The New Hotness

Magnet wire wants to unspool itself, so it comes with a wrap of tape that eventually turns into a gummy layer. Rather than put new tape on the spool, gash a notch in the rim with a utility knife and capture the wire therein.

If you’re really clever, you’ll angle the notch so the wire folds backwards and holds itself snug. If you’re not, well, there’s nobody going to notice having two opposing notches in the spool, right?

They used to do this with thread and string, back in the old days when such stuff came on wooden spools, but it seems a lost art…