Am I a real Beek now?

craneman54 · May 29, 2015, 11:14:25 PM

I just came in from bringing a trapped swarm. I use a medium box for my traps and just close off the bottom and top. Then I can just take off the top and bottom s and set the hive box right on the bottom board. I have been taking care of 4 hives since I caught my first swarm about a month and a half ago. No hood,gloves or anything but my eye glasses. Never a sting.
Tonight these girls were kind of upset with me so now I have 3 stings to my name. Does that make me a BEEK yet???

The good part is this hive looks to be better than any of the others I have. They have comb on all the frames except one after two weeks in that box. Tomorrow I will check if it is filled enough to add a supper to it. There is only one frame that has no comb on it,but I don't know how much is drawn out on the other frame. They were getting too testy to keep looking tonight.

sc-bee · May 29, 2015, 11:22:46 PM

Quote from: craneman54 on May 29, 2015, 11:14:25 PM
No hood,gloves or anything but my eye glasses.

Does this make you a beek..... well one sting in the eye and it is gone. I slip occasionally but always wear a veil and think it is a good practice regardless of what others are about to say. We seem to measure our bee prowess by the lack of bee PE we wear, like it's a badge or medal. I am not trying to be critical on a personal level because you see it all the time. IMHO it sends a bad message to a newbee trying to rationalize it all. I just don't get it

(and this roll eyes icon does no justice because the eyes do not roll)

craneman54 · May 29, 2015, 11:46:42 PM

Quote from: sc-bee on May 29, 2015, 11:22:46 PM
Quote from: craneman54 on May 29, 2015, 11:14:25 PM
No hood,gloves or anything but my eye glasses.

Does this make you a beek..... well one sting in the eye and it is gone. I slip occasionally but always wear a veil and think it is a good practice regardless of what others are about to say. We seem to measure our bee prowess by the lack of bee PE we wear. like a badge or medal. I just don't get it

Nope you got it wrong. I was just joking around. The biggest reason I don't wear PE when working my bees is I get so hot I can't do anything for more than a few minutes. Heck if I move around in 32 degree weather I start perspiring and that is in short sleeve shirts and leans.

I quit trying to impress people years ago with my prowness or lack there of. I just like to joke around and have fun.

sc-bee · May 29, 2015, 11:53:11 PM

Quote from: craneman54 on May 29, 2015, 11:46:42 PM
Quote from: sc-bee on May 29, 2015, 11:22:46 PM
Quote from: craneman54 on May 29, 2015, 11:14:25 PM
No hood,gloves or anything but my eye glasses.

Does this make you a beek..... well one sting in the eye and it is gone. I slip occasionally but always wear a veil and think it is a good practice regardless of what others are about to say. We seem to measure our bee prowess by the lack of bee PE we wear. like a badge or medal. I just don't get it

If top post looks edited my computer froze in the middle of posting..

Oh I understand and probably went overboard But you would be surprised at those that have this mentality. And I am not saying you do... sorry if I came off wrong not meaning to.

Nope you got it wrong. I was just joking around. The biggest reason I don't wear PE when working my bees is I get so hot I can't do anything for more than a few minutes. Heck if I move around in 32 degree weather I start perspiring and that is in short sleeve shirts and leans.

I quit trying to impress people years ago with my prowness or lack there of. I just like to joke around and have fun.

craneman54 · May 30, 2015, 12:13:45 AM

sc-bee---

QuoteOh I understand and probably went overboard But you would be surprised at those that have this mentality. And I am not saying you do... sorry if I came off wrong not meaning to.

No problem. At least now I know I am still not allergic to bee stings.

10framer · May 30, 2015, 02:37:35 PM

i'm guilty of popping the tops on hives with no veil from time to time and i have sat down and gone through a hive without one a time or two but it's not a good practice. i've never owned a bee suit and i can't work in gloves but there are plenty of commercial guys that wear all of that. i've had some hives over the last few years that were hot enough that i considered at least getting a jacket but i think i've bred that out of my stock now.
there are guys running tens of thousands of hives that wear full hazmat apparel that certainly aren't less of a beekeeper than me. there is at least one guy that is well known that supposedly won't let you go through his hives with even a veil on. personally i find that irresponsible but still, he's no more or less of a beekeeper.
wear what you're comfortable with.
i'm an old fat man living in the south. there's no way i could go through more than a few hives in a full suit before i dropped dead of a heat stroke.
some days i get a dozen stings from one hive some days i go through a couple dozen hives without getting a sting. knowing how to read and handle your bees is ultimately what will determine whether you're real beekeeper.

