166 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Mar. 15 



WM. BAYLESS, BRANTFORD, ONT., CAN. 



be built to hold the comb as in Fig. 1, with 

 the top-bar down; or as in Fig. 2, with the end- 

 bar down. 



The lateral movement of the knives can be 

 confined to the space inside ihe frames, so that if 

 the end-bars in Fig. 1, or the top or bottom bars 

 in Fig. 2, should project beyond the combs they 

 need not interfere with the knives in the least. In 

 Fig. 1 the knives are arranged to uncap down to 

 the top-bar, but no further, so that a staple or 

 other spacing- device may be attached to the 

 side of the top-bar if desired. The knives when 

 running inside the frame can be set to cut the 

 comb down to any desired thickness; in fact, the 

 comb could be cut down to mere foundation if 

 necessary. 



With the present tendency on the part of bee- 

 keepers to produce more wax, and on account of 

 the view that is now pretty generally accepted, 

 that it takes less honey to produce a pound of 

 wax than at one time supposed, there is, in my 

 estimation, considerable ground for uncapping 

 deep. The honey can be strained from the cap- 

 pings, and the latter rendered into wax by the 

 usual method. A uniform cut across the combs 

 makes straight regular combs — a desirable at- 

 tainment under all conditions. The question 

 may fairly be asked, " How will the machine 

 work in case the comb is of uneven thickness.'" 

 To answer this I will state that, in any system of 

 uncapping, only combs with a uniform base, 

 such as that secured by comb foundation, should 

 be used. Furthermore, if the combs bulge in 

 certain places such projections should be removed 

 any way, in order to make the comb more uni- 

 form for the next extracting. When there are 

 depressions, the depth to which the knives cut 

 can be quickly adjusted by means of a lever. 

 By this I mean that, while the machine is in mo- 



tion, the depth of the cut can be adjusted to fit 

 he case. If the operator does not care to cut 

 deeper, or if there should be a spot where the 

 comb is so shallow that the knife does not touch 

 the surface, as might be the case with exception- 

 ally uneven combs, the remaining cappings could 

 be removed by means of a knife in the ordinary 

 way. 



In Fig. 2, A is the handle of the clutch that 

 allows the comb held in the metal frame to pass 

 to the bottom of the machine when it is ready to 

 be uncapped. The uncapping is done while the 

 comb is pulled upward, for in this way the cap- 

 pings fall away from the knives by their own 

 weight as they are cut off. B is the hand lever 

 which throws the knives in position, and regu- 

 lates the depth to which they cut. C holds the 

 top-bar, now at the left side of the comb. It 

 may be very quickly adjusted to suit any varia- 

 tion in the size. D holds the bottom-bar firmly 

 in place. E is a device that allows the knife to 

 be adjusted to cut any depth, still retaining the 

 proper angle. G and H are the parts that hold 

 the knife, and that give to it the lateral motion 

 as it cuts. 



A frame may be put into the machine, both 

 sides uncapped, and removed again in half a min- 

 ute. My preference is for the machine shown in 

 Fig. 1; but this is, perhaps, because I do not use 

 a wide end-bar, but have a staple for spacing in 

 the side of the top-bar. 



Brantford, Ont. , Can. 



[This machine is identical in principle with 

 the one brought out by Mr. Arthur C. Miller, of 

 Providence, R. I., in 1902. Indeed, a patent was 

 granted to him Oct. 14 of that year, covering ev- 

 ery feature of the Bayless machine. Of course, 

 the American patent would not interfere with the 

 use of this machine in Canada unless Mr. Miller 

 had the same thing patented there. 



Some six or eight years ago Mr. Miller sent us 

 one of his machines, that embodied the general 

 principles shown in the Bayless. As we were 

 not then in position to give it a thorough test we 

 sent it to Mr. R. C. Aikin, of Loveland, Col., 

 with the request that he not only try it but that 

 he get others to do so if it proved to be a success 

 in his hands. 



Some time afterward he reported that he had 

 tested the machine, but that he could work more 

 rapidly and more satisfactorily by the ordinary 

 hand uncapping method. Mr. Miller himself, 

 we believe, gave the principle a test — how extend- 

 ed we do not know; but the fact that he after- 

 ward applied for a patent on an entirely different 

 principle for uncapping combs would seem to in- 

 dicate that his original machine, in his judgment, 

 was not a success; for on June 23, 1903, another 

 patent was granted to him covering the use of a 

 series of spring-actuated knives, each independent 

 of the other, and having its cutting edge at an 

 angle to the plane in which the knife moves. 

 We are not informed as to the ultimate fate of 

 this machine. We tested it in a small way, but 

 did not arrive at any satisfactory results. 



Whether Mr. Bayless is able to do more and 

 better work with his machine than the average 

 man can accomplish with the uncapping-knife, we 

 can not say. It is possible that the original or 

 first Miller was prematurely abandoned, or it is 



