My Latest Trade

I made a recent 12-can trade with a fellow collector in Canada. 

 

Among the cans I received is a Scottish carbonated soft drink (Irn Bru), a Pepsi Light from China, the Canadian 2013 Mtn Dew Dewmocracy winner (Voltage) and many more. 

My trading has slowed down this year but I still like receiving an occasional box of cans that I can't get in my area. 

Thanks, Ryan!

2014 Holiday Cans

It's that time of year again; time to hunt down and collect the new batch of holiday cans.  I've seen the Coca-Cola cans in stores for a couple of weeks and I finally got my hands on a couple of them.

As more find their way to my collection I'll update this post to keep track of what I have from the 2014 holiday season.

Christmas Shopping

My family went Christmas shopping yesterday.  And I found a few things for myself :)

We went to Target.  A quick walk down the soda aisle revealed a new logo for Sierra Mist.  I wasn't prepared to buy two 12-packs just to get a regular and a diet can.  They'll come to me eventually.  But I did find a leftover Dr Pepper/Snapple Group Halloween can I didn't have yet.

A few more stops, a few more disappointments.  And then we went to the glorious Big Lots.  I walked out of there with six new cans, all priced from $.50 to $.75 each.

 

I also have my eye on the new Coca-Cola holiday can design.  But I had to leave something to look forward to...

How Much Caffeine?

I saw a former co-worker last week for the first time in a few months and he brought this cool Mello Yello NHRA can to me.

I'd never seen it before.  You can't see it very well in the picture, but both sides of the logo have cool flaming tailpipes on it.  I've always liked the color-scheme of Mello Yello cans.

While checking out the can, I happened to notice the caffeine content:  69mg/16oz.  I've never paid attention to caffeine content before, so that made me wonder how Mello Yello compares to other major brands.  After looking at some other recent cans in my collection, this is what I found:

Coca-Cola = 34mg/12oz
Diet Coke = 46mg/12oz

Pepsi = 38mg/12oz
Diet Pepsi = 35mg/12oz

Dr Pepper = 41mg/12oz
Diet Dr Pepper = 41mg/12oz

Mtn Dew = 54mg/12oz
Diet Mtn Dew = 54mg/12oz
Mtn Dew Game Fuel = 73mg/12oz

Converting the 16oz Mello Yello to 12oz = 51.75mg/12oz

The data surprised me in a few ways.  I always thought Coca-Cola was the soda to drink to get the biggest caffeine buzz but it ranks lowest in the five major brands I checked out.  Diet Coke even has more caffeine than regular Coca-Cola.  And the Mtn Dew Game Fuel I recently bought has twice the caffeine of Coca-Cola.

By the way, the original flavor of Monster energy drink weighs in at a whopping 120mg/12oz.  But I think energy drinks are a whole other study and I'd probably be surprised by some of the numbers of those brands.

After all this research, I think it's time for a nap...

Beverage Fashion

Why haven't I come across these before now?  While shopping I saw these fashionable beverage shirts.  Of course I had to have them!

Now I've got something to wear when David Letterman asks me to come on his show to talk about my collection.
 

Did I really just take a couple of selfies? 

Ask and Ye Shall Receive

Yesterday my daughter went to her friend's birthday party in the park.  When her friend's mom brought my daughter home, I noticed a can in their truck's cup holder that didn't look familiar.  When I asked about it, she said it's Vernors, a favorite from when she lived in Michigan.

I mentioned my can collection and that I didn't have that can.  She reached in the truck and gave me a new one so I could try it.  She said it's the best ginger ale out there.  And the can says Vernors has been around since 1866!

I'm not much of a ginger ale drinker but I tried it and it was pretty good.  I have other Vernors cans in my collection but this is the first one I got to drink.

Sometimes it's embarrassing asking for cans, but when you're passionate about your hobby you shouldn't let anything get in the way.

By the way, this is the 300th post on this blog.  Cheers!