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 06:05:04 PM

"wear what your comfortable with", exactly! Does anyone actually know someone who has been stung in the eyeball? I see that mentioned often. I go veil-less until the bees tell me otherwise. I'm a skinny 36yr old in the south and I'd die of heat stroke with a full suit on!

sc-bee · May 30, 2015, 08:24:00 PM

Quote from: richter1978 on May 30, 2015, 06:05:04 PM
"wear what your comfortable with", exactly! Does anyone actually know someone who has been stung in the eyeball? I see that mentioned often. I go veil-less until the bees tell me otherwise. I'm a skinny 36yr old in the south and I'd die of heat stroke with a full suit on!

Who mentioned a full suit??? And know I don't know first hand of a direct eye sting and don't want to be the first. But do you seriously think it has never happened? I agree wear what makes you comfortable but don't encourage others (newbees) to do the same, and the OP did not, or paint a false image that bees... even yours can't get nasty in an instant.

I have never had on a full suit. I wear a jacket at times but a viel at all times. Sometimes a veil. shorts and a tee. I too am approaching another decade and way overweight and can't take the heat...

Oh and for the record a sting to the back of the mouth can also lead to a life ending disaster... So don't fool yourself... ever heard of Murphys Law... sure you have what 36 year old male has not

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 08:31:27 PM

Sorry, I think I sounded more combative than meant to. Even my jacket is awful Jun-Aug. Still curious if there is actually an account of a sting to the eyeball..

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 08:43:01 PM

In haste last year I was scraping burr comb that had some really tasty nectar, well the second bite had a tasty bee which stung me in the tongue, that did suck a bit! I'm definitely not a "real beek" though.

sc-bee · May 30, 2015, 08:45:34 PM

Don't see blindness here but close enough that I don't want to try.....

http://www.reviewofoptometry.com/content/c/30734/

sc-bee · May 30, 2015, 08:54:35 PM

Dang this hurts me watching
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLhehkqbvkw

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 09:18:51 PM

Good enough for me, that looks awful!

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 09:22:51 PM

I have been hit in the eyelid, nothing different than any other skin sting.

Eric Bosworth · May 30, 2015, 10:00:13 PM

I got stung in the eyebrow once. The worst part was I could not see the stinger in the hair. My eye was swollen almost shut for a day.

divemaster1963 · May 30, 2015, 10:56:39 PM

Today I did a removal in a bay window ceiling. Cloudy with speratic rain. Boy were they mad. I got hit a total of 15 times with a jacket and hood. They found a way in were the zipper pulled apart when it got caught on a nail. Three under right arm pit. Two on lrft forearm and two on back neck two on front neck and six on hands thru my gloves. I'm sore and have another one to do Sunday.

Im going to Bed .

John

OldMech · May 30, 2015, 11:11:05 PM

14 years of beekeeping before I ever knew there was such a thing as a bee suit or veil. The smoker was the defensive weapon of choice back then. Learning that there WAS protective gear, I ordered the best I could find, the Ultra Breeze.. jacket, and a full suit, and I have used both when necessary. Normally I dont wear either, but would never attempt to convince a new beekeeper that they should NOT wear a veil or jacket. I would attempt to convince them to learn to go without gloves. Using care and gentleness to handle the bees is best learned without gloves.
Going without a veil is a personal choice.. I can honestly say that after 38 years of squeezing a smoker I have never been stung in the eye.. most folks have whats called a reflex, and will close their eye as the bee hits.. I have been stung on the eyelid. THis could have been a very annoying thing, but my reaction is minimal. I have been stung in excess of 30 times at once, that was plenty.. By ALL MEANS wear a bee suit or at LEAST a veil. Gain confidence, and ability at handling frames/bees, get stung a couple three times and see how you react before you even consider not wearing a veil... but as the adamant post above neglects to say...
It is your choice.
If you are new and choose to go without, then you are a fool. If you have been handling bees as long as I have and choose to go without? Your still a fool! But at least your a confident fool!

richter1978 · May 30, 2015, 11:28:29 PM

I'll see your "confident fool" and raise you one "Floridiot".

sc-bee · May 31, 2015, 09:20:02 AM

Quote from: OldMech on May 30, 2015, 11:11:05 PM

Going without a veil is a personal choice.. I can honestly say that after 38 years of squeezing a smoker I have never been stung in the eye.. most folks have whats called a reflex, ......but as the adamant post above neglects to say...
It is your choice.

You must have missed this part in the adamant post:

QuoteI agree wear what makes you comfortable

capt44 · May 31, 2015, 12:52:20 PM

After getting into a bunch of aggressive bees I now wear a square veil, a white shirt with a bungee strap around my waist and sometimes gloves.