How to Switch from Cans to Bottles in a Dixie Narco Soda Machine

In this episode I go over how to switch from vending cans to 20 ounce bottles in a Dixie Narco 276e soda machine. I also demonstrate how the rotors, cams, rods and shims all work together to vend the products. If you would like to see how to switch from cans to bottles in a Royal Giii machine, watch this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aaOQY5ysjJt0mrcsi=VPTwtUyquGYkMX-A

[@BraedonHaertling2]

I own a laundromat and having the hardest time going from can to Gatorade bottle in my vending machine until I found this video. Great explanation! 10/10!

[@HangryVendors]

Man this channel has taught me so much! We are about a year and a half in, and much of what we have learned has been through you guys. From space to sales, to bottle shims, to motors, to cooling deck installs. Just wanted to say thanks and keep up the good work. Our company has exploded and we currently have 19 accounts, and have multiple clients on a waiting list! This channel needs much more recognition!

[@HappyVending]

Thank you and congratulations on your success!

[@larryjcma]

One of if not the best video on KZbin explaining how it all works. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and time it took to make this video!

[@MookTheMerchant]

This channel is such a gem 💎

[@simplyscripture5030]

Thank you for the information, great video

[@jeremygrahn2262]

Very informative, thank you!

[@angelpintor3316]

Thanks for sharing all your knowledge, it's beneficial for those of us just starting out.

[@fytubevw]

Fascinating stuff. I just stumbled upon channel and Subscribed!

[@RICH-zu6vv]

I love these videos I’m learning. Thank you

[@kenubannister]

Great job!

[@alanunseld4942]

man i couldve used your knowledge when i first started, Bill🙋‍♂️

[@HappyVending]

We probably started at the same time and both learned by trial and error.

[@Hbaz98]

Awesome video. Really helping me out during my first month. Sourcing 20 oz water bottles has been an issue for me. Do you have an experience with 16 oz water bottles? They seem too skinny and squishy to properly vend, andI’ve been unsuccessfully trying to get creative to make it work. Appreciate any tips!

[@HappyVending]

I use Dasani 16.9 ounce bottles that I get from BJS. They seem to be firmer than the ones in the grocery stores, but they are still too squishy to stack high. I set the machine up with a bottle shim 2 products deep with a rod in the rotor.

[@Hbaz98]

@@HappyVending makes sense, the Dasani were the ones I was looking at. What would you consider too high to stack? Thank you for the tips man appreciate that.

[@HappyVending]

@@Hbaz98 I usually don't put more than 16 in a dixie narco. I make sure to put the ones that feel the firmest on the bottom.

[@MF-rl9vl]

Hey there, I just purchased a Dixie Narco 501E and am gaining a lot of knowledge from your training videos. You’ve been my go to source for learning and love how simple and resourceful your videos have been to me. I do have a couple questions: 1.) Where can I purchase shims and spacers? 2.) My Dixie Narco 501E model does not get cold. I hear a fan running in the machine but it doesn’t get cold at all. What do you recommend I check or replace to get it cold?

[@HappyVending]

shims and spacers can be purchased by most vending machine part companies...try snack attack or d&s vending. You could even order that from crane. As far as the machine not cooling, do you hear the compressor try to come on at all? Have you tried adjusting the thermostat to see if that makes a difference?

[@MF-rl9vl]

I hear the compressor click on and try to stay on which it does for about 5 seconds and then it shuts off. It repeats this every 15 minutes or so where I hear the compressor click on and start to fire up and then shuts off. I have not checked the thermostat.

[@HappyVending]

This usually means your compressor is shot and it is best to buy a replacement deck. You could try putting a 3 in 1 hard start capacitor on it, but that's only a temporary fix. When my decks do this, I usually bite the bullet and get a replacement deck. @@MF-rl9vl

[@christophersanchez2395]

Would you use a rod in the second position for 16.9oz bottles since they are the same width as cans? or skip them altogether and would you use a CAN shim or BOTTLE shim for this application since they are the same width as cans? Would a #2 cam setting for 16.90z bottles work best? Appreciate an help thank you very much I always like your videos!

