# spline material...



## BuggyDMC (Oct 8, 2014)

Find a local sawmill and get some scrap from them. In your part of the country finding someone that runs hardwoods should not be a problem.

If you tell them its for a hobby and you just need a little bit, most are more than happy to give whatever you need and then some.

If you go to a mill just be very respectful of their safety procedures they have posted. Some will let you drive up to the office, but you still need a safety vest, hard hat, steel toe boots, cut resistant gloves, and glasses just to walk from the car to the office door.


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## dvto2 (Feb 1, 2016)

BuggyDMC said:


> Find a local sawmill and get some scrap from them. In your part of the country finding someone that runs hardwoods should not be a problem.
> 
> If you tell them its for a hobby and you just need a little bit, most are more than happy to give whatever you need and then some.
> 
> If you go to a mill just be very respectful of their safety procedures they have posted. Some will let you drive up to the office, but you still need a safety vest, hard hat, steel toe boots, cut resistant gloves, and glasses just to walk from the car to the office door.


Why is it bad to use pine for the splines?


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## BuggyDMC (Oct 8, 2014)

The only thing I can think of is the pine is soft and will shrink. Which means it could fall out.


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## dvto2 (Feb 1, 2016)

BuggyDMC said:


> The only thing I can think of is the pine is soft and will shrink. Which means it could fall out.


The top bars are pine and so if the splines shrank the top bars would be shrinking the same amount. 

The only thing I can think of is that the bees might wear away the pine splines, but since they are protected by wax comb, I don't see how that might happen.


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## whiskers (Aug 28, 2011)

To me a spline is a little piece you set in a groove to strengthen an edge joint. What is it in this discussion?
Bill


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## Riskybizz (Mar 12, 2010)

dvto2

After having lived in New Mexico for over 26 years now I have really grown to appreciate those sayings such as, "take it with a grain of salt", "one knows nothing and the other knows less", "the totally convinced and the totally stupid have too much in common for the resemblance to be accidental"...attending one of our NM Beekeeping meetings is sheer joy...


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

>> What is it in this discussion?

The "spline" being referenced is otherwise known as a "comb guide". In a TBH the comb guide is attached to the underside of the top bars. Some comb guides are triangular, and are just glued/nailed to the bar. In this case I believe the rectangular spline is glued into a slot cut in the bar.

I'd use whatever wood I had at hand. In my case, I used some re-purposed wood recovered from shipping frames (probably the pine family) and cut it into the triangular shape with a table saw.

Some people use premade popsicle sticks / tongue depressors for rectangular comb guides. That way no milling of such thin pieces is required.


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## dudelt (Mar 18, 2013)

On my top bar splines / comb guides I used whatever scrap wood was available. There have been no issues. Some are fir, some are pine and some are plywood. Use whatever you already have when possible.


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## whiskers (Aug 28, 2011)

I'd do Woodwright Shop here, cut little blocks from the end of a piece of wood, thickness will determine the height of the guide. Use a heavy knife as a froe and a mallet and split off pieces as thick as the width of the groove, set them in whatever glue you like. Species doesn't matter, number of pieces per bar doesn't matter. Don't split them with one of your wife's knives, no good can come of that
Bill


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## jadebees (May 9, 2013)

I use the scraps from hive building, or warped reject wood. Just strips ripped on the tablesaw. Glued on the topbar,on edge. It doesnt matter, and the bees couldnt care less.


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## Delman (Feb 9, 2016)

All respect to you guys as I'm a complete newbee (sic). Both of my TBH's are built from pine in their entirety, with the exception of the spline. For this I simply rebated the top bars and slid in a strip of plywood. And 'Bob's your uncle'! The bees certainly aren't objecting.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Go buy some chamfer molding and cut it to length. No need for a spline. Use a bevel. Or cut a pine spline. I've never bothered to use anything special as far as wood.


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## aunt betty (May 4, 2015)

I cut top bars from whatever I got. Then I run it thru the saw and make a kerf in the center that's about 1/4" deep.
Popsicle sticks fit exactly...I glue them in, paint them with some wax, and the bees do the rest. 
I like popsicles.


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## LittleByLittle (Dec 8, 2015)

Michael Bush said:


> Go buy some chamfer molding and cut it to length. No need for a spline. Use a bevel. Or cut a pine spline. I've never bothered to use anything special as far as wood.


Where do you find triangular chamfer molding? Or do you use some other shape?


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

This Lowes 3/4" triangular chamfer molding product is a bit pricey for use as comb guides IMO (I cut my own from scrap), but it is available ...
http://www.lowes.com/pd_55289-746-L009958_0__?productId=1092685&Ntt=

.


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## ChuckReburn (Dec 17, 2013)

While guides are nice (especially if they are long enough they keep bars from accidentally getting knocked in), what I learned from Les Crowder is that they are unnecessary. We run no guide at all in a lot of colonies once they have some comb built out. The key to good straight comb is to get it built out between 2 good bars of good straight comb - I find they get excellent attachment on flat stock - We use a lot of cedar 1x, rough side down. If the guides are difficult for you to make or expensive, I'd suggest just putting them on just 5 - 10 bars.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>Where do you find triangular chamfer molding? Or do you use some other shape?

Usually I make my own, but I have also bought it at the local lumber yard. All chamfer molding is a triangular cross section.


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