What did you do in the 'workshop' today

[Swn58]

So, it was nice down at the farm yesterday. I actually got rather hot. I am waiting for our new Swienty Breeze suits. I hope they will be as cool as they promise!
Today was paint the new Maisemore nucs day........
1. It was fffffreezing in the garden today though.
2. Despite following all the instructions TO THE LETTER.....my new Ryobi One+ airless sprayer is not helping at all! I actually had to choose between putting hours in, to get the much faster sprayer working, or just dump it and get the brushes out. I chose the brushes!
When I have some time spare I will have another go with the sprayer. Unfortunately, I have no time for 'shirkers' at the moment.
3. Maisemore nucs are a little bit more delicate than BS ones. I encountered trouble when moving them about to paint them. I actually caused damage to the 'frame rails' three times. They are so very thin and 'friable' that if weight is put on them they just crumble. Not that important? I think it could be. BS moulded rails are far thicker and I get the impression are moulded to a higher pressure maybe. I'm not a poly-scientist though!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Maisemore nucs are a little bit more delicate than BS ones. I encountered trouble when moving them about to paint them. I actually caused damage to the 'frame rails' three times. They are so very thin and 'friable' that if weight is put on them they just crumble.

I've never found any of what you describe to be the case to be honest, quite the opposite in fact.

 

[BigAshW]

Picked up a couple of scrap pallets from work. Was at a loose end today so broke one of them down and managed to salvage enough timber to build my first JBM floor.

I know it's not pretty but I'm sure the bees won't mind and it only cost me the glue and some screws.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I'd taken the advantage of the spring floor swap/cleaning rounds to bring all the Mkii underfloor entrances back home for maintenance/upgrading, fair play, they've been out there over ten years now without being touched and only now is the Ronseal 5 year woodstain beginning to look a bit shabby, all the timber still good to go apart from one floor which had a bit of rot in once corner which I've now addressed. I'm using cuprniol shades now but very much doubt that will last ten years - I've already repainted one today which maybe has been out for four or five.

 

[pargyle]

Picked up a couple of scrap pallets from work. Was at a loose end today so broke one of them down and managed to salvage enough timber to build my first JBM floor.

I know it's not pretty but I'm sure the bees won't mind and it only cost me the glue and some screws.

Nice job - Does the job and I like recycling and repurposing. Some pallets I picked up last year that had come in from the Far East with engineering components on them appeared to be made from Eucalyptus ... looks a lot like Mahogany and is very weatherproof. I assume it was not quite furniture grade but I've been using it for other outdoor projects ...

 

[Hachi]

Picked up a couple of scrap pallets from work. Was at a loose end today so broke one of them down and managed to salvage enough timber to build my first JBM floor.

I know it's not pretty but I'm sure the bees won't mind and it only cost me the glue and some screws.

Not sure if its important or not but pallets are treated in two ways, heat or chemicals and I dont think the chemically treated are very kind.

 

[BigAshW]

Not sure if its important or not but pallets are treated in two ways, heat or chemicals and I dont think the chemically treated are very kind.

I don't think the timber on these had been treated at all. They where the cheap single use pallets without any paint on.

Thanks for the tip though I'll keep an eye out.

 

[Antipodes]

Not sure if its important or not but pallets are treated in two ways, heat or chemicals and I dont think the chemically treated are very kind.

Yeah, I avoid MB stamped ones and go for the HT ones.

Do your own research, but these are a start...apparently the MB ones have been "outlawed" in the UK for some time, but pays to check. I see them here.

https://www.universalpallets.com/2018/01/ultimate-guide-pallet-markings/
https://www.1001pallets.com/pallet-safety/

 

[youngyoungs]

Spent the day scrubbing and soaking poly kit, but at the end knocked together a honey tipper to save me balancing my settling tank on books etc whilst I fill jars. Didn't have the right size hinges, or screws, but it's practically finished. I slapped on a bit of paint, and will have another look at it tomorrow. Reminded me that I am definitely not a professional woodworker!

