L-R: Coca Cola Winna Can, 50th Anniv. Gold Can, Americas Cup and Ghostbusters.

How do you know where an Aussie can is from?

    This sounds like a funny question. Surely you would look on the side for the place of production. This is true for all Coca Cola Cans from Australia pre 1991, but after that year Coca Cola Amatil decided that all enquiries would go to their head office at 71 Macquarie Street, Sydney. Nearly all states just have the Sydney address now, but there is a way for the real enthusiast to work out where it is from. Look on the date stamp, usually located on the bottom of the can. The following information is what you may find on cans from 1991 until around 2000.

The 1991 - 2000 generation:

     A date stamp from this era may look like this:

B  2 112  4  1435

B - This letter stands for the city where the can was manufactured, this B would mean Brisbane.

• T = Townsville, Queensland
• B = Brisbane, Queensland
• S = Sydney, (or they also use X for Sydney)
• M = Melbourne, Victoria
• L = Launceston, Tasmania
• A = Adelaide, South Australia
• P = Perth, Western Australia

(as well as other smaller canners that are quite rare)

2 - The number 2 represents the year, so this year is 1992.

112 - Represents the 112th day of that year, so it would be April 22nd

4 - Is the Line No., as each flavour is assigned a line number (ie. Coke, Fanta, Diet Coke etc) and is optional.

1435 - Would be the time the can was stamped, so it would be 2.35pm in this example.

     So this worked for awhile , until they changed it..........

Coca-Cola Music Set uses the newer date stamp

The next generation of cans:

     The date stamp was changed because standards in the way that food/beverage was sold said that there had to be a best before date. The date on the bottom was changed to reflect this, and the stamp looks more like this:

17 JUN 06  M  1228 L2

     This can will be out of date after June 17th 2006. It was manufactured in Melbourne, using the same information as the older generation cans. The time of the stamp was 12.28pm and the line number is 2 for that particular flavour/drink.

 Cans you should look out for.......

    For those who don't know much about Australian cans. Depending on your collecting tastes, its hard to specify which cans to keep an eye out for. There are literally thousands of different cans, and some minor variation cans are quite valuable. These would be the Australian cans that I would try to obtain, as they are all limited and most are becoming quite old:

   These cans are part of a set of 12 called the Kickaburra Set. They have small pictures of kookaburras (birds that are native to Australia). They were made in a couple of States, and considered the most valuable Australian cans to find. Made in 1982 and the first set produced in Australia. If you find a set of these, start singing from the rooftops! I have seen a very ordinary example of this can sold on eBay recently for around $30. The set, in mint condition would be very valuable.

1     2     3     4      5

It will be really hard to find cans with the links below. They have become rare and while I have sold a few in the last few months, mint examples are very rare. But they are worth looking for:

1. The first can is called the Harlequin can or double diamond can and was used in a few states of Australia. These cans were also used in other countries, and even though they were not the first cans used in Australia (large Diamond with bottle was the first), they still are one of my favourite cans. The first ones had to be opened with a can opener, and to find a mint one of these is a collectors dream, and usually worth over $100 for mint.
2. The Sydney 2000 can was only sold in a very limited supply, and I really don't think that the prices that these cans sell for on eBay reflect the value of this can. They sold for $15 - $20 each with collectors 10 years ago, but have had trouble fetching those prices of late.
3. The Supermarket Show can is interesting as it comes in many forms. They are airfilled or full of coke. Some have no ring pull on top while others have blue or silver ring pull. They are around and I purchased 2 in June 06 for a great price.
4. Customer Appreciation Week cans are another great example of the rarer can. They do fetch very good prices, and are available in quite a few countries.
5. The Mystery Prize can was used in vending machines and was a bonanza to get. A very nice collectable that was so rare that many collectors didnt know they existed for quite some time. I have seen a few on eBay lately.

     The main purpose of listing these cans is to tell the un-informed about them. To a seasoned collector, this information is pretty basic, but to the newer collector, it really helps in making a good decision about purchasing. When trying to find any can, try to get the best quality possible. It really pays off in the can keeping it value.

Just a few Sets....

     I can't show you every set that has come out in Australia, but these two sets are on top of my list: 

   A real favourite of many collectors, and probably the nicest example of printing on a can I have seen. The quality of these sets is superb, and can be seen from time to time on eBay. Known by many names, including the Poster Set, Nostalgia Set and Advertising Set. With 3 different names, it may be easier to search for these under the name you are most familiar with. Made of steel from Tasmania in 1988.

    Another steel can set that was produced around the same time as the above set, named the Sundblom Santa Set. There is the plain set of these cans, and a mistake set where the artists name was spelt wrong. This set was made in Tasmania, but a very similar set was made in Canberra.

    Obviously there are many more sets available, and in the coming months I shall give you an in-depth look at many sets from Australia and overseas. Due to limitations with amount of space in guides, I can not go too in-depth with the sets. The two sets above stand out, in my opinion, and along with the Kickaburra Set are what most collectors are looking for.

    Some final points to remember.... full or empty?

     In my opinion, there is no reason to collect cans full. I know that some people do collect them full, but to me it seems like a real waste of money for postage. Cans have a real problem holding their contents, and do leak, plus aluminium cans actually suck in after awhile as the air inside the can slowly seems to disappear. I have seen and heard about this many times, and it does happen with PET bottles too. With a bit of care, you can easily drain any can to still look full. On display, thats all you need.

     Older cans that are full also lose their contents naturally. Sometimes after 10-15 years you will notice that a can is only half full. Gradually it has leaked so slowly that there isn't really a mess. It just seams like the contents has disappeared. As i said earlier, the older cans also "suck in" and seam to implode. This is due to the air in the can leaving the can. For some reason, I think that flights on planes may also add to this happening with the change of air-pressure, as I have had cans sent to me full in perfect condition, and ended up on my doorstep crumpled in, but un-opened.

     Your decision on how you collect these cans will have a huge bearing on your collection. Full cans will take away much more funds that could of been used in collecting extra items. Postage is huge for full items! Its your call.......

      If you would like to learn more about Coca Cola collecting please read one of my other guides. They have been written for you. You can find them here at: mmmmmcoke guides for you.

     Hope you found this guide interesting, and I look forward to maybe talking Coke with you one day.

Happy Collecting!

Michael - mmmmmcoke