Standard barbed wire is a two-strand twisted No. 12 steel wire with four-point barbs at 4-inch intervals (fig. 8-4).

Figure 8-5.-Barbed-wire reel.

Handling

When handling barbed wire, wear the standard barbed-wire gauntlets shown in figure 8-4 or heavy leather gloves. They permit faster work and protect against cuts and scratches. As an added safety precaution, grasp the wire with your palms down.

Issue

Barbed wire is issued in reels (fig. 8-5), containing about 1,312 feet of wire. The wire weighs 90 pounds and the reel about 1.3 pounds. When a fence is being built, two men carry one reel.

Bobbins

Bobbins (fig. 8-6) holding about 98 feet of wire are prepared, normally in rear areas, for use in building short lengths of fence and in repairing entanglements. When bobbins are used, two men handle one bobbin. One unwinds the bobbin and the other installs the wire. Two or more men can make the bobbins by following these steps:

1. Prepare the bobbin sticks.

2. Rig the reel on an improvised trestle or other Support.

3. Have one man unroll and cut 98-foot lengths of wire, fastening one end of each to the trestle.

Figure 8-6.-Barbed-wire bobbin.

4. Wind the wire in a figure-eight shape on the bobbin sticks.

5. Tie a piece of white tracing tape to the loose end of the wire to facilitate finding it.