Got signs or other road junk?

[DesertDog]

Since I'm not talking about for sale I couldn't find another place to post this.  I figured this would be a topic thread to post pictures of signage collections.

Being an avid road goer and what would someone classify as a road geek I tend to like to collect things I associate with my favorite places; this thread being specifically about road signs.  While I collect maps and some die cast cars I did dedicate a large section of my condo to road signage I've collected.  First I'll start with the real signs:

Sorry guys, don't want to ruin this thread but I had to pull my photos.

[freebrickproductions]

I own a few signs and two traffic lights.
First up are the signs.
The first sign is an arrow sign for a county road. This was the first I sign I ever got.

Arrow Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

Arrow Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

My second sign is a "TO" sign for an interstate. This served in Tennessee and was made the month I was born.

TO sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

TO sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

TO sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

The third sign I own is a plastic slow sign that would be mounted on a traffic cone. This used to be used at a school my mom works at here in Huntsville.

Slow Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

Slow Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

Slow Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

My fourth sign a double-sided school crossing sign that's the same type as m third one. This also served at the same place.

School Crossing Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

School Crossing Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

School Crossing Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

My 5th sign is an Otto Road street sign. No idea where it served, but if it's from Alabama, then it was near Red Bay, AL.

Otto Road Street Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

Otto Road Street Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

My last sign has to be my favorite one. A NOS airport sign I bought at an antique store in Cullman, AL.

NOS Airport Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

NOS Airport Sign by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

I also own a Crouse-hinds Type DT traffic light and a 9 inch Alusig pedestrian signal.

Crouse-hinds Type DT Traffic Light by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

9 inch Alusig Pedestrian Signal by freebrickproductions, on Flickr

[US71]

I have a lot more on my Flickr , plus I few I've yet to post. But here are some of the highlights of my collection:

[US71]

I have a lot more on my Flickr , plus I few I've yet to post. But here are some of the highlights of my collection:

I've been looking all over for one of those City Routes for US 10 or 12.  I found a US 12 a couple years ago but the guy wanted $200 dollars for it; definitely not worth what he asking.  He had a reasonable price on directional R and L shields..in retrospect I should have got them.

Mine is actually replica made with the original metal stamps. Agentsteel53 helped me get this. Talk with him and he can probably make you a deal

[nyratk1]

My crown jewel:



The rest of my sign/signal collection:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/nyratk1/

[6a]

This is my favorite. I only have a couple others, an AK-3 sign and a 'No stopping anytime" that's probably 50 years old.  Just don't have pics of them at the moment.

[nyratk1]

Whoa, that's awesome.

[Billy F 1988]

I have a STOP/SLOW paddle that I found while my dad was dropping off scrap iron one day. I guess someone decided to scrap it and removed the stick from it. Dad and I took the sign home and he fabricated a pole to put the sign on.




(pardon the clutter in the background. )

[ctsignguy]

Jake dug up both of these for me not long ago....

[Ian]

^ VERY jealous on the DC shields, John! I've been looking for a DC interstate shield for a while.

[agentsteel53]

My replicas on US 10, 12 and 25 showed today.  They'll go nice with my  I-96, M10 and US 16 replica:

I do not like them.  wrong shield specification, and the "US" appears to be in stretch-font.

[agentsteel53]

Yeah no quiet exact as I would like, basically I think they were cut from an 18x18 blank due to the crown being too wide (along with the font).  I was hoping for better after the US 16 and they are only slightly...guess it's a good thing they didn't run me very much.

is this Hillary in Starke, FL?  if so... I tried to order from her a California-style US 80 shield.  (cutout, with US and a number)  it turned out to be '70-spec shape.  blast!  so I bolted it to a post out in the sticks on old 80 in near Snyder, TX... it's visible from the freeway - barely - so hopefully someone's gotten a kick out of it.

