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Author Topic: Frames - Build your own or buy?  (Read 8445 times)

Offline Acebird

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #20 on: August 01, 2017, 08:06:17 am »
LJ dump your history and then type in the url.  This should bring you to the website.  If you make changes dump your history again.
Brian Cardinal
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Offline CapnChkn

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #21 on: August 01, 2017, 06:10:52 pm »
It is frustrating to access the website through the network.  I seem to be able to upload photos to eBay though.  No idea why you all can't see the site.  I've been running it for about 2 years now.
"Thinking is like sin, them that doesn't is scairt of it, and them that does gets to liking it so much they can't quit!"  -Josh Billings.

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #22 on: August 02, 2017, 02:40:52 pm »
I still cannot get to it.
Jim
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Offline CapnChkn

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #23 on: August 02, 2017, 10:26:20 pm »
"Thinking is like sin, them that doesn't is scairt of it, and them that does gets to liking it so much they can't quit!"  -Josh Billings.

Offline little john

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #24 on: August 03, 2017, 04:09:29 am »
Yep - those graphics display ok, both on the forum webpage and directly from the links ...

waxedframethumb.png      size: 361,329 bytes
waxedframe.png         size: 3,299,058 bytes

(still can't see your avatar)
LJ
A Heretics Guide to Beekeeping - http://heretics-guide.atwebpages.com

Offline BeeMaster2

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #25 on: August 03, 2017, 08:25:14 am »
Yep, same here. They both work.
They look good.
Jim
Democracy is 2 wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb contesting the vote.
Ben Franklin

beechet

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #26 on: January 14, 2018, 04:18:30 pm »
All my frames are now being fitted with verticle bamboo barbeque skewers for comb support.  Fishing line proved reasonably ok, but the skewers are so much better.
LJ

Do you just glue the skewers or glue and drill holes for them both?

Offline little john

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #27 on: January 15, 2018, 10:33:49 am »
Drill holes both top and bottom, slightly over-size, using a simple jig made from scrap wood, so that the holes are in exactly the same position each time.  Slide the skewer through them, leaving around half an inch sticking out at the top.  Wipe wood glue around that half-inch and do likewise on the half-inch at the other end of the skewer which will he held by the bottom bar.  Then slide the skewer home, and clean-up the excess glue with a tissue. Trim the excess away when the glue has set.

When working with 9" frames I use much thinner skewers, and find these often have a slight curve to them, so I try to ensure that the curve lies in the same plane as the frame - i.e. doesn't 'stick out' when looking along the frame length.  I'm finding that about 5% of ex supermarket skewers are unusable.
LJ
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Offline paus

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #28 on: January 15, 2018, 10:46:42 am »
I do not drill holes in the bottom.  My skewers are made from bamboo and are hard and sharp, so I just hit them with a hammer and they drive into the bottom frame, then a touch of titebond top and bottom trim after glue sets, done.  I built a simple jig so all holes are in the same place and I stack and drill 3 or four at a time in the jig.   

Offline little john

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #29 on: January 18, 2018, 03:06:33 pm »
If it's of interest to any builders of foundationless frames - I've just documented in some detail the procedure used and equipment I've built for "Turning Firewood into Frames".  http://heretics-guide.atwebpages.com/index.html 

LJ
A Heretics Guide to Beekeeping - http://heretics-guide.atwebpages.com

Offline rwurster

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #30 on: January 22, 2018, 12:07:28 am »
I build all my own frames, they are all foundationless.  The worst part is assembling them.  Luckily I still have 300 assembled frames and enough frame blanks to make another 200 so I'm good to go.  I really should assemble those blanks before 2020 :cool:
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Offline little john

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #31 on: January 23, 2018, 10:29:50 am »
I agree that building your own - unless you have comprehensive woodworking facilities to mass-produce commercial clones - can be somewhat tedious.  But if there are no plans to sell those frames/combs - then you only need to build them once (obviously). 
I adopt a strategy of pacing the job: first, spend a day cutting-up wood to size, enough for a couple of hundred.  Then set-up a couple of frames in a jig, walk away and do something else whilst the glue sets.  Then each time I pass by the workshop, I set-up two more.  That way, 10 or 12 can easily be made each day, every day - in the background, as it were.  A good stock soon mounts up.

But if you're selling frames/combs, then I'd suggest you make 'em from commercial flat-pack.  The jig I now use for this enables the gluing-up of 15-16 every half an hour, so making-up 150 a day is straightforward enough.  It would be a much higher figure than this if I used a nail-gun, but I don't.  Should I ever need to assemble more than this, then I'll simply make-up a second jig.

LJ
A Heretics Guide to Beekeeping - http://heretics-guide.atwebpages.com

Offline minz

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Re: Frames - Build your own or buy?
« Reply #32 on: January 24, 2018, 11:24:27 pm »
Here is how I did mine.
Side bars:
 were a 2x6, (width of my jointer) Ran them through the jointer for a clean edge and get the width I wanted
that I cut 2x the length/ height I wanted (safer than doing small blocks)
ran them partially through the jointer both sides for the bottom round out (used a stop on the jointer table).

Cut the blocks in half to correct height ?chop saw
Cut dato?s in tops and bottoms-

Sliced them to final dimensions with the table saw with a sled and piece of wood under the cut out portion from the jointer.
Stacked and taped them and drilled holes, maybe should have done this before slicing them but did not have a drill bit long enough and I only have a bench drill press.

Bottom bars:
Stock is going to be the thickness of the bottom bar and the wider the better.
Chop saw to length
Set the full kirf blade (or dato) for the center grove and increment them through with your box jig to correct depth (picture a ? stock with a bunch of cuts through it) Do not forget to include the kirf of the blade for when you cut them apart! (you can see I missed that on the increment
Raise the blade, and split them.
Using the dato cut the shoulder on each side.
Top bars:
Again, full length, cut dato?s for the frame width both ends
Set dato to angle and pushed it again
Cut the kirf for the foundation on the bottom.
Ripped the top bars to width
Cut the wedge out.
Put on a dato and cut the sides dato sides and bottom.
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anything