Our club operate several two drum winches and use stranded
steel cable.

Two Tost winches have smaller, wide drums with 'pay
on' rollers that reciprocate across the width to lay
the cable flat like a cotton reel.

The 'Skylaunch' has large diameter and very narrow
drums with no 'pay on' gear, but has high sides and
raised guides on the sides of the drum to ensure it
goes onto the body.

The smaller wide drum Tost drum have the problem you
describe if the pay on gear fails or sticks. The cable
either throws large loops, goes over the side, or burys
itself and then jams on pay out.

The large narrow drums with no pay on gear work well.
The narrow width prevents the bunching and burying
problems.

With the smaller wide drums perhaps by raising the
sides and ensuring the cable goes to the centre of
the drum will solve the initial problems.

There are several ways of adding pay on rollers, but
it depends on what space you have round the cable drums
for modification.

There are some good photos of various winches on http://www.skylau
nch.de/album/d.html
these may give you some ideas on how to modify your
drums or add pay on gear.

Another possible alternative is to look at 'Plasma'
type ropes, this had been discussed at length on RAS
and URAS and a few clubs in America are using it.
It is expensive and has its own problems, but that
is another story.