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Well, workshop/apiary - took advantage of a few hive movements to clear the oldest stands and do some maintenance as the feet on one was seriously rotten, as it was, the rest wasn't much better so ended up, apart from a few salvaged pieces so ended up making two new stands it was sunny albeit a bit cold so I did do a lot of it at the home apiary. I'm sure with the age of some a few more will need tarting up soon.

 

[Antipodes]

Nice job - Does the job and I like recycling and repurposing. Some pallets I picked up last year that had come in from the Far East with engineering components on them appeared to be made from Eucalyptus ... looks a lot like Mahogany and is very weatherproof. I assume it was not quite furniture grade but I've been using it for other outdoor projects ...

I dropped a full honey super on a pallet yesterday and as well as the super breaking, a bit broke off the pallet and revealed the colour of the "fresh" wood underneath.
Was the wood in you pallets this colour?

 

[Hachi]

Finished the clearer boards and got the thicknesser running... very impressive.

 

[Anduril]

Built up a pulse width modulator for testing as a unit for a warming cabinet.

 

[pargyle]

I dropped a full honey super on a pallet yesterday and as well as the super breaking, a bit broke off the pallet and revealed the colour of the "fresh" wood underneath.
Was the wood in you pallets this colour?

Yes... I think it's a fast growing asian eucalyptus ... they treat it almost as a weed in some places over there - it's useless for firewood and there is so much silica in it that it blunts most normal steel in no time but they use it for pallets and packaging at times.

 

[Antipodes]

Yes... I think it's a fast growing asian eucalyptus ... they treat it almost as a weed in some places over there - it's useless for firewood and there is so much silica in it that it blunts most normal steel in no time but they use it for pallets and packaging at times.

Yes, a beaut wood that. It reminds me little bit of ebony. If it is what I'm thinking, I call it Merbau and it grows in far north Queensland and the tropics. A great wood for turning ...apparently!

 

[drex]

Have finished converting my old KTBH into a National horizontal long hive, as the bees in the KTBH had died out, and even though I ran it on minimal intervention, I was no longer enjoying running it or learning from it.
This time I have made entrances at either end ( for splits etc) , I have put some mesh panels in the floor and a removable panel in the floor for cleaning. Have made it top bee space and will cut two or three Perspex crown boards for it.

 

[Amari]

Have finished converting my old KTBH into a National horizontal long hive, as the bees in the KTBH had died out, and even though I ran it on minimal intervention, I was no longer enjoying running it or learning from it.
This time I have made entrances at either end ( for splits etc) , I have put some mesh panels in the floor and a removable panel in the floor for cleaning. Have made it top bee space and will cut two or three Perspex crown boards for it.

D'you mean it will take Nat frames with foundation rather than just top bars?

 

[pargyle]

Have finished converting my old KTBH into a National horizontal long hive, as the bees in the KTBH had died out, and even though I ran it on minimal intervention, I was no longer enjoying running it or learning from it.
This time I have made entrances at either end ( for splits etc) , I have put some mesh panels in the floor and a removable panel in the floor for cleaning. Have made it top bee space and will cut two or three Perspex crown boards for it.

Yes - that's exactly the journey I made when I first started my beekeeping ... my LDH was transformed from a TBH (or at least some of the timber was used). Mine takes 14 x 12 frames ... 24 of them horizontally altough it's rare to see all the frames being used .. you will find that they are bee factories.

 

[B+.]

I promised myself that I would do all the "winter jobs" over the winter...but didn't!
Now, I've loads of instrumental insemination tips to make. I just sent 60 of these 30mm Harbo tips to a friend in NL - now, I can make some for myself.

 

[Swn58]

It's freezing out there! I've been giving ten of the new Maisemore nuc-bodies a second coat. Believe it or not, the colour is called 'beeswax!'
Back on the frame-rail front......they are very crumbly. Despite efforts to avoid touching them at all, they are proving very easy to damage. I have one of my BS nucs back here at the moment. Their rails are far chunkier and the moulding seems neater and 'denser.' The BS nucs have been through a whole busy season, with barely a scratch. The new ones have not even been assigned yet! I think I will have to strengthen their rails with correx strips.