acvending Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Hello all, me and my friend aka partner have just gotten started. My dumb friend sorta started buying machines without consulting with me and unfortunately bought some machines that I feel are crap, which brings me to my first question. Two are Ultravend triples, or as I call them, Fisher Price machines. One is yellow and the other pinkish neon. He got them off of Ebay. Paid $50 and $66 for them. They came with no backdoor locks and keys. I am having a bear of a time getting the locks and keys for them. I tried to buy directly from Advantedge who distributes the Ultravends because with them you can order more than one key for each lock but I was told they are out of stock and it took almost two weeks to even find that out after I ordered and that was only after I contacted them by email asking where my order was. I want a two keys for each lock so me and my friend can both have one. Can I use some sort of universal lock and key that fits many types of machines so I am not limited to buying from them? Units feel like complete crap though. Like a toy hence my nickname for it Fisher Price. Oh and another stupid thing about the Ultravend is that it takes two separate keys to remove the top and they are not the same code so you need both keys inserted to do it. You'd think they would use two cylinders with the same code so only one key would be needed. I also need duplicates made of the top keys which are traditional style keys not round vending style ones. This again so me and my partner can both have a set. Can they be cut at any old place with a key cutting machine? The other machine my buddy got also off of Ebay was a Vendstar 3000. Think he paid like $90 for it. I am not dippy over it either though I like the removable canisters since it makes it easier to service. It came with all necessary locks and it takes only one key to open the top thank god. I need a duplicate of the top key which again hopefully can be done by a standard key machine. The backdoor key is a vending style key so I am not sure what to do about that short of just replacing the cylinder and key with one where I can get a set of two keys. The one machine that he got thats pretty nice is the XYZ triple. Think he paid $100 for it. Nice metal contruction. Good looking. Hinged panels for top and backdoor which I liked. At $115 new it seems like the best bang for the buck on a triple and the one that I told him we will stick with for any future triples. He also got a single Amerivend for like $60 with stand. Its nice looking with that retro feel though sorta a pain to service since you have to pull it apart to get to the coins. He got a double head bracket so we can add another in the future and make it double. I'm on the fence as to whether we will get more them just because they seem a bit rough to service. What do you guys think? Oh and we placed it already though its at a dry cleaner. No commission or charity though. We'll see how it does. Also need to duplicate the key for it. So in the end my friend made some hasty decisions so I need to get the lock situation sorted out with the Ultravend Easy Bake Ovens...errr...triples. Thanks in advance, Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
schmedspub Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Adam, Dont sweat the purchases so far. You will learn more over time and see what works and what does not. There are lots of vendors on this site that love triples and you will form an opinion over time. I use Camlock for all my locks. They are fairly priced and are top of the line locks. I have them on all my Bulk vending machines. call and order them with a Barrell (Round) key. This will discourage people from trying to break into them. Ask for Tim and tell Him Dave from Uptheodds Vending in Connecticut recomended them. As for going forward I would suggest to limit your number of triples you purchase. The reason is that you will neeed to clean these machines and triples need to be completely disassembled and cleaned at your home or office. I am slowly removing all my 4 plays and triple from the route for that reason alone. I use Northwesterns, I have 900 Heads total with 600 out on locations. When one breaks or needs to be cleaned I send out a clean head, Bring the other back and have it cleaned and sanitized to be ready to replace another head in the future. I used theor standard glass and Super 60 models so I can change out one on the road in seconds with no down time. I would suggest that what ever way you go keep this in mind. I can swap out any globe on the route with a globe I have in my SUV at any time. Easy, Fast, Keeps machine clean and I almost never move a stand to make this happen. I hope I helped you and dont hesitate to email me with anything we can help with. Dave Uptheodds Vending, LLC Connecticut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserri Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Adam, Welcome to the forum! It's a pleasure to have you here. As Dave said, don't sweat the purchases. You will make, and learn from, many mistakes along the way. We all did, and still are doing just that, no matter how long we've been doing this. The following three sentences contain more knowledge and information than you can imagine. It bears repeating. I would suggest that what ever way you go keep this in mind. I can swap out any globe on the route with a globe I have in my SUV at any time. Easy, Fast, Keeps machine clean and I almost never move a stand to make this happen. Once again. welcome and good luck with your venture. Keep us updated. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bravo Duck Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 This was not part of your question,but I'll throw a little free advise your way: PARTNERSHIPS NEVER WORK ! Get out now while there's time. You buy him out or he buys you out, then do your own thing. A business must have a clearly defined chain of command or its chaos as you've already found. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Coast Vend LLC Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Welcome to VENDiscuss.com Adam. Although your story is very interesting it is nothing new. We have all bought things and done crazy things when we started. You will be fine. You came to the right place. Just ask questions before you do anything and ,listen to the advise, and you will be on your way to the great business of vending. Again, welcome. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T BIRD Posted January 9, 2008 Share Posted January 9, 2008 Welcome aboard Adam. This a great forum with a wonderful bunch of helpful people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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