Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: Beeboy01 on July 18, 2019, 11:37:28 am

Title: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: Beeboy01 on July 18, 2019, 11:37:28 am
Boy did I learn something last week. I had a couple older 10 frame deep boxes I wanted to cut in half to make 5 frame nucs boxes. Didn't think about measuring anything. just tossed them on the table saw and cut them in half. Guess what, they are about an inch narrower than the commercial 5 frame nucs and only hold 4 frames unless I really push the fifth frame in. LOL measure twice, cut once. Still usable but a bit of an unexpected downsize. They just barely fit on a commercial 5 frame nuc .
Title: Re: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: paus on July 19, 2019, 10:00:25 am
I made two nuc boxes from one 10 frame box by using a router and cutting a 3/8 deep by 1/8 inch slot in the middle of the box.  Cut to fit a piece of 1/8 inch panel so it can be dropped in the slot making a bee proof partition.  If I make another I will make the entrances on opposite ends.  A drop of supper glue in a few spots keeps the panel from moving yet it can be removed and the hive box used for normal use.
Title: Re: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: Acebird on July 21, 2019, 10:04:35 am
You can shave down the frames so 5 will fit but you will want to keep these frames for nucs so best to mark them.
Title: Re: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: BeeMaster2 on July 21, 2019, 10:12:16 am
Michael Bush does what Ace said to do with most of his hives. The bees are packed in tighter and seem to do better. He puts 11 frames in a 10 frame box.
Jim Altmiller
Title: Re: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: JConnolly on November 01, 2019, 01:46:02 pm
Instead of cutting a slot as paus does I cut a partition to fit and shaped to fill the frame rest.  Then I pocket screw it in place.  By using pocket screws instead of a dado I avoid cutting through the back of the handhold, and if I ever remove it then the only damage to the box is the screw holes.  However I do have to cut the partition so that it fills the frame rest area.
Title: Re: Nuc Boxes From 10 Frame Deeps
Post by: Michael Bush on November 04, 2019, 09:21:47 am
If you cut a deep in half and then cut one bys to make new sides to make two nucs the same width as a ten frame box when put together, they will hold four frames.  If you cut it in half and put the sides on the outside, the result is an inch and a half wider than a ten frame box and you can just get five frames in.  They will be 8 7/8" wide.  But a typical five frame nuc is 9 1/4" wide.