| Produced
in the mid 1950's by the Ideal company the Ideal-55 sliders are still easy to
find and purchase. This is due to the fact that they were produced in large numbers
for many different cola companies. Some of the many companies Ideal produced machines
for were 7up, Coke Cola, Pepsi, Hires, Barqs, Double Cola, Squirt, Rc Cola, Nesbits,
Mission Orange, Canada Dry,Grand Prize, and others. Out of all of them my favorites
were the 7Up, because of its clean white look, and the Rc-Cola and Squirt which
were painted in a great looking bright yellow. These machines are known as sliders
because once you deposit a coin you must "slide" your cola along the
rack to release it. Most brands listed above came with embossing, however ideal
produced many machines that did not. The lids on the Ideal sliders
are made out of stainless steel. Ideals machines came in several
colors. The color choices were Oven Baked Red, White, Blue, Green, Bright Yellow,
and Orange. Also in addition to vending Soda bottles the Ideal machines also were
made to vend milk, juice, and other drinks. One final note is that
unfortunately most Ideal-55 sliders are missing the racks. In fact I remember
when I was a kid my dad and uncle pulled the rack out of a 7up slider to make
a grill for our barbecue pit. Now years later this machine is mine. Lucky for
me I found a replacement rack for $150 bucks. |