Vintage Coke Slider Chest Cooler Vending Machine

Founded in 1892, Glascock Bros. originally manufactured washing machines. In 1928, though, Coca-Cola asked the Muncie, Indiana company to produce a specialized cooler it could sell to retailers. In the first year, Coca-Cola sold more than 30,000 units at $12.50 each.

The GBV-50 marked Glasco’s re-entry into bottle vending after the company spent many years producing vendors that dispensed pre-mixed soda into cups.

Glascock produced many variations of soda coolers for Coca-Cola, as well as other brands, and the Glasco GBV-50 definitely stands out. Labeled “Starlet”, this model was advertised as “The ‘Brightest’ of Bottle Vendors” and was designed to “conquer ‘space'” due to its compact size. Produced from 1959 to the early 1960s, the Starlet could vend 50 bottles of cold Coca-Cola while it pre-cooled another 25.

This is a “slider” unit.  Since the bottles were loaded into five rows, the slider was able to vend up to five different flavors in bottles of different sizes. This machine took dimes, and after one was deposited sliders worked manually by sliding the bottle down the rack to release it from the machine.

Pre-cooled bottles were accessible by a door on the side of the machine.

Emblazoned with the fishtail logo, which was used from ’58 to ’65, the Starlet weighed 230 pounds. It measured 35-1/2″ wide by 20-1/2″ deep by 40-1/2″ high.

The unit shown here was restored by us years ago. Sorry, we’re no longer in the restoration business and this item is not for sale.