Author Topic: Damaged a queen (Read 4783 times)

Lesgold · « **Reply #20 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:05:20 am »

Thanks Nigel. I did some maths after making a few assumptions. I decided to use 24 pins to follow your plan and have each pin 5mm apart. At that point, the brain started to hurt a bit as I had to think about the diameter of the circle required to get the spacing correct. That?s where the old high school maths came into play. Used the old Sine rule to figure the radius of the circle at just over 19mm which is not far from what you mentioned. I also have a bunch of blue cut tacks which might do the job. Tomorrow is going to be windy so I won?t be into the bees so it will be a day in the workshop. I?ll post what I come up with in the ?Today I Made? thread.

BeeMaster2 · « **Reply #21 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:49:34 am »

Les,
With those dimensions it would bee very easy to use your laser engraver to cut out a bunch of them. You can even drill or at least mark the holes with the laser, for the pins. When I get home, I plan on making some just for fun. I can give them away at BeeFest.
Jim Altmiller

BeeMaster2 · « **Reply #22 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:54:50 am »

This is also a good tool to use when you are inspecting your hive or making splits so that once you find her and cage her, you know where she is at so that she doesn?t end up in the wrong place or above your queen excluder. Just bee sure to let her out when you are done.
Jim Altmiller.

Lesgold · « **Reply #23 on:** August 30, 2024, 09:00:47 am »

Good thinking Jim. I was going to use my wood lathe with its indexing head but the laser will be even better. As you said, once the file is made, it would be easy to make a bunch of them. I?ll get onto that tomorrow.

jimineycricket · « **Reply #24 on:** August 30, 2024, 10:03:31 am »

I used a twist drill to measure the distance between wires of a queen excluder and then used that to
determine the distance between the pins I placed on the catcher.
If you are as clumsy as I am, you can still kill queens with it, so be forewarned and very careful.

BeeMaster2 · « **Reply #25 on:** August 30, 2024, 02:36:08 pm »

Les,
To make the nail holes, make one and use the circular tool set to 24. The whole job can bee done with circles. 😊
I have a couple of live oak boards, think of the wood that they built Old Iron Sides from, that were very thin cuts that I planed down to 1/4? thickness probably 20 years ago and just dug it out of the wood pile a few weeks ago. It is very strong and hard but cuts perfectly on the laser.

Jim Altmiller

Ben Framed · « **Reply #26 on:** August 30, 2024, 02:43:41 pm »

Quote from: jimineycricket on August 30, 2024, 10:03:31 am

I used a twist drill to measure the distance between wires of a queen excluder and then used that to
determine the distance between the pins I placed on the catcher.
If you are as clumsy as I am, you can still kill queens with it, so be forewarned and very careful.

Thanks for the good idea and warning Jimmy.

Phillip

Lesgold · « **Reply #27 on:** August 30, 2024, 06:00:48 pm »

I used the circular array tool to design the nail holes and their spacings and concentric circles for the basic shape. It only took about 3 minutes all up to draw the project. Cut time will be only a minute or so. Will need to play with sizes until I get exactly what I want but that?s part of the fun. Will cut a few variations of the design after breakfast.

Lesgold · « **Reply #28 on:** August 30, 2024, 06:10:33 pm »

Thanks for the warning Jimmy. The last thing we want is more squashed queens. The oak will look nice on this type of project. I will probably use either MDF or plywood as I have plenty of offcuts lying around. Plywood would be the strongest choice as it has cross grain veneers to give strength in all directions. Most of the timber that I have doesn?t have the strength needed in the long grain and would tend to split.

Lesgold · « **Reply #29 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:15:32 pm »

Cut a couple of blanks to see how things would work out. The pin holes in the first attempt were just a bit too tight so the hole size was increased by .1mm. The pins need to be tapped into place but shouldn?t split or distort the timber. I?m just making up a simple jig to hold the washer in place while pins are hit into position.

Ben Framed · « **Reply #30 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:23:03 pm »

Looks good Les. Since you drilled a small hole in each pin place the main wood piece shouldn't?t split?

