2012 Olympic Coke Cans (complete)

On June 4, I started a post about the 2012 Olympic Coke cans.  I was on a quest to collect all six cans of the set.  I updated the post every time I got a new can.  So if you'd like to see how the quest progressed, you can read about it here. 

Today I got can #6 and my set is complete.  In addition, I also got an Olympics Diet Coke can.

Coca-Cola Can Radio Offer

I went to a flea market today on the lookout for any old soda cans.  There are always a lot of soda bottles, but usually not many cans.  The only can I found worth buying was this Coca-Cola can.  After getting home, I dated the design to be around 1970-1971 (notice "caramel colored" written under the Coca-Cola logo).

But the reason I bought the can was because of the offer on the side of it, "Can radio... yours for only $5.95 with proof-of-purchase."  The offer ended on February 29, 1972, reinforcing that this can is probably from 1971-ish.

The reason I liked this "ad can" was because it's the first vertical ad on a Coke can I've seen.  I don't know how common or uncommon that is, but I thought it was pretty cool.

So what did I pay for it?  Well there was a plain Coke can next to this one.  I asked the guy how much they were and he said, "$3 each or both for $5."  I think I already had the other one, so I just wanted this one.  I said, "How about $2.50 for just this one?"  And he replied, "$2 and it's yours."  That's the first time a seller has bid me down.

A Tour of My Collection

I still have around fifty cans that haven't been "processed" yet (meaning they haven't been added to the website or shelved/boxed with my other cans), but this is my collection as of today.

This is shelf #1.  It starts with 7Up and alphabetically goes thru some of the major brands thru Hi-C.

Note: the spaces have been left intentionally to allow for new cans to be added without having to shift other brands around.

This is shelf #2.  It starts with Hires root beer and goes thru some of the major brands thru the Walmart line of sodas.

Shelf #3 contains Sprite, Pepsi, Mountain Dew and Shasta.

Shelf #4 holds my Coke cans and short 8oz cans.

And these are two additional shelves. 

The gray ones on the left hold the soda brands that don't fit on shelves #1-4.  They are organized alphabetically in the trays.  The bottom shelf has six trays of foreign cans.

The black shelf on the right holds my large 16 oz cans, slim 8 oz cans and any other odd-sized cans.  This is where most of my energy and juice cans are.  I also have some 12-packs of soda on this shelf.

The boxes on the floor are cans I haven't added to the trays yet.




And now for the two overall shots of my collection:

Shelves #1 and #2

Shelves #3 and #4 and more

What I don't have pictured are my can sets such as the 7UP Bicentennial 50-can set, the 24-can Star Wars Pepsi set or the two 1970's RC sets of baseball player cans.

Antique Shopping

We spent a lot of today driving around southern Illinois visiting all kinds of antique shops.  Among other things, I was on the lookout for "antique" cans.  But unfortunately I wasn't having any luck.  Until...

We found Big Lots!!!  We ended up back in civilization and did some real shopping where I found plenty of cans I didn't have.

Last year my wife and I recorded season one of a taste-testing podcast called The Aftertaste Report.  And after today's haul, we are considering doing season two.  But with school starting next week, things are about to get hectic so we'll have to see if there's time for another podcast.

Variations of the Wild West

When people come by to see my can collection, I remind them that there are 2000+ different cans.  And then they proceed to point to my four Wild West cans and say, "Well those are the same."  And then they get a can education.

Sure, they are all Wild West Sarsaparilla (whatever that is), but the cans are different.

These first two cans are both straight steel.  Notice the sides of the body are straight all the way from the bottom to the top.  Also, both the bottom and top are separate pieces attached to the body.  That's how you can identify a straight steel can.  By the way, these two are different because one says "12 FL OZ" and the other "12 FL OZ - 354 mL".  Also, one is still sealed and one is open.



 This is an extruded steel can.  Notice how the bottom is rounded and made of the same piece of steel as the body.  Only the top is a separate piece of metal on this can.

There is a third type of steel can which I don't have a Wild West example of, but this Dad's root beer can volunteered to model.  It's called crimped steel.  It's top and bottom are separate pieces like the straight steel, but in this case the sides of the body aren't straight.  Notice how they are crimped inwards near the bottom and top?  





