but arbor holes worn oval by reel stands take them out of service.
How we grade a reel is on resale or recycling; what makes one worth more is on what reels are worth.
Staging and lifting 42 inch reels
Forty-two inch reels are heavy enough that rolling one down a slope can get away from you. Stage them on level ground, chocked, and use a forklift to lift them onto the deck. On the truck they lie flat at the front, two high, so a mixed load of 42s and larger edge-loaded reels shares the deck well.
What buyers do with them
Large tables for patios, restaurants and event spaces, workbenches, and cable storage for contractors. Growers and ranches use them for heavier jobs where smaller reels would be crushed.
Where 42 inch reels pile up
These are the area pages where 42 inch reels are among the usual sizes we see:
- CommerceLos Angeles County
- Santa Fe SpringsLos Angeles County
- Long BeachLos Angeles County
- Rancho DominguezLos Angeles County
- ComptonLos Angeles County
- El SegundoLos Angeles County
- Sun ValleyLos Angeles County
- PacoimaLos Angeles County
- Canoga ParkLos Angeles County
- Garden GroveOrange County
Pickup maths for 42 inch reels
Forty-two inch reels show up where plants and big buildings are wired: Vernon's food plants, the warehouses of Mira Loma and Moreno Valley, hospital and campus projects in Orange and Riverside, and the aerospace plants of Palmdale and Huntington Beach. They sit at the boundary between building wire and industrial cable, and between flat loading and edge loading, so they show up on almost every mixed deck we plan. Two of them fill the deck's width, and two layers sit well under the stack limit.
| 42 in reels | Share of a 53 ft deck | What it looks like | Empty weight, lb |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 10% | Ride-along | 540 to 600 |
| 12 | 20% | Ride-along | 1,080 to 1,200 |
| 30 | 50% | Part load | 2,700 to 3,000 |
| 60 | 100% | Full run | 5,400 to 6,000 |
| 120 | 200% | More than one deck | 10,800 to 12,000 |
Computed by the load planner from the planning count of 60 per deck. Estimates, not promises.
Mixed stacks: try the planner
Most yards have more than one size. The reel load planner adds 42 inch reels to the rest of your counts and shows how much of a 53 ft deck they take, and whether that is a ride-along, a part load or a full run.
42 inch reel questions
Why are 42 inch reels loaded flat?
Because at this size a flat stack two high is still stable and uses the deck well. Larger reels go on edge.
How heavy is a 42 inch reel?
About 90 to 100 lb empty, per Okonite's table.
Can 42 inch reels ride with large reels?
Yes. They often share a deck, flat at the front, with larger reels on edge behind them.
Do 42 inch reels need a forklift?
It is the safest way. Rolling and tipping them by hand is possible on level ground, but slow.
Do restaurants buy 42 inch reels?
Yes, as large tables for patios. Ask on the buy side.
How do 42 inch reels share a deck with 72s?
The 42s go flat at the front, two layers high, and the 72s stand on edge behind them, chocked and strapped.
Are 40 inch reels handled the same way?
Yes. They sort with the 42s, load flat, and resell to the same buyers.
What does a full deck of 42 inch reels weigh?
About 60 reels at 90 to 100 lb each, so roughly 5,400 to 6,000 lb, light for a flatbed.