Vendo 144

[Kevin C]

Hey Markito

There is a Vendo 144 on Ebay that is pretty close to me here in SC.

7158380086

Will this thing vend 12 Oz beer bottles?

Kevin

[joesquid]

Kevin,
Sorry to say but nope, the vending racks only handle the 8 oz glass bottles.  My Vendo 144E was a cool first restoration, but found out the hard way one of the reasons (other than it being 6.5 feet tall and weighing 450lbs EMPTY!!!) it's not very collectible is due to the limited style of bottles it could vend.  I saw the one you're looking at, looks to be in pretty good shape but is missing the masonite sign over the coin door.

It will vend 10 oz. bottles. I collect the old 10 oz. and then clean, sterilize and then fill them with Coke products. They fit beautifully in the 144 and 216 because that is the size they were made for. But the 12 oz. is too big I think. Sorry. '>

oh, they also hold cans (with adaptors in the chutes).

Here's a photo of my V-216MD (basically same machine as the 144) full of 10 oz. (filled by me) bottles of "Coke" and "Diet Coke" and cans of "Diet Coke with Lime":

[Bob K]

Kito cropped that picture so we couldn't see what he has stacked on top of his machine... '>

Bob, good try, but read 'em and weap!
Mine is just one inch under a hanging cupboard, so that no one can put anything on top of it. Ha!!!!!   '> '>

[joesquid]

Did you have to modify the vending rollers to vend cans?

Not at all. I did nothing with the rollers.
All I had to do was put those metal spacers in the back of the chutes so that the cans would stick out (toward me) as far out as the bottles do. (Does that make any sense?) If you don't have any of those metal spacers, a 2x4 would work too. the spacers happened to be in my machine when I got it.
The cans actually work almost better in the machine than the bottles because the cans are just a little fatter than the bottles, so the bottles sometimes jam, but the cans are too wide to get stuck side by side.
Let me know if you need a photo of the spacers.

[MoonDawg]

Great looking machine Kito.   Like to see how many cans of $1.00 Coke and Diet Coke this machine could sell in a place like Wallmart.
        Good investment

Thanks Glen. That was the first machine I ever bought back in January of this year. I got it for just $150!
I immediately got addicted to this hobby and have bought 6 more machines since then. I pick up my $500 V-110 tomorrow.

No problem 'Kito...it's gone ...JohnieG

O.k., here we go (some of you have seen it before):

I’m restoring a ’56 144 and am looking for a few things.
First of all I need a relay to replace the P&B SP1118-3 relay.  I have a flash cube relay that will work, but would like to find something closer to original.

The light bulb sockets need replacing, and leviton won’t sell them to me.  Any ideas on where I can get a replacement?

The coin bezel is in real need of re-chroming.  Does anybody know of a company that is good?  The plating is pitted, can it be buffed down and re-plated, or should it be replaced?

Where can I find a masonite sign that goes on the front.  It seems that this is one of the first things to go bad.  I’ll settle for a good digital photograph, or a temporary replacement, till I can find an original one.

Thanks,
Dave Best

[joesquid]

Dave,
  Welcome to the forum!!  We'll try to help as much as we can.  I recently restored a Vendo 144E (textured metal plate on the door instead of the masonite sign).  You can see pics of in the SMC Photo Gallery here  Vendo 144E aka Frankenstein's Monster

If you have any restoration questions, feel free to ask.  I'll answer your intial questions as best I can, hopefully there are others in the forum that will also chime in:

1.  The vending relay can be bought aftermarket from Funtronics (see contact info in the parts suppliers list on this website).  It's item 9d in the company's catalog.  This is the relay alone.  If you're missing the entire relay/contact assembly, you'll have to find someone parting out a Vendo 144 or a Vendo 80 (possibly a Vendo 216 single brand vendor might work too).

2.  I have also had problems finding the lightbulb sockets and, again, had to find someone parting out a machine.  Perhaps someone on this forum can assist.

