Hi Tom and Everyone,

I have one difficult top bar hive where the bees just can't get comb
building straight :>) No matter how much trimming, switching, etc. I do,
only a couple of combs are straight enough to stay on one top bar. After
that the bees usually attach the comb to two or more top bars.

I put some top bars with the fast starter strips directly behind the
broodnest  where the comb was crossing the top bars. The bees, which to
their comb building along the new starter strips. I am happy with the
results, but it has been a small test.

So far, I like them better than any method I've used. They are simple, fast
and easy to make. They are much stronger and more durable than regular
starter strips.

An easy hive will build straight comb on a wax filled kerf. But some bees
are more stubborn than others. I think the thicker, shorter cross section in
these strips are more attractive to those bees than the typical thinner,
longer strips which were easily ignored by even the easy bees in my top bar
hives. See the photo about half way down the page at:

http://wind.prohosting.com/tbhguy/bee/combh.htm

Curved comb is the natural shape the bees choose when given the chance. The
Florida Yahoo beekeeping group has some interesting photos of a feral hive
which clearly show the curved comb and the overall colony structure.

Maybe the new starter strips or shorter top bars will provide a solution.
Another interesting approach might be to cast or imprint 'horizontal'
foundation along the bottom edge of a top bar. It's neither simple nor a new
idea, but I can't find any report on its effectiveness.

Best Regards
Dennis

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