Bottle Cap Question - Pepsi 1933

[bottlebugs]

Scouring the web as usual in search of the truth and answers...

Early in 1934 Pepsi reboots using same cap as mine but no foil wrapper
CCS is the manufacturer. Couldn't see other side of cap. Maybe the same
as mine. N(?) Y(?) U. S. A.

So its a good start...its definitely an American cap, from NYC, maybe 1934 or earlier.

Is the foil residue something else on my cap or the real deal?

Did Guth reboot using the same caps as 1933...I would think so. Why not?

The expensive bottles were dumped as he opted for reusable beer bottles.
Labels had to be changed to fit and project budget image of 5 cents vs 10 cents.
Fancy foil neck wrapper abandoned. I think he may have copied the style
from the fancy Coke export bottles used at the same time out of NYC. After all,
NYC was one of the biggest harbours in the world at that time.

 

[bottlebugs]

so another question....what legal case involved a defendant using
this picture as evidence? Did Coke sue Pepsi out of existence in 1933?
More questions! I love a good mystery!

 

[bottlebugs]

so it was confirmed with the vendor of the cap I got...NYC...
so far so good...this vendor specializes in bottle caps and has
links to a huge national inventory system. If it's marked New
York City, the plant is in New York City.

Apparently they made caps for this location until they moved to Long Island in 1937.


In November 1937, Pepsi moved its operations from Manhattan to 47-51 33rd Street. The site’s advantages included direct access to docks and an enormous plant ready for immediate use. In addition to bottling, the new site was used for sugar refining and had a printing department for producing labels and advertising products.


pre 1938 New York City
foil or gold/brassy residue on side of cap
short lived variation
manufactured by CCS
dirty not rusty

still need more information to confirm 1933 date...

 

[bottlebugs]

more compelling information...I'll add this to my analysis.

got a real good highly magnified view of cap edges. some of the residue
is brassy coloured and almost powder but most of it is copper coloured
...I thought this was some kind of oxidation, but it's still a little shiny.

The lettering on the edge is a bit clearer too._ __R K U.S.A. (NEW YORK U.S.A.)

I researched foil manufacturing...The inside is copper to allow the gold tone
to coat the outside surface easily and cheaply. I should have known this. I did
copper annealing at metal shop as a kid. We could coat copper items with a shiny
metal making it easier to enhance the polishing without using solid brass. Brass is
too hard and gets brittle with age. We even took paper backed cigarette foil and
coated pennies to make them look like nickels. You couldn't do this with any
other type of metal coin.

 

[bottlebugs]

pre 1938 New York U.S.A.
foil or gold/brassy residue on crimps of cap
shiny copper residue on most of cap edge
short lived variation
manufactured by CCS
dirty not rusty

 

[bottlebugs]

Not much else to conclude, but based on the fact that it has an
obvious copper residue on the side of the cap only, a small amount
of brassy material which would easily have been the foil residue after
90 years, is enough proof for me to believe this cap was used on the
elusive 1933 Pepsi bottle. AND NO IT IS NOT FOR SALE!

These are the standard tests of antique/artefact authenticity;

1) Where was it found? A known bottle cap expert from Montana
with links to national Cap Inventories. Sold on FeeBay to an experienced
bottle collector looking for an authentic pre 1938 cap.

2) What was it made of? Steel, painted with Pepsi logo from before
1938 indicating NYC origin. Copper and powdered brass residue on
crimp and cap from presence of foil about 90 years ago.

3) What was it used for? Specifically used to cap a pre 1938 Pepsi=Cola
bottle from NYC, from production, removed using a pry off device
(ie: bottle opener) at some time in the very far past. Perhaps 90 years
ago. Design is consistent with sketched cap on original colour advert.

 

[bottlebugs]

 

[bottlebugs]

writing deciphered...this is the first version of the cap as far as I can tell after examining
tons of other varieties...