Custom mail boxes

[Boog]

What do you have for a custom mail box? I found this one. Guy must be a fisherman or woman.

All I know is around here it wouldn't last long before it would be gone.

[FleetsidePaul]

All I have is the post right now. I'm still on the hunt for the new mailbox. Which I really need. The old one is falling apart and it's only 4 years old.

There is a chick up here that does custom metal work. She made a guitar sculpture for me. I know that she could make me a cool mailbox. But I lost her number and now I can't find her.

I want something with snakes on it. Yeah. I'm weird.

[Ziegelsteinfaust]

I always wanted one of those fishing lure mail boxes.

Maybe one day.

[special-K]

While I can appreciate creative expression in the form of mailboxes, I have come to realize it is best for me to keep it simple, cheap, and easily replaceable. Between plow trucks throwing slush at it, late night box bashers (it's been years), or cars running off the road a box is to vulnerable to put a whole lot more into one than making it look decent. I see some elaborate boxes out there, some pretty cool ones. But first thought is I hope no one steals it. Put something out along the road and you might as well put a "free" sign on it. I'd like to see some fancy mailboxes, but mine is just painted with the house colors with a wood placard on top with house number routed into it. I made that placard for the first mailbox in '87. I think this is the third mailbox it's been on. The scroll bracket under it came from the porch of another house we had that never got put back up before we sold it

Capt Boring here

[Boog]

Oh I know. When my wife's family lived on the farm they were big cotton farmers and had a large metal mail box her mom painted up real nice with cotton bolls and their name. They brought it with them when they moved to town but stored it in their laundry room. Someone broke into their house and stole that mail box and pole with a few other things. A few years later her dad found their mail box put up in front of a row of apartments right there in town and get this, it still had the painting on it including their family name! One has to figure a crack head or mental case was the burglar. If I remember right her dad pulled up that mail box and pole right then and there and took it back home. I don't know if he bothered reporting he found it or not feeling sure if the police had not seen it by then they never would.
After having ours demolished numerous times I planned to build a brick and mortar pillar to protect our box but was strongly advised not to do so. It may be because of the steel spikes I was going to add to it as well....

[Steeveedee]

We used to have brick monstrosity built before we moved here. It was leaning over and was in the middle of the frontage, and we also wanted to get two parking spaces. So I put in a new steel post and box at the edge of the driveway.

If you live where it snows, mailboxes are supposed to break away if the plow hits them. I am a member of a metal working forum where some people living in a rural environment get their mail boxes bashed by vandals. One of the members makes boxes out of heavy enough steel that anyone going at it with a bat is going to get hurt instead. It's on a breakaway arm so that the snow plow only makes it swing if it gets hit. It can then be put back in position, or maybe return by itself.

[1976gmc20]

I've thought about building a mailbox out of a piece of large heavy steel pipe - maybe cut it in half and weld a piece of channel for a base to make the traditional shape.

We had a nice old American made jumbo mailbox when we moved out here. Then a few years later some house movers wiped it out. I fought with them for a month or two before we finally got them to buy us a new jumbo box but it is a chinese made POS and leaks rain and snow even brand new. I moved it up the hill a couple hundred feet to where the other mailboxes were so the rural carrier wouldn't have to stop twice.

My post is getting bad and I had to brace it a while back. When the ground thaws out again I'm planning to talk to my neighbors about building a "hitching rail" out of 6x8 timbers for mine and all of their mailboxes to mount on. Except for the butthead across the crick that threatened to kill me!

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

Except for the butthead across the crick that threatened to kill me!

Maybe get one of these and point it at his house.

[1976gmc20]

Originally Posted by FleetsidePaul

Maybe get one of these and point it at his house.

Oh hell - he already knows! I'm armed all the time

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by 1976gmc20

Oh hell - he already knows! I'm armed all the time

It reminds me of a guy that lived next door down the hill from us. He was a real nice guy. BUT He was a schizophrenic and if got off his medication you never knew what he would do. He didn't even know himself. He really rattled my nerves because he was bat azz crazy. Nuttier than a squirrel turd. And you never knew when he'd lose it.

I know it sounds cruel. But I was glad/relieved when he died. He gave me the jitters. Too bad because he really was a nice guy when he was under control. He was just mentally ill.

[1976gmc20]

Originally Posted by FleetsidePaul

It reminds me of a guy that lived next door down the hill from us. He was a real nice guy. BUT He was a schizophrenic and if got off his medication you never knew what he would do. He didn't even know himself. He really rattled my nerves because he was bat azz crazy. Nuttier than a squirrel turd. And you never knew when he'd lose it.

I know it sounds cruel. But I was glad/relieved when he died. He gave me the jitters. Too bad because he really was a nice guy when he was under control. He was just mentally ill.

Two good old boys (brothers) from Georgia. The other brother bought a place in Billings where I guess he still lives with his wife. This guy bought this bare rocky quarter section across the crick. They seemed nice enough at first.

First he lived in a cabover camper and now he has a little garden shed of some sort to live in. Apparently he had back trouble and got addicted to pain killers and became an asshole. He used to have dogs that he let run loose to kill livestock and also apparently abused them because the (surviving ) ones that got taken to the shelter had to be put down.

Just about everyone has had some sort of trouble with him. Of course the sheriff department won't do anything substantial about it. I suppose they don't want to jail him and have to pay for his medical care

Haven't seen his tracks in or out since this snow and cold spell so maybe he froze to death ...?

[weq92f]

.

Mailbox story time... 8 years ago I heard a sound out front that I had to investigate... some contractor in a big truck accidentally destroyed my mailbox ( this was one of those normal mailboxes encased in a brick structure/monolith about 3 feet x 3 feet and just tall enough to get the box to the right height and of course with some pretty brick work and a nice domed top ).

