2nds quality

[jenkinsbrynmair]

There not throwing anything away seconds aren’t made from off cuts or salvaged materials by the main suppliers, they are simply made from a cheaper material..Good value in my opinion and reasonable quality for the price. I certainly wouldn’t pay for firsts. The bees don’t give a flying……

they are not 'seconds' but rather, 'second quality' - British cedar from sustainable forests (thus far more environmentally friendly than Canadian cedar) and the quality control is slightly less rigorous. I was having a chat with one of the suppliers (I can't remember which now) a few years ago and there was a mind to rename them 'British' rather than 'second quality' but I suppose that would only further confuse the hard of thinking.

 

[Swarm]

I've mentioned before the batch of poorly machined Hoffman bars I bought. At first glance just another side bar but twelve of them in a brood box plus a dummy board and space. A comparison with other frames showed they were too narrow.

 

[plain_hunt]

My son suggests that the friction involved in rolling the wax raises it to its "glass transition temperature" at which point its crystalline structure changes (going from big crystals to small ones, presumably) meaning that once it cools again it is more malleable. This is only a guess however, based on the behaviour of polymers that he has been studying this year.

James

He’s correct. The foundation I made by pouring was more brittle than that I made and rolled.