2014 Mtn Dew Game Fuel

I ran down to the local Dollar General early this morning for a birthday card and on my way out I saw two flavors of Mtn Dew I didn't have yet.  And I didn't buy them!

But after running a few more errands, I went back and grabbed a 12-pack of each.  I had the original flavor version of the can from work, so why wouldn't I buy the two flavored versions?

The cans look great and have bright colors.  The two flavors are lemonade and citrus cherry.  On the right is the original flavor can.

Tomb Raider Can #2

I was surprised to see a Tomb Raider edition of Kick energy drink at Walmart.

This Tomb Raider can was to promote the Tomb Raider video game reboot in 2013.  I have the game but haven't played it yet.  I've been too busy organizing cans.

My only other Tomb Raider can is this Korean can from 2001.  It promoted the first Tomb Raider movie starring Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft (the tomb raider). 

You know, maybe I'll slam that Kick energy drink and go fire up my PS3 and play some Tomb Raider this afternoon...  after a nap.

Football

I like when American football season rolls around, not because of the sport but because there are new cans waiting to be collected.  These are the 2014 designs I've acquired so far from other people saving cans for me.

Dr Pepper Ten - 7 UP

Coca-Cola

Dr Pepper - Diet Dr Pepper

I know there are more out there.  Maybe a trip to the store later...

Another Birthday

The kids did good again this year.  They saved a few cans and gave them to me today for my birthday.

I might already have the friend Coca-Cola cans, but the rest are new cans for me.

Also featured in the pic is the smoking dragon incense burner they got for me.  It was another good birthday :)

Halloween at Walmart

While grocery shopping yesterday at Walmart, I noticed these six packs of 8oz Halloween cans from Cott.  And I bought them.

Orange flavored "Bubbling Cauldron"

Grape flavored "Grapenstein"

As far as Halloween-themed cans go, now I need to find the rest of the Dr Pepper/Snapple cans, Jones soda cans, Fanta cans and who-knows-what others...

Cans from Antique Stores

Beer cans

Soda bottles

Followers of this blog know I occasionally check out antique stores for soda cans.  They also know I complain about there being so many more beer cans and soda bottles than soda cans.  So don't be surprised that I'm complaining again, hehe.

But after a few hours of wading through doilies and cookbooks, I found a Bubba Cola can.  I have a couple of the newer designs, so at $1.50 it was an easy sell for this older design.

 

The town I live in has a small grocery store, but the family-owned one I stopped in this afternoon in a small town on my drive had these 8oz A&W cans 2/$1.  So I picked up this year's Halloween A&W and the regular design which I didn't have in that size yet.

And to close out my hunting trip, I found this 3-can set of X-Men 2 Dr. Pepper cans for only $2.  What a deal!

I'll admit that I saw a few more soda cans but those were nothing special to me and went for $4, $8, and even higher per can.  So I passed on those.  I wish I could get $8 per can for my collection.  Then I could retire and have time to build a real collection!!!

The Cans Are Backing Up

It's been a while since I've posted, but that doesn't mean the flow of inbound cans has stopped.  With the kids' return to school, family reunions, birthdays, and other various excuses reasons, the cans have started to build up.  Here's a quick glimpse around the house this evening:

This is the staging area for cans that will end up in my collection once their contents have been drained or drunk.

These cans are lined up near the sink waiting to be cleaned.

And this is the closet where cleaned cans go until I can take their picture, add them to my collection website and log them into my master can list.  As you can see, they've been piling up recently.  One of these days I'll get them "processed" and into storage.

This bag of cans is my son's "collection," but he collects them to turn in for cash.  If we find a can that I already have in my collection AND I already have a double of (for trading), then he gets the can for recycling.

Normally these little "piles" aren't quite this bad, but as I said earlier, I've been busy recently.  And that's no reason to stop collecting!!

