Three piece spool

Abstract

A wire spool comprising three structural components including two end flanges and a rigid fiberboard barrel. The end flanges may be molded plastic or stamped sheet metal. The end flanges have central plug portions that are mechanically locked into the barrel. The central plug portions include teeth which dig into the barrel to substantially permanently secure the end flanges to the barrel such that the wire spool has sufficient strength to allow electricians to pick up a fully loaded wire spool by the end flange and such that the end flanges cannot typically be removed by hand except with the assistance of leverage tools. The plug portion also may include elongate axially extending lugs that engage the barrel and enhance torque transfer between the barrel and the end flanges.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A spool for supporting a strand of cordage wound about spool, comprising: 
 a barrel of fiber material having open ends;    a pair of end flanges, each end flanges comprising a disc portion and a plug portion, the disc portion surrounding the plug portion, the plug portion being inserted one of the open ends, the plug portion being locked to the barrel in a substantially permanent manner, the disc portion extending radially outward beyond the barrel such that the spool is adapted to hold cordage axially between end flanges    
     
     
         2 . The spool of  claim 1  further comprising means for locking the end flanges to the barrel.  
     
     
         3 . The spool of  claim 1  wherein said locking means locks each end flange to the cylindrical barrel with a sufficient locking force such that when the spool fully loaded with cordage, the spool can be carried by lifting and supporting the spool with one end flange only.  
     
     
         4 . The spool of  claim 2  wherein the locking means prevents relative rotation between the barrel and the end flanges.  
     
     
         5 . The spool of  claim 1  further comprising means formed into the end flanges for holding leading and trailing edges of cordage material.  
     
     
         6 . The spool of  claim 1  wherein the plug portion includes a plurality of radially outwardly projecting teeth engaging the plug portion locking the end flanges to the barrel.  
     
     
         7 . The spool of  claim 1  further comprising means for creating resiliency in the teeth to allow insertion of the plug portions into the open ends of the barrel.  
     
     
         8 . The spool of  claim 6  wherein the teeth comprise chamfered surfaces arranged to facilitate insertion of the plug portions into the open ends.  
     
     
         9 . The spool of  claim 8  wherein the teeth includes means for preventing removal of the end flanges.  
     
     
         10 . The spool of  claim 1  wherein the end flanges are locked to the cylindrical barrel in a substantially permanent manner with a sufficient locking force such that the spool fully loaded with the cordage can be carried by lifting and supporting the spool with one end flange only.  
     
     
         11 . The spool of  claim 1  wherein the spool is adapted to hold cordage selected from the group consisting of metal wire and cable containing metal.  
     
     
         12 . A spool for supporting a strand of cordage wound about spool, comprising: 
 a cylindrical barrel of fiberboard material extending between first and second open ends, the cylindrical barrel being coaxial about a spool axis;    first and second one piece end flanges, each end flange comprising a disc portion and a plug portion, the disc portion surrounding the plug portion, the plug portions of the first and second end flanges being inserted into the first and second open ends, respectively, the plug portion including a plurality of radially outwardly projecting teeth engaging the cylindrical barrel locking the end flanges to the cylindrical barrel in a substantially permanent manner, the disc portions extending radially outward beyond the barrel such that the spool is adapted to hold cordage axially between end flanges.    
     
     
         13 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein each of the end flanges comprises a central opening coaxial about the spool axis.  
     
     
         14 . The spool of  claim 13  wherein each of the end flanges includes a pair of drive holes disposed radially between the central opening and the disc portion.  
     
     
         15 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein each plug portion includes a cylindrical portion projecting axially in one of the open ends, the teeth being providing on the cylindrical portion.  
     
     
         16 . The spool of  claim 15  wherein the teeth have a radially extending edge engaging the barrel, further comprising a plurality of slots in the cylindrical portion axially between the teeth and the end flange, the slots providing resiliency to the teeth for facilitating assembly of the end flanges and the barrel.  
     
