I see both plastic and wooden racks. Is one better? Wood has a nice aesthetic, but I imagine plastic is much cheaper and up to the job. Can you reuse them?

Killer Bee Killed.

Color me envious.

The plastic ones came with the nucs. All the ones Pete assembled are wood with natural wax foundation. For us, using wood really is an aesthetic choice although experienced keepers argue both ways in terms of functionality. I think the price was nominally different. You do reuse them but rotate them out after a few years.

Dad has always used wooden ones. His lasted for many many years. I can't recall him ever having to replace many. His hives died off a few years ago and he hasn't found a decent swarm to replace them as yet. He hasn't been looking too hard though. He's been busy with other stuff.

The sanding drum I made was vibrating out of balance too much. I realized the threaded end of the bolt just wasn't being held straight by the chuck. I needed a smooth surface for it to grab. So I dug around in my scrap metal pile and found a perfect rod that I think came out of an old ink jet printer. I pulled out my grandfather' sold surplus navy tap an die set, and got to work putting some threads on the rod.http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/15/ysetevub.jpg

What did you make today?
 

The sanding drum I made was vibrating out of balance too much. I realized the threaded end of the bolt just wasn't being held straight by the chuck. I needed a smooth surface for it to grab. So I dug around in my scrap metal pile and found a perfect rod that I think came out of an old ink jet printer. I pulled out my grandfather's old surplus Navy tap and die set, and got to work putting some threads on the rod.

Pretty much everything in this picture used to be my grandfather's. Pretty cool.
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/15/abu8apys.jpg

So it works a lot smoother now.http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/15/a6y4agu4.jpg

I was having major problems with tapatalk last night. I'd post something and then the new post window would already be populated with the text I just wrote and no indication whether it got posted with a picture or not. I even shut the phone down and restarted and went back in to tapatalk to try to clear things up.

Anyway, I could clean this up, but then all my venting about tapatalk wouldn't make any sense, and the damage to the thread is already done.

Mostly I was just excited because I had an excuse to dig out the old tap and die set that I think I may have used once a decade ago. And never since. You just look at this thing, and think of all the possibilities. But really, it isn't that often I need to cut threads into something.

Isn't this cool? I love using old tools that still work well, and probably better than modern stuff.

Attachment 47674

Attachment 47675

Attachment 47676

cutting your own threads is very satisfying. I usually think to myself (directed at the floggers of cheap hardware) "HaHA! take taht bitches!"

I spell it that way too.

:lol:
I was just thinking. The last time I cut my own threads was when I was trying to remove a lug nut. It was the exact opposite of satisfying that time, because I would have preferred using the threads that came with the wheel stud rather than cut new ones with the messed up lug nut, eventually breaking the wheel stud.

Nice job with the nuc install !
I would ditch that 1 gallon feeder and get a 2 gallon from Mann Lake with ladders - (http://www.mannlakeltd.com/beekeepin...ry/page45.html). They will need syrup to draw out the bare foundation until the nectar flow starts. A Mega-bee pollen patty from Dadant would help with brood stimulation as well. I'm a fan of wooden frames myself, as some of the plastic (Pierco) frames can warp over time. Have fun !!!

Thanks. I'm using two different hive top feeders both over 2 gallon capacity.

Glatt that is awesome that you get to use your Grampa's tools. There is a bond in that.