Boaphile...hard to reach?

[DooLittle]

Could he make one large custom cage for you? He makes custom cages too. It might make it a bit pricey though but I'm not sure.


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He said he could build them. But I believe he also said it would be 2 cages put together. Which may be fine. I prefer one smooth unit.

[AlexisFitzy]

He said he could build them. But I believe he also said it would be 2 cages put together. Which may be fine. I prefer one smooth unit.

I can totally understand that I'd be iffy too with two cages put together, that's so odd lol. I'd be much happier with one smooth unit as well.


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[CryHavoc17]

Jeff is kind of a pain to deal with, ill admit to that. His customer service skills are terrible. However, his cages are the best in the business in my opinion, and any frustration from lack if communication or longer lead times is more then paid off with the finished result.

In the weeks before my first cages from him shipped out I wanted to murder him. Now ill never do business with anyone else

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[RissaEst]

I almost went with Boaphile but instead decided to go with Animal Plastics. I'm glad I did! AP has great products, prices and customer service. If you contact them they get back to you within 24 hours. If you have an issue they will fix it immediately. Perfect all around aside from the wait

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[gbryner]

I finally talked to Jeff at boaphile. I guess they have been pretty busy and apologized for not returning emails. Ordered 422 coupe with belly heat, light, and he's throwing in the 1611 radiant heat panel. They are not even shipping right now because of weather. He told me I should receive it in 8 weeks.

[Skiploder]

Almost everyone makes you wait on the order of 8 to 12 weeks. AP will often tell you less, but my cage with them took way to long to build and ship - frankly it was embarrassing. They refunded the shipping fees but only after I contacted them and asked what the hell was up. Communication was great up until they had my money. They are very nice on the phone but when it came down to it, they were no better than Boaphile in terms of turn around time or letting me know what was up with the delays.

Jeff has a long history of crappy communication - you can find ample evidence of it with a simple search. Frankly, his cages are not as sturdy as Constructors NW or AP. At one point I had a whole stack of them and had issues with bowing associated with RHPs on the very thin roofs.

If I was in the market for a cage today I would go with Constrictors NW. If Rich for Reptile basics is still making cages, I would deal with him in a heartbeat. Great communication, great turnaround time and great product. There was/is no one better in that regard.

This hobby tends to cultivate a cult of personality thing. BS like long wait times and horrible communication are tolerated because the seller is some sort of proto-celebrity in the reptile world. I have no other way to explain why so many settle for mite-infested snakes, sick snakes, deformed snakes, unreturned calls, long wait times and the like............

[jason_ladouceur]

I've got to say as someone that runs a business, and also has a full time job that it's far from easy. I can certainly understand a small company missing the odd inquiry. I try as hard as possible to avoid it but I'm sure I've been guilty of it myself. But constantly not returning inquiries, taking people's money and then breaking off communication. 8-12 week lead times on orders? Seriously? How does a company stay in business with that kind of thing happening over and over again. I've built hundreds of cages in the last 6 months. And I've never make a client wait more then 2 weeks, even that seems to long to me. I don't understand why you would even take an order if you weren't going to be able to fill it for 3 months.

[Skiploder]

I've got to say as someone that runs a business, and also has a full time job that it's far from easy. I can certainly understand a small company missing the odd inquiry. I try as hard as possible to avoid it but I'm sure I've been guilty of it myself. But constantly not returning inquiries, taking people's money and then breaking off communication. 8-12 week lead times on orders? Seriously? How does a company stay in business with that kind of thing happening over and over again. I've built hundreds of cages in the last 6 months. And I've never make a client wait more then 2 weeks, even that seems to long to me. I don't understand why you would even take an order if you weren't going to be able to fill it for 3 months.

Well Jason, since people continue to give them business, they aren't being forced to up their service.

Again, not to beat a dead horse, but AP was super nice on the phone and always commiserated with my "impatience". When 8 weeks became 10 weeks, it was me who called. They were very pleasant. They were pleasant every time I called. I called often as my 8 weeks became 14 weeks. They credited me the shipping charges. That was nice, but I would have rather paid the $50, got an unsolicited update on the delay and got my cage in a reasonable period of time.

Now in contrast, in December I called Jeff Johnson of Freedom Breeder and ordered a rack. Lindy brought it home from work with him that night and I picked it up at his house. I have called Lindy and Jeff countless times and have always had them bend over backwards to deliver me their product.

Same with Rich Goldzung. Same with Doug (Barr's). I purchased a cage from CNW a few years ago and Ed's communication was excellent and the cage was shipped quickly and flawlessly. I am amazed that people put up with delays, poor communication and long lead times when there are other options out there.

I am floored that people actually defend or make excuses for these delays and the bad communication. Absolutely floored.

[Pyrate81]

Ordered 7 cages from PVCcages.com last Friday night. Had an email within 5 minutes saying he was backed up with orders and will be delayed with shipping and should have them out in 3 weeks with an email when they shipped. It's a mom and pop operation and tries to have cages shipped in 1-2 weeks. When he said 3 weeks, I was like " That's awesome", cause of all the stories I hear of people saying 6-8+ weeks. We'll see what happens moving forward as the payment went through. I'll throw a thread up of my experience about the cages when I get them in and set up.

A "bigger" operation should be able to get their cages out within 1-2 weeks if a small operation can do it, IMO.

Customer service goes a long way with me. One of my local pet stores which I have been doing business with them for 5+ years, rubbed me the wrong way this past fall. I've started breeding my own feeders and will no longer be doing business with them in the future.

just sayin'

[DooLittle]

I looked at pvccages also. They didn't have anything big enough for for my needs this go round. But I plan on ordering my gtp's cage from them in the near future. So please do post how it all goes.