The most basic method of laying fiber cables involves pulling the cable from the drum by hand. This technique is still used in many parts of the world today, particularly where labor is cheap and plentiful and cable is relatively short and lightweight.

The drum is mounted to rotate freely and a cable pulling crew is spread along the cable trench at intervals which are determined by the weight per unit length of the cable and the route complexity.

 

The foreman or supervisor of the crew co-ordinates the physical effort made by each individual to move the cable forward, through the use of a whistle or by a shout. This type of cable laying is crude but effective under the right circumstances and is termed “hand pulling”.

 

Cable can be set up as the DD location and pulled in the direction of the NID and outlets. This allows cables going to multiple outlets in the same area to be pulled through the majority of the path together, thus lowering cabling installation time.

 

By pulling the cable from the DD location toward the outlets, the cable reels do not have to be moved from location to location. In addition, the amount of cable that needs to be fed back to the DD from an intermediate pulling location will be minimized.

 

In many cases, the initial cable run will be long, going from the DD location to the point at which the cables become vertical. To ease the pulling tension across this long run, bridle rings or J-hooks may be installed, particularly at points where the cables make 90 degree bends.