# Honey Paw Uncapper



## Tmeeh (May 22, 2011)

Has anyone tried these http://beekeeping.honeypaw.fi/Slit-uncapping.php ?? Are they available in the US? Do they work well on capped honey in old brood comb? Another link with photos. http://taru.ee/pood/honey-paw-viilkoorija


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## ByGonzah (Feb 4, 2012)

Fascinating. I want one.


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## jrbbees (Apr 4, 2010)

I like the look but I can't determin if they are even for sale yet. They don't seem to post a price any where.
If you find out, Please let us know in another post or a followup.


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## Katharina (May 2, 2011)

It said 220 Euro. That is about 300 US dollars.


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## lupester (Mar 12, 2008)

I got one. It was a little complicated to get the funds wired to their bank but it arrived a week after I paid for it. It works great. After uncapping 9 supers there is less than 1 shot glass of wax that is removed from the comb. It takes the bees about 1-2 days to rebuild the cells completely.


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

What powers it?


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## lupester (Mar 12, 2008)

It uses steam from a steam generator. I purchased a small one used for bending wood. Here is what I purchased:
http://www.cometsupply.com/mp/EARLEX/pm/ELXSS77USSG/


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

Has anyone else tried this uncapper? If so, what's your opinion?

Thanks!


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## Greg Lowe (Feb 3, 2012)

I'm planning to order one when they send me the invoice. Will provide feedback after trying it.


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## Greg Lowe (Feb 3, 2012)

I was pleased with the uncapper.

We extracted 4 deeps this weekend. All the wax that ran through the extractor resulted in about 1 cup of wax that was caught by the wire strainers.

The new combs uncapped quickly. We had some older combs that had brood in them in the past that took longer to melt through.

I think it was a little slower than using a hot knife, but there was no need to get a capping scratcher to hit the low spots. There was no waiting for the capping honey to drain out of the cappings (since there were none). The uncapper itself did not get sticky. I think we could speed up and maybe not have the slits as deep next time.

I could uncap 10 frames in the time it took to spin 10 frames, so things rolled along.

You do need to work through a hose management matter. You have a steam hose and a water vapor hose to work with. It took just a few minutes to engineer something in the basement to keep the hoses high so that your hand was not on the steam hose and you were not dragging the hoses across the frames as you uncapped.

All in all, I was pleased with the first time of using the uncapper.

It cost 170.73 Euros plus 35 Euros for shipping to Alabama from Finland. So, 205.73 Euros total (about $280)
(I got it from this website http://beekeeping.honeypaw.fi/Slit-uncapping.php by contacting the email address at the bottom [email protected]. They e-mailed an invoice with their bank wire instructions.)

It was a minor ordeal at the bank to wire the funds from a non-business account. It took a week from the time they shipped it until it arrived.


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## svtkpr (Mar 16, 2011)

When spinning the honey out does it take the same amount of time compared to uncapping with an uncapping knife. Can you show a close up of an uncapped frame before and after extracted?


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## Capphd (May 20, 2013)

They really need an American dealer.


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## challenger (May 27, 2009)

I'm confused. Do these comes with a steam source or does one need to purchase on in addition to the uncapper?


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## assiegordon (Jan 6, 2014)

Propolis in Canada now sells it, with the steam generator.


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## Hops Brewster (Jun 17, 2014)

assiegordon said:


> Propolis in Canada now sells it, with the steam generator.



http://www.propolis-etc.ca/
catalog is a PDF on the right side of the page. At $550CA, steep. Greg Lowe paid about $280 shipped from Finland. In fairness, it does include the steam generator though.


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## Bean (Jun 13, 2004)

We just finished extracting with a honey paw. Loved it. - Much faster than a hot knife, Much easier on aged hands (we extracted around 1,200 pounds of honey). We hooked it to a steamer that is made for wall paper removal (rented locally, so that was an added expense, but not much). I love it. The hardest part of the whole thing was buying it - but then I was worried: send $300 overseas to something on line - not really a calm experience. They do need a US distributor


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## max2 (Dec 24, 2009)

Tmeeh said:


> Has anyone tried these http://beekeeping.honeypaw.fi/Slit-uncapping.php ?? Are they available in the US? Do they work well on capped honey in old brood comb? Another link with photos. http://taru.ee/pood/honey-paw-viilkoorija


The links don't seem to work.
Anybody has a picture?

thanks


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## rolftonbees (Jul 10, 2014)

There is a youtube video.