At least they are better than the tin $#!T that gets peddled around.  The person I got them off of was trying to stretch into vintage collector replicas.  She has done some great work or me on modern signage that I use at work and her modern FDOT signs are good.  Actually met her and her husband when I bought some modern signs off them that they put up on detour routes.  I suppose if I wanted something done up with a Florida Kodachrome scheme I would be in better shape, I'm probably better off asking you for anything cut-out or embossed.

Floridachrome had its own slightly off-kilter shield shape.  I'll probably charge more, but I'll get the signs exactly right.

Come to think of it there was a guy that I bought a lot of embossed replica stuff off of.  He did pretty good until his materials cost went up, I'm not sure what happened to him. 

yep, Marty A in Oregon.

His one and two digit stuff was great but there were some errors in some of the signs where I wanted three digits like 466 that were from the wrong tooling being used.  That's where we talked about that 89A sign all those years back for AZ, I remember being pretty upset because what I got from him wasn't cheap.  Hell didn't even know this forum existed at the time, I just looked you up on the shield gallery.

I go to Marty's supplier (the shop with the press) for my embossed stuff, and even had some of the correct dies made (see: US-466) -- but the prices have gone way up unless I order in quantity, so I do so rarely.

the collector market seems to think M Routes and US Route Michigans are $300 dollar plus signs these days. 

maybe the embossed ones, for a route number that does not show up often (I'd get good money for a Mich US 8 embossed!) 

I've given you my price list for my Michigans; I think they were all 100 or under, including an embossed M-35.  they're one of the most common states.

[thenetwork]

I have a STOP/SLOW paddle that I found while my dad was dropping off scrap iron one day. I guess someone decided to scrap it and removed the stick from it. Dad and I took the sign home and he fabricated a pole to put the sign on.




(pardon the clutter in the background. )

Just by looking at the STOP side of the sign, I knew it was of Montana origin.  MDOT uses a slightly weird-looking "S" in their STOP signs. 

[agentsteel53]

-  Yep that is Hillary out of Ocala I believe.  I was wondering how her stuff might turn out as a California cut-out (had US 199 in mind).  Too bad you can't record the reaction to the US 80 sign. lol

she says she orders the blanks in bulk from someone who makes them for green guide signs.  thus you wouldn't get a California cutout, but instead a 1970 spec shield.

-  Is Marty still in business?  I checked his site awhile back and it was not functioning correctly, looked like business dwindled down on his Ebay store also.  The prices of the custom embossed stuff wasn't bad even with the extra cost of the die.  Just wished that it had been the correct font on the three digits like he was doing on his US 101/666 replicas.

no idea about Marty. 

-  Yeah I'm not sure what the deal is with Michigan, I see all sorts of US 10s and 12s on Ebay all the time.  There is some guy who sells a ton of them on Ebay but doesn't want to budge on doing a BIN price even though I offered to pay higher than what his auctions were going for.  We'll see what fortune brings the next month or two; definitely going to be revisiting that list you sent me again.

which guy?  Jack Kelly is always willing to work with a BIN from my experience.  who else sells lots of Michigans?

[agentsteel53]

I'm mainly looking for the authentic stuff these days anyways.  Looking forward to that US 60 sign; even though it's WV should look nice next to I-10 and I-17.

it'll be in the mail tomorrow.  I just printed out your UPS label! 

I generally don't work with the '70 spec stuff, and barely with the '61; I just happened to have this shield so you got lucky because I think I charged you a nice cheap price for a number you were looking for!

[agentsteel53]

I'll probably be asking now and then what you got laying around.

anything specific I should be looking out for? 

[agentsteel53]

dang; I just sold an OK I-40 not too long ago for not much at all.  maybe 50 bucks?

[agentsteel53]

interstates seem to be exempt from the Michigan common-ness.  149 is a bit high because of those damn stickers (which may or may not be removable), and not specifying the exact size beyond "huge" will likely turn off a lot of bidders... but not too long ago an interstate 75 Michigan '57 spec shield went for around $250.

