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Jay Walton Blount

Jay Walton Blount, c. 1942, 14". Bill Enes obviously had great respect for this machine. Here's what he said about it in Silent Salesmen Too:

Jay Walton Blount only made these machines for his own route because he wanted his machines to be superior to the competition's. The Blount has many improvements over its Columbus M inspiration---the lid, baseplate, and mechanism for starters. The machine was polished aluminum and never painted. Every time it was refilled it was taken to the plant and rebuffed. It was labor intensive but made for a great looking machine.

I've owned many Columbus M's and Columbus 46's, but only one Blount. I've not dissected the Blount and compared the quality of the castings and fit to the quality of the castings and fit of the Columbus models, but on the surface I don't see much difference. All of them are quality pieces, well designed, well built, and reliable. I agree that the design and fit of the baseplate and lid are tighter and better on the Blount, but it never struck me as deficient on the Columbus. The mechanisms on the aforementioned Columbus models are as smooth and hardy as the Blount's, so perhaps his comments were based on interior features. I've never been able to get a key that will open the lid on my Blount, and therefore my impression of this model has never extended to interior features.

I've seen this model in 5¢, 10¢, and 25¢ denominations, and all have the same gold numbers shown on the one above. Most have had at least one "agitate lever" decal as well, in matching gold. I've always liked the bold simple decals on the Blount---no attempts to persuade other than the great view of drool-invoking goodies through the glass, just the price and the assumption that you'll know what to do if you decide to buy. Almost every Blount I've ever seen is polished, which is why I've never owned one before---I'm not a buffed aluminum kinda guy. I like old gray aluminum, and that's the reason I bought this example rather than any of the 30 examples I'd seen before this one.

The example above is 100% original except for the gray on the aluminum, and I think I'll keep that.