Help Finding Strap Winder!

Does anyone know where to buy a strap winder? Iv been told flying j and pilots but every one Iv been to in the past 2 weeks don't have them.

Here is the best one you'll ever find. Mind in the USA: Reel EZ 8" Strap Winding Wheel

Made with 14 gauge steel Tig welded Powder coated for durability 95 pound magnet for easy on/off mounting Wheel locks to hub while in use, but easily removable with a click Handle attachment for semi truck bed, tool box, utility box, or farm vehicle mounting Can be hand-operated

FULL DISCLOSURE: I was paid to build the website for this product. I'm not the inventor, but I do know him, and he's a nice guy. The reels he makes are first-rate.

I'm sure you were paid because, no offense here, that's the exact sort of design we're telling him to avoid. It's clumsy, slow, and difficult winding from the side. That odd behavior of closing in around the strap makes getting it out more time consuming. The one linked near the top of the the thread is the one we're saying is the best/fastest. Once you position your hand properly, which is easily learned, you can roll as fast as you can spin your hand, then one solid quick tap from the side will free the strap. I roll my straps in no more than 10 seconds each using this method, and that's being slow and lazy.

I'm not paid to sell them. I ALREADY got paid to build the website. I was simply trying to help the OP solve their problem.

Did you watch the video on the homepage demo-ing its use?

I've used this thing--it's far from clumsy... And as far it being "time consuming" getting the strap out? Not at all. Literally 1 second. If you want, I'll get the inventor on this thread to answer your questions. He's far more knowledgable about his product than I am. Like I said, I just built the website. I don't make a dime on his sales.

If I get into flat-bedding after school, I'll definitely be packing his ReelEz reel with me.

I looked for a video for the "RoadPro RPSW-5000 Black Steel Strap Winder" that was linked to, but couldn't find one. Here is the direct link to the demo video I mentioned above for the ReelEZ strap winder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pP3MHVgI2OI

He's got a patent pending on the "quick release" nob that holds the strap when winding. It's tapered, so after you're done winding, the strap just slides off.

Also forgot to mention above... Concerning the magnet not sticking to an aluminum rail? Well, if you look at the back of the ReelEz reel, you'll see that it's slotted to "hang" over any truck rail in the event you don't have steel nearby. Of course, you can also just hold it.

Finally, if you look at the reviews on Amazon for the product linked near the top of this thread, they're pretty poor in terms of the quality of the product. The ReelEz reels are very nice in terms of fabrication quality. Clean welds, beautiful paint, etcetera.

Go ahead and accuse me of being a shill if you want. I already got paid. I'm just trying to help.

Yes it is slow and clumsy by comparison. I've used the store bought version very similar to the one you're trying to sell and the aforementioned road pro. The road pro is leaps and bounds faster and easier to use. However, i'm not going to continuously try to discuss this with you since you haven't tried either one from what i can tell, and you're associated with the product financially albeit in the past or not, so your opinion holds very little value to me. I'm sure the owner is a nice guy, but i don't buy inferior products because the owner is nice.

James, can you show me a video of the product you like? Seeing is believing.

Did you watch the video I linked to? If you did, I don't see how you could call it clumsy. But I could be wrong. Show me a video. Or make one of your own. Prove your solution is better. If I'm wrong, I want to know. But I need proof, not opinions. I've shown you video and bad reviews for the product you recommend. Where's your proof?

I haven't used the Road Pro. But I've used the ReelEZ. Guess we're even on that front.

Yes it is slow and clumsy by comparison. I've used the store bought version very similar to the one you're trying to sell and the aforementioned road pro. The road pro is leaps and bounds faster and easier to use. However, i'm not going to continuously try to discuss this with you since you haven't tried either one from what i can tell, and you're associated with the product financially albeit in the past or not, so your opinion holds very little value to me. I'm sure the owner is a nice guy, but i don't buy inferior products because the owner is nice.

I don't have a dog in this fight but unless you have tried the product you cant really comment on it either can you? You want to use experience with the actual product as a qualifier yet you haven't actually used the product he mentioned. So for all you know it is a superior product. Just sayin, if you haven't tried the actual product you really shouldn't claim it sucks. It may well suck, but until you have tried it how can you be sure?

Phil

While I haven't used this one in particular I can comment on features that I do not like about it just from watching the video. Yes it does have a loop that allows it to hang on the rub rail, but without a screw to tighten it down it is going to move around while winding, I don't like that. I want it to be good and stable. The other thing is that I don't have to take my strap winder apart to pull the strap off. I wind it up and pull the strap right of the prongs, no problem. Also the cost. Even full price mine would have been right around $25. It's a fairly heavy gauge steel and unless I throw it down and start stomping on it I should have no trouble, or tighten it down to the point that that screw or nut strips out. But I don't do those things. I tend to take care of my equipment.

Good points about the tightening screw, Southern...

Do your straps ever slip while winding? Or do they ever get stuck on the spool?

The inventor could tell you more about how his device avoids both these common pitfalls (which I believe is why he designed it). I'll try to get him on here in the next day or two (he's internet adverse).

I'm sure he'd like real-world feedback, regardless. He's constantly tweaking and improving his designs.

I don't have a dog in this fight but unless you have tried the product you cant really comment on it either can you?

Phil

I can because like i said, the product is nearly identical to the lesser version sold in stores except that it has side panels.

http://www.amazon.com/Kinedyne-Corporation-10091-Premium-Winder/dp/B00SXGLBOW/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1450697793&sr=8-5&keywords=strap+winder

Anyone i've talked to who's tried a winder of that to the side encapsulated style, including myself, have thrown it away eventually because of the poor use ability and time consumption. It doesn't matter how good the quality of the product he's discussing is, the foundation was a poor choice.

No the straps on the one we listed never get caught in anything. You just gently hold your two fingers on top to guide it, almost the same way in your guys video, then when done you slap the side and the strap comes right off and you move onto the next one. No trying to open it up and carefully position the strap, or the opposite when done. Sometimes the simpler tool is the fastest one. This just happens to be one of those cases.

With all due respect, James, the product you linked to isn't simply an inferior version of the "side-encapsulated" style winder. There are features integral to the operation of the ReelEZ that you're not grasping or appreciating (because you haven't tried it):

1) The strap end grip is NOTHING like the product you linked to. There is no "insertion" or "threading a needle" like what would be required in the Kinedyne. Rather, the strap *slides in* horizontally, between a *TAPERED* knob.

2) The supposedly inferior "side-encapsulated" style--when coupled with the WEIGHTED "fly-wheel" effect of the ReelEZ reel--creates MOMENTUM when you wind it. In other words, once you get a couple turns in by hand, you could literally just give it a firm push, and the momentum of the reel itself would wind up vast swaths of your remaining strap all on its own.

3) You don't have to "gently hold your two fingers on top to guide it" like the type of winder you like. That's one of the big wins of this design.

4) Finally, the ReelEZ can wind ANYTHING--not just straps. It winds hoses, extension cords, barbed wire, Christmas tree lights--you name it.

Now I do sound like a salesman. But I'm just trying to help.

Kevin Berry, the inventor, hasn't responded to my email yet, but I'll still try to get him on here to answer any questions.

Thing is, his ReelEZ device reminds me of a George Foreman grill...just like a Foreman *looks* like a simple hotplate, the devil is in the details. His reel is really well thought out. And made right here in the USA, to boot. He's creating jobs for the local economy.

I understand those features is just that none of them are important. The only thing that matters is speed. The product is an overly complicated solution to a problem that's already been solved with a faster solution.