LYSON MINIMA electric radial extractor, 12 Langstroth deep frames, Ø650 mm

01 · WHAT RADIAL MEANS

Both faces of the comb in the same load

In a radial extractor the frames stand on edge, like the spokes of a wheel: the top bar faces the drum wall and the bottom bar faces the shaft. Centrifugal force pulls honey from both faces at once, so there is no stopping to turn frames as in a tangential. If you run Langstroth with supers the same size as the brood box, this radial takes those frames as they are: 12 per load.

The honest limit of a radial is thick honey. With deep frames full of heather honey, or honey that is starting to crystallise, the inner face takes the push less well and the comb suffers: a tangential does that job better. With the extracting room at 27-30 °C, the reference we give in house, the honey runs and extraction is quicker.

02 · THE MOTOR AND THE CONTROL

80 W, hand speed control and spin both ways

It has an 18 V, 80 W motor, powered from the 230 V mains through the MDD-01 controller, RL version: a dial for speed and switches to reverse the spin. The _RL suffix in the reference is what tells you, and it is the version to order if the controller ever needs replacing.

The rule that saves combs with deep frames is to start slowly: a full frame brought up to speed in one go loses its comb on the inner face. Start at minimum, let the first honey drain, and only then raise the speed.

03 · THE BUILD

Light, and that is why it gets fixed down

0.6 mm stainless steel drum with a 0.8 mm bottom, 8 mm stainless rod basket, clear acrylic lid and a 6/4" (1½") plastic honey gate. This is the LYSON MINIMA line: just enough build to keep the machine affordable and easy to move between seasons. There is no rim or reinforcing frame, and the legs are short.

That has a consequence: with an unbalanced load, a light extractor walks. Before the first load, set it on level ground and fix it down, and spread the frames by weight, full ones opposite full ones. Keep the gate open while extracting: honey building up under the basket slows it down, as LYSON warns in its manual.

04 · WHO IT IS FOR

The first electric extractor for a Langstroth apiary

It is the step up from a hand extractor without moving to honey-house machinery: motor, controller and 12 deep frames per load, in a unit that comes apart and stores in little space. If you extract every day at the height of the season, or work mostly with thick honey, you need a larger diameter or a different basket.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

Check your frame format before ordering. The basket is sized for the Langstroth deep frame, and LYSON warns that a frame that does not rest on the top and bottom bars damages the basket.