It Still Works

Shortly after the front porch was built, we added a mailbox on a pole. When we bought the house, the mailbox was one of those small boxes that hang off the front next to the front door. We wanted something different and we wanted something unique.

So, we went to the local Ace Hardware and bought a steel mail box, a real "farmer's box", as I called it because it looked just like the ones every farmer had on a post out by the road. I painted the box black and painted a yellow Iowa Hawkeyes "tiger hawk" on the side along with our last name.  (For awhile, you could get a heavy gauge plastic mailbox, same size, that was black with the the Iowa logo. It was $80 and I was tempted, but never got it. Now I can't find anything like that anywhere.)

I repainted it about every 5-6 years but it's getting long in the tooth now and I haven't painted it in years, obviously.

The front door sits on the "work bench" in the basement. ("Work bench" is a loosely used term to describe a flat surface on which sits a lot of stuff, including, but not limited to, the front door of the mail box, hand tools, bolts, nails, cables, extension cords, etc, the detritus of life in a house.) The bolt that held it to the mailbox has rusted away on both sides. I'm not sure how I would reattach it for it to be effective. Unless the rain or snow is directly from the east, the mail doesn't get wet when the postman shoves it to the back. Plus, this will hold 3-4 days worth of mail and many packages of the size that I get, when I order anything.

It's quite rusted, although not rusted through on the body. It's really not falling apart other than it doesn't have a front door. There was a wasp nest at the front of the box in May but that was quickly removed. Darned if they aren't fast about building those things. If I were to replace this, say, put a new mailbox on my Christmas list, I'm not sure I could get it off the stand. I didn't look, but I'd wager the bolts might be rusted onto the pole. If I took some steel wool to the rust and then repainted it with a nice black enamel, this would probably still work. The door issue kind of bothers me, however. I really wish I could figure out how to reattach it. The mailman might be rather surprised as it's been several years since the door was on the front.

Perhaps some primer and then a coat of black enamel. The tiger hawk isn't hard to do. This would make the mailbox as spiffy as the front steps.

This was interesting. There's a stamp on the back of the box. It's the manufacturer and the location the box was made.

I might know where this place is.

Beverage:  Water

Deb