Curbside Comparison: Hand Fishing Resistance
Hand fishing refers to reaching into a locking mailbox and removing mail by hand.
Locking mailboxes typically have either a slot design with mail deposited through an incoming mail slot, or a bin design with mail and packages placed in a bin and deposited inside the mailbox when the bin is closed.
The vulnerability of a slot-design locking mailbox to hand fishing depends on the height of the slot, the depth of the mailbox and the overall design. The larger the slot, the easier to fish. The deeper the mailbox, the more difficult to fish.
The vulnerability of a bin-design mailbox to hand fishing depends on the design. Some locking mailboxes can be easily fished by hand just by contorting your arm a bit, as shown below:
Evaluating the hand fishing resistance of Epoch Design’s curbside mailboxes, it is first important to understand that the Mail Boss features a slot design, while the Mail Manager and the Package Master feature a bin design.
The incoming mail slot of the Mail Boss is only 1.9″ in height (just big enough to accept a box of checks) and the mailbox is 13.75″ tall, so while you can reach your hand into the incoming mail slot, it is nearly impossible to reach the bottom of the mailbox without gummy arms. That said, if mail were to accumulate for some time, it might be possible for someone with a very long and skinny arm to reach some of the mail. For this reason, Mail Boss receives the “Better” rating in our curbside mailbox comparison of hand fishing resistance.
The Mail Manager also receives a “Better” rating: It features a bin design that is shallow enough that it is very difficult to reach past the bin to the mail compartment. Again, if mail were to accumulate for some time, it might be possible for someone with a very long and skinny arm to reach some of the mail.
The Package Master is the most resistant to fishing by hand of the curbside mailboxes, and therefore receives the “Best” rating. Package Master features patented “Mail Shield” technology which includes a baffle door operating on a lever arm in consortium with the incoming mail bin, to prevent fishing.
No other residential locking mailbox on the market has this baffle feature!
In conclusion, because the Package Master features this innovative baffle, it is impervious to hand fishing. Still, the Mail Boss and Mail Manager are both exceedingly difficult to fish by hand and offer good resistance to determined thieves.