3.  The coin bezel may be able to be rechromed.  I had mine done by Speed and Sport plating in Houston (713)-921-0235 and I've heard Atlas Plating, also in Houston, (713)-697-3134 does great work.  What I liked about Craig at Speed and Sport is that he'll call you before he does any work to let you know if he thinks he can provide a quality plating job.  Some bezels just can't be saved. If yours is in too bad of shape, look for a replacement via ebay.  One guy, "sodaparts" regularly sells them.  A coin entry bezel from a Vendo 81D, Vendo 80, and I think a Vendo 110 will work.  The only thing to look for is the "exact change / sold out" window.  Some bezels have a divider that separates the window, some don't.  If you need a replacement window (the actual plastic piece) I may have a couple of NOS ones laying around.

4.  The Masonite sign will be difficult to locate.  Your assumption is correct, they're generally missing from the early machines and I don't know of anyone replecating them.  Unfortunately the Vendo 144 is not one of the "beloved" roundtops because of it's size, therefore there's not a big aftermarket for them.  The saving grace is that the Vendo 80 (little brother of the 144) is somewhat more popular and many of the parts are interchangeable between the two.  One place you might try (although I can't honestly recommend them, perhaps you'll have better luck) is Antiquities Vending (one of the sponsors for this site).  Their banner/link is usually found on the homepage for this website.  The company claims to have the largest collection of vintage machines on the planet and say they can replecate almost any part.  Perhaps they have a couple of extra signs?  Also, try Byal Brothers out of Indiana (765)-675-8999, i've had good luck with them in the past.

Hope this helps.  Also, if you need a new door-to-cabinet wire harness, I make replacement harnesses.  For some reason, none of the aftermarket groups are doing these.  If you need a replacement compressor wiring harness, you can get those from Funtronics or Vintage Vending (both listed in the parts suppliers page on this website).

Sorry for jumping into this one late guys but I just now got around to reading it.  I thought I'd echo 'kito's earlier post about vending cans from his 144.  I found that my V-80 was also capable of vending cans with no modification as long as the cans were stacked to the near side of the bottle rack.  

On a happy note, it looks like the paint shop is done with the V-80 and I'll be picking it up next week.  Eric at Global Compressors and I tried an experiment to see how feesible it is for him to handle total machine restoration in addition to the refrigeration equipment.  I must say I'm impressed (as I always am with Eric and his work).  So far this has been an awesome experience and I have no complaints at all.  We'll see how it goes, but Eric may be the new go-to guy for complete machine overhauls.

I'll keep you guys posted with photos as the cabinet comes home and the guts go back in.  I still need to break down the bottle stack and hit it with the hammerite (sp?) paint but the rest of the restoration is just about complete now.

A J

Joe,

Thanks for the advice.  I was looking at your machine, and it looks great.  What did you paint/plate the racks with?  It looks like the original plating was zinc.

What is the green plating that is on so many parts?

Any ideas on what slug rejecters can interchange with others?

Thanks,
Dave

[joesquid]

Dave,
Thanks for the compliment, I was pretty proud of that one too.  My wife was just happy to see it done and gone (but I have six more HAHHAAAHHAAAAA!!!)  Now to answer your questions:

1.  Paint - The bottle rack assembly and "tub" were all galvanized steel.  I sanded the galvanized coating off (before I knew better) but saved myself by painting everything with Rustoleum "Hammertone" Silver spray paint.  I know it sounds cheap, but it's GREAT paint for use in an environment like the inside of a coke machine, and you saw the results yourself.  It's a cheap (but very effective) alternative to zinc plating.  I'm also conducting a six month test on this paint.  Read the latest here:
Rustoleum vs Krylon paint test

2.  Not sure what you mean by green parts.  The only green on that machine  is the "refresh yourself" sign on the door.  Can you clarify please?

