Well its been a while since I've seen a thread about this and I've been doing some investigation of what else is out there in the way of caging. So I
thought it would be nice to see what some of you are using for enclosures. I'm using Repti-racks and BARRS cages at the moment.
                        
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Pics of your Enclosures
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 Jeff Godbold |
Pics of your Enclosures |
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Posts: 350 (05/14/08 17:55:33)
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Mike C.chondroforum |
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Posts: 46 (05/14/08 18:00:58) |
I have these four cages that my father built from my plans, based on Greg Maxwell's ideas. I chose a full glass door for better viewing and a completely
laminated interior to hold up against moisture. Made from Cherry, and has the heat panels and lighting installed. Only issues I wish were different would be
adjustable vents, as my cages seem to stay a little too dry. I also have some different Jim Sharphorn designed cages that work real well.
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/ Mike C / mclark202@insightbb.com / / _______________________________________________________/ |
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jamey36 |
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Posts: 44 (05/14/08 18:22:49)
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Jeff
I'll get some pics up later,but......After my experience with Repti-racks,I placed an order with Animal plastics.There cages were much better.The construction,precision of fit,and overall product were much better even than I expected.The little things make the difference.The tracking for the glass comes preattached with screws rather than adhesive(wich on the reptiracks is already coming loose after only a month),stacking pins,bottom panels are prerouted for heat cable and T-stat probe(admittedly not very useful for chondros),and pop in pop out dividers for splitting units.Just my opinion,but the AP cages are twice the product for very little more money(about $15-20 per cage including shipping). Jamey |
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tazman1982.chondroforum |
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Posts: 27 (05/14/08 20:53:52) |
24x18x18 cages by design cages. two of these Biak 
4x3x3 cagesbydesign.com cage- Male sorong
then 2 exotera cages.
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Max Moro |
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Posts: 1276 (05/14/08 22:34:46)
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Mike, I'm in love with your cages... And your dad is awesome for making them...
.... That is all... Cheers, Maximiliano
Last Edited By: Max Moro
05/15/08 05:34:08.
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Brandon Osborne |
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Posts: 678 (05/15/08 08:07:55)
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Here are some cages I just finished. They are black melamine and a complete cage runs around $75-80 ea. They are 40L x 20W x 20T. Let me know what you
think.
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Jeff Godbold |
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Posts: 351 (05/15/08 08:25:31)
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Brandon,
I've seen those pics before and I would love to make my own cages like that, but I don't have some of the tools that would be needed. I wish I did but unforunately...commercial cages are my only option. I could build it fine....it's just the cutting/slots for vents that would create an issue. If you have a simple way of achieving this, I'd love to here it...I've thought of purchasing pre-cut panels. As a side note: I have access to Lowes, HD, and Ace. |
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Brandon Osborne |
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Posts: 679 (05/15/08 10:21:17)
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Jeff, I wouldn't let any of those places cut a fart for me. The only real tools needed for these is a drill and a jigsaw for cutting the vents. You can
get both for around $75 in cordless models.......Sears is a great place to look.
Look for a cabinet or millwork shop and ask them what they would charge for a complete assembly. You might be surprised. If it's too much, ask them for just the cuts and cutouts. I bet you will still save money. Good luck.
Last Edited By: Brandon Osborne
05/15/08 10:33:07.
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Frols |
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Posts: 213 (05/15/08 10:56:56)
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Very nice Brandon!
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Larry Stroud |
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Posts: 22 (05/15/08 11:12:22)
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Wow, those cherry and melamine DIY cages are awesome.
I'm planning on building my own caging in the coming year or so. I love home built things and do as much as possible myself, but it is a time invesment that requires skill and patience. Jeff, you saw my cages in person so I wont post a pic, but that is what I want to do for my own room. Good luck and contact me if you need any info. Larry |
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Sony Raju |
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Posts: 1065 (05/15/08 11:12:33)
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brandon, very nice cages! wanna build some for me! ive got two left hands!
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Jeff Godbold |
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Posts: 352 (05/15/08 12:07:59)
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Brandon,
Thanks for the advice. I was wondering...would you mind shooting me an email with the materials needed? I'd like to go with 36 X 18 X 18 and 24 X 18 X 18 size cages. Larry-Your cages look great! I really liked them. For me, it all boils down to functionality and price. I've gotta save it where I can :-) Thanks again...
Last Edited By: Jeff Godbold
05/15/08 12:10:29.
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TheSerpenteer |
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Posts: 133 (05/15/08 12:52:39)
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Very nice Brandon. Melamine makes a very clean looking cage. I'm wondering what size you built there, and do they way a freakin' ton.
That's always been what I didn't like about melamine. Does the $80 include all the materials?
I've been thinking about making some smaller cages myself out of melamine, I'm trying to weigh the whole, cost, time, quality thing. For example, if I can get a PVC cage shipped to me that has everything in it already (heat panel, perches, light, vents), I wonder how much I'd actually save doing it myself? You'd have to add at least another $100 for those things, probably slightly more. Plus the PVC is so much lighter than melamine, (though it is heavier than I expected). I go back in forth with what I want to do constantly.
