SMC Discussion Areas

  Lately I have been watching a lot of news coverage on recycling and going green etc...and it made think back to my days working for a local Coca-Cola bottler in Texas. I began working there in the last days of the old bottles, when 6oz, 12oz and 32oz bottles were distributed and the empty bottles were picked up for refill. That is, until they were picked up for the last time and destroyed.
   Which makes me think, why not return to the returnable bottles. This would reduce the amount of plastic being used and the bottles would be reusable for years.
   I remember filling the CS-64 and CS-96 bottle machines in the small stores that still had them around. I would pull all of the older bottles and keep them for my collection. I only kept them if they were full of product. I don't know why, I just thought they were cool. That when most of my friends collected empty beer containers. We seemed to have every flavor too. Heck, I kept five to ten cases of bottled soda in the garage so I could keep my Coke machine full.
  I have a hard time believing we can't go back to that system. But I know the cans take up less room and the newer machines hold hundreds of cans opposed to the mere numbers held by the older bottle machines.
  You know...I also remember when the machine bone yard, full old cs-64 and Cs-96 machines was sent to the scrap yard. The guys responsible for this had to stand by and ensure every machine was destroyed. A bull dozer ran over them repeatedly, making them all but unrecognizable.
   I bought a couple of machines from the company several months before the order was given to destroy them. I bought them at an employee discount ($75.00) and then I would collect all of the parts needed to ensure they would be complete and presentable, they made really nice garage machines for me and my friends to use to keep the beer cold.
   I also got great deals on the machines left in the stores. After the bottles were discontinued most owners needed their now obsolete machine gone. I would reluctantly pay out twenty-five to fifty dollars and haul them home.
   At that time the craze was in full swing for the really old machines and I couldn't find any in my price range, well, until I found my old RC 110. Any really old machines that came into the company bone yard were quickly bought up by the senior staff and restored for their offices and homes.
   Just my nostalgia...anyway, why not bring back the bottles. It worked in the past, and it is currently being used in mexico and most of the continent of Africa.
    What are your thoughts?

I like glass over plastic any day.  It would make sense to do bottles if recyling was a common practice everywhere, but that wont happen.  They would have to charge deposits like the old days and then you would have to haul your old bottles back to the store, which I don't regret not doing anymore.  I hated it then, and I'm sure I would hate it know.  I was happy with the cans because they stack up nice in the fridge and crush easily in the trash, yes trash, not recycle bin.

However, I wouldn't mind paying extra for the deposit, and I'm sure if I left the bottles outside my house, I wouldn't have to haul them back to the store because some kid would be more than happy to steal them and bring them back for a deposit.  I know I use to.  The quarts were the best score, 15c, a few bubs daddy's could be bought with that.

I vote yes for bringing back bottles, but we still need cans too.  Plastic is unbreakable, it's only redeeming quality.  Get rid of the plastic. :down:

       Picked these up at our local Cost Plus store here in California. The bottles are
nice and the box is pretty cool looking too

Glen - We have the same soda here, but it contains Bubble Up, Nesbitt's Orange, Nu-Grape, and Dad's Root Beer...   Not bad priced either...

I  can find Dad's Root beer in 4 packs & Bubble up , Frostie, Big red , Double cola and grape  nehi in cans

I bought a case of each at World Market a week or two ago. It was just under $10 for the case of 12.

Nothing better then a 12 oz bottle of coke pulled from a bucket of ice. :drinking:

They still bottle it that way at the coke plant in Winona (mn) a few hours south of me. Read a newspaper story a few years ago about a lady that comes from Ohio once a year and buys a years supply.

As far as a national change back to bottles I'd vote for it but it won"t happen. The green movement isn't really about being green it's about controlling people's behavior (IMHO).

Maybe I need to make a trip to Winona and check it out myself.

Good post RCkid, makes ya think.

I just went to Winona last Monday to stock up for the rest of the year:
(http://x14.xanga.com/45cf7a4539634248370688/m196965043.jpg)

That's an inspiring picture! I love glass bottled soda pop and would gladly vote "yes" to bring them back!  :biggrin:

Jimbo, did you have to bring in empty bottles?

found this site while googling Winona and coca cola:

http://www.glassbottlesoda.org/index.shtml

I go down to a local Mexican store and pick up bottled Coca-Cola and Pepsi products. I also go to Sam's for the small Coca-Cola bottles and Hires Root Beer for the kids. During the last party we held at our house, many of the guest asked if I had to return the empty bottles or if there was a deposit on them. When I responded with "No, they are no deposit no return" my guest were astonished. And as I hauled the three heavy plastic bags full of empty bottles to the trash, I kind of had to agreed with them, it was a shame to throw away all of those still usable bottles.

