Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion 5 QUART CANS

Are 5 quart cans less desirable than a quart can of the same brand and age? It seems like they aren't as sought after as the quarts, but I have been seeing them some lately and they are really cool! I assumed they would be worth much more money.

Depends on the Collector. Some don't collect 5 qt cans and the larger sizes because of the space they take up in a display compared to 1 qt cans. Others like Don Raleigh gravitate towards 5 qts more so than 1 qts.

I collect a few of all sizes; 1qt, Imperial qt, 5 qt, 1/2 gallon, 1 gallon, 2 liter and 5 gallon.

I like to group the different sizes together as in this photo of my Veedol Collection.

Wow! Nice collection. I really like how the 5 quart cans stand out against the quarts. What brand is that fender can on the floor?

I was on a pick today and opened the drawer of an old cabinet and the bottom of the drawer was made out of the metal of a 5 qt Mobiloil can that had never been made into a can. As I looked into other drawers, they were all made from these and other brands. Somehow whoever made this cabinet had a bunch of metal from a can factory, I guess. It was like having 30 vintage metal oil signs in the cabinet! They were all 5 qt size. Does anybody think these are worth me trying harder to buy it? The guy wouldn't take my first offer.

The rocker was too rusty when I found it to see a brand name, so I sanded the rust down somewhat and it is unbranded.

As to the flats, if they are complete Dick Bennett might be able to roll them into a can.

I have a few 1 qt flats displayed on my "office" wall as signs.

I've always liked the flats, just as long as one has room for them if they aren't rolled.

That is really cool. I didn't know that flats were a common thing. So the ones used for the drawer bottoms probably aren't that rare. I really appreciate the info.

Don't dismiss those flats outright. Some could possibly be rare. Here in Canada our early round 1 gallon tins are the same size as your 5 quart cans. They are fairly rare here because of the low production and many were made before the war and recycled in the war scrap drives, so not many have survived. I really like them because they are quite unique. Only certain brands will bring the same sort of prices that the quarts command and a few that are worth much more than the quarts, such as the Red Indian gallons.