Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: ronwhite3030 on July 21, 2013, 03:50:45 am

Title: Queen cages
Post by: ronwhite3030 on July 21, 2013, 03:50:45 am

Sorry the image is a little blurry.  Heres a queen cage I made for banking the JZ-BZ cells. I found something that looked like it online but it had no measurements so I made mine 1 1/2" wide and 2 1/4" tall I used a 1 1/4" bit to make the hole and an 11/16" hole for the JZ-BZ cell. A push pin was easy to find to hold the cell in and its easy to use if you use gloves like I do.
(http://s11.postimg.org/80ji8667j/20130720_222551.jpg) (http://postimg.org/image/80ji8667j/)

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: Jim134 on July 21, 2013, 09:36:33 am

Just wondering why you were still wearing gloves ?  
And if so what kind ?  
Are the cage as you building to protect queen cells ?  
Start this year I have been using California Mini queen cages.



                 BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: alfred on July 21, 2013, 09:38:06 am

Looks great! What size screen did you use?

Alfred

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: ronwhite3030 on July 21, 2013, 09:47:29 pm

#8 hardware cloth.

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: alfred on July 22, 2013, 11:18:08 am

I can't remember, will #8 allow workers through? Or do you just allow them to feed and care from outside the cages?

Alfred

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: Jim134 on July 22, 2013, 08:33:46 pm

Quote from: ronwhite3030 on July 21, 2013, 09:47:29 pm

#8 hardware cloth.

8 mesh hardware cloth is the same they use for package bees.  Looks like this is one thing you can recycle the hardware cloth off of packages if you have them.



                  

                 BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: Michael Bush on July 23, 2013, 09:22:34 am

> will #8 allow workers through?

#8 will not.  #7 will not unless you have a bent wire.  #6 will, barely but some bee will squeeze through.  #5 will let workers through but pollen carriers tend to lose half their pollen, and won't let queens or drones through.  #4 will let everyone through.

Title: Re: Queen cages
Post by: alfred on July 23, 2013, 12:48:42 pm

Great info. Thanks Michael!