# Frame wiring



## hex0rz (Jan 14, 2014)

Quickly finding out how monotonous this frame wiring thing is turning out to be. Not to mention this frame wire sucks in my opinion. Bought a 1lb spool and i think it's either going to be a long time before i finish it off or its collecting dust. Might try and turn it into welding wire or something haha.

It definitely does not like to be tensioned very much and been experimenting with different stuff. Last year i used fishing line but it was not during enough. This year along side the frame wire i tried beading wire for crafts and really like it. Gets tight enough to play a tune and you can actually pull it tight and staple it. It's a small braided stainless steel wire with plastic sheathing.

Just need to find it in bigger spools.

Are wiring deep frames really necessary if it's just for doing brood?


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Get yourself a wire crimper tool and you will find you do not have to stretch the wire tight enough to break. Get yourself set up properly and it is not a hassle. It is important that foundation is drawn flat so bee space is even between frames and that cell depths are correct on each side of the frame.


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

When I used deep frames, I didn't wire the brood frames at all. I just made sure the foundation was flat when the frames were installed in the hive. I use all mediums now so I just wire them all and use them wherever I need them.


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## burns375 (Jul 15, 2013)

hex0rz said:


> Quickly finding out how monotonous this frame wiring thing is turning out to be


use plastic foundation


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

I gave it up, but when I was I learned:

You need to buy stainless wire:
http://beekeeping.glorybee.com/shop/Spool-Wire-26-Gauge.html

You need a spool:
http://beekeeping.glorybee.com/shop/Wiring-Device.html
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/Hives-Components/Foundation-Accessories/4064/Wiring-Device

A crimper:
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/42/Hives-Components/Frame-Accessories/4529/Wire-Crimper
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1105
http://www.bushfarms.com/images/WireCrimpers.JPG

An embedder:
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/Hives-Components/Foundation-Accessories/4288/Electric-Embedder
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/Hives-Components/Foundation-Accessories/4659/Transformer
http://www.bushfarms.com/images/WireEmbedder.JPG
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=169
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=170



http://www.bushfarms.com/beesmisc.htm#wiringtools

Frame board:
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/Hives-Components/Foundation-Accessories/4291/Foundation-Device
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/...ion-Accessories/4660/Medium-Foundation-Device
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=168

And if you wan to do eyelets, you'll need those:
https://www.kelleybees.com/Shop/43/Hives-Components/Foundation-Accessories/4290/Brass-Eyelets
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=177

and the punch:
http://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=178


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## psfred (Jul 16, 2011)

I don't find it all that much of a hassle, and by using a crimper or a pair of needle nosed pliers slid along the wire at an angle and squeezed repeated as you move them, the wire is plenty tight. 

I have found that I really dislike warped and lumpy comb, so I wire everything to keep it nice and flat. The bees still make lumps and bumps, but nothing like they do when the foundation is bulged to one side.

If it really bothers you, you really only need to wire two holes in the center of a deep, and you can tighten the wire quite easily by fixing both ends and then pulling the "loop" on the other end bar sideways and tacking it down with a brad. 

I plan to use my wired frames indefinitely, even if the wax moths get to them I scrape them clean and put new foundation in, no need to remove the original wire. Wiring is really a one time problem.

Peter


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

I agree with Peter. I actually like to wire and I only use wax / wood so it helps to like the extra work. When I wire, I pull it hard and squeeze the frame a little so that when I tack the wire in place it's really tight. I don't crimp. I do embed using electricity.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

I did a batch of deeps up using only two crosswires and found that a few sheets of vertical wired foundation had enough pent up tension in them that they still bowed some what. Not enough saved to be worth the security lost I figured. Did I say I am fussy about nice straight frames?  I find that the crimped cross wire has more recovery to it and stays flat with less initial force on the endbars. The spring in the wood yields after a period of time and though still bent the wires lose the twang.


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## dixiebooks (Jun 21, 2010)

I run foundationless, so my wiring is more to help the comb hold up during extraction, rather than keeping the foundation flat. So far, I've been using all the holes in the end bars. But now I am wondering if I really need 4 strands in a deep. Does anyone here have experience with running only two strands on a foundationless deep? Thanks.


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## Terry C (Sep 6, 2013)

Michael Bush said:


> I gave it up, but when I was I learned:
> 
> You need to buy stainless wire:
> 
> ...


 OK , I bought the wire , use a nail to hold the wire spool still , use needle nose pliers to crimp , if necessary , embed with a small gear made in the shop , don't use a frame board , and use eyelets but made my own punch in the machine shop . It can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it .


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

Terry C said:


> It can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it .


Yup....exactly right!


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## ApricotApiaries (Sep 21, 2014)

Plastic foundation is really pretty amazing stuff. 

