Reptile Basics or Boaphile?

I've got some RBI racks and can highly recommend Reptile Basics as well. If you are concerned about safety, I'd buy two thermostats. One being proportional and one an off/on. I use VE-100's as my backup and VE-200's as primary. When a proportional thermostat fails, they tend to fail wide open. When an on/off thermostat fails, it tends to fail in the off position. At least, that is what I've read. I feel much safer with a back up thermostat on all of my racks.

This is a really good question. I have been looking at different racks and cages too. It sucks not being able to see/compare them in person.

Most say RBI. But just by reading about them I was leaning toward the Rhino Raxx.

Those that are picking RBI, is this just a loyalty from awesome customer service on RBI's part? Have you actually used both companies and found bad customer service using Boaphile?

Going just by product quality and taking customer service out of it would you say one is better than the other, or they are equal?

I understand customer loyalty. I Just don't want to NOT select a product I feel will fit my needs better because yall favor the one without having actually used the other. I tried to select my words carefully there. I am not trying to step on toes and say your vote for RBI is wrong. I see it like riding a certain brand motorcycle, its hard to change a persons mind about which is best. I just want to make sure i select the best product for me.

If Boaphile is lacking in customer service, can you tell me how?

I have never used a rack or custom cage so I'm a blank slate trying to be well informed to make a good decision.

Or you can just get a herpstat with a built in fail safe ;-). RBI has great racks and their turn around time is unmatched. I ordered 3 racks on a Tuesday late night, and received them on Saturday morning following. Boaphile (Rhinoraxx) have a decent to long wait time on producing / shipping their rack systems. Something to keep in mind. If you are going for the CB70 rack, just stick with RBI, rich will make sure you're good to go. I have a stack 3 high, ran on a herpstat 1 using dimmer mode, and my heat tape stays at about 34% to keep the heat tape at a reading of 106, and the tubs at a reading of 91-92 varying on tub to tub. Make sure you get an IR temp gun to go with your new rack. It will be your best friend with your thermostat.

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Originally Posted by prettyballsy

These two rack systems are in my budget if I buy piece by piece. Any opinions on one over the other? The Boaphile racks claim to have self-extinguishing materials and I like the thought of reduced fire risk.

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RBI makes their racks out of the same material - as does AP and others. PVC is self extinguishing, der Boaphile has taken this generic property of PVC and has turned it into a selling point while the others haven't. Hence many people mistakenly think only his special and magical racks are self-extinguishing.

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Originally Posted by sflanick

Rhino raxxs all the way if you call Jeff he will always answer boaphile wrote the book when it comes to caging people

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The Boaphile is widely known for not returning calls and e-mails. In fact, I've lost count of the number of threads discussing his crappy and indifferent customer service.

His racks and cages sag overtime. In most of my sweaterbox racks that I've owned from him, the bottom drawer becomes useless - even when placed on a flat, level and non-carpeted floor.

Both AP and RBI make very nice products that are also self-extinguishing and the great thing about Rich from RBI and Ali from AP is that they actually return calls, answer e-mails and, in general, act like they appreciate your business.

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Originally Posted by KMG

This is a really good question. I have been looking at different racks and cages too. It sucks not being able to see/compare them in person.

Most say RBI. But just by reading about them I was leaning toward the Rhino Raxx.

Those that are picking RBI, is this just a loyalty from awesome customer service on RBI's part? Have you actually used both companies and found bad customer service using Boaphile?

Going just by product quality and taking customer service out of it would you say one is better than the other, or they are equal?

I understand customer loyalty. I Just don't want to NOT select a product I feel will fit my needs better because yall favor the one without having actually used the other. I tried to select my words carefully there. I am not trying to step on toes and say your vote for RBI is wrong. I see it like riding a certain brand motorcycle, its hard to change a persons mind about which is best. I just want to make sure i select the best product for me.

If Boaphile is lacking in customer service, can you tell me how?

I have never used a rack or custom cage so I'm a blank slate trying to be well informed to make a good decision.

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http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...d.php?t=264395

http://www.reptileinsider.com/showthread.php?t=5955

http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=115727

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...phile-Outcome*

http://www.faunaclassified.com/forum...ad.php?t=89594

http://www.reptileboards.com/threads...oaphile.21655/

http://moreliaviridis.yuku.com/topic/9247

Are you seeing the trend here?

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Originally Posted by KMG

This is a really good question. I have been looking at different racks and cages too. It sucks not being able to see/compare them in person.

Most say RBI. But just by reading about them I was leaning toward the Rhino Raxx.

Those that are picking RBI, is this just a loyalty from awesome customer service on RBI's part? Have you actually used both companies and found bad customer service using Boaphile?

Going just by product quality and taking customer service out of it would you say one is better than the other, or they are equal?

I understand customer loyalty. I Just don't want to NOT select a product I feel will fit my needs better because yall favor the one without having actually used the other. I tried to select my words carefully there. I am not trying to step on toes and say your vote for RBI is wrong. I see it like riding a certain brand motorcycle, its hard to change a persons mind about which is best. I just want to make sure i select the best product for me.

If Boaphile is lacking in customer service, can you tell me how?

I have never used a rack or custom cage so I'm a blank slate trying to be well informed to make a good decision.

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I say RBI bc Rich has the best customer service on the planet and makes products just as good, if not better, as boaphile. The longest ive had to wait for an item to get to me is 3 days. The only reason it took 3 days instead of 2 was bc there was a holiday lmao. Ive heard a TON of stories about how people order from boaphile and dont hear back from Jeff in 2 months then all of the sudden a rack shows up at their door. So ya if youre ok with that then order from him. When im buying a $300+ item from someone i generally like to at least get a receipt or conformation email. If i dont id probably wanna be able to call/email and talk to someone to make sure i know where my money went. From what ive heard you dont really get any of this from Boaphile.

Its your money and completely your choice though, im not telling you what to do, just sharing my experience. I have never ordered anything from Jeff personally, these are all just from stories ive heard.

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Originally Posted by Skiploder

The Boaphile is widely known for not returning calls and e-mails. In fact, I've lost count of the number of threads discussing his crappy and indifferent customer service.

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You just reminded me that I sent an email to Boaphile and never got a response. It was so long ago i forgot about it. I guess I could have answered my own question.

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I feel pretty silly having been a Boaphile victim and not realizing it. Thank you for the info and making the choice easier.

I have a Rhinoraxx from Boaphile and like it a lot. That being said, I would go with RBI if I had to choose between those two)(like everyone else has said, poor customer service at boaphile). Have you checked out Animal Plastics? Great racks and great customer service. Good luck!

Another option you might want to consider is animal plastics http://www.animalplastics.com/ they also have great racks, prices and customer service.

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Originally Posted by Skiploder

RBI makes their racks out of the same material - as does AP and others. PVC is self extinguishing, der Boaphile has taken this generic property of PVC and has turned it into a selling point while the others haven't. Hence many people mistakenly think only his special and magical racks are self-extinguishing.


His racks and cages sag overtime. In most of my sweaterbox racks that I've owned from him, the bottom drawer becomes useless - even when placed on a flat, level and non-carpeted floor.

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I was just going to mention your first point, and agree with it completely, they all use the same materials. However I can't agree with your second point. It's unfair to point out that the Boaphiles racks and cages sag over time and not mention this about the others since they all use the same materials

I've got some boaphile racks that are around 15 years old and they are just as usable today as they were when I bought them. No sagging, and even the heat is still good.