Old Vintage Coca Cola Coolers

I guess this is the place to post this. Has anybody here ever restored an old vintage metal cooler? I recently bought a 50's era metal Coca Cola drink cooler as well as a 7UP cooler. Both are in pretty good shape, especially the 7UP cooler. It doesn't have a dent in it or any rust and for that matter the Coke cooler doesn't have any rust either. I would like to repaint both of them and I'm not sure what to do about the white lettering on the Coca Cola cooler. Have any of you ever repainted one of these and how did you do it, what paint did you use, how did you repaint the lettering, etc.?

Watched a pin striper lettering an old coke cooler at the NSRA show today. Spray the cooler with the right Coke red, then have a good sign painter letter the white if you don't have a steady hand.

Attachment 54159By cooler, I assume you mean an ice chest. I've painted a few of them... but it was usually custom work. I also did a horizontal coke machine.

Take a picture of it... or find a picture of the same cooler on the internet. After you get it repainted red, take it to a sign painter, and let him brush paint it back on.

I did the paint and flames on this one, and had my sign painter buddy add the Coke script.

I bought a coke cooler some time ago to make a trailer to tow behind my 38...well I sold the 38 and the coke cooler is now sitting out on the deck.

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Originally Posted by tidefan66

I guess this is the place to post this. Has anybody here ever restored an old vintage metal cooler? I recently bought a 50's era metal Coca Cola drink cooler as well as a 7UP cooler. Both are in pretty good shape, especially the 7UP cooler. It doesn't have a dent in it or any rust and for that matter the Coke cooler doesn't have any rust either. I would like to repaint both of them and I'm not sure what to do about the white lettering on the Coca Cola cooler. Have any of you ever repainted one of these and how did you do it, what paint did you use, how did you repaint the lettering, etc.?

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If they are actually authentic 50's pieces in decent shape, you might destroy their collectible value by 're-doing" them. Just something to consider....

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Originally Posted by randyr

If they are actually authentic 50's pieces in decent shape, you might destroy their collectible value by 're-doing" them. Just something to consider....

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I have thought about that too. It's just that they would look better with fresh paint. Would they be worth more as-is or repainted? Yes, they are authentic 50's coolers made in the good ole USA. One was made in Arkansas City, Kansas and the other was made in Louisville, Kentucky.

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Originally Posted by tidefan66

I have thought about that too. It's just that they would look better with fresh paint. Would they be worth more as-is or repainted? Yes, they are authentic 50's coolers made in the good ole USA. One was made in Arkansas City, Kansas and the other was made in Louisville, Kentucky.

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I hear ya, it's a tough quandry. Beauty is usually in the eye of the beholder. To some the old patina with a few nicks & scratches speaks to the history of the piece and the role it's played in the lives of the various owners. It gives it value and to sand it off and paint it shiny new is to wash all that history down the drain. To others, it's just an old relic that needs paint. :HMMM:

Obviously, they are yours so you get the final say in which way you go. Since there are shiny new reproductions of those units available, the authentic old ones are becoming more rare and possibly more valuable. But who knows, maybe you could show them to an antique dealer to get a better idea of the value and whether or not to repaint them. :)

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Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

Attachment 54159By cooler, I assume you mean an ice chest. I've painted a few of them... but it was usually custom work. I also did a horizontal coke machine.

Take a picture of it... or find a picture of the same cooler on the internet. After you get it repainted red, take it to a sign painter, and let him brush paint it back on.

I did the paint and flames on this one, and had my sign painter buddy add the Coke script.

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That is the exact Coca Cola cooler I have...minus the fresh paint and flame job. I see you had the lid handle, corner pieces, and latch bar chrome plated. As best as I can tell, they were originally zinc plated. What I did for now was to work them over with some steel wool and polish them up. It helped the looks some. I was thinking the same thing with the sign painter which we have not far from where I live. What kind of paint did you use for the red and what paint code? I assume it's enamel paint. What type of primer did you use? It doesn't look like they used any kind of primer originally.

I used all automotive paints, since that is what I normally work with. We weren't trying to make it original, so we didn't try to match the paint.

You might take the cooler to an auto paint store, and compare it to color charts there. I would look at the colors from the sixties or seventies. Newer reds are much richer than the coke color would have been back then.

i would bet if you called the PPG paint library they can give you the code or the formula if not try 58 dodge red?? it is in the ppg red chip deck painted a 77 bmw 6 custom car that color