First crack at building cages

[hybrid]

I thought about purchasing the all screen cages...........I didnt like the setup and after seeing Zerrah's stuff I said to hell with it and went after my own setup.

Now let me tell you guys.........Im a pretty decent rough carpenter and a mediocre finish carpenter. My entire family is in construction of some sort.....from concret to cabinet maker. Its just the inner city Italian way. I went mechanical instead.............sheesh.

I had a go at it and well..........its definetly not cheaper and with me owning my own motorcycle business.........its definetly not a short time thing. I have some serious hours in these things.

I used 2X2's for the framework........completely framed in all axis.......and 1X2 for the doors........UPFRONT........ID NEVER USE THE 1X2's FOR THE DOORS AGAIN! I dont like the finished result of the doors and Im going to redo them.

I chopped all the wood out in advance. Every single piece, from the 1/4" birch plywood to the wedges that I mounted my misting heads on.

I used MINWAX clear base stain and had them add pure black. The result is named ONYX and can be had for 8 bucks a quart.

Next I used ARMOR ALL wood sealer. THIS STUFF IS MONEY! IT REPELS ALMOST INSTANTLY.

I let everything sit outside for a couple days and then washed it all down twice with soap and water and then rinsed it down.

The three walls are out of styrofoam sheeting and some portland cement with tile grout added and mixed with a ton of acrylic fortifier. Im not happy as I could be with the result but Im alright with it. I was feeling pressed for time and needed to be done.

I am going to make some better backgrounds and make molds to reproduce them quickly. I see me being addicted and aquireing alot more chams soon.

Anyways..........here they are...............not spectacular but not bad for a first try.

 

[ChameleonsTree]

They look awesome.

 

[Zerah Morris]

Nice job man. They look really good. Guess I need to head back to the shop, LOL!

 

[scooter4n]

nice setup.

 

[ChameleonsTree]

Nice job man. They look really good. Guess I need to head back to the shop, LOL!

Is this going to be a build off?

 

[hybrid]

No build off for me.............although I have a lot better idea of what Ill do differently next time.

the next gen should be zoo quality!

 

[jleahl]

I like them! Great backgrounds. What didn't you like about the 1x2" wood for the doors?

 

[zinc99]

how do drain off the water?

 

[hybrid]

I didnt bevel the bottoms but I did drill a large hole in the base of the planters. The water mist is aimed primarily on the plant in the pot so it drains out of the hole into a sink drain I cut into the base board.

The sink drains are stainless and I took the strainer out.............I put a 6 inch pig tail on it and I just put up tow rails along the bottom with rubbermaid boxes to catch water. Some water stays on the bottom but it evaporates back up and helps keep humidity.

I dont like the 1X2's because they warped on me. They arent big enough to have a solid plane.........I hand picked them and when I stained and sealed them they warped.

I will use 3X1 and instead of picture frame cuts Ill use dowels to line up and hold together.

Feel free to ask away. Im learning but I got a better handle on the next gen when I start.