Frame Designs
Summary
If you use solid bottom boards, consider building a wooden telescoping box to house the scale. It is cheap, easy, quick and it doesn't void the warranty on the scale.
If you use screened bottom boards, a frame can be built to hold the load cells that will allow the debris to fall through. The load cells can be removed from the scale and mounted in the frame. This voids the warranty. Or, new load cells purchased and a scale built from scratch using the CS5550, AD7193, or HX711
If you use topbar hives ...
The goal is a low cost frame that can be built from readily available materials by students using tools found in a home shop. This has not yet been achieved.
Five frames have been designed, each with advantages and disadvantages:
- Punched and bent
- Welded Steel Rectangular Tubing
- Progressive die stamped and welded
- Unistrut/SuperStrut
- 3D printed corner brackets/metal tubing
- Frameless (2 rails) using strut
- Octanorm aluminum extrusion with torx cam locks
- Vacuum Forming: A Plastic/Aluminum Hybrid Frame
- Ultimate Bottom Board: Utilizing a Manufactured Frame with Aluminum Undercarrage
- Thrifty-Bee Scale: A Low-Cost All Aluminum Frame
