First saw

[Michael Palmer]

I beg to differ. The saw I have is one of the pre-china junk kind, i.e. mostly cast iron, belt drive that is rated for continuous running, etc.

I can see that. I've probably only ever seen China made.

[Humanbeeing]

If you really don't know anything about wood working you might consider just buying your woodenware.

It takes more than just a saw - especially it takes some kind of space to do the work in. And there are real, serious safety considerations - as in a lot of your future conversations could begin with someone asking you - "How did that happen?"

You might consider taking a class at a tech school - you might not even like woodworking.

I don't want to discourage you if you want to take up woodworking. But if you are going to buy tools and everything to save money on hobby beekeeping equipment it might not make sense. Even if you already have the tools unless you have a good source of materials (besides the big box home improvement store) you might not even save much money. If you aren't careful it could cost considerably more.

There it is there. You can't save much buying from the big box stores. They told me I would have to spend $2500.00 to even get a slight discount. If you know a contractor that buys huge bundles, you may be able to piggyback on his purchases and see some decent savings.
Tearing down old buildings will give you some nice lumber. I'm looking at one really old house now that has 1X12s for sheating on the roof and walls. Those are few and far between though.
You need to figure how much your boxes will cost if you build them and how much with shipping, if you buy them. If you live close enough to pick them up, they will probably be cheaper than building them without the shipping.
If you have to buy all your tools to get started, it could be cost prohibitive all the way around.

[berkshire bee]

Even if you were to buy boxes and frames, there are still lots of things you can make like nuc boxes,inner covers,telescoping covers,screened bottom boards and slatted racks if you use those, observation hive, plus all the projects you can do around the house. I got a used Craftsman table saw back in the mid seventies. All cast Iron including the extensions. It's still going strong. As mentioned by others, a replacement fence doubles the usefulness.

[Kingfisher Apiaries]

Never go to lowes or hd for lumber. Go find a local hardware store. I get my staples for $10/5000, cd exterior plywood ($16/.5 inch, $21/ 5/8s), 1x12x8 6.50 or less, cannot remember, nails for $1.10 a pound, deck screws at 3.29 a pound, etc. I have saved TONS on money there. Lowes and HD are out to rob you!

MIke