Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: Ziqi on August 12, 2020, 06:47:18 am
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https://www.amazon.com/NA-Multifunctional-Stainless-Beekeeping-Beekeepers/dp/B089GVFP6W/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&m=A7RV4IY8BO3K1&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&qid=1597223908&s=merchant-items&sr=1-20 (https://www.amazon.com/NA-Multifunctional-Stainless-Beekeeping-Beekeepers/dp/B089GVFP6W/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&m=A7RV4IY8BO3K1&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&qid=1597223908&s=merchant-items&sr=1-20)
https://www.amazon.com/Ziqi-Uncapping-Beekeeper-Beekeeping-Supplies/dp/B0892KC11H/ref=sr_1_24?dchild=1&m=A7RV4IY8BO3K1&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&qid=1597223908&s=merchant-items&sr=1-24 (https://www.amazon.com/Ziqi-Uncapping-Beekeeper-Beekeeping-Supplies/dp/B0892KC11H/ref=sr_1_24?dchild=1&m=A7RV4IY8BO3K1&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&qid=1597223908&s=merchant-items&sr=1-24)
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What I said on your other thread is of course applicable here. I would add that a frame grip is a very optional piece of equipment. It can be handy at times, but it is by no means required. An uncapping fork is something you need for certain tasks (like uncapping drones or extracting with an extractor) but it's not required for something like a general inspection. So the value of these products depends on what you personally are trying to do.
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Neither.
I have all of those tools. I hardly use any of them. I will use the red handle hive tool when I cannot find a standard one. They are handy when you have a really stuck frame. But that is not too often. I have almost dropped and dropped a few frames with the grabber so now I don?t use it. The ones with the wood are just fancy wood handled hive tools.
Jim Altmiller
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I think the frame grabber is a handy tool but I don't use it for carrying frames. I use it when the frame is stuck to the frame below. You can work the frame back and forth to break off the burr comb between frames without hurting bees. It is not the first tool you should get because if you are new you are probably in the hive more often and not having stuck frames between boxes. I have yet to find a need for any of the fancy hive tools. The standard tool is more than adequate.
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Just the red handled hive 5ool. It is all I use, and I like it very much.
I would avoid the wood handled ones. With the honey and propolis, they will be messy and hard to clean.
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I would avoid the wood handled ones. With the honey and propolis, they will be messy and hard to clean.
Bob that is more of a problem if you wear gloves. If you clip a dry wash cloth to your belt loop you can keep your finger tips fairly clean.
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I use the standard or red handle tool. I have several or each and grab the first one I come to. The frame grabber is cumbersome, but works if you want to spend the time. The scratcher will be used at "some" extraction times. I've never used one in over 40 years of beekeeping. AS someone saud, the wood habdle is jiust to collevt sticky and dirt.
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I have three standard hive tools, no J hooks and no wood. I drop them all over the place so I have two all the time in the bee yard.
I have a frame grabber but it?s my least favorite yard tool and I only use when a particularly heavy frame is stuck.
That particular uncapped is handy but I have a harmony farms uncapped now and I have an older standard uncapping fork to get the couple of low spots that might get missed once in awhile.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Greetings, Acebird.
I was talkimg about the tool getting gunky.
I stopped wearing gloves since working with you all at BeeFest, and I use the orange grit hand cleaner from the auto parts store for my hands.. It does a great job. But, my red hive tool gets gunked up with propolis, and I end up scraping it clean with a knife from time to time. I was thinking that tools with wooden handles attached would be harder to scrape and keep clean. Lots of angles and corners.
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I think the frame grabber is a handy tool but I don't use it for carrying frames. I use it when the frame is stuck to the frame below.
I agree Ace, though I seldom use mine anymore. The handiest tool that I have found after using all the above, including a 5 way paint scraper, is an antique paper thin, carbon steel, wood blade, butcher knife. It can easily separate the most glued together boxes without damaging the wood in the corners. I also use the tip for easy separating and pulling frames, even the most Propolized, stuck together frames. I have not seen or found a modern butcher knife that is this Thin. I would hate to lose it. Of corse as with any hive tool, we must be careful not to fall on it.
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I was thinking that tools with wooden handles attached would be harder to scrape and keep clean. Lots of angles and corners.
Don't scrape it dip the handle in hot wax. Wax isn't sticky.
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I agree Ace, though I seldom use mine anymore.
I very seldom used mine too but when I needed it it was handy to have.
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I agree Ace, though I seldom use mine anymore.
I very seldom used mine too but when I needed it it was handy to have.
For Sure !!
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The wood handle is no problem for me either. I do not give it a second thought.
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>With the honey and propolis, they will be messy and hard to clean.
Bob if you will rinse the honey off, then use just a little rubbing alcohol after use, the described will come right off.
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I've an over sized frame tool made by Red Devil along with a bunch of standard sized frame tools. A lot of the equipment I have was my dad's which he purchased back in the 70's. Apparently back then the suppliers would give away the standard sized hive tools with an order, think I have almost a dozen in the shop. Also have a set of aluminum frame grips which I use all the time, they can grab a frame and give better leverage while working the top bar with the hive tool. Beside that a frame hanger comes in handy during an inspection but I don't use it all the time. That's about all I need except for my veil, smoker, gloves and a used long sleeved white dress shirt. keep it simple
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I'm with Jim. I have all of those and never use them...
My favorite hive tool:
https://www.amazon.com/Beekeeping-Scraper-Stainless-Scraping-Beekeepers/dp/B07QDZ9F7B/ref=sr_1_128?dchild=1&keywords=italian+hive+tool&qid=1604347630&sr=8-128
I don't know the quality of this particular one. Most of mine came from Brushy Mt. before their demise and after that Dadant.
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I don't possess any of those, and don't want any of them, thanks ...
I use 3 tools for inspections (always have, and ain't gonna change): a 2" paint scraper with a very thin spring-steel blade which has an edge you could shave with - perfect for cracking open boxes without causing damage; a large screwdriver I use for lifting frame-lugs - perfect for the job, and handy to hold between Hoffman spacers when closing-up to save squashing bees; and lastly a 2" paint brush. I used to use a pukka bee-brush, then one day I mislaid it and so tried using a paint-brush instead ... and found that I actually preferred it.
Happy days ...
LJ
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I hate sharp hive tools. They shave some wood off every time you use them. When I accidentally get a sharp one I purposefully dull it. ON the other hand I hate a dull knife and every time I find one I sharpen it.