I still havenÂ’t got 4.9

[tony350i]

Hi,
I still havenÂ’t got 4.9 in the brood frames yet, I have been feeding empty frames between my p/comb and the bees have been drawing these frames out but still no small cell.
maybe I didnÂ’t coat the p/comb thick enough when I wax dipped them.

So IÂ’ve bought some 4.9 foundation and I will see if this speeds things up.

What I have noticed is the lack off honey that I have not been able to take off but I have plenty off new wax,
Tony

[ June 26, 2006, 04:00 PM: Message edited by: tony350i ]

[Michael Bush]

What size cells are you getting?

I think starting with the natural comb will actually speed things up. Now that you've done that they will probably draw the 4.9mm foundation. Before they probably wouldn't.

[tony350i]

IÂ’ve put one sc foundation in the centre of three nucs that I started 3 to 4 weeks ago today,

The empty frames that they have drawn out are around 5.1 but some small areas are very close to 5.0

Maybe the bees havenÂ’t had enough time and I am being a bit inpatient


Tony

[Alienor]

Regarding to MB's website: what is your distance between the mid of the frames?
I was wondering why my bees and those of others never built smaller than 5.0.
The crux was the distance between the frames.
We all had 35mm and SC and never cells smaller than 5.0 in nature comb.
With a distance of 32mm I'm just now getting a piece of nature comb with 4.8mm.
So I will have to plane down all my frames with Hoffmann-distance-keepers down to 33mm or fewer.
I assume this was our "missing link".
My thanks to MB!

[tony350i]

All the p/comb that I wax dipped have been plane to 32mm to 33mm and it is these bees that I targeted with the empty frames


Tony

[palikaji]

Michael/others do you have experience of this, that closer distance in between frames encourages small cell? I find this really interesting. Palika

[Michael Bush]

>Michael/others do you have experience of this, that closer distance in between frames encourages small cell?

Yes. And less drone comb in the tighter spaced combs and flatter combs and more combs of brood in the brood nest.

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesnaturalcell.htm

Look for "spacing".

Huber says the spacing is 1 1/4".

Here's a picture of measurements of natural brood comb spacing as small as 30mm:
http://www.bushfarms.com/images/CombSpacing30.JPG