3.  The slug rejector is the removable upper half of the coin mech.  Is that what you mean or the whole coin mech in general?  As far as interchangeability (is that really a word?) with the coin mech, any coin mech that has a nine-pin jones plug (two rows of eight spade-type connectors with one, round single connector in between) will work in the machines.  The most used models are COINCO, MARS, and NATIONAL REJECTOR (NRI).  Does this answer your question?

Hope this helps!

[loman4ec]

The greenish plating is yellow cadmium.

Joe,

I’ve played with Rust-Oleum cold galvanizing compound (7584).  It seems to coat well, but doesn’t give the impression of wear resistance.  It has a rough texture when applied, and was easily removed by rubbing it with my thumb.  It might be serviceable with a clear coat.

As for the green coating, it’s on the neck guides, roller shafts, and rollers (where not coated in rubber).  Since I’m going to vend cans in this machine, I think I can use Rust-Oleum spruce green (7737).

Thanks Ioman4ec for the answer.  

The door liner has a hole in it (aprox ½”) any suggestions on fixing it?  I’m thinking of using fiberglass mat on the back, and fill the front with Bondo, then using the plastic paint available from various companies.  Know of a better way to repair it?

The bottom of the inner tub also has some holes due to rust.  I’m thinking of using fiberglass there too, but I’m wondering what to do with the condensation line from the bottom.  It looks like it was sweated in place, and re-soldering it would mess up the epoxy used with the fiberglass.  Is there a compression fitting that could take the place of the sweated joint?

With the slug rejectors/changer, is there any modifications wit respect to mounting, coin boxes, etc. necessary when changing manufactures?

Also, in your test plan to evaluate Krylon vs. Rust-Oleum, you prepared 4 shelves.  2 were sanded with sandpaper, two were scrubbed.  But during the wear testing, you didn’t load the shelves with the same product.  (Ie.krylon unfinished had 12 oz plastic bottles, and Rust-Oleum unfinished had 12 oz glass bottles.)  How can you truly compare wear resistance?

Thanks,
Dave

[joesquid]

Dave,

1.  Galvanic compound doesn't wear very well, it's not scratch resistant.  The Rustoleum "Hammertone" products are designed to be (and are) VERY wear resistant and also have a nice finished appearance.

2.  I don't know of any good way to repair a plastic door liner and no one makes them for the Vendo 144.  I know some people have had a machine shop cut a thin steel plate to size and replace the plastic door liner with that.  You can paint it flat black and it'll also last longer.  I don't know if anyone has tried one for a machine this size though.  Hopefully someone can provide more input.

3.  Why not try replacing the condensate joint first then do the remainder of the tub repairs?  Actually, some pics might help some of this group offer some repair ideas.

4.  As long as you're using a coin mech with a jones plug, there should be no issues between models.  They're all relatively the same size and all have hanger slots punched in the same location on the back of the coin mech.

5.  Here's the first post where I brought up the idea of the test and listed the protocols and boundaries of the test environment.  Rustoleum vs Krylon test parameters

hope this helps some.  Post some pics of your project, we'd love to see your baby!

[BrianB]

I think I may be able to help with the door liner issue. I just got done not to long ago restoring my door liner for my Cavalier 55D with great success. For any large cracks that have appearred, I went overboard and used epoxy and cut-to-fit peices of really thin (1/16" thick) of Plexiglass. These patches were applied on the backside or non-show side of the liner. This was especially effective for long cracks.

Now for missing peices/holes in the body of the liner, I still used the same method except this time knowing it would be used as a backer for some fiberglass filler. I filled the holes and sanded them down smooth.

As far as paint goes, I used primer suitable for doing bumper/autobody plastic repair. For a final coat I used a version of "Bumper Magic" semi-gloss black paint. I was stunned at results!!! Here's some pictures of my restored liner next to an old liner that was in the same condition as my restored one was.

[BrianB]

The wiring diagram and the loading instructions are reversed from the other liner. My restored liner originally had the diagrams/instructions in the same location as now. I guess there wasn't a ryhme or reason to the positioning.

