>For sure, if you know how to drive the forklift YOU should be fine ...

Now, there is the real danger.

>about the split ... do not really understand the need for AN.
>Why not making the split strong enough to stand the return of the forager
>to their old location? 

I've done that at this time of year and not been pleased with the results.
I've done it too many times to think it is just a fluke, either.  It is a bad 
idea here in spring.  It seems that the timing of the pollen flows and their 
importance is such that loss of field bees at a critical time (now) sets a split
up for underperformance compared to methods which do not lose the 
field bees.

> and use AN only for the queen insert?

Well, the splits would have been somked and moved, but then it is time 
to add a queen to the ones that have none.  They will be marked.

On setting them down in their summer location, I intend to gas them all 
so that 
A.) the field bees stay and 
B.) that the queens are accepted by immediate direct release.

>Is it a mated queen? IF yes, and only half - mile distance I wouldn't risk
>and go for the old insert method of your choice.

How does the half-mile affect the decision?  They drift back up to several 
miles sometimes.  Hard to predict.

I have introduced mated queens by many methods and all the good ones 
for spring intros are slow and unreliable. 

I was hoping to get it all done with one quick process and come back in 
a week to 100% acceptance instead of coming back to find some stupid 
queens running around inside the cage even though the candy is gone,
some still blocked by candy and some disappeared.

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