SMC Discussion Areas

Hi all, I'm hoping some of you seasoned veterans can shed a bit of light on something I've read several times, mostly on restorers web sites... Are Vendo's and other soda vending machines made for the US market more valuable then their Canadian counterparts ? I mean asside from the obvious differences of the Vendo 44, having a different coin mech and slug rejector, aren't all other Vendos exactly the same ? I've read on a few of these site " Guarantied to be US machines, don't be fooled by my competitors selling Canadian Machines " like they are cheap Korean knock offs Lol ( no offence to Koreans in general ) is this actually fact ? I'm fairly new to collecting but have been bitten pretty hard by the bug, I've acquired 9 machines over the past 3 months and don't see a cure in site so I would like to know if I should shy away from Canadian Machines ! That may pose a problem being from Canada and all but I also have the luxury of living 15 minutes from the US border !

Thanks for helping out a newbie, Cheers !

Jeffrey !

Welcome to the site Jeffrey! :happydrinkers:

If you are talking about vintage machines, the only difference that I am aware of is the rejector and maybe the coin mech.  Tom (collecture) will likely ring in with his expertise on this matter.  A lot of the machines in my area (Michigan) have a "Do not use Canadian coins" decal near the coin entry bezel.  Other than that I am not aware of any differences.  The rejectors and mechs can be found so it is not really that big of a deal.  Obviously, if you buy a machine that was originally intended for the Canadian market and want to use it in the States, you will have to change out the rejector and possibly the mech and that can add an unexpected cost.

There are machines that were built for use in the Canadian market that I think are better looking than what was used here.  An example that I happen to own is the Kelvinator FE-51.  This is a chest cooler that is not that different from the Westy's but it does have some additional trim that I think sets if off from a typical chest cooler.  Mine spent most of its life in a genereal store on Pelee Island in the middle of Lake Erie.  I bought it from the son of the original owner.

Hope that helps!

 :drinking: Tim :drinking:

I'll sum it up this way...( Activate automotive analogy mode) If I'm trying to sell you a Chevy, I'm going to say Fords stink.

Ok so not much validity to it, it's what I figured but wanted to make sure, and as far as the coin mechs and coin rejectors, I can't speak for all other machines but I know my Canadian Vendo 44 and 39 both accept US coins as well...

          Thanks allot for the speedy replies and info, much appreciated, Cheers !

Jeff !

The US coins will work in a Canadian rejector because there are no magnets. The US coin has a higher value (or did) so there was not any concern - go ahead and pay the vendor more for your Coke; however, the Canadian coin will not work in a US rejector because of the magnets on the rejector. Canadian coins are magnetic and US coins are not.
The Canadian mech needs the Canadian rejector to have full functionality. To use a US rejector, you have to remove (or disable) the knockout arm as it is not compatible with a US rejector.