Latest shop note
Powder coat or blackened steel: which lasts outside?
Powder coat, every time, if it lives in the rain. Blackened steel is beautiful indoors and needs wax twice a year out there. Here is how we choose.
Hollis Metal & Sign, metal fabrication and signs in Tacoma, WA
Signs, brackets, railings and one-off steel pieces, cut, bent and welded to drawing in our Tacoma shop. Every piece gets a spec sheet before it gets a price.
Featured piece
HM-BS-014From $640
Cut-out blade sign
A 24-inch steel disc with your mark laser cut through it, hung on a round-bar bracket. It reads from both directions down the block.
- Type
- Projecting sign, double-sided
- Material
- 11-gauge steel, 1/2″ round-bar bracket
- Finish
- Satin black powder coat, or any RAL color
Latest from the shop
HM-PL-022Folded planter
From $280 / Made to order
HM-CL-019Channel letters
From $180 a letter / Made to order
HM-AN-008Brass house numbers
$48 a digit / In stock
HM-BR-031Shelf brackets
$95 a pair / In stock
Shop notes
Short answers to what customers ask us most: finishes, permits, what we need from you to quote.
All shop notes
Every job starts with a drawing
Send a sketch, a photo of the wall or the old part. We reply within two working days with a drawing and a fixed price.
HM / CatalogueHome / Catalogue
The catalogue: pieces we make often, priced up front. Anything else, we draw first and price the same way.
Filter (07)
Material
Mild steel, stainless, aluminum, brass
Finish
Powder coat, blackened, brushed, raw
Status
In stock, made to order, batches
HM-BS-014Blade sign
From $640 / Made to order
HM-CL-019Channel letters
From $180 a letter / Made to order
HM-AN-008Brass house numbers
$48 a digit / In stock
HM-BR-031Shelf brackets
$95 a pair / In stock
HM-PL-022Folded planter
From $280 / Made to order
HM-TB-005Tube side table
From $420 / Made to order
HM-BP-040Base plates & gussets
From $12 each / Batches of 10+
Shop capacity
What the machines and the six of us can take on, so you know before you ask.
- Laser cutting
- 6 kW fiber laser, 5 × 10 ft bed. Steel to 3/4″
- Forming
- 135-ton press brake, 10 ft. Rolls to 4 ft
- Welding
- MIG and TIG: steel, stainless, aluminum
- Finishing
- Powder coat in-house, 4 × 4 × 10 ft oven
- Signs
- Blade signs, channel letters, LED, permits
- Drawings
- A CAD drawing and spec sheet with every quote
- Install
- Our crew and lift, Olympia to Seattle
HM-BS-014 / Job 214Home / Work
Blade sign, Sixth Avenue bakery
The bakery wanted something people could see from the bus stop at the corner. We drew a 24-inch disc with their cup cut clean through, so the sky shows in the steam.
The bracket is 1/2-inch round bar with a welded brace, through-bolted into the brick. We pulled the city permit, then hung it on a Saturday morning before they opened.
- Type
- Projecting blade sign, double-sided
- Material
- 11-gauge hot-rolled steel; 1/2″ round-bar bracket
- Cutting
- Fiber laser, from their logo file
- Finish
- Satin black powder coat
- Size
- 24″ disc, 34″ from the wall
- Weight
- 31 lb with bracket
- Mounting
- 3/8″ through-bolts into brick, hardware included
- Permit
- City of Tacoma sign permit, drawn and filed by us
- Lead time
- 2-3 weeks from the approved drawing
- Status
- Installed, June 2026
- Price
- From $640; install from $180
To price a piece like this, send a sketch and a photo of the wall.
Request a quoteNotes from the shop
-
Powder coat or blackened steel: which lasts outside?
Powder coat, if it lives in the rain. Blackened steel is lovely indoors and needs wax twice a year outside. We bring both sample sets to every site visit.
-
What we need from you to price a job
A sketch with three dimensions, a photo of where it goes, and the date you need it. That is all.
-
Why we draw every job before we quote
A drawing catches the missing inch while it still costs nothing. You approve it, then we cut.
HM / AboutHome / About
Hollis Metal & Sign is a six-person fabrication and sign shop on the Tacoma tideflats. We make the pieces a building needs to be found, held up and lived with.
Founded in 2009 by Ruth Hollis, a structural welder who got tired of drawings that didn't fit the wall.
How we work
You send a sketch, a photo or the broken part. We measure on site if it matters, then draw it and send a spec sheet with a fixed price. Nothing is cut until you approve the drawing.
What we won't do
We don't guess. If a wall can't carry a sign, or a railing won't pass inspection, we say so before you pay for anything.
On record
- Founded
- 2009, Tacoma tideflats
- License
- WA contractor HOLLIMS*822QK (sample)
- Insurance
- Bonded, $2M general liability
- Warranty
- 5 years on welds and finish
- Rating
- 4.9 from 140+ reviews (sample)
“They drew our blade sign, pulled the permit and hung it on a Saturday, so the bakery never closed.”
Dana R., Sixth Avenue Sample review
“Forty base plates, cut and drilled to our drawing in four days. Every hole lined up on the anchor bolts.”
Marco T., general contractor Sample review
“The stair railing looks like it came with the house. Clean welds, no grind marks anywhere.”
Priya S., North End Sample review
FAQ
Do you only make what's in the catalogue?
No. The catalogue is what we make often enough to price up front. Most of our work is one-off: send a sketch and we'll draw it.
How do I get a price?
Send a sketch with three dimensions and a photo of where it goes. Within two working days you get a drawing and a fixed price.
Can you match a color?
Any RAL color in powder coat. We keep about forty in stock and order the rest in a week.
Do you install?
Yes, with our own crew, truck and lift, from Olympia to Seattle. Or we ship it with the hardware and a drawing.
What's the smallest job you take?
A single bracket. Small jobs go in the gaps between big ones, so they're often the fastest.
HM / ContactHome / Contact
Every piece starts with a drawing. Send yours, or a photo of the wall, and we'll reply within two working days.
Visit
Bring the part or the sketch. The shop is open Mon-Fri 7-4:30, Saturdays by appointment. Park by the roll-up door.
Request a quote
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