However, Last year I wired a few hundred frames though and here's my 2 cents. 
Build yourself a jig. Doesn't have to be complicated or fancy. But if you are going to do anything more than a couple of times, build a jig. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCXwi_ZFzvM

Mine is not nearly so trick. I little stand to hold the spool. A sock shoved under the spool to keep tension on it so it doesnt unravel. A couple of blocks to hold the frame in place. I don't have the fancy rollers of nice little clamp the video does. Still, a simple jig makes life alot easier. And absolutely use the little eyelets. It is impossible to get wires tight without.


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## Knisely (Oct 26, 2013)

A sock! :applause:

If they had a smiley face with a little lightbulb over the head, I'd have used that one.


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

Knisely said:


> A sock! :applause:
> 
> If they had a smiley face with a little lightbulb over the head, I'd have used that one.


Me too. I love the idea. Of course, as beekeepers, we'd all have opinions on the left sock being better or worse than the right sock (I suppose it would depend on the direction the spool rotates) and the color of the sock! 

I'll have to try the idea because mine unspools just enough to make a birds nest.


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## My-smokepole (Apr 14, 2008)

I moved away from eyelets. An use a 1/4 long staple for upholstery work.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Ravenseye said:


> Me too. I love the idea. Of course, as beekeepers, we'd all have opinions on the left sock being better or worse than the right sock (I suppose it would depend on the direction the spool rotates) and the color of the sock!
> 
> I'll have to try the idea because mine unspools just enough to make a birds nest.


I use a paint brush the right width for the spool. I also bring the wire out through a tiny hole made with a needle. No more birds nests.


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## xphoney (Nov 7, 2014)

My-smokepole said:


> I moved away from eyelets. An use a 1/4 long staple for upholstery work.


We also use staples. The shortest basic staple I can get. Simple and cheap.


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## rolftonbees (Jul 10, 2014)

I did the wiring thing last year. I ended up compromising between not wiring and fully wiring by using an X pattern. I was able to keep things tight enough with a simple X. These did better than no wire. 

This year, I am using a mix of plastic foundation that was given to me, last years extra deep comb that was honey storage, and new foundation with only vertical crimped wires.


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## psfred (Jul 16, 2011)

I will be wiring lots of frames for the next couple months -- 8 mediums worth at least, not including what I may need to do for friends. It's not all that bad, look at is as a sort of Zen thing.

And I may be able to rope my buddy in, it's a blast to make frames and wire them in the evening down in the basement. Much more fun than doing it alone, and much more productive. If you can get three people you can make, wire, and put foundation in a lot of frames in a few hours.

Peter


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## rolftonbees (Jul 10, 2014)

Okay, that jig is nice. I think I will need to have one of those before wiring again.


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## jbeshearse (Oct 7, 2009)

psfred said:


> I will be wiring lots of frames for the next couple months -- 8 mediums worth at least, not including what I may need to do for friends. It's not all that bad, look at is as a sort of Zen thing.
> 
> And I may be able to rope my buddy in, it's a blast to make frames and wire them in the evening down in the basement. Much more fun than doing it alone, and much more productive. If you can get three people you can make, wire, and put foundation in a lot of frames in a few hours.
> 
> Peter


Why are you wiring mediums? I do not think that is necessary. Deeps yes, mediums, no. 

Jeb


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## Ravenseye (Apr 2, 2006)

jbeshearse said:


> Why are you wiring mediums? I do not think that is necessary. Deeps yes, mediums, no.
> 
> Jeb


For me, it's the opposite. When I used deeps, I didn't wire them because I wasn't going to extract deep frames. I wired the mediums because they were honey supers which were going to go into the extractor.


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## jbeshearse (Oct 7, 2009)

Ravenseye said:


> For me, it's the opposite. When I used deeps, I didn't wire them because I wasn't going to extract deep frames. I wired the mediums because they were honey supers which were going to go into the extractor.


I extract my mediums also (20 frame Dadant radial). I have only lost one or two frames over the times I have been using it and I do not cross wire. This past year I started a bunch of new frames with thin surplus. I will be ectracting some of them later this month, I will check back in and let this thread know if I have comb failures during the process. That assumes I don't use it all for chunk honey.

Jeb


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## psfred (Jul 16, 2011)

Jeb:

All the foundation I've used has a residual curve to it from the crimped wire being wound on spools, and even mediums can curve quite a bit when they are not drawn instantly.

I'm using narrow frames in the brood nest, there isn't room for a quarter inch of warp in the foundatin, so I wire. Usually get very nice, even flat brood comb.

I wire shallows too, because we usually use a tangential extractor and blown out frames are a big mess.

Peter


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