Lesgold · « **Reply #31 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:32:20 pm »

Thanks Phillip. I wanted the pins to be a tap in fit so that they wouldn?t fall out. If the holes were too small, splitting could be an issue. That?s where a bit of trial and error is needed. I just turned up a block of wood to support the washer while the pins were tapped into place. I used cut tacks as that is what I had on hand. Might try using some frame tacks as they are a bit thinner and slightly longer. Will see how it goes after this first model is completed. I?ll have a go at stringing the tennis racquet next.

Lesgold · « **Reply #32 on:** August 30, 2024, 08:53:38 pm »

The winding of the cotton only took a couple of minutes. (Thanks for the idea Nigel). As the cut tacks are slightly tapered, a spot of superglue on each tack would help to hold the cotton firmly in place. This would make this a throwaway item as it would be difficult to rebind it. That?s not an issue in this situation as a new one would only take a short period of time to make. In hindsight, the 15mm frame tacks may be a slightly better option. Back to the drawing board to make a few modifications.

Lesgold · « **Reply #33 on:** August 31, 2024, 02:06:59 am »

The frame tacks are a much better option than cut tacks. Parallel sides make attaching the cotton a much easier task. One was made from 3.2mm MDF and the thicker one was made from two pieces of 3mm plywood with the face veneers offset at 90 degrees. This will give extra strength but I?m not sure if it is needed. I was changing over bottom boards on a couple of hives so it was the perfect opportunity to test it out. Found the queen and pinned her with ease. She was already marked so there was no need to pull the pen out. Thank you so much for the idea Nigel. This will simplify the marking process and be a bit safer than using my chunky fingers. Jim, I?m pleased that you mentioned the laser printer for this task. I must have had blinkers on when thinking about how to make it using the wood lathe. It must be the fading brain cells taking effect. Lol. While I had the smoker going, I went back to the hive where the queen was given a squeeze cuddle about a week ago. Found some eggs and eventually saw her walking around on a frame. You just get lucky sometimes I guess. At least she will be replaced if she is not up to scratch.

Ben Framed · « **Reply #34 on:** September 13, 2024, 11:40:17 am »

How is the queen marking going for you now Les since you have this tool? No more damaged queens, I presume.

Lesgold · « **Reply #35 on:** September 13, 2024, 10:49:41 pm »

Hi Phillip,

Just finished checking a hive a couple of minutes ago. I went in to cut it down to one box and add a new bottom board and see how it was going. It was a hive that had struggled through winter and came into spring with only one frame of bees. It had a marked queen that was laying at the time I inspected it last month. There was no signs of disease so I decided to add a couple of frames of bees and brood to see how it would go. When I inspected the hive, I noticed that the queen had been superseded. I found the young queen and dropped the cage over her and had her marked in about 10 seconds. It was excellent. I noticed the new queen was already laying and the hive was looking good. It should start to build up quickly now.

Ben Framed · « **Reply #36 on:** September 13, 2024, 11:25:29 pm »

That is awesome Les. I have got to get one of those! My thanks to you and NigelP for bringing this to Beemaster at this time !

Michael Bush · « **Reply #37 on:** September 16, 2024, 06:30:54 am »

I have one. After I speared a fast queen with one, I quit using it.

Ben Framed · « **Reply #38 on:** September 16, 2024, 12:05:13 pm »

Ewuuuu! Thanks for the waning Mr Bush. (Maybe I'm not doing so bad by making the queens by hand after all!! Quick and easy for me...) I suppose for those who do not have a steady hand, the above queen marking devise would work ok as long as the user knows when to stop applying pressure once the queen is 'trapped'. Your lesson learned and shared should be a good lesson for us all to being careful when in use. Thanks again!

Phillip

Lesgold · « **Reply #39 on:** September 29, 2024, 12:28:34 am »

A few queens have been marked as I come across them during hive manipulations and inspections. This particular queen, once trapped, tried to turn around but her thorax was pinned and she looked a bit twisted under the cage. She was not damaged at all. Once marked, she was released after about 10 seconds.