The Name Game

I couldn't stand it any longer.  I've been wondering what nicknames come in packs of Coca-Cola and Diet Coke.  Is each can different in a 12-pack?  Are they all the same?  Is it just a random sampling containing a few different names and the rest are doubles? 

I've acquired quite a few Coca-Cola nickname cans from various sources in the last couple of months, but I only had one Diet Coke can.  So today I bought a 12-pack of Diet Coke to see what names I'd get.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out half the cans were different.  I got BFF, Dad, Go-Getter, Mom, Pal and Mom.  And mine was a special batch because it's the 2014 Six Flags discount can.

Now I wonder if this was a good batch and it's normally only 2-3 different names or did I get a bad batch because half of them were doubles?  Haha, human beings really are hard to please.

Big Lots and NASCAR

I know I've sung the praises of Big Lots' cheap cans before, but I'm going to do it again.  There is a Big Lots right down the road from where I work.  We moved into our current building a year and a half ago.  I've driven past the Big Lots at least twice a day since then.  And yesterday was the first time I've stopped to go inside.  I'm glad I did.

I found nine cans I didn't have.  There are some cool ones in this batch.  My favorite is the Limited Edition Amp can.

I was a big fan of NASCAR back in the mid to late 80's and then again in the late 90's, but I haven't paid much attention to it for a few years now.  But I still know a big name when I see it.  This drink is called Dale Jr Sour.  I remember when his dad drove the blue and yellow Wranglers car in the 80's!  And Darrell Waltrip #11 was all about the Mountain Dew (and not MTN Dew).  And when would someone be able to catch Bill Elliott?

Where was I?  Oh, yeah.  This is a neat can and it only cost $1.  Check out Big Lots.  You might walk away a winner.

TMNT Crush

My seven year-old son spotted this display at Walmart last week.

He's about as crazy about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as I am about can collecting.  So it was hard for me to pass up buying a bunch of these 12-packs to try to get all the cans.  At this point, I don't even know how many different cans there are.  But I'm sure they'll creep their way into my collection at some point.

Cape Girardeau, MO

I went on a road trip to Cape Girardeau today with a couple of people.  It was our first time there, so we checked out the local junk stores and commercial shopping (after the historical sites).  I found three cans I didn't have.

Today's new cans

Old design

Toby Mac

At Big Lots I found the Sparkling Clementine Izze.  The only Izze I had in my collection was Sparkling Apple.  So I doubled my Izze count.

I also found the Sugar Free Rockstar at Big Lots.  I had one already but this is an updated version of the can.

The last can I found was a Mtn Dew can with an ad for a free download of a Colton Dixon song.  I already had a can for a free Toby Mac song.  I wonder how many artists Mtn Dew did this for.

I did see several more soda cans at antique stores but I wasn't willing to pay the $5-8 per can they were asking.  If I could sell each of my cans for that much, I'd sell them all in a heartbeat and then I'd have plenty of money to buy more cans.

Website Pick #7: Mtn Dew Kid

 On the first of every month I will feature one of my favorite can websites.  

Please send an email if you have a website for consideration.

  http://www.mtndewkid.com/

This clean, well-organized website has news, reviews, history, collectibles and much more.  And it's all about Mountain Dew.  Definitely visit the "About" page for more information on the collector who runs the site.

The collector is interested in trading, so you can use the "Contact" page on the site if you're interested in that.  He's working on some articles about knock-off Mtn Dew brands, so he's looking for cans of knock-off brands.

I've visited the site several times for info or to see particular cans.  If you're interested in Mountain Dew at all, you should definitely check it out.

Sprite 6 Mix

Last month I went to my cousin's daughter's birthday party which was at my cousin's sister-in-law's house.  While there, my cousin found a half-empty Sprite can in the house and brought it out to me and asked if I had it.  Nope.  I didn't have any Sprite cans that large (a strange 19.2 oz can).  I asked his sister-in-law where she got it and she said it was from the convenient store two blocks from my house.  How convenient.

