Making frames from Cedar

[BKF Admin]

Is it just down to cost why most frames are made from Deal rather than Cedar?

I have a load of Cedar offcuts and want to put them to good use..

 

[wightbees]

have you made many frames before Admin?
Can you give details of how you go about making frames from scratch.

 

[Tom Bick]

Cedar is perhaps a bit soft for frames you will have more chance to snap the lugs. But no reason why not.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I agree with Tom, not really strong enough,athough i did have some commercial frames once that were made from cedar,can't remember where they came from now, but they were very good,athough these only have short lugs...with long lugs, i don't think they would last long.

 

[hedgerow pete]

making frames

 

[Somerford]

I was given some old national frames that were cedar when I started out 20 years ago, I don't have them any more as they ahd a solid bottom bar and a grove in the top bar to insert the foundation through....and they were wired frames too !!

I have made some super frames from offcuts for cut comb (old pallet bits) but I'd warn you need to have the right set up as the small pieces mean your fingers get awfully close to the circular saw blade, even with a pusher, and the speed of the blade means the pieces flip around all over the place.

S

 

[Tim1606]

making frames

Come on HP. Surely there is a video in there about plywood frames

 

[hedgerow pete]

thats the one thing i have tried to do once and after a long wasted weekend , there is no chance i will ever bother again. i cant even buy the timber to make them as cheap as the frames are to buy ready cut,

whilst i do make the odd frame for queen rearing or some such indifference use. making frames proper is a complete waste of time for me. for a start off i have no bench saw and i cant use a spindle cutter

 

[Springer]

I made a trial batch of about 20 frames and they came out pretty well, planning to do some more. I started with my normal 21mm finished timber not 22 mm but don't think this will matter.

For the side pieces I cut a 150mm wide board to the requires length of frame.
Then I used a 6.4 mm slot cutter in the router to put two grooves, one from either side, on one end of the board, (the bottom)
Then I used a 12 mm bit to cut a slot along the other end with the board vertical. (the top)
Then the board was cut into several strips on the circular saw to make frame sides.
Circular saw was then set to produce the shallow groove.

Top bars were made in a similar fashion, grooves for sides were cut and then sliced up to depth.
End shoulder was cut on the radial saw and finished on the router table.

Bottom bars straight forward circular work.

The time was all in each set up, cutting time was minimal hence the need for a bigger batch to make it worth while.

 

[hedgerow pete]

like the dog your named after you are completley yampy. lol

the effort and time you have to put in to make frames, honestly i cant see how you can see it pays, yes you can do it and yes it can be done but why would you?

even if you were well tooled up i cant see that your first attemp at frames took say a day? a days money( if i had a job!!) i could buy severel sets of 50 seconds and still have wages money left(to buy **** with, expect i dont smoke this week) so can you make say 150 frames in a 10 hour shift, including the money laid out to buy the timber to saw up in the first place.


i realy am jealous of you lads with tools and the knowledge to use them properly. if i win the lottery i still would not make my own frames

 

[Springer]

Bit surprised at that reply HP, especially from someone who presumably likes making things !
Think you missed the point, someone asked how do you make frames, so I offered my way of doing it .
It wasn't about how it pays , I did it cos I can and enjoy it !
Didn't see your logic on a days pay, don't know where you were going !
A days money, several sets on frames four ?£200 ?, I don't get paid that much, or have that much to spend on frames, as disposable income !
I do like woodworking as a hobby in my spare time !
I have just realised that I don't have to keep bees, I can go and get a jar of honey for less than £2 from the supermarket ! lol .

 

[hedgerow pete]

sorry if the post was offensive it was not supposed to be, yes you clever people with tools and time, can build frames, but for mere mortals its not very viable to do.

the costs i was reffering to was that i can buy 50 second quality frames for £35 pounds, so for my days money of £110 i can buy 150 frames and a packet of ****, the only two problems there are i have had to give up the **** due to going through treatment again and i dont have a job at the moment, but the ideas there.

the main point i was tring to impart was the fact that whilst i am more than willing to make almost every thing for my bee keeping hobby i dont cut out frames as they are to fiddly to do and i could be better spending the day at work and buying them instead, thats where the 150 frames for a days money, can you make 150 frames in a day, comes from those ideas, i could not afford the timber or the time to do it and with resetting the little tools i have every time i change section , i cant make that many

that also leads onto the other point that i i am unable to make 150 frames in a day and after buying the timber i am still unable to make them as cheaply as i can buy them from KBS.

i have seen and worked with several people who used to make there own frames and all three of them had a workshop of a good size inside they had three bench saws and a spindle moulder each one was set to a particular frame part and were left as is to save on costs of re setting up, none of which i have or can afford!! and all three differant people all had access to home harvest grown timber

so to all who can great , because i cant does not mean that you dont have to

 

[Hombre]

I wish that I had £110 a day.

 

[Springer]

All points fully appreciated HP, thanks for reply

Yes, set up is the thing and one of those cheap digital verniers, (Aldi 8 quid) helps things out. Don't know how many a day you could make without set up time.

I have been making a few hives recently and have my horizontal miller, metal machine really not used much, set up to cut the tenons. Dead accurate width, with the offset from the edge spot on.
H & S note don't try this at home, guards removed for photographic purposes, not recommended

Must talk to Mrs. S about getting two more table saws and a spindle........... (Perhaps I won't bother )

Yes H, £110 a day..........and city bankers make that before they have hung their coat up, Do you think any of them keep bees ?

Have fun
S

 

[hedgerow pete]

from what i have seen if you want to make frames for either personal use or for a living you realy need to set a single tool once and then when ever cut is done then reset the tooling or just have another saw to use for another cut. must admit i have never seen a horizontal miller used on timber before neat trick i like it