I am approaching confusion...Isn't all the Lang boxes the same wideth x length...just deep...was the difference? If not I have a ? or two.
Thought I had it figured out. Hum!
A little history lesson:
Back in By gone days there were 4 basic widths for beehives: 5 frame nucleus hive, 8 frame (garden), 10 frame (American Standard), and 12 frame (Imperial).
Over the years there have developed a number of box depths: Dadant Deep, Standard Deep, Western (aka 3/4), medium (aka Illinois), shallow, and comb (aka box or chunk honey).
Both the Dadant Deep box and the 12 frame Imperial hives have favor and are nearly impossible to find.
5 frame nucs are usually available in medium or standard deep depths.
8 frame garden hives are available in standard deep, western, illinois, shallow and comb depths.
10 frame American Standard and the 12 frame Imperial hives are/were available in; Dadant deep, Standard deep, western, medium, shallow, and comb dept boxes.
Over my time as a beekeeper I've used or been exposed to each variation described above.
A 12 frame Dadant Deep was impossibe to lift without some type of assistance, it was essentially 20W X 20L X 14D and weighed about 180-200 lbs when full of honey and bees. The outside frames either weren't used by the bees, or if coaxed to use them, left to sour (ferment and mold in the comb), as a consequence the 12 frame hive fell out of favor during the great depression.
The Dadant Deep (essentially the same as a standard deep plus a medium) fell out of favor for several of the same reasons as the 12 frame Imperial, but mainly it was just too heavy to handle without assistance.
