Not only do I metal detect and bottle dig, I also..............

[daytondigger]

...................dump dig old cans. Beer cans have been popular for many years in dug condition. Now a new soda can book has come out and sodas are taking off. You can find people actively buying, selling and trading these excavated cans. A soak in a mild acid such as citric or oxcylic, will remove much of the rust. In Ohio the soil conditions are as bout as bad as it gets, however some 50 plus year old cans still hold up. Collectors mostly prefer the "flat top" and "cone top" cans. These cans predate pull tabs. Here's a picture of one I found not far from Dayton. Pretty clean before the acid bath, it's a flat top.

And after the bath

 

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[Cynangyl]

wow! That bath made a huge difference! I never realized cans were so collectible either...learn so much around here! Thanks!

 

[crazyjarhead]

How old is it? I don't recognize the name

 

[crazyjarhead]

I just looked on yahoo and that can may be as old as the 30's. Type in red top beer and there are several pages on this topic. It appears the brewery started in Cincinatti at the turn of the century. There are collector who collect rusty cans. Yours may be worth looking into. Great find Keep us informed on what you find

 

[daytondigger]

This can is from Cincinnati and dates late fifties or very early sixties. Check out the Rustybunch website for more info. I am a member of that club as well and post on their forum as daytondigger as well. If you find these flat top and cone top cans in your adventures but don't want to mess with them, let me know. I'd be glad to take them home as long as your fairly close to Ohio. Most Oh cans come up so covered with rust that they are completely unidentifiable. It's just like opening presents on Christmas when you soak them and reveal the label. Here's some example of cans that were totally covered in rust.

Not in very good shape, but I've found some tough labels that were still worth keeping. Most of these cans were not saved due to condition, but you never know. I kept the Oertel's 92 crowntainer from Louisville 'cause I like it. The bud is from the 30's and a cool can in a little better shape. The crowntop with the red on it was a Burkhardts from OH, I thought it would turn out better, but I think it soaked too long

Thanks, Steve

 

[crazyjarhead]

I'm going to be buying a detector soon... been watching and learning for a while. Maybe we can get together. I know some really good spots all over champaign and union counties.

 

[Detectingfreak]

That is a pretty clean can! Sure does make a difference! Hunting bottles and cans can be fun too!

 

[Mike Moutray]

Reminds me of when I was a kid in the mid seventies.... we all collected beer cans back then , it seemed. My uncle had property in the county that had a huge can dump... about 1 1/2 acres of forest floor paved with old beer cans 3 or 4 feet deep in spots. Seems this area was huge with the drinkers and partiers back then. I would go out there on weekends with my cousin, and we'd each carry a halfdozen trash bags with us into the woods and fill them all FULL with just the cone tops! Most were in great shape with only a little surface rust. We eventually grabbed many of the older and better flat tops I had about a thousand cans in my collection and my cousin about 3,000. We used our treasure trove to trade for other cans at swap meets. Those were the days. All those cans eventually got sold off or lost or just rusted apart. I went back there a few years ago, on a whim, and most of the dump is under leaves and downed trees... every where I scraped in the ground, beer cans - many flat tops left but every one rusted out completely. If only I could travel back in time again....

 

[hogge]

AWSOME.... I do the same and would like to know how you do this acid bath.