Posted 9 years ago
tomtwhite
(1 item)
Bought this in Wilmington, DE for about a $100, a pretty good buy, I think. The lids and tub are totally rotted out, will have to replace. Shopped around online and these items will run about $400. Holy Cow!!
It will also need top gasket, hardware, cap catcher and a paint job.
The only markings I can find are on the inside of the tub in raised lettering;
W-NRRU
Can anybody tell what that means?
It's a Westinghouse production identifier. Not sure but I think puts it right around 1939.
Thanks.
There is no "Registered Trademark" on any of the long C tails. That probably means it's been repainted at least once?
Do you recommend any particular place to get replacement parts?
Thanks again.
That's a fair assumption. You may want to leave NROJAY a comment asking about his experience, he restored a Junior that turned out very nice.
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/user/NROJAY
Will do.
W is Westinghouse but the "N" has me stumped, as I was told the letters corresponded to RADIOTUBES as in 1234567890 for the month and year of manufacture. Like my cooler has W-ADE, Westinghouse- 2 39. Four letters would be double digit month and year like Oct. '17 should be RSRU
Yeah, we need toolbox to break out his decoder ring.
I read somewhere that the codes also could indicate the city or state of manufacture.
Appreciate your help on this guys!
Here's the radiotubes-based code theory Tommy mentioned. I did find an auction list that identified W-NRRU as a 1939 Westinghouse but there were no pictures or results, just the list. I have a Cavalier Standard Ice, production code TN-40-3. Made in Tennessee, March 1940. Pretty straightforward stuff.
https://sites.google.com/site/idcocacolachestmachines193459/home/page-02-date-codes
So is my number unique to my cooler, like a serial number? If so, can you send me a link to that auction list? So maybe I can see some history behind it?
Thanks again.
So if it is based on the RadioTubes system, the "N" in my ID number has us stumped, right? And if my last 2 letters "RU" equal the year, that would be 17. I'm a little confused.
And by the way, where did this RadioTubes system come from?
Thanks again.
Here's the auction listing from 2010, references W-NRRU 1939 Westinghouse in the coolers section. As I stated, there is no other associated detail.
http://www.higginsauctions.com/Large-Coca-Cola-Collection-Auction-a143082.php
Not sure where the radiotubes thing originated. It was posted by our collector friend toolbox. I don't think the manufacturer's code is unique to your cooler, there were likely a number of them produced during the same run with the same code (as hinted by the auction listing). I think you're safe to describe it as a circa 1939 Westinghouse Standard Ice Cooler.
http://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/103241-coke-cooler
here's a link
https://sites.google.com/site/idcocacolachestmachines193459/home/page-02-date-codes
no luck on the "N" yet but this is a quick read
Here's another cooler with the same code.
http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-westinghouse-coca-cola-store-102549511
Upon dropping the rotted tub out of the unit, it had a white-powdery insulation wrapped around it. Does anyone know if these things contained asbestos?
According to my 1940 Coolergraph, the insulation material is described as 2" glass wool. Fiberglass.