Finished up a new cedar hive and it has some new additions that previous cedar hives did not. Added a cedar inner lining to the bottom of the lid. No, the bees should never be in this area but it looks a lot nicer to see the cedar lining rather than a plywood sheet.
“Lieutenant Dan, you have new legs!” This customer asked for angled legs and a bit more bracing. At first I did not like the idea but put together a mock-up with 2x4s and started to fall for the design. I made a jig so that both sets of legs were identical and added the center bracing. The cool thing is that once the legs are assembled, it creates a cradle for the hive body. This makes transporting a bit easier because you can place the hive on the leg/cradle and then screw it to the hive. Of course this is more work and more wood but it does give the hive a much more substantial look. The legs are only screwed together and not glued. The hive can be removed from the legs for transport.
If you are near College Station on September 24, 2022, this hive will be on display during the bee school there.
