I thought about the swing around mount a few months ago. Even better, a
spring loaded detent, so that in the event of a really good hit, it comes
all the way back around and gives the object that whacked it a good whack
back...

All in the mind of nothing too dangerous to inspire a lawsuit.

One idea was the post to be a simple break-away, easy to replace, mounted in
a socket on a steel baseplate.
Set the plate on the ground, and stack those limestone bits on it, the ones
that are around 12" across.
No nasty dangerous bulletproof post...
No sticky-up steel bit to tear up the bottom of the car and potentially
injuse a passenger...
Instead, car hits mailbox and post, post gives way, then some lovely rocks
gently massage the bottom of the vehice.


"Bruce L. Bergman" wrote in message
...
Our rural-style curbside single mailbox got visited by the Mailbox
Fairy last night (AKA the $#%^=&%(^!! local teenagers...) First time
in about 10 years.

Finally finished off the redwood 4X4 that I set in concrete when I
was still in High School - it dried out and shattered at the cross-arm
dovetail cut. I patched the box back onto the stump of the old post
temporarily with 3/4" plywood, but it's time to Do It Once, and Do It
Right.

Anyone have a line on some cheap 4" extra heavy wall steel tubing
in Los Angeles? Nothing TOO heavy, I only have a Miller Challenger
MIG and oxy-acetylene with B and 50CF tanks, so the really big stuff
like railroad track and 4" bar stock is out. (Nuts.)

Unless I use Thermite... (Muahahahaha!!)

The wicked part being that I want to duplicate the silhouette of the
old post and cross-arm with brace, paint it wood brown with fake
graining so they think it's still an easy mark, put a plate-steel
rural mailbox at the top, and aim a camera at it - I could use sucker
rod or well casing for the post, but that would be far too obvious...

I should probably make some sort of break-away shear mount at the
base, with a chain so it doesn't go bouncing too far. And a twist
breakaway for the arm (preferably one rigged to let the arm swing all
the way around if smacked at speed...) Just so the lawyers for the
decedent can't say I was creating "an attractive hazard" - I believe
in the principle behind the Darwin Awards (letting fools self-cleanse
the gene pool) but for some unknown reason the District Attorney and
local Tort Lawyers do not.

Anyone seen one of the heavy plate steel "oversize" rural mailboxes
with a second inner locking door and drop slot? Haven't seen both
features on the same pre-made box, I might have to make an inner door.

After that, I have to find a big steel box suitable for making into
a package drop locker. But first things first.

-- Bruce --

--
Bruce L. Bergman, Woodland Hills (Los Angeles) CA - Desktop
Electrician for Westend Electric - CA726700
5737 Kanan Rd. #359, Agoura CA 91301 (818) 889-9545
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