After getting them to admit it was not my fault and that they would be responsible I was off to get it rebuilt/replaced.

Well -- I hired a dude to come out and rebuild it. I should have setup a time-lapse camera LOL. It took him all day and cost about 1100 bucks. Of course I got the upgraded mailbox ( a nice big square affair with a locking access hatch ) and the nice white-etched plaque stating my house number since it was not my $$.

Watching this guy remove the old and then slowly build up the new was something else. I couldn't believe it would take that long, require that much effort and patience....for a mailbox!

-klb

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by weq92f

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Watching this guy remove the old and then slowly build up the new was something else. I couldn't believe it would take that long, require that much effort and patience....for a mailbox!

-klb

I had two neighbors that just re-roofed their houses. One took a probably a month and the other took a couple days for about the same size house. I don't know the details but it sure makes you wonder if someone was milking the job.

[Sheepdip]

I made my own about 15 years ago. All the cookie cutter ones I looked at were poorly made and not very secure. And they wanted way too much $$$

Mines made from 12ga welded construction painted mild steel, the side access door was 1/4" steel with a 1" keyed deadbolt sourced thru Mc Master Carr, it has a false bottom that sits 6" up over the "J" bolts that poured into a concrete pad/base, when the door opens it has an internal flap (an internal extension of the door) that lifts up for 2 purpose's .....to help lower the mail gently to the bottom which is about 30" down, plus it blocks sticking anything in there from above to try and snag my mail.

[Just call me Sean]

Yeah my neighbor across the street likes to customize my mailbox about once a year. Eventually I'm going to put in something big and heavy. Something you feel when you hit it. Something that leaves a mark.

[Steeveedee]

Originally Posted by Just call me Sean

Yeah my neighbor across the street likes to customize my mailbox about once a year. Eventually I'm going to put in something big and heavy. Something you feel when you hit it. Something that leaves a mark.

I worked on a house remodel one time where the house backed up to a strip mall. The garage back wall was all pushed in, and the wood fence was pretty much trashed by people who shopped at the stores backing into them. The fence company sunk a piece of 4 or 5 inch pipe about every 5 feet all the way across the back of the property to avoid damage in the future. The guy who owned the jewelry store came out and asked what we were doing, and we told him that we were making it so that the fence and garage wall were protected. To which he said, "But my customers will scratch their cars on it!" Laughter ensued, but I was the supervisor, so I had to keep a straight face and tell him that his customers simply should not run into the posts. Beverly Hills, they are born entitled.

[FleetsidePaul]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

Beverly Hills, they are born entitled.

Not all of them. My first wife had a friend that lived in Beverly Hills. We went to a party at her place and it was a huge home. I about Peed my pants trying to find the bathroom because the hallway was bigger than my whole house. I got lost. I had to ask for directions. But they were nice. Just really really rich. That house was amazing. But they were cool. Cooler than my ex wife.

[Just call me Sean]

My neighbor did it again. He customized my mailbox.

[The Rocknrod]

I need a hardened concrete bunker around here for a mailbox. I've had mine knocked over once. So have the neighbors.

[Getter-Done]

Not mine.










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[Boog]

I like that one Dwayne. Around here it would get stolen the first night though..

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by Just call me Sean

My neighbor did it again. He customized my mailbox.

Back when I was a kid ya in the stone age ,someone kept taking out our mailbox. Happened a couple times a month my dad sank a ibeam with a crapload of cement then boxed it the beam with wood . Sure enough when we were away someone tried to customize it . Wood was shattered and the post slightly tilted . Followed the antifreeze/transfluid trail it stopped at the garage door of a family down the street . Seems the kid was upset that my dad complained about the kid speeding up the dead end . Well he didnt speed anymore on his bycicle.

[57taskforce]

My Grandaddy was a life long Redskins fan. He had season tickets for 35-40 years. For about the last 20 years he was alive he had a Redskins helmet mailbox. Wish I had some pictures, it was pretty cool.
Might be good that he’s passed on, don’t think he’d be too happy about the name change.

[1976gmc20]

Originally Posted by The Rocknrod

I need a hardened concrete bunker around here for a mailbox. I've had mine knocked over once. So have the neighbors.

Some house movers took out mine and the immediate neighbor's in 2009. No damn excuse either - they had a "spotter" on foot in front of the truck and he just watched them destroy the boxes. And about a minute later their cute little loader caught up with them but by then it was too late to pull the posts and save everything

They also bent fence posts and tore out cattle guard ends all the way back up the road.

They said "oh yeah, we'll replace it" but didn't and then finally they sent a guy up to try to straighten out the old ones. I got in a screaming match with the owner's wife (about 400 pounds and short hair!) over it, and even called the sheriff but even though we had multiple pictures and video of the event they wouldn't do anything because the "wide load" sign covered the license plate of the truck! And the USPO who think they own your mailbox after you put it up said "just call the sheriff, we can't do anything." Don't they have armed inspectors ???

Anyway they finally threw out a couple of new standard mailboxes in the grass at the end of our driveway and we started calling and yelling at them to replace what they had broken which was a couple of those "jumbo" mailboxes. I was just about to steal or sabotage their stuff which was at the site where the house was delivered a couple miles away. Eventually we got the jumbo boxes and I put them up the hill with the other neighbors' boxes so the rural route contractor didn't have to stop twice in a hundred yards. But the new cheap chinese mailboxes leak around the door


Now the posts are rotting off so what I want to do is get together with my neighbors and put in a couple of very massive treated posts with an 8 to 10 foot long rail between to mount all of the boxes on in a straight line instead of separate posts.

[61_FL_Apache]

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

Not mine.
Attachment 2097136









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That would look right at home in my neighborhood.