And then there's the aluminum can.  The bottom of aluminum cans is also molded from the same piece of metal as the body, only the top is a separate piece.  And aluminum cans usually have some kind of recycle symbol on them.






If there is no recycle symbol, extruded steel cans and older aluminum cans can sometimes be hard to differentiate.  So what's an easy way to tell which it is?  Use a magnet!  A magnet will stick to any steel can but won't stick to aluminum.

And now you've had a can education.

We Can't Always Get What We Want

Yesterday I spent some time where my wife works.  We were doing some updating of her office (rearranging furniture, adding shelves, painting, etc).  During one of my trips through the building I noticed a small refrigerator.  I stopped.  I had to check for cans...

Jackpot!

Inside were two 8 oz cans I didn't have.  My "cantuition" skill is getting pretty sharp, I can now sense when cans are near.  Not really.  But as I was working one of the cans from its plastic 6-pack ring my wife strolled by and told me those are there for a specific reason and they would be missed.  Rats!

In 15 months of can collecting, this was the first time I was told "No."

A Dew Day

The day started as any other.  But twelve hours into it, I owned four more Mountain Dew cans.

The first can I got literally rolled right up to me.  I was outside and the wind was blowing.  I saw a can blowing across the parking lot and it stopped at my feet.  It was the "Batman Rises" can (the can on the left in the pic). 

A little while later we stopped in a small store for drinks and I saw the newest Live Wire and Voltage can designs, so I grabbed those.

And our last stop was at a Dollar General where I found the Diet Mtn Dew "Batman Rises" can. 

I wish I could dew this every day!!!

Lunchables

I've said it before, I like to find brands of soda/drinks that I didn't know existed.  And so is the case with today's find.  I received a box of cans and inside was this can of Lunchables cola.

I'm familiar with Lunchables because my kids are in grade school and it's one of their favorite lunches to take.  So when I saw this can I thought, "Who knew they even have their own cans of soda?"

A Bust in the Dust

This morning I accompanied a group of men who go around town to do handyman chores around the homes of the elderly who can't do the work themselves any more.  My particular group was assigned to clean out an old, dusty dilapidated shed that is going to be torn down soon.  Conditions were right for a dump dive!

Near the end of my "shift" I was disappointed I hadn't found a can yet among the rotted shelves, rusted tools and dust-covered boxes and containers.  And then I pulled up some old wooden stakes and I found a stash of eight dirty cans.  The problem was, they had all been crushed after the person drank them.  All of them were aluminum and the ones I could recognize were relatively newer cans that I already have anyway.  A couple of the cans were so crushed I don't know what brand they were. 

So what could have been a great can find turned out to be a bust... until my dad came over this evening and said he found this "rooster can" while on his daily walk the other day.

 

So I did end up with a treasure today after all.

The Batcan

On July 20, "The Dark Knight Rises" releases in theaters.  We recently watched the first two Christopher Nolan Batman movies at work during our lunch breaks in preparation for the release of the third one.

I read a while back that Mtn Dew was coming out with a special color-changing can to promo the new movie, so I alerted my "peoples" to keep an eye open for it.  And the winner was a co-worker named Ken.

He came in to work week before last and handed it to me.  He had picked it up at a convenient store on the way to work.  I normally don't drink soda but I bottom-opened this one and drank it to celebrate the fact that I now had the can.  Whew, I had energy that afternoon!

Nick Fury: Before and After

I'm slowly growing my Dr Pepper Avengers can set.  You can read about the progress here.  With only a couple of cans left to go, I found another one this evening on the side of the road.  But it wasn't pretty!!!

Before

Lucky for me, I have a "tool" that my dad gave me last year.  He doesn't know what it actually is, but it's perfect for sticking inside cans to pop out those unwanted dents and dings (using the smaller hooked end).

The trick is to not push too hard from the inside or the rod will poke a hole through the side of the can.  Tonight's Nick Fury can was the toughest patient I've operated on so far.  It took quite a bit of reconstruction and patient hand dexterity, but I got it to the point of being presentable.

After

Sure, it's not in mint condition, but it's better than not having Nick Fury at all.  And I will be on the lookout for a replacement unit. 

Thanks, Can-Fixin' Hook-Thing!  You saved the day again!

