Recommend me an ACL book

[SODAPOPBOB]

Follow up ...

I just spoke on the phone with Rick Sweeney. The long-story-short of it is ...

1. He has lots of the Third Edition books left over.
2. The First and Second Editions are all gone.
3. He is not particularily interested in mailing out a bunch of books, but has granted me permission to
do so if I wish.
4. I am interested in doing just that, but it really depends on the feedback I get from this thread.
5. If the response is enough to warrant my handling and mailing out at least 10 or 15 books, then I see
no problem with it. Otherwise, I think I will pass on it.
6. The price per book (which Rick and I agreed on) would be $50.00 each. Which would include
"free" shipping to anywhere in the continental United States. Payment would have to be paid in
advance. (The details of which I will go into later if/when we even get to that point).

So for those of you who are interested in purchasing one or more of the books, please post your comments and we'll see where it leads to. Thanks.

Regarding the P.S.B.C.A. Rick said he has not been involved with it for several years and, as far as he knows, is finished with. He admitted he wasn't 100% sure about this, but was "pretty sure that we won't be hearing from them again," and that anything and everything connected with the association is entirely out of his hands, and that he would not be able to comment further regarding any of their business dealings, etc.

However, he did say he had heard "rumors" there were former members of the association who someday "might" start an entirely new organization of their own, but that he did not have any details about it.

So I guess that's about it for now. Hopefully I will hear from at least a few members regarding the book.

Take care.

Bob

 

[TheCaliKid]

Bob -

Thanks a million for all the information, you are one "diligent dude"with an eye for detail!

Questions: does the third edition have a price guide for these bottles? I'm not looking for anything specific, just an overall guide, even if it is from 2002. Judging by the one picture you posted, it looks like he has written up a short synopsis of each ACL bottle, would that be correct?

Is Rick still involved with the P.S.B.C.A.? He sure seems like a standup guy. I salute people like him, because they were the trailbalzers, they were the ones that didn't give up, and they were the ones who continued studying an arcane subject, when others may have laughed at them. I think that at this point I need to know a little bit more about this book, but I'm pretty sure that you will be able to put me down for one. Would you say that it is one of the "better" ACL books out there?

Oh, my wife's mother gave me a small bottle book for Christmas, but it only had a very small section on ACL's, and only covered the "cream of the crop", price-wise. Anyway, in the book it mentions the P.S.B.C.A., so I Googled them and looked up their website. I have to say, that is one the worst looking websites I have ever seen! It looks like a half-retarded monkey was let lose on a keyboard sometime in 1994. ( <-- I hope that I am not dissing Rick here!)

My wife is a graphic designer, she could make them one hell of a site.





P.S. I am pleased that you enjoyed my desert trip writeup, spent some time on that baby, but I had an overwhelmingly positive response from friends, family, and elsewhere that I had posted it on the 'Net. I am seriously thinking about starting a blog this year.


P.P.S. I am currently planning for another desert trip the weekend after Super Bowl Sunday, although I do not have high hopes of finding anything this time.


P.P.S I'm really sorry to ask you another question, but since I consider you to be the "resident western soda bottle expert" on here, I'll ask it: is there any book you would or could recommend for a budding western soda bottle collector like me? Specifically California? But, I'd gladly take Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. I am mostly interested in California, and mostly smaller (back then) towns.

Oh, one last thing: I am headed out of town for a week, but when I get back I'd like to PM you with my phone # so we can talk more easily about this stuff....whaddya say partner?

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

P.S. ~

I know that a certain number of A-B.net members have said in past threads that they sent the bottle association money and paid for books in advance, but never received one. Rick Sweeny is aware of this as well. So I need to emphasise that Rick is no longer associated with the organization and hasn't been for many years. I mention this because he indicated to me that, unfortunately, he no longer has any influence or connection with the organization, and that he will he be unable to assist anyone with a refund or free book. Rick said he wasn't involved with the organization in any manner when those problems ocurred and that he is not responsible for their unfilled orders.

And as for trusting me, I can assure you that if you send me the specified amount, that you will most definitely receive a new copy of Rick's book. But I guees you will just have to trust me on a personal level, as I can see no ther way of approching this. I'm just trying my best to see if I can help those who don't have a copy of the book but want one. This might be your last opportunity.