"huge" may be 24" because people think that road signs are always "huge" in person because they're used to seeing them at a distance.  or it could be 36x36, which truly is huge and a tougher size for people to collect.

[agentsteel53]

Yes I could see that price for any of the x5 routes of the 57 vintage but not for I-69 given it's not one of the major routes.  I would highly doubt a sign of that vintage would be anything other than a 24x24, the miniature stickers seem to support that theory due to the size of the font.  I would probably be interest if the bidding as starting lower, but who knows what this guy wants or has as a reserve?

36x36 has been around since the first specification in 1957 as the mainline shield size.

people like the number 69 for reasons unrelated to route numbering.

Incidentally there is a 36x36 I-37 up for sale with a $60 dollar BIN.  That sounds fantastic until you see that the shipping price is $45 dollars...   

and that the shield has no state name.  it's clear where it is from, but still... no state name.

There was a guy selling US and NC Route signs that were 36x36 awhile back and he had a difficult time clearing them at $35 dollars a pop with the mammoth shipping price for the large signage.

also they were '70 spec... less desirable than the older stuff.

[agentsteel53]

I know the 24x24 blank was MUTCD approved for US Routes back in the late 40s but didn't really become standard until the 61 era rendition of the sign, seems it was mostly driven by the standards the Interstate Shields were held to.  I didn't know the 36x36 was there from the beginning in 57, guess I'll have to read up more.

I think a lot of states were using the '48 spec by the mid-50s.  sometimes it's just a matter of the new standards winding through the bureaucracy.

Speaking of undesirable stuff...apparently this guy is peddling a goof I-10 sign he made alterations to:

ugh.

also, speaking of undesirable - his really weird auction description writing style.  reminds me of Time Cube Guy.

[ctsignguy]

I'm half convinced a lot of these guys steal these signs unless they have them in bulk like the guy who has all those unused Maryland signs.

i think i can speak for most of the sign guys here when i say that we get our signs legally....

i have had contacts at various State road depots as well as local highway sheds where i have gotten most of my stuff....and i prefer used signs from the scrap pile rather than unused ones off the shelf (I was allowed to make an exception to that a few years ago when i was told by one of the guys "You may as well take them (a few unused signs), we gotta take them back next week since they arent reflective enough....")...and one time, i was permitted to actually cut a sign down (the whole road was going to get new metal signage to replace any old wood that was left, so it didnt matter to them....

[agentsteel53]

A couple months back someone had a 48 era Kentucky Cut US Route blank sign for sale.  It would have been fine except the guy drew a big red arrow on it.  I forgot what he had it listed as but it would be acceptable for a blank of that era had he not jacked it up.  This guy should have left the sign as is because even with the vinyl removed you can tell it was an I-10.  He could have sold it as a rejected sign, at least it would have been legit that way.  I like his suggestion about putting whatever number you want on it with 3M.  I can see someone sticking an 5 or 15 to counterfeit it and trying to resell it on Ebay again for $150.  I'm half convinced a lot of these guys steal these signs unless they have them in bulk like the guy who has all those unused Maryland signs.

if you're gonna put some vinyl onto that interstate blank, the first thing I'd start with is a state name. 

as for stealing signs - there are a lot of signs that get taken down and then throw in a yard to be recycled as needed. 

[Brian556]

quote from desertdog:

My I-10 sign just came in a ways back this morning.  This one was rejected because of outdated vinyl I'm to understand, it even has the ADOT sticker on the back of it.  The aluminum is 0.125 inches thick rather than the conventional 0.080 due to the dust storms/monsoons that tend to fold the thinner signage.

Interesting that they use thicker aluminum rather than additional bracing like Florida does to counter high winds.

[agentsteel53]

I wonder what's more expensive.  heavier material to order and transport ... or a more complex assembly that requires more labor to put together?

Florida decided one way; Arizona the other.

[ctsignguy]

A recent fun acquisition.......