How to Do a One-Person Circuit Wire Pull with Southwire's Wire Pulling Tools

Save time and energy with Southwire’s XD1 wire puller, CoilPAK™ Cart, and GUIDEit™ and GRIPit™ tools

Using your own strength for your circuit wire pulls is possible, but how is your body going to feel at the end of a full day? How about the end of the week? It also takes multiple people, so you’re using up hands that could be doing something more productive on your jobsite. To help you save energy and get more done, here’s how to do a one-person circuit wire pull with Southwire’s wire pulling tools.

STEP #1: INSTALL YOUR SIMPULL™ GUIDEIT™

On a one-person wire pull, you need a tool for hands-free wire feeding. Start by installing Southwire’s GUIDEit™ circuit router. It can mount to a circuit panel box or junction box with a set screw clamp on each side.

Align the pulling eye and feed your pull rope through

Once it’s mounted, adjust the pulling eye to align with the conduit you are pulling into and feed your pull rope through the eye. With the GUIDEit™ tool, you prevent damage to the wire and reduce the need to route wire into a raceway or conduit.

Mount the GUIDEit™ on each side of your panel

STEP #2: MOVE YOUR COILPAK™ CLOSE TO CONDUIT FEED

Southwire’s CoilPAK™ Cart can hold up to eight CoilPAK™ payoffs at a time. It’s an ideal solution for efficient use of space and transportation. It’s not always necessary to use the CoilPAK™ cart when pulling with CoilPAKs™, but it does make it easier, especially when pulling from overhead and out of the ground. To continue your wire pull, move the CoilPAK™ cart closer, so you’re not pulling a lot of excess wire out.

STEP #3: INSTALL PULLING HEAD WITH SOUTHWIRE GRIPIT™

The next step is installing your pulling head with Southwire’s GRIPit™ tool. With the GRIPit™, you can attach up to seven circuit wires without taping or stripping wires. Simply feed your wire through and fold it over, and the wire will not pull off. When you’re done it should look like this:

Connect your wires to the GRIPit™ tool

Once you have your wires connected, hook the GRIPit™ to the eye of your pulling rope, and you’re ready on the feed end for your one-person wire pull.

STEP #4: SET UP THE SOUTHWIRE XD1 WIRE PULLER

The Southwire XD1 wire puller is capable of pulling 600 pounds continuous with a 1000 pound peak. It’s perfect for circuit wires and pulling in your large rope on feeder and small feeder pulls. To set it up, brace the one-inch conduit adapter up against the connector and wrap your pull rope around the capstan four or five times. Now you’re ready to pull.

Your wire puller should look like this when you’re ready to pull.

STEP #5: PULL YOUR WIRE

Now that it’s set up, the rest is easy. At this point, pull the trigger on your drill, and let the XD1 do the work for you. In the video above, we pulled a 130-foot circuit wire pull wrapping through three 90’s and one offset in just under one minute and 50 seconds with just one person and a few tools. Without these tools, it would have taken two or three people and a lot more physical effort to pull the wire with your own strength.

Pulling from seven CoilPAKs™ simultaneously

What are you currently using for circuit wire pulls, and which of these tools could help you be more efficient? If you want to learn more about any of these solutions or learn about other wire and cable solutions, please reach out to your Van Meter account manager or one of our contractor services specialists.