Oh yeah, for the broken sides where your mounting holes are, I used thin (but strong) plastic strips that I got from some moulding peices purchased from Lowes and cut it to size to fit around the entire perimeter of the liner using four peices. I matched the holes and drilled then epoxied the strips down. I used Soda Jerk Works (sponsor banner can be found at the top of this page) "R1" gasket material to finish off the restoration. Here's another pic, hope this helps!  

[Lulu]

That looks great, Brian!!  I was just wondering what I was going to do with the liner on a Cav 64.  All of the screw holes are chunked out.  Would I need to run the plexiglass down the entire side to make sure the liner seals tightly?  What did you use to cut the plexiglass?  Thanks alot for this "lesson on
restoration"!!

LuAnn, I’ve cut Plexiglas on a band saw.  It worked well, and took a file to the rough edges.  If you don’t have a band saw, a jigsaw will also work.

In the past, I’ve used a product from Stainless Steel Coatings, Inc. ( http://www.steel-it.com/index.html ) to paint parts with.  I’ve used the polyurethane based product with great success.  It has a 316 stainless pigment that looks good on machines, but might not be “correct” for coke machines.  

It sounds like Brian did what I was thinking with reguards about repairing the liner.  It looks good, just hope I can achieve the same success.  Thanks Brian.

For the slug rejector, the in slot and the coin reject mechanism is in the same place for all the different manufactures?

As for the condensate tube, I foresee it’s going to be a pain to install the tub with the tube attached.  I can’t believe that Vendo did it that way originally.  That’s why I’m looking for a way to make the connection after the tub is finished and installed.  One idea I did have was to weld/solder a fitting to the outside bottom of the tub, then repair the tub.  Once installed, connect the condensate tube.

Thanks,
Dave

[BrianB]

Lulu -

I purchased my small sheet of plexi at Lowes and hanging on a peg right next to the selection of glass were small folding blade cutters being sold for no more than $5. It's white and about 6" long. It comes with instructions for proper cutting. So, if you don't feel safe using a jigsaw/bandsaw/power tool to cut your plexi with, this is probably the best way to go.

Also, for the type of cuts you need to make, the only thing you are really concerned with is not making a rough break. the cuts/sizes don't have to be precise seeing as how they won't even be visible behind all of that pink insulation!!

[Lulu]

Thanks guys!!

The talents of this group amaze me.  I love it!!

Here are some before pics of my machine, I saved it from a barn.  I'll post some after pics when it gets moved along.

[BryanH]

Quote (VMC117BMB @ July 14 2005,5:16)

Oh yeah, for the broken sides where your mounting holes are, I used thin (but strong) plastic strips that I got from some moulding peices purchased from Lowes and cut it to size to fit around the entire perimeter of the liner using four peices.

Man, I wish I had seen this thread back in July.  Went on vacation and somehow missed it. Anyway...

Brian - are the plastic strips you used for the perimeter plexi-glass or something else?  The some moulding peices comment threw me off for a bit.

[BrianB]

Sorry about the ambiguity in my "some moulding" statement!
The plastic moulding that I used was being sold as an accessory for a drop ceiling kit. I don't remember the actual name of the company that produced the moulding though.

But, I was basically looking for a strip of semi-rigid plastic that measured 1/2" and had a thickness of 1/8". That being said, when I was in the market for it, I kept my eyes peeled for anything that would work and stumbled onto this.

[BryanH]

Thanks Brian - go figure, I went out on Friday night looking for plexiglass and decided instead to buy a sheet of the plactic they use for lens / covers on flourescent light fixtures.   Not quite the same stuff you used but pretty similar. I also tried using Plumbers Goop for ABS instead of epoxy because it doesn't dry as hard and rigid.  Hope to finish it this weekend and get the door back on.  I'll let you know how it works. And thanks again for the tip.