[maxibo]

Hi All!  I've having a browse around the site and came across a discussion thread about Munty's Runner Bean Frame.  I've been hunting around the site trying to find the  'original' instructions about how to construct the frame, which way to orientate it etc.  Can any of you guys point me in the right direction? Ta!

[mumofstig]

the way to orient it is shown here.........
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=50801.msg402866#msg402866

In that thread you can see many methods of construction 

[maxibo]

Ah thank you!  I did stare at that sketch for some time but failed to see the great big 'S' marking South. Doh!  Its been a long day! Thanks again - I shall definitely be giving it a go, it looks amazing!

[Trillium]

I set mine up about 5-6 years ago and it's still there and still doing duty. The runner beans yield so well on it that I've put in less beans and put in some long cucumbers to one side and they love it. Haven't moved mine since I installed it as beans really don't need to be moved and I alter the side for the cukes each year.

[Spana]

Same here, mines not moved either and I've used the same strings for 4 years. I've tried a lot of ways to hold up runners and this knocks the socks off every other method.

[Trillium]

I used jute once. Only because it barely lasted the season. Since then, I've used polypropolene baler twine and that lasts 2 full years before it needs replacing. We get a lot of sun here and the UV rays really give the twine a beating and by year 3 it's not reliable for the whole season. I resent wasting time stringing beans and cukes back up so I simply do a replacement each 3rd year and get it over with. 

Love this system because I can find everything that's ready to pick because it's hanging right in front of me 

[Spana]

You get SUN 

[madcat]

I think our frame is on its fourth or fifth season.  We tried jute and it just broke under the weight of the vines (runner and french beans).  So we now use polyprop twine, new each season.  It is easier for us just to cut the whole lot down, pull the twine out from the vines (and usually reuse!) and compost the vines.  New string in the spring and off we go again.  Not long now!   

[Sadgit]

I miss my munty frame. It was a feature of my plot and admired by all around me.

[maxibo]

Thanks everyone.  I was wondering whether it would be possible to leave the frame in place.  We have a beautiful tea rose bush, that we inherited from the previous plot owner, it's really in the way but we don't want to get rid so I reckon I can build the frame to fit around/over the tea rose and still make the whole area a useable space.  Thanks for the info about which twine to use too.  I've read the discussion thread and I know the tall posts need to be 6ft and the shorter ones 3ft but what sort of distance between the short and long posts is best to make the frame stable? Cheers all!

[JayG]

A 5' diagonal will give you a total run of 8' for the beans if you use 3' uprights which is about as far as runner beans will go.

My trigonometry isn't up to much these days but this will give a depth of somewhere around 4' from front to back (depending on the height of the tall posts.)

(My Munty is permanent and made from angle iron, which enabled me to "string" it with galvanised wire (permanent on the diagonals, removal loops of wire on the verticals.)

A wooden frame would need to be quite strong to use wire though because you need to pull it quite tight.

[Spana]

Mines made of scaffold poles and fittings.

[maxibo]

Thank you JayG.  My trigonometry isn't up to anything as it all fell out of my head a very long time ago! But the measurements you've given make absolute sense to me. Amazing! I shall do the sensible thing and measure once, measure twice etc etc before I start knocking posts into the ground.  The cider drinking old timers on our site will wonder what the hell I'm doing so I need to get it right - me being a girl and all! 

[JayG]

I thought it would be easier to draw the design to scale than try to remember any trig (I was wrong - still took hours!) but this pic is what I finished up with (obviously this is the bit above ground, there's a couple of feet more buried in the soil.)

[maxibo]

Ah JayG you are a marvel!  This is exactly what I wanted but couldn't find on the site anywhere.  I even trawled through every page in the design and construction section. I've been registered on this site for ages and got loads of info, have a well thumbed copy of John's 'The Essential Allotment Guide' but never posted a question before!  Within 24 hours I have my question answered! Brilliant!