Brian Suter
great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people |
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MarlboroMan |
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Posts: 133 (05/15/08 13:03:46)
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I'm wondering why some folks are saying that the weight of the melamine is a negative. Do you guys move your cages around a lot? I can understand shipping
costs if your having them made and shipped though.
Jon Deason
"Did you just say I am a reverberating homo?" - John Romano |
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joemerlin |
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Posts: 111 (05/15/08 15:48:59) |
any body got plans for these cages?
"No matter how little money and how few possesions you own,
having a dog makes you rich." |
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Mike C.chondroforum |
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Posts: 49 (05/15/08 16:07:12) |
Max, thanks for the great complimant! I plan on having a better base built for these cages, but I just framed that one up real fast when I moved them into the
room. Hoping to have a storage area framed from Cherry as well, to look like a nice complete cabinet. My father is awesome, and he has already said that he
would probably build me more cages from the same plans if I wanted him to. I just have to pay for materials(still hundreds of dollars considering the
laminate, cherry, glass, and heating elements). I don't have the plans though, I would have to pull them from his records. It's well worth it though
when someone sees how nice the cages are. Heres a few more shots of them:
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/ Mike C / mclark202@insightbb.com / / _______________________________________________________/ |
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MegF42 |
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Posts: 1912 (05/15/08 16:36:14)
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I've got Maxwell cages as well. I like the side opening doors although having the sliding doors is handy when you have a tiger by the door waiting for you
to open up so he can chew on you!
5.5~Cornsnakes
3.4.1~Green Tree Pythons 2.1.2~Amazon tree boas 1.0~California Kingsnake Assorted: Horses, dogs, and cats www.Franclycac.com |
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Brandon Osborne |
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Posts: 680 (05/15/08 18:21:05)
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MarlboroMan wrote: I totally agree. They are heavy, but I can carry and stack these cages with no help........and if some of you have not seen me, I am not a big guy. They are not that heavy for the size. |
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TheSerpenteer |
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Posts: 136 (05/15/08 18:31:27)
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Jon,
The weight of the cage has been an issue for me several times. I've moved 3 times with melamine racks and they may have been harder to move than most pieces of furniture. Also, I've rearranged my snake room more times than I'd like to count, either from adding more cages or different types of cages, or from adding more animals. If you don't have anyone around to help you, like a fellow herper, moving those melamine cages can be a real problem. My wife can only help me so much with a 10 slot melamine blanket box rack. Then on the other hand, I can sling a 4 ft Vision cage around by myself. If modifying a cage, rearranging the room or anything like that needs to happen, the lighter the better.
Brian Suter
great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people |
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Brandon Osborne |
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Posts: 681 (05/15/08 18:52:29)
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Here's a list of what I purchased for the five 40"L cages.
3 sheet of 3/4" X4X8 Black Melamine.....at the time was $42 per sheet. 1 sheet of 1/4" X4X8 Black MDF Melamine.....about the same price. All purchased from Kight Custom Millwork in Evansville, IN. $12.50 cut charge per sheet.....and it is precisely cut by laser. Kight also gave me the edging free, but it usually runs $0.08 per foot. You can aslo get it by the 250' iron on roll from www.rocklerpro.com. 20' of Black 1/4" Bypass bottom tracking($0.60 per foot) 20' of Black 1/4" Bypass top Tracking ($0.60 per foot) From www.outwaterplastics.com Here is the direct link. http://www.outwatercatalogs.com/2007_master/lg_display.cfm?page_number=27&catalog=070148 10 white vents (free from Greg Gibbs) Thanks Greg! 5 Plastic standard light fixtures ($0.99 each) 5 Standard 12ga. 9' extension cords $1.50 ea. 10 pieces of 1/4" Plate Glass ($20 per cage) from Service Glass Evansville, IN. 1 Tub of GE Black Silacone caulk. $4 20 Sets of Plastic Closet Rod hangers $0.99 per set. Total cost is around $80 ea. for a 40" X 20" X 20" cage and I can carry them by myself. I would imagine 5/8" would be much lighter. And as far as racks go, they are much heavier due to the added mass of each shelf. Brian, as I've said before, heat panels are way overrated and even more overpriced. The light fixtures I use are $1 ea. and there is a small 40w spot bulb that is about 1" tall X 1 1/2" wide that throw at 87-90 degree basking spot in a 75-78 degree room. I'm trying them out for the moment. They actually hang down only about 1 1/2" from the ceiling of the cage. I'm not a big fan of the flourescent strip lights any longer. I've had about 6 f them burn out in the last year and they are just now 2 years old. A few months ago, I decided to go with standard incandescent fixtures because one of my strip lights actually melted due to failure. I walked in my snake room and smelled burning plastic and noticed the light in my Biaks cage was not on. These things will heat up to 180 degrees.....at least that is what my temp gun said. As soon as I can get around to it, I'll post a cut list here. Thank you all for the compliments.
Last Edited By: Brandon Osborne
05/15/08 18:55:37.
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Jeff Godbold |
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Posts: 354 (05/16/08 02:46:41)
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Brandon,
Thanks for the information. That cut list would be a great help too...I'm actually not as worried about the whole thing like before. You posts have helped tremendously. |
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