When I started binning, back in 2004, several supermarkets had adopted coin deposit systems to deter people from walking off with shopping carts. Idle carts were nested together, and daisy-chained, handle-to-handle. A customer could unlock the cart at the very end of the chain by depositing a coin in the locking mechanism of the cart -- either a quarter, or a dollar coin -- in Canada, a so-called "Loonie." Pushing in the coin, pushed out the chain link connected to the next cart. Pushing that chain link back in pushed out your quarter. Simple.
Stores may not have reckoned on how many customers just wouldn't care enough about recovering their deposit to put the carts away properly. And then there were a number deliberately leaving the carts unchained so binners could re-chain the carts, and recover the coins.
Binners immediately started trying to extract the coins from carts found in the wild. If you found two carts, you could use the chain from one to recover the coin from the other. I began to see bent up lengths of coat hanger wire jammed in the chaining end of the coin box, which "fooled" the cart into releasing it's coin.
Within two years or so, some large chains got rid of their deposit shopping carts altogether. Some adopted a kind of electronic counter measure -- a cart with a disabling wheel boot triggered by crossing a particular boundary, such as the edge of a store's parking lot. The boundary was defined by shallowly buried, transmitter wire. The wheel boot activated when it's radio receiver picked up the very short-range signal from the wire by crossing the boundary. It sure was a short range signal. Years ago a binner explained he could beat the transmitter by just tipping the shopping cart up about 45 degrees on it's back wheels, so the front wheels, one of which had the boot, were too far off the ground for the boot to pick up the signal. Once he had the cart outside the boundary he could put the front end back down. He explained how he had to be careful not to take such a cart into the parking lot of any other supermarket that used a wire transmitter, as it was guaranteed to trigger the boot.
I still see carts with boots, but not very often. I don't keep track of shopping cart issues -- like, who's carts have boots, or who's hold the most, are the most durable, etc. because I collect bottles and cans using a bike and trailer. But I certainly know the best, and easiest way to extract a coin deposit from a shopping cart. I wonder that it took binners more than 15 minutes to figure out that all it takes is a pair of vice grips, or pliers -- I have pulled the coin out with my bare fingers, but the mechanism normally grips too tightly to allow that. Here are some photos of removing the coin with simple pliers. I use the edge of the coin box to get extra leverage. Click the images to enlarge them.
[caption id="attachment_6069" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Oh look, a shopping cart abandoned in a back alley. what to do, what to do?[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_6070" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Get a really, really, firm grip on the coin.[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_6072" align="alignnone" width="497"]
You may be able to pull it straight out or for more leverage, use the coin box as a fulcrum.[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_6073" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Success! No damage to the cart or coin mechanism, and you are incrementally richer.[/caption]
Stores may not have reckoned on how many customers just wouldn't care enough about recovering their deposit to put the carts away properly. And then there were a number deliberately leaving the carts unchained so binners could re-chain the carts, and recover the coins.
Binners immediately started trying to extract the coins from carts found in the wild. If you found two carts, you could use the chain from one to recover the coin from the other. I began to see bent up lengths of coat hanger wire jammed in the chaining end of the coin box, which "fooled" the cart into releasing it's coin.
Shopping carts go all ECM
Within two years or so, some large chains got rid of their deposit shopping carts altogether. Some adopted a kind of electronic counter measure -- a cart with a disabling wheel boot triggered by crossing a particular boundary, such as the edge of a store's parking lot. The boundary was defined by shallowly buried, transmitter wire. The wheel boot activated when it's radio receiver picked up the very short-range signal from the wire by crossing the boundary. It sure was a short range signal. Years ago a binner explained he could beat the transmitter by just tipping the shopping cart up about 45 degrees on it's back wheels, so the front wheels, one of which had the boot, were too far off the ground for the boot to pick up the signal. Once he had the cart outside the boundary he could put the front end back down. He explained how he had to be careful not to take such a cart into the parking lot of any other supermarket that used a wire transmitter, as it was guaranteed to trigger the boot.
You want the quarter? Get a grip!
I still see carts with boots, but not very often. I don't keep track of shopping cart issues -- like, who's carts have boots, or who's hold the most, are the most durable, etc. because I collect bottles and cans using a bike and trailer. But I certainly know the best, and easiest way to extract a coin deposit from a shopping cart. I wonder that it took binners more than 15 minutes to figure out that all it takes is a pair of vice grips, or pliers -- I have pulled the coin out with my bare fingers, but the mechanism normally grips too tightly to allow that. Here are some photos of removing the coin with simple pliers. I use the edge of the coin box to get extra leverage. Click the images to enlarge them.
[caption id="attachment_6069" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Oh look, a shopping cart abandoned in a back alley. what to do, what to do?[/caption][caption id="attachment_6070" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Get a really, really, firm grip on the coin.[/caption][caption id="attachment_6072" align="alignnone" width="497"]
You may be able to pull it straight out or for more leverage, use the coin box as a fulcrum.[/caption][caption id="attachment_6073" align="alignnone" width="497"]
Success! No damage to the cart or coin mechanism, and you are incrementally richer.[/caption]
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