Chicago's Navy Pier

A few weeks ago, I was in an antique store in Georgetown, KY, and found this Pepsi can.  The first thing that caught my eye was the old-time Pepsi font.  I already wanted it.  And then I noticed it was a can for Chicago's Navy Pier.  I'm from IL, so the skyline of the Pier on the can sealed the deal.

After I got home I did a little research on the can.  The Navy Pier was built in 1916 and saw decades of various uses.  It was bought in 1989 and renovated throughout the early 1990's.  In the summer of 1995, it was "reborn" with shopping, eating, a concert stage and more.  And Pepsi released this commemorative can.

The funny things is I went to Chicago for the first time in June of 1997 and spent time on the Pier.  I had no idea it was "new" again. 

So not only does this can look good sitting on my shelf, but it reminds me of my visit to Chicago fifteen years ago this month.  Whew!  Has it really been fifteen years???

"Dream Team" Cans

And what should appear today in the parking lot where I work?  Magic Johnson, of course!

Can 1 of 5

This year, Dr Pepper Snapple Group is commemorating the 20th anniversary of the first Olympic "Dream Team."  Back in the 1992 Olympics, they were the first United States Olympics basketball team.

Other cans in the 5-can set are Larry Bird (7 Up), Patrick Ewing (A&W), Scottie Pippin (Sun Drop) and David Robinson (Canada Dry).

Sports are very low on the totem pole of my interests (actually, it may not even be on the pole), but when an orphaned can is lying by my car in need of a good home, I'll take it!  So let's see how far I can get with this set...

10/22/12 Update: My mother-in-law saved this Larry Bird can for me.  That's two down, three to go.
 

Can 2 of 5

 4/12/13 Update: It's been a while, but I got the third can from my father-in-law who was visiting from out of state.  He brought it all the way from home, so I'm glad I didn't have it.

Can 3 of 5

Carnival Coke Can

We just got back from a carnival here in town.  It was a nice evening.  Lots of rides, games and snacks.  And then what do I see lying on the ground before me?

This is can #2 in the 6 can Olympic set that I reported on last week. 

Next up... can #3.

More Shelves

Before

After

My wife called me at work today and said someone was throwing out some metal shelves.  She asked if we needed them for anything.  Shelves?  You bet!

So I got home, cleaned them up, tightened the bolts and proceeded to stack trays of cans on them.  The trays I use fit perfectly!  I figure it'll hold about sixteen trays, not including the very top shelf.  Each tray holds 50 cans.  So I've just been granted space for about 800 cans.  

Just what I needed!!!

Pepsi: Kick in the Mix

I got an email three weeks ago from someone in the United Arab Emirates that I bought cans from last year.  He said he had some new Pepsi cans for me.  I sent him my home address and then forgot about it.  When I got home from work today, the package had arrived.

These are from a 2012 set of Pepsi cans called "Kick in the Mix."  It's a new campaign which fuses football (called soccer in USA) and uptempo music.  You can see the commercial for it here and read an article about the campaign here. 

And this marks another milestone in my can collection... these are the first cans I have with a QR code.  So if you have a smartphone and want more info, scan the barcode and read away.

A big THANKS goes out to BeerCanRich99!!!

5 Hours of Energy?

Two days ago at work, I was minding my own business at my desk when a couple of reps from 5-Hour Energy came to our building.  They went around to each person and handed out a bottle of their energy drink.

I am not an energy drink person.  I've drunk maybe a handful of them just to get the cans.  But I've seen these little 1.93 oz bottles in various stores and wondered if they really work.  After getting my bottle, I jumped online to read about the benefits/drawbacks and I've come away convinced it's a safe pick-me-up (when used in moderation).

So the next time I'm dragging at work and finding it hard to stay awake, I'll break out my little bottle of grape goodness juice and see if it really does work.  When I do, I'll update this post and let you know how it goes.

King of Pop

In 1983, my sister and I pooled our allowance together to buy our first LP vinyl record... Michael Jackson's Thriller.  The record sleeve had the lyrics printed on it and I spent hours following along with the lyrics while listening to the music.  I eventually moved on to other genres of music but I still respect MJ for his life-long music career.

