"Mike" wrote in message
...
I'm getting ready to replace the columns & railings on my front
porch. The originals are wood, 16 years old, and beginning to come
apart at the finger joints, etc. For a maintenance-free solution I
like the vinyl-over-pipe columns such as the HB&G PermaPost units, but
they have a bit of a sterile look to them (for lack of a better word)
and, I don't see any good way to attach a flag pole bracket. I could
drill through into the pipe, but it seems there would be some risk of
goobering up the column trying to drill blind into a round pipe
without being able to center punch it first.

So, I'm wondering about low- or no-maintenance solutions that are of
some other sort of composite material, resin-wood combination, or the
like, but am not having much luck searching the Net. Any advice or
experience here would be greatly appreciated!

What I might try is temporarily securing the bracket to the column with
tape or baling wire or whatever and then using the holes in the bracket as
the drilling guide.


Charlie