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New to this forum and bought my first cooler this week.   I found an Orange Crush cooler in my local area that popped up on craigslist.  I have never seen one, so bought it.  I have a business with the name "crush" in it and our company color is orange, so I had to have it.  

Now....what to do with it?  Want to keep the patina, but brighten the paint, remove the rust, rewire it and get the cooling system working.

Would like to thank a person named Lonny that helped me.

Awesome find!  Congrats!
Looks like a Pelco Cooler.
And welcome to SMC!

       It's rare to see a cooler that age with such nice color, nice find.

The Pelco machine is rare in itself, but what makes it rarer is that prior survivors were cut up and the letters welded into Vendolator 81 machines!  :darn:

Nice machine, I repaired the cooling system on one of these models about a year ago, it’s a wet or a dry chest,  does yours have the vertical cooling plates dividing the compartments?

The manufacturer label on the back, says it was made by an elevator company.  Is that the Pelco?

It is exactly like yours!  Has some rust on the dividers.  I have a coating company very near my house and am considering getting them and the tub recoated with Zinc (original?)

It is interesting that they would have gone to the effort of adding the scalloped edge along the bottom of it.  I did not notice until looking it over in the garage last night.

Yes

Great survivor! And a very hard to find cooler... Some elbow grease and TLC and she should be good to go for another 60 years.

The one I repaired looked to be galvanized, you’d have to cut all three evaporator plates loose from there supply lines in order to have them replated , then they’d have to be rebrazed back into the system,    It would be cheaper to have them powder-coated ( as well as the tank if it’s solid enough). Be aware that the old Blissfield compressor weighs about 50-lbs by itself,   :laugh: mine needed replacement anyway.

Here is one that has been on ebay for some time now, for what he is asking I can see why. Restored or at least painted. Even though it's Orange Crush which I like, cooler is rather plain with no excitement too it. Embossed logo on front is too small for the size of the box.

As for yours, nice original color so I would clean it up and leave as is. My 2 pennies.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Orange-Crush-Soda-Chest/283615725445?hash=item4208d08785:g:tt8AAOSw4tldfvMF

Mine needs to have the bottle opener and cap catcher added back.  Any idea where to find them?

That's probably the reason they put the Hamm's sticker on the front (which I am removing somehow without damaging the paint)! :laugh:

Watch eBay for the opener made by Starr X.. they are on there all the time though try to get an older one as the newer ones seem to have a more rough grainy finish
may have to have the catcher fabricate... maybe someone here that has one can give you pictures and dimentions of their catcher.

Hey Scott!  Glad you found the site.  Lot of great people on here that can help you out as you work on that cooler. 

Lonny

Thanks Lonny!  And thank you for your advice!!