Strange looking Refridgeration Unit

[SIGNGUY]

I got two of these in a package deal with a bunch of machines recently... the guy I got them from said they where from some experimental Coke Machine that never made it into production... they are complete and cool...I am hoping I might be able to redo and make work in a regular machine? but I'm not that good with refridgeration? any thoughts or comments on these things?

[sodaworks]

Never seen that one before.

[Larry]

I never saw that configuration on a Coke machine, but then again I only saw five machines.  Its obviously an evaporator on top.  The fuzy looking fins were on Carrier coils.  At least on window shakers.  The normal coils are your fin and tube which are usually an A coil or square.  My VMC 72 has a round fin and tube evaporator with the fan in the middle of it.

Is there an evaporator fan?

I see that the condensing unit looks like a standard unit.

[collecture]

That is strange!
The only two machines I can think of that have a set-up similar (evap coils up high) are the C-51 and the VMC242. Both have fans though.

[johnieG]

Looks like the evaporator/guts of a Cornielus slider stood on-end, the aluminum "tinsel" of the evaproator coils units are made for a dry unit,  if you laid it down horizontally, it would be very close to the cornielus machines coils.

[loman4ec]

Johnnie that is exactly what I was going to say. It looks like the evaporator coils from a cornelius mated with a conventional lower unit.

[MoonDawg]

   Wow you guys are good!   I have never gutted a Cornelieus

[Pat Pixley]

The Real question is  I wonder what that experimental Machine looked like    ?
 now  that is something to think about and how cool it would beto have it    .

[johnieG]

Upon closer inspection of the pictures, I spy a defrost timer on the left unit, near the base/electrical juntion box & temp limit switch on the upper coil, could be for a forced air dehumidifier unit. which would kinda explain the "tinsel" evap coils.  I suspect it isn't a freezer unit, but you'd need a defrost timer if a dehumidifier iced-up. so thats my story & I'm stickn' to it! 


Pat, remember that old 1950's Sears upright/cylindrical dehumidfier I have in my garage? very simular setup,

[Pat Pixley]

Oh Yeah  has that pump that looks like a C51 pump   

[globalcompressors]

I swear...I didn't do it!!!  Not my design...Honest! 


Okay, weak attempt at humor.

I'm with Jonnie on this one, looks like some, "make shift", ambient
cooled, evaporator set up. The timer and temperature cut out, is
a dead give away. I think someone had too much time on their hands
and came up with this idea, maybe for a "gutted" box, turned into
some kind of "refrigerator" or...something. Just a thought.

Eric

[SIGNGUY]

These are quite the strange units. Here is the story that I was told from the guy I got them from in my package deal..
Many of you may or may not know Dale Laroche. He has been restoring Pop Machines for Many Many Years... Anyways... I have known him for a while and he is the one that I recently bought all these machines from, 10 81's 2 vmc 27s, 2 39's and 2 sliders plus many parts, and some extra compressors including these two.

He said they where from an experimental coke machine that Coke was playing around with and consulted with him on the design, and they actually had a working unit at one of the Coke Conventions years ago (late 90's I think he said) it was a barrel looking unit, sat on the floor and was about 5 feet tall, Made with a lot of plexiglass so you could see the vending unit of the machine and the cans inside. the cans where near the top side, hence why the cooling condensors are soo high up. the cans rolled down and around in a spiral toward the vending door. not sure much more than that, or how it worked or how many selections... he didn't have any photos of the unit. when they scrapped the unit he knew the guy at Midwest Coca-Cola that was in charge of the project and he was given the compressors, figuring he could use them for something else. we'll now they sit in my garage with maybe hopes of reusing them someday? we'll see.

I have had a good time talking and meeting with Dale over the last few months as we finalized our transaction... .TONS OF STORIES, from teh early chicago show days to the Coke Conventions the history on some machines and to hear about the machines that he has found over the years including TWO of the Originial VENDO DECAPPERS that are supposably known to exist, Dale found them originally and had one working at his house back in early 90s'.  This guy knows who to restore machines too,,,, nothing left untouched... they are works of art when done. Some of the mods and he has done are really cool as well... like RT56's with lighted doors and Medallions in the door, to Pepsi 56 litups and just about everthing you can imagine he has worked on ... I think he told me something like 200 machines he's done... I only hope to be able to produce work like that.