dimensions

[BuddyMc]

How wide are regular wooden frames for supers? Also, what are the dimensions of medium supers? I'm wondering if a standard medium super would sit on top of my TBH.

[drobbins]

Buddy

all the dimesions of the box are here

http://www.beesource.com/plans/langstroth.htm

the topbar of a standard frame is 19" long, the end bars are 1-3/8" wide
keep in mind if a super won't fit your hive it would be easy to make an adapter out of plywood
the real problem is providing the bees a vertical path out of the hive into the super

Dave

[size="1"][ July 19, 2006, 03:10 PM: Message edited by: drobbins ][/size]

[BuddyMc]

Yeah, I've been thinking over that problem. I'm thinking now it might just be easier to build a bottomless TBH to set on top and space out a top bar enough to allow access, or use a top entrance.

TBH's are easy to build except the bars are the most time consuming. I grooved and glued a strip in the last ones i built. I'm looking for an easier and less labor intensive method.

[ottawabee]

if you have a chop saw and table saw, you build dozens of top bars in a morning, doing one operation at a time (ie cut for width, cut for length, notch this/that angle this/that etc). lots on this board don't bother with the starter strip.

[chemistbert]

I don't. I just cut a triangle and brad nail it to a retangular top bar. Takes me about 30 min to make 36 bars.

[buckbee]

I just run each bar over a circular saw, ripping a shallow groove down the center, which I then fill with beeswax. That seems to be enough to give them a lead. The V-shaped add-on may make a better anchor for the comb, though.

I am also experimenting with some bars that have short lengths of thin dowelling fitted to them - some centrally and some towards each end - I will post pics when they have been in the hive for another week or two.

[Apis629]

If you think top bars take a long time to construct, try building a TBH as a highschool "materials and processes (shop)" project. I had to sand ever square inch of the hive trapazoidal prizm, including the bars...all 35 of them!

[Heritage]

I cut all my bars from basswood scraps from my cabinet shop. I cut the bars, groove the bars, cut the splines in just a short time. I run the bars through the thickness sander to clean them up. I've build a jig to center the splines in the grooves. All in all, they go pretty quick, maybe an hour total working time for 60 bars. That's with all of them with splines. Most of mine I don't put the splines on, just cut and sand the bars and that's it. My first hive's bars were cut from 3/4 plywood and they are still holding up after 2 full seasons. I didn't think they would last that long.