There hasn't been any activity on this line in a long time. Maybe due to summertime activity? I've been conversing with others but not via this list, so I thought I'd post my last correspondence in an attempt to stir things up a little. Ed, Sorry not to have responded sooner. Concerning your questions... I have ALWAYS used queen excluders. I was always concerned about having the queen move up to use the honey supers as brood chambers. Did you ever experience this? I really can't say as to whether they make a difference or not since I've never gone without. When I first started keeping bees I used the cheap plastic kind and they were a real mess! Between burr comb and propolis, and the fact that they lie in contact with the tops of the frames, I believe they were more bother than anything. I've since tried wire excluders and have found them to be far superior. Since there is a gap between frames and excluder, the bees don't seem to fill them with 'gunk'. They still build burr comb on them/in them, but a few minutes in a warm over will melt that and cleanup is relatively easy. About American Bee Journal (ABJ), I found it to be very interesting. A bit more comercial than I needed (Honey prices in Argentina?!), but also a good source of information that you won't be likely to find elsewhere. Also some good tips - I remember one article written by the guy in Guiness Book of Records for most honey from a single hive (400+ pounds!). It was particularly interesting. Couldn't tell you when it was published. Eventually though, I found I wasn't reading it very often and I let my subscription expire. Ventilation: I have ventilated some years and other years I have not. All my hives have inner and telescoping outter covers. During honey season I leave the outter cover propped up on the front of the top super instead of lieing flat. As far as between super ventilation I can't say whether it makes a difference or not. I don't recall if it made a noticable difference in temperament of the hive or effected production (although I don't keep records). This year (The year of the record Honey Flow!), I didn't provide between super ventilation. So, who knows? Finally, Maxant. I've heard of them, but I don't know anything about them now. Actually my only exposure to the company is seeing their ads in ABJ. I was on their mailing list for a while, but I never bought anything from them so they either dropped me from their list or loss of my business made them go bankrupt. I assume the former but I really don't know. I get my supplies from a local bee keeper and Dadant distributer who passes his discount for large orders on to us little guys. You can't beat that! Closing with a disclaimer. I'm a hobby bee keeper who read so much that the only thing left to do was to just do it. So I got a beginner kit from Sears and started in '72 and have been at it ever since. I have no training other than reading and shooting the breeze with other beekeepers and I only have a small apiary (currently only four hives although I like to keep a half dozen). Indeed it is nice to correspond with others in the field. §Aaron Morris Ed Sterling 8/11/89 Bee questions