Grafting frame stand

01 · THE WORKING ANGLE

Light has to reach the bottom of the cell

A worker cell is around 12 mm deep and a larva under 36 hours old is a white crescent barely a millimetre across. Stand the comb upright and no light reaches the bottom; lay it flat and the jelly runs while you lose your bearings. The stand holds the frame tilted and still at the point in between, which is the difference between seeing the larva and guessing at it.

02 · ADJUSTMENT

A wing knob and a few cut steps, no tools

It is two wooden frames hinged on a single axle. Loosen the plastic wing knob at one end with your fingers, open or close the angle by seating the upper frame on the steps cut into the side rails, then tighten it again. No screwdriver, no spanner: you can set it with gloves on, and it folds flat for storage between batches.

03 · COMPATIBILITY

It rests the comb instead of clamping it, so frame format does not matter

There are no seats machined to one particular format. No dimension of the stand reaches 26 cm, while a Dadant or Langstroth comb is over 40 cm wide: the frame overhangs on both sides and sits on the upper frame. It works the same with Dadant, Dadant Blatt, Langstroth or Layens, and with a queen rearing frame when you are fitting cell bars.

04 · WORKING WITH IT

Firm table, damp cloth, and the comb straight back to the colony

This is a bench stand: it needs a steady table out of sun and wind. Cover the part of the comb you are not working on with a damp cloth, because a larva dries out in minutes, and return the frame to the hive as soon as the batch is done. The wood is supplied bare, unvarnished, so clean it dry with a scraper.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

You get the stand on its own: no grafting tool, no cell cups, no cup holders and no queen rearing frame. It is a 26 × 20 cm, 1 kg bench support meant for the grafting session, not an uncapping stand and not somewhere to park frames full of honey. The wood is untreated, so it will not live outdoors.