Several days later, before I went and bought one of my own, my parents stopped by and handed me the can.  They had been at that store and saw the can and picked one up for me.  Nice.

So this is the LeBron James 6 Mix edition. I couldn't tell much difference in the taste of this versus regular Sprite, but the flavor is a combination of cherry, orange and Sprite's usual lemon-lime.  7-Eleven has even added the Sprite 6 Mix flavor to their Slurpee lineup. 

I am not a sports fan.  I had heard his name before but had to Google it to make sure he was a basketball player as I thought.  So when I was trying to figure out the other two flavors to make up the "6" mix, I found out he wears a number 6 on his jersey.  Oh.

I like the look of the can, especially all the LB's in the background.  And as the banner says at the top of the can, it's a Limited Edition flavor.  So if you haven't tried it, go out and get one now.

Cool Can Brewsday (10 of 10)

There were some beer cans in a large lot of soda cans I once bought.  Even though I don't collect beer cans, I admit some of them do have great designs.  For ten Tuesdays in a row I will feature different beer can designs that I find worthy of sharing.

A Cake With Soda On It

I live near St. Louis, MO.  This year it celebrates its 250th anniversary.  So 250 fiberglass cakes (about 4' tall) were built and different artists decorated them.  They were placed at various landmarks, heritage sites and local favorites around the St. Louis metro area earlier this year and will be on display until the end of the year.

I just found out about this last week.  So the kids and I have decided to see how many of these cakes we can visit in the next six months (you can follow our progress here).  Yesterday we visited the cake that sits at the base of the World's Largest Catsup Bottle, located in Collinsville, IL.  The cake was decorated with famous St. Louis businesses, two of which are Vess and Cheer Up.

Although I didn't find any new cans while visiting the cakes, I did enjoy seeing my hobby memorialized in fake frosting.

New Cans from a Sleepover

My daughter went to a sleepover two nights ago.  While unpacking yesterday, she gave me two souvenirs she brought home for me.

The first was this new Pepsi can.  I didn't know Pepsi had a new can.  I've seen ads that they were going to be using real sugar so of course that means they would have a new can.

The second was this pineapple soda from Walmart.  This isn't a new flavor, just a new can design.  I had the old one and now I have the new one. 

So, when's the next sleepover?

What's in a Name?

Ok, they got me!

I would have never bought a Coca-Cola at Walmart tonight... if they hadn't put a bottle with my name on it in the check-out aisle.  I heard about this "Share A Coke" campaign a couple of months ago and started seeing the bottles and cans a few weeks ago.  

The bottles are the ones with names.  The cans have "nicknames" on them.  Yesterday someone saved a couple cans for me, so these were my first two name cans:

 

Today I had a couple more people text to tell me they were watching for name cans for me.  I don't know how many different cans there are, but I'll update this post every time I get a new one.  We'll see how many I can score in the upcoming weeks.

07/18/2014 Update - I found this Buddy on the side of the road.  "Never pick up hitchhikers," but this one I couldn't resist.

07/19/2014 Update - I saw this lying in a parking lot.  A sad thing indeed.  So now I know there is a can with "Legend" on it.  For those wondering, I did not bring this one home for my collection.

07/21/2014 Update - I visited a friend this evening who had saved six cans for me.  Nice!  "But you already have Buddy, Friend and BFF."  Yes, but the ones I got tonight each have a Six Flags coupon ad on it, making them different than the plain ones I had before.

Keep 'em coming...

07/30/2014 Update - Last night a friend dropped off a bag of Coca-Cola cans on my front porch.

After going through them, I found the three cans below that I didn't have.  I already had the version of each can with the Six Flags ad, but not the plain can.  So now I have the plain ones.

I keep seeing the same nicknames over and over, so I may have them all as of now for my area.  Sometimes new batches will come through a little later, so that's what I'll be watching for.

08/16/2014 Update - Last night I got my first Diet Coke nickname can.  And appropriately enough, it was given to me by my dad.