And then I saw this can at Walmart while on vacation in West Virginia last week.  I had to buy it.  The silver graphic against the blue Pepsi background looks "bad" (in a good way). 

I don't necessarily care for the large 16 oz size of brands that normally come in 12 oz cans because they're too big to fit on the 12 oz-sized shelves, but I'll overlook it this time.  This is currently one of my favorite cans in my collection.

London 2012 Olympic Games

When I returned to work from vacation this morning, I found this Coke can sitting on my desk:

I knew it was from my Coke-drinking co-worker, so I thanked him when he got to work.  After reading the fine print, I found this design was for the London 2012 Olympic Games.  Yep, Coke is good about putting out Olympic cans.  And then I saw this:

Can 1 of 6!!  Oh great, another set to collect!!!  But that's ok, I just hope my Coke-drinking co-worker is able to get all six cans this summer. 

Go USA!!!

06/15/12 update - I found can #2 on the ground at a carnival here in town.

06/18/12 update - I got to work this morning and the co-worker who gave me can #1 had can #3 waiting for me.  

07/16/12 update - The co-worker pulled through again and brought this can #4 to work for me today.

08/06/12 update - Another co-worker brought can #5 to me this morning.  Only one to go...

08/20/12 update - A luncheon meeting was held in my building at work today.  The food was catered, but the drinks were in cans.  A co-worker was thoughtful enough to grab two cans for me during the clean up.  One was this... can # 6!!!  My set is complete.

The other can was this Olympics Diet Coke can. 

Thanks to all my co-workers who helped me finish off this set!!!  You can read the sum-up post here.

West Virginia Trip Recap

Today we returned from West Virginia.  I didn't get quite as much time to can hunt this week as I had hoped, but I was still able to come back with a sizable loot pile...

I hope to do some posts soon featuring some of these cans, but a few of the highlights include the new Pepsi Next can, the King of Pop Michael Jackson Pepsi can, the Dr Pepper Avengers Thor can that I scored from the wedding reception we attended last weekend and a 1995 Chicago Navy Pier Pepsi can I found at an antique store in Georgetown, KY. 

As far as the other activities I had hoped to do on this trip, I did not have time to go on another dump dive.  And I stopped at the Coca-Cola house but no one was home.  So maybe next year I can do both of those things.

Overall, it was a great week and I have some new cans and stories to share.

Current Excitement: West Virginia Cans (year 2)

We leave tomorrow for West Virginia to visit some of my wife's family.  We'll be there almost a week.  In case you weren't reading this blog last July, here's the post from last year's trip.

The difference this year is we are going to a wedding on Saturday, which also comes with a lot of visiting family throughout the weekend (especially with this being Memorial Day Weekend).  I won't have quite as much free time as I did last year, but I still hope to go on another dump dive, visit the Coca-Cola Mecca and just make another haul of new cans.

This site will be quiet for the next week or so, but hopefully I'll have plenty to post when I return.

My 2000th Can!!!

It finally happened.  One year and one month after I began collecting soda cans, I obtained my 2000th can.

2000 cans

What was my 2000th can?  A Big K red cream soda.  Big K is the Kroger brand of soda.  Personally, I don't care for the color scheme of this flavor.  Gold, red and brown aren't a good mix on my palette. 

Where did I get it?  This is the ironic thing.  Let's just say my wife hasn't been as enthusiastic about my collection as I have, but she'll still bring a can to me now and then.  And this is a can she brought home from work today.  I was excited to have found my 1999th can on the way to work this morning, so I wondered all day what the 2000th can would be.  When I called her on my way home from work she said, "Guess what.  I got you another can today."  And I replied, "Guess what.  That's number two thousand!!!"  She was actually a bit excited too.

#2000 - Big K red cream soda

Far from being the prettiest or rarest for my 2000th can, it is nonetheless the can to hold the "2000" title.

Root Beer Time

Last December I posted about a trade I made where I received quite a few Dr Pepper clones and Mountain Dew clones.  Clones are a "genre" of soda cans popular with collectors.  Another one is root beer.

I received this lot of root beer cans yesterday.  I've been looking for a brand or genre of soda can to focus on.  Should it be root beer?  Or Dr Pepper clones?  Or Mountain Dew clones? 

I can't decide.  So for now, I'll keep collecting them all!