     
         17 . The spool of  claim 16  wherein each of the teeth has a chamfered surface relative to the axis and a substantially perpendicular surface relative to the axis, the chamfered surfaces of the first and second end flanges facing axially inward toward each other for facilitating assembly of the end flanges and the barrel, the perpendicular surfaces being adjacent the slot and facing axially outward for preventing removal of the end flanges from the barrel.  
     
     
         18 . The spool of  claim 16  wherein the cylindrical portion has a plurality of elongate lugs, each elongate lug having an axially extending edge engaging the cylindrical barrel preventing angular slippage between the end flanges and the cylindrical barrel.  
     
     
         19 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein the spool is adapted to hold cordage selected from the group consisting of metal wire and metal cable.  
     
     
         20 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein the end flanges are locked to the cylindrical barrel with a sufficient locking force such that the spool fully loaded with the cordage can be carried by lifting and supporting the spool with one end flange only.  
     
     
         21 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein each of the end flanges comprise rigid plastic material.  
     
     
         22 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein each of the end flanges comprise metal material.  
     
     
         23 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein the cylindrical barrel has an outer diameter of between about 2 inches and about 4 inches, and wherein the end flanges have an outer diameter of between about 6 inches and about 10 inches.  
     
     
         24 . The spool of  claim 12  wherein each of the end flanges include a starting hole and a finishing hole formed into the disc portion, the finishing hole located radially outward from the starting hole, the starting hole retaining a leading end of the cordage, the finishing hole retaining a trailing end of the cordage.  
     
     
         25 . A spool, comprising: 
 a cylindrical barrel of fiberboard material extending between first and second open ends, the cylindrical barrel being coaxial about a spool axis;    first and second one piece end flanges, each end flange comprising a disc portion and a plug portion, the disc portion surrounding the plug portion, the plug portions of the first and second end flanges being inserted into the first and second open ends, respectively, the plug portion including a plurality of radially outwardly projecting teeth engaging the cylindrical barrel locking the end flanges to the cylindrical barrel in a substantially permanent manner, wherein the teeth have a radially extending edge engaging the barrel, each plug portion including a cylindrical portion projecting axially in one of the open ends, the teeth being providing on the cylindrical portion, further comprising a plurality of slots in the cylindrical portion axially between the teeth and the end flange, the slots providing resiliency to the teeth for facilitating assembly of the end flanges and the barrel, wherein each of the teeth has a chamfered surface relative to the axis and a substantially perpendicular surface relative to the axis, the chamfered surfaces of the first and second end flanges facing axially inward toward each other for facilitating assembly of the end flanges and the barrel, the perpendicular surfaces being adjacent the slot and facing axially outward for preventing removal of the end flanges from the barrel, wherein the cylindrical portion has a plurality of elongate lugs, each elongate lug having an axially extending edge engaging the cylindrical barrel preventing angular slippage between the end flanges and the cylindrical barrel, each of the end flanges comprising a central opening coaxial about the spool axis and a pair of drive holes disposed radially between the central opening and the disc portion; and    a strand of cordage wound about the barrel retained between the first and second end flanges, each of the end flanges including a starting hole and a finishing hole formed into the disc portion, the finishing hole located radially outward from the starting hole, the starting hole retaining a leading end of the cordage, the finishing hole retaining a trailing end of the cordage.    
     
     
         26 . The spool of  claim 25  wherein the cordage is selected from the group consisting of metal wire and metal cable.  
     
     
         27 . The spool of  claim 25  wherein the end flanges are locked to the cylindrical barrel with a sufficient locking force such that the spool fully loaded with the cordage can be carried by lifting and supporting the spool with one end flange only.  
     
     
         28 . The spool of  claim 25  wherein each of the end flanges comprises rigid plastic material.  
     
     
         29 . The spool of  claim 25  wherein each of the end flanges comprise metal material.  
     
     
         30 . The spool of claim  35  wherein the cylindrical barrel has an outer diameter of between about 2 inches and about 4 inches, and wherein the end flanges have an outer diameter of between about 6 inches and about 10 inches.