# Taking Hipps idea a bit farther.



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

John Hipps made this swarm catcher and it is sold thru Brushy Mountian.










I sort of tried useing this method last year with a five gallon pail on a 10 ft. 2x2 pole and no lid. I was suprized it worked so well but that 10' 2x2 weighed a bunch and was hard to transport in the pick up.

Thinking on it nearly all winter and needing a snow rake which every one was sold out of till this fall I decided to make my own snow rake and swarm catch tool.

Start with a 8' telascoping paint pole the kind you mont a roller on and can paint as high as 24 feet. I drilled out the rivit that held the paint roller screw and removed that. got a section of pipe that you screw a shower head on from a pile of scrap from a remodeling job. Cut a chunk of it with the threads sanded it till it fit in the pole. Then a pipe support flange can be screwed on those threads. I bought two of those flanges one for the board to use as a snow rake and one to mount the pail on to catch swarms. I got touse it on a big swarm a few days ago with out a lid as I havn't figured that one out yet. they were out on the end of a branch 21 feet up. I would get the pail under them give a quick snap up so they fell in the pail. then Kare would take the bottom of the pole and walk it our as I guided the top with the pail to the hive. Bees were streaming out of the pail as I was doing that but they just kept going back to the same limb till I finally got the last of them. 
Got to figure out that lid system though.

 Al


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## tom j (Apr 3, 2009)

Al I zoomed in real close on the one in Bush mt ad ,,,, it has 3 strings ( ropes ) in the lid about 1 1/2 ,, 2 inch from the edge ( in a 3 even spaced a part holes ) then they run into the pail and out the bottom ,, they tyed in the rope together and it hangs on a long rope after they come out the bottom so the lid hangs on the side of the pail ,,they come out near the outer edge on the bottom in 3 even spaced a part holes when they want to put on the lid they pull the rope and the lid pops on


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## tom j (Apr 3, 2009)

rather then put rope hole in bottom put them 4 inch down from the top of pail . it will work better


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I bought this extention paint pole way back when I needed to sain the north side of the house about 16 feet high and I am afraid of high places.
Any way the first thing that needs to be done is drill out the rivet (where the screw is now.).









So you can remove this tip. Save that tip too as you may want to install a paint roller on the pole again some day.










Cut the end of the shower head pipe off long enough you can install it in the paint pole and use a screw in stead of a rivet to hold it in place. It is thiner walled than a pipe nipple, but still screws into the floor flange.










Took a round part to a plastic bail that I cut about a half inch long then expoxied the two to the inside of the pail about 3 inches from the top. This will be top rope guides.










Next I drilled a pair of small holes in a lid ran the small rope thru the hole down thru the top guides and the bottom of the pail then back up to the lid. 

Figured out how much free I wanted for the lid bridle then cut the rope. Did a test to snap the lid in place. Found that if the lid hung to low it was a pain to get it closed on the pail top. Untied the lid knots after I figured out where I wanted the lid stops to be and marked them. Tied a knot in one side of the bridle as a stop then the other runing it backupto the lid.










Found the middle of the bridle and tied on the pull rope. Put the pail on the pole extenened it out the 24 feet and cut the rope at 18 feet so it would not be dragging.










At just 16 feet this set up can be a hand full. at 24 feet it is impossiable in my option for one person. best to have a second person who can hold the pole as you walk it down.

 Al


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I also use this pole when I need to use the bee vac for bees wrapped arount the tree limb about 30 feet up. I have my mutla ladderset at ten feet in the back of a pick up and the pole extened out to 20 feet with my extra long vac hose taped to it.










 Al


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