The one that got away

[sodaworks]

I know how you feel Wayne, I too here both scenerio's from time to tme. The one that really bothers me is when they say something like someone offered me 2500.00 or so a couple of years ago for a machine thats worth a fraction of that. I usually tell them "wow" you should have taken the money and ran.

[Eric]

Here's another story....
My first Coke machine was a Westinghouse Master. Years after the 7up squaretop was gone.
I was going to college in Springfield Missouri... I hit a lot of antique/junk shops on the weekends.
I started to notice these old roundtop machines and gas pumps restored and really wanted one.
Well when visiting a friend on the weekend there was a home that had a old shed with a
overhang attached... under it sat this rough Master with no lids and no cap catcher.
We stopped and asked the owner what he planned on doing with it. He said he used it for
raising worms and didn't want it anymore so I bought it for $10!
I thought I had a reallly rare one! Ha  I evevn called the Local Coca-Cola Bottling Company (never seen one at that point)
Man that is so funny looking back and now knowing these are everywhere.
Well I traded it off for parts I think.
Ahhh.... but my first roundtop..... It's my 72 Cavalier...
I was at an auction for bottles and a couple old crates.
This guy I knew from high school came up and we started talking and he mentioned that he heard I collected “Coca-Cola stuff”... I said yeah I had some signs and bottles, etc. He asked if I would
be interested in a old machine?... I said sure (Now I had been running an ad with nothing but huge newer machines for replies so I didn't get my hopes up) He ask what I would pay and I said I'd pay $300-$400 bucks for a good complete machine. He said he had one he bought from an auction,
a gas station had closed and it was sitting around back and wanted $300 (Wouldn't you think he'd of said $400 since I brought that price up?... anyway.)
I told him I could come over in a couple weeks and check it out.... well two weeks went buy
and and I went over to check what  i thought for sure was going to be some monster machine from a gas station. We went down stairs and there she sat a Cavalier 72, complete just a dent on the top where somebody dropped something heavy on her.
I said $300?... He said yep! I said sold!.... Then the machine hunting began!
Here's a image of her, in line... waiting to be restored...

[Pat Pixley]

My first machine was in 1996  a Cavalier USS96.  A good
 friend of  mine had owned it  and I was on him to sell it to
 me . then in June  of of 1996 he called and said come on
over with $100.00 and that machine is your , I got over
there and he tossed in a case of Coke .
And then at that time I was hooked  .
 That machine has been gone now for 4 years and there has
  been others I have bought and sold , But now I plan on keeping  what I have bought ,12 machine & 8 picnic cooler
to many painted soda bottle's and other soda related
stuff . I need a pole barn now.
 I forgot the one that got away was a Vendo 63 that was setting  at one of my customer place of business.
it was unpluged and dirty  and a few small dents,
I had asked my customer if he would be willing to sell it
and he told me it was going to his son , A year later
 I saw it in a back of a truck  and that was not his
 son driving that truck.     '>

[firemun]

Here is a link that somewhat gives a summary of how I started.  It was from a post in March.

Earlier post

[coke_and_stuff]

My first machine was a westinghouse giant. i paid $150.00 for it at a local antique shop, rough and rusty missing lids and everything else not bolted down. It was my prized pocession. I ended up selling it and the guy i sold it turned it into a cheesy couch. I later picked up a Westinghouse Master for the same price it was in alot better shape. I painted this one and took it to Springfield, MO and sold it at the swap meet. Funny story the guy I sold it to later bought my vendo 81D that I paid $100.00 for at a antique store. Earlier this year i ended up buying my 81 back, with 7 others in the fire sale.

My 81 will never be leaving my pocession i'll sell both 56s before the 81 goes

2 machines that i should have bought were a 81A in Springfield, MO for $1200, and a 81B here in town for $1500. One day i'll get these machines

Joey

[sodaworks]

Eric,
  Kito's going to have a cow when he see's that you have stuff sitting on top of your machines. Ha-Ha... '>

Moo!
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