Silly question ?

[gavin]

One very clear advantage of grafting over Snelgrove ......

Unless of course you are cell punching and that kind of thing!

If the Hopkins method is laying a frame horizontally, then that could allow you to cut out reasonably shaped Q cells and maybe push cages over cells if they're far enough apart.

The method of cutting a freshly laid frame of eggs some distance up from the base and opening every third cell a little more (destroying the intervening two) will give a nice line of queen cells in a cell raising colony. However they usually don't have the thick bases needed to get a roller cage in place. Dave Cushman seems to call this the Alley method, for those of you who love using surnames with beekeeping methods (I don't!).

http://www.dave-cushman.net/bee/cellstarting.html

With any caging, or trimming of surplus comb, or manipulation of any kind - leave it until the cells are strengthened, 2 days before predicted hatching.

[The Drone Ranger]

Any ideas for caging cells when using the Hopkins board?

Black Comb
Can't you just push the roller cage into the wax round the cell ?
I think with Hopkins method you just keep an eye on the cells looking for the change to brown nearer the tip then cut them out
Is there a board for this method I would be interested in seeing how that is used

[The Drone Ranger]

Easy to see it's raining I am typing too slow to keep up

[Black Comb]

Thanks. We are trialling this at the association apiary and that is the conclusion we came to.
Someone took pics and I will post if I can get hold of some copies.
In the meantime this explains most of it (the old ideas are often good)
http://www.beesource.com/point-of-vi...queen-rearing/

We used the cartridge and flour method, so will await to see success.
More info. here
http://www.mdasplitter.com/docs/IMN%20BOOKLET.pdf

[The Drone Ranger]

Hi Black comb

That's great info I had never heard of the flour method
for Queen Introduction I have used push in cages made from the epoxy coated mesh for varroa floors travel screens etc

I think a small version would work well as queen cage to contain emerging virgins

[Black Comb]

12 bore cartridges were a bit large. Perhaps 410next time.
Flour is to kill the larvae you don't want.

[The Drone Ranger]

A ball bearing was the other suggestion
How about baking beans they are used for blind baking pastry cases