what type nails/brads/staples do you recommend using to assemble frames & hive boxes?

[beegarden]

I am planning to glue and to either nail or staple. I am hearing and reading different things in different places.

Any overall consensus or recs out there would be appreciated.

I am not doing more than 100 frames and like 8-10 hive boxes so this is not a too huge a production job, if that makes any difference.

Thanks for your help!
Marika

[Michael Bush]

I use a 1/4" crown stapler with 1" staples for frames and 1 1/2" staples for boxes.

[Ross]

1" by 18 guage brads for frames and 3" by 15 guage finish nails (nailer) for boxes. I have also used 2.5" by 15 guage staples for boxes. Glue on everything.

[standman]

Any overall consensus or recs out there would be appreciated.


Good luck with consensus. LOL I use glue and a 2 1/2 deck screw in each corner, top and bottom, eight per box. Then i put 6d tripled dipped galvanized nails that are ring shanked through the rest of the fingerjoints. Probably overkill, but I want my boxes to outlast me. Of course, if I had to build hundreds of boxes, I would just use an air nailer as recommended by others. Just bought a crown stapler, which I plan to use on future frames.

[Big John]

An excellent site for frame assemble.

http://robo.bushkillfarms.com/

[beegarden]

Many thanks to all of you who've responded. I am seeing that there are as many ways to do this as there are to beekeeping. :)

Standman, would you mind telling me how long the 6d galv nails are you are using on the boxes? are they the same 2-1/2" as the screws? What do you use with frame assembly?

Ross/Standman, I see you both use pretty long nails in the boxes, 3", 2-1/2" respectively, -- do you have any problem with splitting?


Michael, my stapler doesn't do the narrow crown, only wide crown, would that work?

Big John thanks for the web link it looks like a lot there. I did look at the frame assembly video; they had a different type of frame than I have... I will look some more there; as its nice to have the visual..

Marika

[Michael Bush]

>Michael, my stapler doesn't do the narrow crown, only wide crown, would that work?

Probably. I'm not sure how the spacing works out on the bottom bar on the frame.

[Ross]

I haven't seen a problem with splitting with 15 guage.

[schmism]

i used my 18g brad nailer for frames (and a dab of glue) and the included #5 galv in my kits for the bodies

[standman]

Standman, would you mind telling me how long the 6d galv nails are you are using on the boxes? are they the same 2-1/2" as the screws? What do you use with frame assembly?[QUOTE=beegarden;415231]

The 6d are just standard length, which I will have to check. I think it is about 2 inches. The ring shank is key: it is almost impossible to pull them out with a hammer or nail puller.

Ross/Standman, I see you both use pretty long nails in the boxes, 3", 2-1/2" respectively, -- do you have any problem with splitting?[QUOTE=beegarden;415231]
I have not have any splitting, except on some boxes I made with knots near the end. The knot sort of popped out. I do predrill all of the "fingers". I hand nailed the frames with nails provided by the manufacturer (Kelley's).


Marika
Somehow this got all messed up, but maybe you can make sense of it. Or a mod can correct it. Sorry.