Came here to post the over under method, saw it was already posted.
This method really works awesome, though my old extension cables are permanently kinked from wrapping them the wrong way, which can make them a bit unwieldy to try to wrap with the proper method.
As others have said, “flip-coiling” is the technique used by pros who are handling essential cables every day (16-channel audio snakes, for example). Iit’s fast once you learn it, it minimizes damage to the cable, it minimizes tangling of the cable, and (unless your cable was previously kinked by coiling it the wrong ways) it makes a nice neat coil.
It has the same benefits for ropes, garden hoses, and so on.
A few minutes to learn, a lifetime of benefit.
if you’ve ever done time in video production you will quickly be schooled/scolded if you wrap a cable incorrectly! after over a decade in the biz i wrap everything from extension cords to usb cables with the over under method. no need for fancy devices when your hands work more efficiently.
A five gallon plastic bucket serves the same purpose for free. And you don’t even need the bucket if you do this:
I have one of these in my shop and it’s amazing. As someone who is generally pretty concerned with coiling things up properly, it’s nice to have a simple machine that just works.
Yep, that’s the first thing they teach you.
Well my 100 ft outdoor extension cord is way to heavy and large to hold in my hand and wrap in any manner. I for one will be checking this winder out!
A fifty-foot 20-channel snake is also way too heavy and large to fipcoil in hand. But it’s quite possible to flip-coil onto the floor, or into a box. There are other techniques for solving the problem, of course. Including flipcoiling 50’ from one end, then 50’ from the other.
Of course it’s also a lot more expensive than an extension cord, and a bit more fragile, and harder to replace if we start setting up and then discover that we’ve damaged it,
If you don’t mind shortening the life of your cables AND losing portability by always needing the mechanical assist AND building a bad habit… well, your call. Though actually in that case I’d recommend you consider a reel with sliding contacts in the hub so the cable always pays straight out and winds straight back in; that too will avoid the twisting that damages the cable, and for power a bit of sloppiness in the contacts won’t kill ya.
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