Castle Crate Models

At Castle Dog Crates, we have three basic models: good, better, and best. You can also think of these models as silver, gold, and platinum. Our most basic model (the Manor House Crate) is very similar to the crates offered by our best competitors. It is a nice crate that looks good from a distance. Often times this style of crate is called a “furniture crate” or “furniture quality,” but we would argue that our Manor House Crate is not truly furniture quality. Our Penthouse Premium Crate Model (Gold) and Dog Mahal model (Platinum) are truly fine furniture and are significantly better than our competitors.

Each model has several different sizes and options, but the model deals directly with the build quality, materials used, and fit, and finish. Reference the charts below for a distinction between the three luxury crate models at Castle Crates.

Craftsmanship

For Castle Dog Crates, our craftsmanship is second to none. Our Silver line of crates (the Manor House) have excellent craftsmanship that mirrors (or slightly outpaces) our competitors. While the Manor House crates are very well built and should last a long time, they are not appropriately called “fine furniture.” For example, the Manor House Crate uses pine or poplar as its primary wood (as do our competitors) and uses painted rebar as the balusters (as do our competitors). We recognize that fine furniture is not made of pine and rebar. It looks nice from a distance, but a person who truly appreciates fine furniture will be far more pleased with our Penthouse Premium Crate (Gold) or our Dog Mahal Crate (Platinum). To our knowledge our Penthouse Premium and Dog Mahal models are considerable improvements over any of our competitors.

Materials Used

Castle Crates are built with excellent materials. Rather than the typical Pine, our Manor House Crates (Good) are built from Poplar wood, which is a soft wood. Our other models all use hard woods. Our Penthouse Premium Crates (Better) use premium wood species (walnut, cherry, hickory, maple, red oak or white oak) for an outstanding finished project.

In addition to the seven wood species offered on our Gold level crates, the Platinum level Dog Mahal also offers Mahogany, Brazilian Cherry (Jatuba), Brazilian Maple, Brazilian Walnut, Basswood, Ash, Redwood, Birch, Sycamore, Cypress, Osage Orange, Sapele, Russian Olive, Cumaru, Beech, Pudauk, Jarrah, Pecan, and Teak.

The Manor House model uses nice standard hardware and balusters, but the hardware on the Penthouse Premium and Dog Mahal are upgraded and have numerous options.

Options

While most of our competitors offer a couple stains and 3 or 4 paint options, our Manor House Crate model gives you ten excellent paint options and 5 stain options. Many customers choose to paint the base of the crate and stain the top. Or they can use two different colors of stains (one on top and one on bottom). For our Penthouse Premium Crates and Dog Mahal crates, we strongly recommend using a stain, since the wood grain is beautiful, and they are truly fine furniture. We hate to paint over fine furniture. There are dozens of stain options for our two best models. In general, each level up gets a greater variety of options and customizations.

Pricing

Castle Crate pricing becomes more expensive as you move up the spectrum of models. The Manor House model starts at $600; the Penthouse Premium Crates are $1300 and up, and the Dog Mahal crates begin in the $2200 price range.

Ideal Market

The Ideal market for the Manor House Crate is a cost-conscious family looking for a crate that is far superior to wire mesh. The Manor House Crates look wonderful from a distance, and they get the job done. They’re not built to last a lifetime, and they are not truly fine furniture.

The Penthouse Premium Crate is our most popular model. It’s geared for a family wanting an outstanding fine furniture crate that should last a lifetime. From the build quality, to the wood species, to the metal attachments, the Penthouse Premium model delivers a superior crate.

The Dog Mahal is one step up from the Penthouse Premium primarily in it’s ability to be highly customized. With the Dog Mahal model, you are able to spend time on the phone with the craftsmen who will be building your crate describing precisely what you will want.