This guy really wanted his sign to stay. He got it made out of METAL. Like, not the tinny kind, I mean the industrial kind that road signs are made of. Could even BE a road sign he painted over or something... I can't even figure out how its really attached.. Its got like a round head bolt thru the sign into a phone pole, but there ain't no nuts on the other side to unscrew. I tried bending it back and forth, but its got some kind of cross brace on the back. I even hit it with my little hammer (well, its a hand sledge, but you know what I mean)... nothing. Puts a little dent, thats it.
I tried painting over it with Krylon, and the paint just runs off... I think he sprayed it with something like pan grease or some kind of lubricunt to keep any paint from stickin' to it. I took a mini propane torch to try and heat it up a little, see if I couldn't melt the head off the bolt, but there was some smoke comin' up outta the back, and I didnt wanna set the pole on fire.
#3. "RE: Can't figure out how to get it out..." In response to Reply # 0
In all likelyhood, the attaching bolts are most likely pan headed or oval shaped with a knurled shank that's probably at least four inches long.
They are probably driven in with an engineer's hammer or heavy construction, 20oz, type hammer.
There is a tool that carpenters use that's called a sheeps foot. It's for removing large nails from wood. You can see them at Home Depot, Lowes or any good hardware store. If you can get the bolt head out just far enough to get a good chisel or hacksaw blade in behind it, you can normally cut the head of the bolt off in short order.
We had something similiar in the DFW area some years back that presented the same problem. They were nailed up around ten feet or higher which presented a real problem. It took a while, but they're now history.
#4. "RE: Can't figure out how to get it out..." In response to Reply # 3
I thought about wrapping a chain around it and just yanking it off with my truck, but a.) I think it will just bend and not pop off and 2.) its a busy enough area where that would probably present a traffic hazard.
The bolts are DEFINITELY too big around for bolt cutters, hacksaw, etc., and I already tried the claw hammer, and there is no way they are budging. I also don't want to risk pulling the pole over if the sign is bolted in so good that it would wobble the pole, which i think it might.
The garbage bag idea is good, but if it blows off, that would just be more litter. I think I'm gonna take my dewalt wire brush and/or grinder wheel to it and see if I can't at least add some "artistic license" to his sign.
>In all likelyhood, the attaching bolts are most likely pan >headed or oval shaped with a knurled shank that's probably >at least four inches long. > >They are probably driven in with an engineer's hammer or >heavy construction, 20oz, type hammer. > >There is a tool that carpenters use that's called a sheeps >foot. It's for removing large nails from wood. You can see >them at Home Depot, Lowes or any good hardware store. If you >can get the bolt head out just far enough to get a good >chisel or hacksaw blade in behind it, you can normally cut >the head of the bolt off in short order. > >We had something similiar in the DFW area some years back >that presented the same problem. They were nailed up around >ten feet or higher which presented a real problem. It took a >while, but they're now history.
#6. "RE: Can't figure out how to get it out..." In response to Reply # 4
Try something like a dremal tool. They have some realy good high speed cutting heads. Also if you have an air comressor Chicago tools makes a pnematic router that will cut sheet metal in short order. I used to use one when in the areo space industry. You can also drill the bolt heads with increasingly larger drill bits then snatch the sign off of what is left.
"If your not living on the edge you are taking up to much space" unknown
