Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 108
 Good idea, but kinda cheap June 20, 2001
17 out of 17 found this review helpful
In general, I think this tool was a wonderful, idea. It keeps cords untangled and stores them neatly in its basket. The main problem that I have with it is that it is not constructed very well. I feel like I have to handle it with kid gloves in order to keep from breaking it. In a shop where there is a lot of traffic, either from wood or from people, I don't see it lasting very long. Maybe next time they'll make it out of a higher grade material.
 Works good, but careful of wall mount February 18, 2006
C. M. Snow (San Jose, CA USA)
16 out of 17 found this review helpful
This product winds and stores cords well as most have testified. However, it has a wall mount issue.
The Problem - The alignment of the locking ears to the wall braket orientation is off about 10 degrees. The instructions for mounting lack adequate graphics and wording to guide you - dispite a warning that "it may be neccessary to use added pressure the first few times the unit is locked into wall bracket".
The Problem Details - The circlular wall bracket has 4 holes for screw mount and an "up" arrow to indicate the direction for mount. If you assume that the up arrow (on the inside of the backet) should be the orientation of mount you would be wrong. If you went ahead and secured it to the wall with the screw holes at 12, 3, 6, and 9 o'clock the unit itself would not be level when mounted. My unit came with 2 wall mount backets and both had this disorientation.
The Solution - Note the orentation of the wall bracket when attached to the unit before securing it to the wall. Do this several times. Find true north / top center on the bracket and mark it with a pen. Take the bracket off the unit and place it on the wall orienting your center mark at the top. Then mark holes and screw the bracket into the wall. This offset changes the orientation of the mount when attaching to the wall by turning it clockwise several degrees but keeps the unit straight up and down when mounted. My brackets were off about 10 degrees.
 Pretty darned good gadget July 31, 2004
Jordan Brown (Granada Hills, CA USA)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
You find this kind of device in catalogs that are full of gadgets that appear to cleverly solve some niche problem, but if you ever buy them you find that they don't really improve your life.
This isn't one of them. It works, pretty much, and it's a heck of a lot easier than a more conventional cord winder. A couple of times I have had problems winding a cord that was wet and so slippery, but other than that it winds the cord up pretty fast, and rather to my surprise the cord has always fed out without tangling.
Mounting is a little tricky because you want to get the device upright, but it twists as you attach the device to the mounting bracket so it's hard to find the exact right orientation for the mounting bracket.
Occasionally when it's fully extended the cord gets detached from the bottom of the bag or gets aligned straight through the hole, and so it needs a bit of help to get started winding.
I want another one so that I can keep one in the garage and one on the back porch.
 Forget using w/ flexible 12/3 cord--couldn't even get it loaded April 17, 2006
J. Martin (Upstate New York)
13 out of 15 found this review helpful
The description says "Holds 150' of 16/3 cord, 100' of 14/3 cord, or 75' of 12/3 cord," but I couldn't get even the first few feet of a 12/3 cord loaded into it. The cord didn't naturally fall into a neat coil in the bottom, and trying to guide it into place by reaching through the net was impossibly tedious. Even if did persevere and get it loaded, I wouldn't be willing to wrestle it back in every time I used the cord. That defeats the whole purpose of a reel.
The cord I'm using is a very high quality, very flexible silicone insulated outdoor cord that's almost impossible to kink. I laid it out straight in the sun before trying to reel it in, as suggested by the instructions, but it was still impossible.
Since I don't have a 16 or 14 gauge cord, I don't know how it would work with them. It must be great, from all the favorable reviews. My cord may just be too flexible or rubbery for it. A cheaper, stiffer cord might slip right in. It does seem to be sturdily made and a clever idea, but I can't use it.
 works all year long July 19, 2005
R. Gard (Beacon Falls, CT)
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I've had the Wonder Winder through winter and summer and it is excellent. I use it for my weed whacker and mower in the summer, and toro snow thrower in winter. It retracts 100' of heavy yellow Polar cord with ease, wet or dry, dirty or salty, cold or hot. I took care to train the cord to wind in one direction the first 3 times I used it, and in the winter I am sure to have the cord lying straight behind me - this guarantees that everything will wind up as fast as I crank. I only wish for more mounting plates.
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