[@HappyVending]

Yes, I leave the rod in for 16.9 ounce bottles. Also, you would use the bottle shim and the 5 position on the cam....since bottles would be 2 deep.

[@christophersanchez2395]

@@HappyVending Bill thank you very much really appreciate it! And thanks for the quick response have a great rest of your week

[@justinsabio]

I must say, I have a 501e & it’s probably the most combust machine I have.

[@HappyVending]

is combust good or bad?

[@matticus11]

9:45 would the position for ready-to-vend can 2 or 3 work in this case to replace the shim? Skipping manually rotating the motor?

[@HappyVending]

Possibly, if you want to take the time to vend the column. I usually find it easier to just manually rotate it until it's out of the way of the shim.

[@RubenBarrios-p5b]

Greetings Bill. Your video was extremely helpful. Very glad I ran into it since there are not a lot of technicians that service these types of soda machines. I was able to make use your video to have the correct setting for the 20Oz bottles. I do have a question regarding the use of 16.9Oz bottles. Due to inflation, and customer willingness only to pay so much for a soda, we ran into the 16.9Oz bottles that meet the consumer price but we are having issues while vending. The issue we have is that when we bought our machine, it came with no rods and only one type of shim which only has the three notches on them. They work for the 20Oz, but not for the 16.9. So one person will pay but get no soda, the next person pays and gets two bottles. This pattern repeats over and over, one no vending second vending double bottles. Can you suggest a solution?

[@HappyVending]

It sounds like your cam setting is wrong. I do vend 16 ounce bottles in my Dixie, and I use the regular 20 ounce bottle shim. But you need to use a cam setting that will only sping the rotor twice...like setting 5.

[@williamwall6614]

Hi Bill, can you load 20oz Gatorade/Powerade bottles in the Dixie Narco 368?

[@HappyVending]

That machine is designed just for 12 ounce cans...so I would say no.

[@newviewnc]

Hey Bill. Is it possible to vend 12oz Red Bull’s in the 501e with the proper shims? I got mixed answers…

[@HappyVending]

I've never done it but I'm sure there is some type of shim or sleeve for the rods that would make it possible. Post your question on the vendiscuss.net forum...I'm sure someone there has done it before and can guide you in the right direction.

[@StLouisSled]

I have an old Dixie Narco single price machine... I beleive it's a 440. I am using it in my personal garage. Is there any way to make it vend beer bottles?

[@HappyVending]

I wouldn't vend glass bottles in a stack machine....one will end up breaking.

[@CenLAVending]

When vending 16.9oz bottles is there anything special that needs to be done?

[@HappyVending]

You need to set it up for two deep and use a rod and bottle shim.

[@jamalhinds1]

What cam position and shim should I use to vend 12oz Celsius cans? The cans are the same height as Monster cans so they fit 2 deep but have a smaller dimension, please help!

[@HappyVending]

You probably need a sleeve that goes over the rod to push the cans out of the rotor more. I've never vended those cans, so you should post your question on the vendiscuss.net forum and see if anyone else has had success with it. As far as the cam setting, try setting #2 if you have the brown cams.

[@pikadroo]

I never noticed a 4th can would fit in the auger. I wonder if 4 cans deep would work in a 501E. The shim and the cam setting would be the only reason i could see it wouldn’t. 🤷‍♂️

[@HappyVending]

Some machines do 4 cans deep but people generally don't run the machines 4 deep because it can be problematic once the rotor starts to warp from heavy use. You end up with double vends and dry vends.

[@pikadroo]

@@HappyVendingAhhhh… yes. I got a machine once with a twisted rotor. Which was pretty amazing it’s a chunky hunk of metal.

[@jenniferbuehler3224]

What settings for 16.9oz plastic soda bottles?

