Thanks, Dave.  (Your website, as always, provides great information!)

>>(I will chase up the missing drawing later today)

If I decide to build my own TBHs, I'll put a drawing together in AutoCAD.  It will be quite easy to off-set the lines representing the inner surfaces of the tbh, by the equivalent of the bee-space, to get the envelope size for a trapezoidal frame.

>>I have done this with British frames...

I would be most interested in knowing if there was the same cell size gradation in the vertical direction as on natural comb (without foundation to force a pattern).  I am wondering if the gap between the frames disrupts the bees natural drive for cell size gradation?  Did you happen to notice?

I found Dennis Murrell's description of the cell size gradation in natural comb as very reasonable.  On such comb, bees raise more smaller bees in the fall and spring [influencing better hive pest removal at these critical times].  They raise more larger bees in the spring as brood rearing expands [which may help secure a larger harvest...?].

>>...if you give them a box full of empty frames
they are just as likely to build crosswise or diagonal...

Dennis uses a sort of starter strip in his TBH bars.  I am thinking a fairly narrow starter strip can be used in empty Langstroth frames to encourage bees to keep the combs straight...  If this can be done while allowing bees to vary the cell size as they naturally do, then perhaps I won't have to build a TBH... :)

The key would be a starter strip that is neutral to the bees...  I have seen pictures of vertical feral hives and there appears to be the same cell size gradation as in long, TBH-like hives.  Natural comb in Langstroth equipment would diminish the issues of time-consuming inspections and smaller honey harvests in a TBH.

Waldemar

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