Considering the scarcity of supplies, Aaron asked "I must admit that I am
quite surprized by this.  I could speculate that the suppliers have decided
that wooden sections are going by the wayside.  Could this be so?  Are we
witnessing the end to an era?"

As someone who knows a fair amount about comb honey production in the US, I
am only surprised that Aaron was surprised.

20 years ago there were at least six manufacturers of the basswood
equipment.  For definitely the past 5 years, and I think longer, there has
only been one manufacturer.  the rest were done in by the popularity of the
round sections, now known as Ross Rounds.  The demise of the basswood
sections has not been for lack of consumer demand, but due to the ease of
production with round sections.  A moderately skilled beekeeper should get
85% or better 'perfect' sections when using Ross Rounds, while 60% would be
an excellent yield with the basswood sections.

The primary difference in the yields is because the basswood sections are
rectangular, with 90 degree angles for the corners.  The round sections are,
well, round.  There are no 90 degree angles in nature, and it was hell to
get the bees to fill basswood sections.  They readily fill the round
sections.

The round sections offered the following additional advantages:

1.  A super may be put together in less than 10 minutes, compared to twice
that long for a basswood super.
2.  The basswood provided a great surface for bees to propolize, and that
was so unsightly that it had to be removed before sale.  It was not uncommon
to spend 5 minutes on each section just to remove propolis.
3.  The 'cardboard/cellophane' container for the basswood sections was
constantly damaged by prying fingers while on the store shelf.  The round
sections are sold in clear, hard plastic containers.

All in all, beekeepers just abandoned the product when a superior product
came along.  Implicit in those decisions was a judgment that they could not
sell basswood sections at a sufficient premium to make the beekeeper's
return as profitable as round sections.

If my information is correct, today's sole manufacturer of basswood sections
only puts the equipment in production once over five years.  The remaining
time it sits there idle.  Moreover, their last production run (intended to
last five years) was only equal to a single year sales of round sections!

Basswood sections can be ordered from Draper (as mentioned by Aaron),
Kelley, and a few of the small suppliers of beekeeping equipment.  Hogg
sections, also mentioned by Aaron, are available from Dadant, Mann Lake, and
perhaps one or two others.  Ross Round equipment is available from all major
dealers and many of the small dealers.

Comb honey production today is no where near what it was in the early
1800's, before the extractor was developed.  In those days, it was not
uncommon to fill railroad cars and barges with basswood sections and send
them to New York for consumption or shipment to Europe.  Indeed, in many
countries comb honey production has vanished.  We are fortunate that round
sections were developed and made generally available.  As a result, I am
confident and gratified that comb honey production in the US increases every
year.


Lloyd
Lloyd Spear, Owner of Ross Rounds, manufacturer of comb honey equipment
for beekeepers and Sundance pollen traps.
http://www.rossrounds.com
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