[@HappyVending]

You would use the bottle shims and adjust the back spacer for 2 products deep. You would also use cam setting 5, but keep the rod in the rotor since the 16 oz bottles are thinner than the 20 oz bottles.

[@StephSVS]

Is this the same for a 501T model?

[@HappyVending]

it's probably very similar.

[@OnTimeVending]

👍

[@nickdeangelo3196]

Are you from Philly?

[@HappyVending]

the philly area...yes.

[@joseffigueroaguzman999]

I have Dixie 440 can uses stop shim ?

[@HappyVending]

Not sure what you're asking.

[@tay3554]

hey, I’m trying to vend 16.9 fl oz bottles and i use can shims. i haven’t inserted rods yet. should i change anything? one selection keeps jamming.

[@tay3554]

& which position should the rod be in. position B? also are sleeves needed?

[@HappyVending]

@@tay3554 What kind of bottles are you vending? Water bottles? If they are too squishy, you will continue to get jams. I usually don't stack 16.9 bottles very high in my dixie machine. I don't use rods with my 16.9 bottles, but you can experiment with them if you are having trouble. Try it in position b and see what happens.

[@tay3554]

@@HappyVending i have one selection that keeps getting jammed. I’m vending soda bottles. I currently don’t have rods in there and it keeps throwing the machine into selection error mode. in that selection I’m vending dr. pepper bottles.

[@HappyVending]

@@tay3554 Try a rod and see what happens. Do any of your other columns get jammed? Are they all set up the same way?

[@tay3554]

@@HappyVending they’re set up the same and no just the one selection.

[@wisconsinbush2940]

How do I get the shim out?

[@HappyVending]

You might need to rotate the rotor so that the opening faces the shim, then just lift it straight up.

[@wisconsinbush2940]

@@HappyVending I put the machine in test vending mode. Then unhooked the blue coil wire where I wanted it. Worked like a charm!

[@newviewnc]

So question Bill… someone told me that having a Coke machine with the Coke logo, is a trademark issue. If Coca-Cola sees it they can make you take the logo off if your not purchasing product from them. Is that true???

[@HappyVending]

If it's a bottler-owned machine then you are obligated to only put coke product in the machine. My machines are all older and have been sold off by the bottlers...so I can put what I want in them. I can't imagine someone from coke (which would be an employee of the bottler who could care less) coming and telling me that I need to remove the coke graphics on an old machine because Mountain Dew is in it. That's just not going to happen.

[@daydaysaint6657]

I don’t know if you ever got my question before I have a Vendo 511 worked perfect till one day on the little red LED light that said dollar I noticed it was out from that point on. I talked to a couple people they said my motherboard was bad I put a new one in, since then I put in a new coin dollar bill validator I have tried everything everything works on the machine except the LED light won’t light up the bill validator won’t come on the queen. Mach won’t come on I’ve replaced every fuse that I know of compressor works perfectly. There’s power in the cable going to the bill validator and going to the coin Mac but that’s it. Nothing lights up. Nothing works. Any thoughts on what to try before I get rid of the machine except power goes to the bill validator power goes to the coin Mac nothing works from them I replaced all the fuses before I just have to get rid of the machine. Is there anything you could tell me to try?

[@HappyVending]

How do you know if the coin mech and bill acceptor have power if they are not working? You will probably need a volt meter and start checking for continuity in your wiring harnesses. You could possibly have a short or a broken wire. Wires can sometimes internally break when the door is opened and closed many times.

[@daydaysaint6657]

@@HappyVending OK I will try that what I have is a meter that beeps when there’s voltage and there’s voltage to the wires going to the mech or the bill validator but nothing lights up after that it’s like the power right there but nothing after so I guess I could check all the wires like you said I will give that a try. Thank you for responding back. I appreciate it.

[@HappyVending]

Sure. Make sure you power down before you plug/unplug validators/mechs.@@daydaysaint6657

[@daydaysaint6657]

@@HappyVending yes I do thanks

[@TheMyrmidon22]

My experience showed me that if the coin mech is low in change, the bill validator will stop working.