Posted 14 years ago
garyp
(1 item)
A friend of mine just found this old Coke Cooler in his garage, and we were wondering if anyone could give us a little insight on it...approximate year it was produced...if it is rare or common....approximate value?
Box is in original, un-restored condition as you can see from photo.
Measures 21 1/2 inches wide, 35 inches tall and 18 inches deep, has two doors on top and sits on metal legs. Bottle opener is cracked and cap catcher is gone, but over all kinda neat.
Thanks for any input.
I've never seen a cooler like this one. What I can tell you though is that the white wave under coca cola means it's no older then 1965.
Oh, Ok...that's helpful, thanks. I have looked online and yet to see one exactly like it. Does that mean it has possibly been altered from the original?
Exactly what I need for the Super Bowl game garyp! The only thing I would alter is to put ice & Beer in it!!! LOL........ Keep it like it is.....Very Nice Coke Cooler Bro......
Lonewolfjr, wave means it's post 1970. No real colector value, but i'm sure anybody would buy it for parties (TBS, super bowl) for 150-200 dollars or so.
That's my guess
The best I can come up with that it is a Progress 181 Model. Here a picture of the Progress 183 Model. The 181 Model holds 72 bottles the Model 183 held 168 bottles. The wave logo was presented in 1969, and this site says these were made late 40s mid 50s. So I'm not sure of what year you have.
http://soda-machines.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=191&Itemid=14
seems like an old item with an updated logo.
Why can't I find random cool stuff like this in my garage???
Thanks everybody...was a great help...garyp
I've had one of these for about 15 years, and afeter watching American Restoration, I thought I'd do a little research on it. Mine is a little earlier version, as it has no wave and a "everything goes better with coke" slogan on it. Probably mid-late 60's. Pretty cool to see another one! Been looking for years and never seen another. Now I know what the lid looks like too!
I've had mine for 20yrs. Found it in an old shed behind my house in the country. Been trying to research it. First time I've actually seen one like it. Don't have the lid or bottle opener on it. Have you found out the value of it?
Well,I have a Progress model 181 Pepsi (that awful word). The research I found stated that it the model 181 was manufactured from the late 40s to the mid 50s. This is the only pepsi one I have seen anywhere including ebay and internet. "enjoy a Pepsi"on bothsides of the cooler (with a small e and a capital P) Paint is intact.
We found one like this cooler in the back of our church but it doesn't have the
lid and it is a Model 181. Maybe if I search the lid might be there somewhere.
Thanks, I have been trying to find this everywhere. Does it have any value without the lid?
My cooler does not have the square around the coca-cola name, nor does
it have the wave it is plain. I would like to find a top for mine. Everything is
similar to the one above, but I don't have a lid. If anyone has a lid for the Model#181, #2767948.
After sitting idle since 1976 in my cellar, I finally uncovered an old coca cola cooler given to me that year. Looking at it, it is a model 181 with the wave logo. The cooler was originally stored in the cellar of a coca cola bottling company and was never sold. It has very little wear, paint is very, very good with a little scratch here and there and the unit is complete with cover, inner upper storage rack, bottle cap catcher and insertable legs. Donating the item to a museum that has a local coca cola family owned company display from the same company where I acquired the cooler.
Should have stated that my cooler model 181 is exactly identical in size as shown in the garyp photo above and the upper removeable inner rack is the same size as one of the two hinged covers.
I have the same cooler with the same logo as pictured above. If this is indeed a cooler built in the 40s or 50s but emblazoned with a later logo, it brings up a restoration question. If I were to strip this down to the metal and restore it with a logo from the approximate date of manufacture, would that increase its value? At first it seems unethical to do something like that, but what is the difference if it is the exact same cooler beneath as one that just happened to be painted 20 years earlier initially. When you go to do a restore on either of them in this hypothetical situation, you'd end up with the same blank canvas at some point.
I'm looking for a set of legs for the Progress model 181/183 coolers. In a restoration project of a Royal Crown Cola Progress 183.