Sincerely,

Bob

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Kid ~

Another long-story-short! The values listed in the book are considered obsolete now. Which eventually ocurrs with all so called price guides. I personally like the book for the appx 1600 bottles it list, 1200 of which are shown in full color pictures of the "labels." It doesn't show the entire bottle because, as Rick Sweeny says in the book, "We are label collectors" because the majoriy of acl soda bottle designs are all pretty much alike. Its the labels that appeal to us most.

It doesn't have a history on every bottle, but it does include brief histories on about 35 different brands. And as for the overall popularity of the book, I personally feel it (and the two previous editions) are currently as good as it gets regarding acls (Painted Label Sodas). I can't recall who it is or the name of their books, but there are a couple of guys who have already pupbished several books on the histories of numerous soda bottlers, but which only cover certain east coast brands at present. I'm sure someone will come along shortly and fill in the blanks with their names, etc, where I am unable to at present. I have heard "they" are eventually supposed to publish a book on west coast bottlers, but I do not know the status regarding that at the moment. I'm sure I/we will hear about it if/when it does get published.

I will send you my contact information later tonight or tomorrow. Right now I'm headed to McDonald's to cure a "Mac Attack" I'm having. Two for only $3.50, you know! Whatta a deal!

Later.

Bob

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Kid ~

Here's a sampling from the book to give you some idea of the format. Notice the column definitions at the top of the text page. The bottle brands are listed alphabetically. With the corresponding pictures listed numerically.

Reminder: There are approximately 1600 bottles listed, but only about 1200 pictured.

I hope this helps.

Bob

 

[TheCaliKid]

ORIGINAL: SODAPOPBOB

Kid ~

Another long-story-short! The values listed in the book are considered obsolete now. Which eventually ocurrs with all so called price guides. I personally like the book for the appx 1600 bottles it list, 1200 of which are shown in full color pictures of the "labels." It doesn't show the entire bottle because, as Rick Sweeny says in the book, "We are label collectors" because the majoriy of acl soda bottle designs are all pretty much alike. Its the labels that appeal to us most.

It doesn't have a history on every bottle, but it does include brief histories on about 35 different brands. And as for the overall popularity of the book, I personally feel it (and the two previous editions) are currently as good as it gets regarding acls (Painted Label Sodas). I can't recall who it is or the name of their books, but there are a couple of guys who have already pupbished several books on the histories of numerous soda bottlers, but which only cover certain east coast brands at present. I'm sure someone will come along shortly and fill in the blanks with their names, etc, where I am unable to at present. I have heard "they" are eventually supposed to publish a book on west coast bottlers, but I do not know the status regarding that at the moment. I'm sure I/we will hear about it if/when it does get published.

I will send you my contact information later tonight or tomorrow. Right now I'm headed to McDonald's to cure a "Mac Attack" I'm having. Two for only $3.50, you know! Whatta a deal!

Later.

Bob

LOL, you had better watch it, or that "Mac Attack" could become a heart attack!

At any rate, I am headed out of town early tomorrow morning and won't be back until Monday the 30th.

I will send you my contact information too when I get back. Have you ever given any thought of producing that "Western ACL" book yourself? You seem to be fairly knowledgeable, and you have certainly been collecting for long enough!

It is too bad that we do not live closer together, because we could combine forces on a project like that. For what its worth, I used to live in Poway, and also Romona.

 

[TheCaliKid]

ORIGINAL: SODAPOPBOB

Kid ~

Here's a sampling from the book to give you some idea of the format. Notice the column definitions at the top of the text page. The bottle brands are listed alphabetically. With the corresponding pictures listed numerically.

Reminder: There are approximately 1600 bottles listed, but only about 1200 pictured.

I hope this helps.

Bob

Wow Bob, that looks absolutely fantastic!

I think that this is just what I am looking for.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Speaking of Poway, California (Which is about 30 miles north of San Diego) Cecil Munsey lives there and has forever. He not only wrote the introduction to Rick Sweeney's book, but he is considered one of the world's foremost authorities on antique bottles. If you haven't read any of Cecil's articles, you're in for a real treat. Here' the link ...

http://cecilmunsey.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

As for me/us doing a book of our own ... I dunno, man. Just thinking about it is a monumental task and wears me out. But ya just never know.

Later alligator.

Have a great trip.

Bob

 

[TheCaliKid]

Its a small world......

Well, this trip has to do with working, so it is not going to be that fun. I plan on sneaking in one night of Vodka & Cranberry though