Help pulling cable

[daleslad]

I might have bitten off more than I can chew with this pull but here is what I've got.
I'm trying to pull 360 feet of 3-1/0 and one #6 ground wire through 1 1/2 inch of buried conduit.
There are 2 soft 90's and 2 -45's angles in the line.
With a friend helping we got about 25 feet into the pipe past the the first angles when the line broke.
I used the lube that the electrical journeyman at Home Depot recommended.

I just think I need to pull in a larger pulling line and more muscle.
Any ideas along the lines of pulling with some kind of block and tackle or some other kind of cable puller if there is such a beast, that you think will work.
Thanks

 

[edlank]

What were you using to pull it? There will be a tremendous amount of friction pulling that much wire that far with those elbows. It will be critical that all friction at the entry be eliminated by someone carefully feeding the wires as someone pulls. What fraction of the conduit cross section does the combined wire occupy?

 

[user 4883]

Use some serious guage rope similar to 3/0 and a chugger or block&tackle/come-along.
The more wire you pull in the greater the resistance, just make sure you don't compromise the conduit while pulling the circuits. Also, as edlank mentioned, double check your fill ratio, I don't have my chart handy but, will check it tomorrow if you didn't already calculate it.

 

[daleslad]

Thanks guys, I'm not sure how to calculate those dimensions edlank, so I'd be grateful kok328 if you would check it out on your chart for me.
I was using the string that the Home Depot guy said would be ok to use it had a 250 lb. pulling strength, he also ok'd the size of the conduit for the amount of cable, it's aluminium.
By the way what is a chugger ?

 

[user 4883]

You need rope not pull string in the can.
Chugger is effectively a winch designed for pulling large guage wire.
Found my chart but, need to know what type of conduit you have.

 

[daleslad]

Thanks for the info on the chugger. the conduit is 1 1/2 inch pvc

 

[user 4883]

Depending on the type of wire being pulled and factoring in the #6 ground wire, you should be using 2" conduit.

 

[mikey]

NEC Section 376.56 states that conductors (wires), together with splices and taps, must not fill the wireway to more than 75% of its cross-sectional area.

 

[daleslad]

Thanks for the help guys, got it pulled in now with the help of a chugger.
Sorry couldn't reply earlier but my hard drive took a dive.

 

[edlank]

In 1 1/2" conduit? How tightly packed are the wires in there?

 

[user 4883]

Probably not "packed" but, surely over the percent of fill ratio. However, he's not about to rip it all out and redo it w/2" or he would have done so prior to pulling it through. All we can do is advise on what is correct; whether they follow that advice is totally beyond our control.