[Clint D]

checked my new packages Saturday, this is after two weeks since I set up the new hives
In one hive, I found something weird about the comb. On several frames, the bees are building two differnet combs on each frame, the combs do not meet but start overlapping each other towards the center, causing them to stick out on both sides of the frame. I just used starter strips instead of complete foundations.

Clint

 

[Jim Fischer]

So the bees ignored the starter strips, and
instead started their own combs.

This can happen, and is one of the reasons
why "starter strips" are often poor economy.
The most critical resource in beekeeping is time,
and your bees have wasted some.

Another influence can be "frame spacing", which
means that the frames are not shoved together
so that the end bars touch.

 

[Michael Bush]

When using starter strips it's advisable to have a fully drawn comb in the middle and, lacking that, a full sheet of foundation in the middle. It gives them a good starting point.

Even with full sheets sometimes the bees do funky things. With starter strips or foundationless they have more freedom to do funky things. One good straight comb in the center is a nice way to provide more guidence.

I sometimes cut the crooked end loose and push it back in line with the center of the frame. Sometimes this straightens it out. Sometimes they continue to "insist" on doing it their way.