Mailbox 2.0: Homemade mailbox alert

Mechanical Mailbox Alert

Even my kids grudgingly thought this was cool (maybe because I make them get the mail). Instead of the various electronic mailbox alerts that exist out there, I made this one out of bits lying around the house. It uses a similar concept to the $10 ones on Ebay.

The metal is spray-painted aluminum. The purpose of the large washer is to help keep the alert bar oriented properly (may not be necessary). Each bolt is held in place by a nut inside the mailbox and a nut on the outside of the mailbox (thus sandwiching the plastic wall of the mailbox). This allows the depth of the bolt to be set. Since the bolt that the alert bar pivots on undergoes a lot of movement, I also used a little Loctite on the nuts to prevent it loosening over time.