I was talking about these with Chris T shortly before B/G this year. It seems like I'd just sent him a box with a silver-trimmed tab like the one pictured, and he made some reference to the neat difference between that can and his gold-trimmed flattop. I didn't know what he was talking about and almost dismissed it as probably being tarnished to a gold appearance, but did ask him to bring it to B/G. Surprise! It's definitely metallic gold, no Union Made logo, and has a two-dimpled seam making it an earlier can than the two I already had. I figure it's contemporary to the two-dimpled Old Milwaukee flattops which I believe first ran in 1963. Of course I went ape and he generously loaned me the can for my 14oz display. If I somehow upgrade this one goes back to Ann Arbor, but to date, it's the only gold-trimmed example I've seen. It's on the left in both pictures.
So...
The following questions pertain to the "Pop Top" 14oz Schlitz ziptab (USBCII 165/2), a nasty tough can that I haven't yet landed an example of. First, can anybody verify the design copyright? The book says 1962 and is probably accurate, but I just want to make absolutely certain it doesn't say 1963 like the weirdo Old Milwaukee flat. Second, what is the seam style? Does it have two dimples or ten? Finally, is it metallic silver or gold? The one in the book is playing tricks on my eyes as it's pictured between one of each style, appearing lighter than the gold one to its left but somehow darker than the silver one on the right. I'd be grateful if somebody could clue me in.
As a practicing OCD, I enjoy trying to establish timelines for reclusive labels, and I ask these questions because of all the little bits of bizarre that I find on the early Old Milwaukees from Tampa. Makes me wonder if there's an undocumented "1963" Schlitz label floating around somewhere to match the odd Old Mil softtop. Or perhaps a Schlitz ziptab that doesn't say "Pop Top." Y'know...stuff like that. Thanks in advance.