And for those of you who may be wondering, NO, in our area there is no real recycling as of yet. There is in the next town over, but for our community the only thing we recycle is aluminum cans which the local Fire Department takes responsibility for.

In Africa, the bottles are returnable. And like mentioned earlier by another member, I too would let the bottles go to a youngster who would return the bottles for me, of course he would also keep all of the money for his hard work.

That site is owned by our own Dr.Galaga...

And I thought I finally had something to add that was new... :laugh:

I go to WInona a few times a year as well, Years ago , he would only fill if you already had some empties to bring to him, now he is letting you pay the deposit and bring them back..
Good people down there.

I've only been there twice but I love it there.  Here's a couple pics from my first trip a couple years ago:

(http://x3a.xanga.com/c31f502375033248455375/m197040500.jpg)

(http://xcf.xanga.com/c6ff515a75733248455363/m197040491.jpg) 

Does anyone know where I can find some Barqs bottles?  I didn't have any so I had to get it in plain bottles.

They still use those yellow Coke cases somewhere?   :jawdrop: Those are sold in antique stores round here. To cool!  I also vote yes.

No kidding! I have one on the wall of my den to display some tin soldiers from the USSR before it collapsed.  Bought it at a flea market in Chicago 20 years ago...

  I Vote YES !!! On Glass .

I can Buy ABC 12oz in many Flavors .Orange Crush Stawberry Crush & Grape Crush in 12oz.Bottles .And Ale8 (Don't Like it ) Some of you Might Remember I Was For 1 year getting Glass 12oz Coke Bottles at My Local Meijers Store .But Then NOTHING  :darn: i Complained to Everyone .No Luck ! I even Log  a Complant on Coke Web Site . It was Harder Giving up those Bottles the It was for me to Quit Smoking . I still have 2  6pk left But I'm gona have to drink them soom .
3 Questions
1. Were's  Winona ??
2. Do they Exchange the Bottles You Bring Or Fill them ?
3.Can You Bring Any Size Are are they only 12oz

                                                                     Ltransam

 Crap !!!   :laugh:

                1 more Question Do they have a List of Flavors ?

                                                                                Ltransam

I think Winona is in Minnesota or somewhere up there...too far for me :down:
Dublin, TX for the DP is far too, but I try to make it there every 5 years or so.

Yes, Winona is in South eastern Minnesota about 100 miles or so south of the twin cities along the Mississippi river on the  Wisconsin border.

Sorry, can't answer the rest of your questions :down:.

Winona is in the south Eastern part of Wisconsin, They will fill your bottles, but you'll have to make two trips as they only fill about once a month. or you can usually pay a deposit and take what you want... they have many flavors, not sure about a list ..

I'll vote yes on glass bottles. The soda seems to taste a lot better. To bad here in Michigan they stopped bottling Pepsi in the glass bottles, but the Coke is still available in some places as well as some other brands.

I was in Sam's the other day and saw a woman getting a case of 8oz bottles. I never see anyone buying any so I had to ask if she had a machine or something. She said "no, I have a 95 year old mother who will not drink anything but glass bottled coke."  I told her I buy them because I have a machine we use. 

So I think we have a few fans around here.

Sadly, plastic bottles are cheaper, so it's unlikely they will go away. but i echo  what has been said previously, Glass is better. Plastic bottles do allow chemicals to seep in whatever they are holding, ever wonder why there is an expiration date on bottled water?
Now if the big guns ( Pepsi, Coke, & UP, etc) all go back to cane sugar instead of corn syrup, I'd be happy with that

I'm finally able to read this thread!  :darn:

I'm getting ready to head to Winona in two weeks.  By what I have been told, you need to bring in 6.5 oz. and 10 oz. empties in order to get filled bottles.  They only accept paying a deposit at the bottler by some local people/businesses.  You can get 16 oz. Coke and Diet Coke in 8 packs at the local grocery store (IGA?) and pay 20 cents a bottle for deposit.  They used to also carry 16 oz. Sprite, but I have not seen them there the past few years. 
6.5 oz. is only Coke
10 oz. is Coke, Diet Coke, Mellow Yellow, and Sprite (you can use any of these as empties - you don't have to have the exact type you are refilling, so you could bring in Coke empties to get some Sprite).
They also do some 10 oz. (Sun Rise?) flavors and 10 oz. Barq's.  Markito told me that you have to have Barq's empties to get filled Barq's. 

Anyone heard from Markito lately? He just disappeared.

He contacted me about two years ago to reactivate his account.  That was the last I heard from him.
I saw some arcade game/pinball auctions that he had on ebay about a year ago and I tried contacting him through ebay and I left a message on his voice mail, but he never got back to me. :down:
I guess he moved on to other things.