# Hot wire uncapper



## peggjam (Mar 4, 2005)

"Any thoughts????"

Interesting idea, let us know how it works .


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

If the temperature could be controlled to be just right (not burn the honey but hot enough to cut through it nicely) I would think it would work great.

Let me know when you work out the bugs.


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## peggjam (Mar 4, 2005)

The only thing I wonder about is how heavey the wire should be. It seems like a light gauge wire would break easily after being heated a few times.


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## R.L. Bee (Mar 8, 2006)

*use it cold?*

I wonder if a smaller gauged wire could be used cold with the same results. like the old wire type cheese cutter.


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## drobbins (Jun 1, 2005)

at one point I considered building a heating element for an OA evaporator
I ended up using a glow plug but I found a lot of heating element design stuff on the web
stuff like this

http://www.wiretron.com/design.html
http://www.wiretron.com/nicrdat.html

it wouldn't be to hard to do
getting a small piece of the wire would probably be the hardest part

Dave


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

I figure if it will cut foam, it will cut wax. The nichrome wire is cheap and easily replaced. A variable powersupply should take care of heat control. I found one reference to using a power supply from a train set, as they are also speed controllers for the train and vary the power. I'm going to start finding parts. Knives are too high for what you get in my book, and the elements aren't replaceable.
http://www.hhhh.org/~joeboy/resources/hotwire_foam_cutter/hotwire_foam_cutter.html


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## drobbins (Jun 1, 2005)

another example

http://www.techlib.com/hobby/hotwire_foam_cutter.htm

Dave


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## IBEEME (Apr 21, 2005)

*You stole my idea*

Or as we would say in VT IDEAR! My thought was thin piano wire cold. If that did not work then try hot, using a train controler. I plan to start working on it as soon as all my spring house projects are done. Like getting the mower running, now that the dandilions are going by.

Randy


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## middlesattrefarm (Jan 3, 2007)

*I tried that last year!*

and it worked better than a butcher knife. I used a piece of copper wire because it was handy, and after I was done thought of using a 5 11/16ths frame with the bottom bar removed. The idea I'm working with is to clamp the frame to the side of a SS milkhouse double sink, that I am rigging up with a screen bottom. scrape the capping in, and have a bucket under to catch honey.
I didn't think that heating the wire could improve the thing much? Why heat something so thin?


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

IBEEME said:


> Or as we would say in VT IDEAR! I thought IDEAR was just a western Massachusetts saying. Glad to heah we're not the only ones who "talk funny"


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## Fernhill (Dec 30, 2004)

*What about high tensile?*

Has anyone tried the high tensile stuff they sell for electric fencing. Seems like you could rig up a way to suspend the wire very tightly between two arms and just run the entire frame over it to remove the capping. The downside is that it'd take the capping off down to the level of the wood side of the frame. With the uncapping knife you can leave more of the wax for the bees to refill later. Maybe the loss of wax with the wire thingamabob would be offset by the increased speed. I know uncapping frames by hand with an electric knife always leaves my wrist aching the next day.

Have to see if I can work something up.

Good idea.
Mike


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## izybo (Feb 7, 2003)

*power supply*

here is a link for the power supply. http://www.oldf.homestead.com/foamcutting.html


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## izybo (Feb 7, 2003)

*cutter*

here is another link for a cutter. http://www.instructables.com/id/EK8Q92824BEP286S6S/


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

Everything I'm reading points to stainless steel guitar string, maybe .016 or so.


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## Homeshadow (May 22, 2015)

I know this thread is old but I thought I would elaborate. Nichrome wire is the key to this working. 24G, I am using a power supply from the Goodwill with oak wooden dowels from Home Depot. Using Resistors as insulators, from the dowels to the wire, to button, handle, and then power supply. Here is link to get everything from Ohm's Law to wire calculator. Good Luck, I know mine works like a dream.
http://www.jacobs-online.biz/nichrome/NichromeCalc.html


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## Scpossum (May 4, 2014)

Very interesting.


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## rookie2531 (Jul 28, 2014)

Im glad this post came back up. I was thinking of building one and asked a fellow beek what he thought and the only downside he came up with was if the cappings were lower that the sides it would not uncap it. So I posted to follow.


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

I built one and tried it. I had issues with my wire breaking. I used a Radio Shack variable power supply that worked pretty well. I was using music wire.


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## beedeetee (Nov 27, 2004)

What about using the wire that we used (maybe some still do) use for wiring frames? I have my old embeder hooked to an old train controller that you can dial the amount of current that you want to use. It seems that if you can use that to embed the wire into wax it would work well for uncapping. Maybe I should give it a try. I don't embed anymore so it just sits here.


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## Homeshadow (May 22, 2015)

I would just use a cap scraper until the comb is built up level.


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## Homeshadow (May 22, 2015)

You need Ni chrome wire [nickle chromium] aka stainless steel wire like for wiring your mouth shut after breaking your jaw. The reason is simple, tinsel strength. non contamination, and melting point is over a thousand degrees.


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## challenger (May 27, 2009)

Homeshadow said:


> I know this thread is old but I thought I would elaborate. Nichrome wire is the key to this working. 24G, I am using a power supply from the Goodwill with oak wooden dowels from Home Depot. Using Resistors as insulators, from the dowels to the wire, to button, handle, and then power supply. Here is link to get everything from Ohm's Law to wire calculator. Good Luck, I know mine works like a dream.
> http://www.jacobs-online.biz/nichrome/NichromeCalc.html


Super easy to do and a proper value variable resistor from fleabay is the best way to fine tune it. Get an old toaster and gut the wire out of it. With a variable resistor you can adjust the temp of the wire as needed and it comes in handy as weather, wax etc etc change and more or less heat is needed. I have made several foam cutter using the resource you listed. I have not made an uncapping tool however. I like the idea but I have read that some people have a problem with the cappings reattaching after being cut?
I was thinking of using the nichrome wire to heat a piece of stainless sheet that would be shaped with a slight curve to help coax the cappings away from the comb. 
Still in all I think the capping/comb would have to be a fairly consistent surface or there would be too much going back over the comb with another tool. A lot of my honey frames are not even so I see it as another potential PIA.
I am using a serrated uncapping knife and it works great. Still not perfect but???????


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## tommyt (Aug 7, 2010)

I would like to see pictures or video of one in action
If you have a working model please post up:thumbsup:


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