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## taskipe (Sep 22, 2015)

My friend bought a slit uncapper for this season and is very pleased with the quality of the product. I didn't get to see it at work but I'm very eager to get one myself. I checked the website of Honey Paw and Slit uncapper need separate heating to work. My friend got the steam heating unit from Honey Paw as well. Here is the direct link to manufacturer's (Honey Paw) website: http://www.mesi.fi/en/products/web-catalog/slit-uncapper/
Also I found this youtube clip showing slit uncapper at work. Video seems to be with extraction line, but shows slit uncapper use well enough https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgRU1nEuWGY


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## Mefco (Oct 16, 2015)

Anybody use this? Got any more recent/new reviews?
Thanks


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## assiegordon (Jan 6, 2014)

I bought one last summer from propolis. It worked so well. My 20 frame dadant extractor cannot keep up with the uncapping anymore. Nice clean comb. Very pricey but one of the best additions to my list. I do only have wax from the comb exchange though now but that does not bother me as I'm not a wax farmer.


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## chorrylan (Feb 20, 2016)

For those using the honey paw uncapper. 

Do you find issues with frames gradually becoming uneven as you are no longer evening them out with the knife?

I'm still unsure of the relative benefit of not having to process cappings vs not having the wax for things like waxing new plastic foundation.

Anything else you've found from using it?


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## max2 (Dec 24, 2009)

With the price of wax what it is I would miss it. Great gadget.


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## johno (Dec 4, 2011)

I purchased one in 2016, used it in harvesting in July and was not too impressed. First of all I strain the honey directly from the extractor and due to the melted wax from the slit uncapper the strainers soon plugged up. I reverted to a hot knife which I felt was faster and less trouble.
Johno


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## max2 (Dec 24, 2009)

Thanks, Johno - very helpful info


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## burraboy (Feb 12, 2017)

I bought one at the start of this season because of arthritis problems limiting the amount of work I can do when using uncapping knives. I have a couple of observations that you might find useful.
Firstly, it is a slower method than with using knives. Trying to go too hard and fast produces a lot of distortion in the wax on the frame which I would rather avoid. Even so, depending on how fast the honey is coming out of the frames in the extractor, it is possible to keep up with demand for more frames. It is probably better to start uncapping well ahead of centrifuging, especially if the honey is coming out quick. Taking it slowly probably does a better job and is easier on your frames.
Secondly, trying to filter the honey out of the extractor is not a successful option, rather, let it sit for a couple of days and skim the wax froth off the top or remove settled honey from below.
It is much easier on the hands for me!! Worth the cost? Well, the cost of the uncapper, a wallpaper stripper and getting a stainless frame made up to suit was about $600, equivalent to about 3 boxes worth of honey at retail prices, so yes, it's well paid for already.


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## JWPalmer (May 1, 2017)

The Bush Beeman just released a YouTube video showing this uncapper in action. Looks pretty neat. He is not endorsing it like DTFBM did that other uncapper, just showing off his new toy. I can't figure out how to post the YouTube link so you will need to look it up if you want to watch. Episode 28.


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## JConnolly (Feb 21, 2015)

JWPalmer said:


> I can't figure out how to post the YouTube link so you will need to look it up if you want to watch. Episode 28.


Here is the video.


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## GarfieldBeek (Jan 12, 2015)

Just ordered one. I saw lots of people posting about the hassle of doing an international wire transfer to Finland.

I emailed the company and asked if I could do PayPal. They sent an email address and a few minutes later the purchase was done. Current price less than 250 dollars including shipping.

Then I ordered an 80 dollar wallpaper stripper for steam.

A wire transfer would have been 40 dollars fee from bank.

I will update after I get a chance to try it.


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## GarfieldBeek (Jan 12, 2015)

Got the Honey paw and a cheap wallpaper steamer. Pretty easy to hook them up.

Just as some others have mentioned, managing the steam line is a bit of a hassle but I think I can work that out.

I uncapped 18 frames, ran the extractorabout 10 minutes.

Very little honey coming out.

Took a close look at combs, huge amount of cells not opened. Had to remove all frames, rn a roller punch over them and run extractor again.

For those of you who use one of these, what am I doing wrong?.??


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## GarfieldBeek (Jan 12, 2015)

Second try with the Honey Paw.

This time I paid attention to the directions.

I only went across the frame from top to bottom, the short direction.

Worked much better!


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