Where there is a will, there is a way
We are starting a full restore on a Vendo 39 for a customer. We just got the machine in, and I thought we would share what we found inside. Somewhere in the past, someone had rigged it up to vend cans, which can normally be tricky on this model. We will be putting it all back to original during the restoration, but this idea was simple and rather clever.
First, we should start with what a Vendo 39 normally has for a vending system.
It has a large drum that holds 39 bottles.
It has a counterweight in the back.
Each time you crank the handle, the drum rotates by weight, aligning up a bottle at the 6 oclock position with the bottle door in the front for removal.
It is limited to the smaller bottles in the original drum.
There is a replacement after-market Vendo 39 drum on the market that takes a larger bottles.
So apparently, someone, in addition to painting the inside blue, decided to rig this machine up to hold cans.
It is rather simple, amateur, and creative all at the same time.
They took out the drum and hung a piece of sheet metal from the sides.
At the lowest point, the sheet metal is supported by the bracket.
It was placed just right so that it lined up with the bottle door.
Each time someone took a can out, another would fall into place.
I found it interesting. We have since taken it all out, we will blast off the blue and put a drum back it and get it all back to like new.
But if you have a Vendo 39 without a drum, I guess you can give this a try!
