The One Quart Motor Oil Can

Mar/Apr 2019 edition
Issue #4 AutoMobilia Resource Magazine
John Mihovetz.

POWER-LUBE: Highly sought after is this Power-Lube Motor Oil can with Tiger Graphic. It came in two slightly different color ways. Value in 9+ condition, $3,000.+

SKUNK OIL: Very seldom seen in high grade is this Quart from Skunk Motor Oil. Can shows excellent colors and unique Skunk Graphic. Value in 9+ condition, $3,500.+

SILENT CHIEF: One of the most beautiful and rare of all Quart Cans is this one from Silent Chief Motor Oil. Most examples have wear near the “Motor Oil” lettering from being papered over. Value in 9+ condition, $4,500.+

STANAVO: The Stanavo quart is a very rare West Coast Quart, and hard to find in high grade condition. I have only seen three examples of this quart. Value in 9+ condition, $3,500.+

BISON: A can with an excellent graphic is this Quart from Bisonoil, which features an excellent graphic. Although fairly common, this can is highly sought after. Value in 9+ condition, $900.+

BEAR-RING: A great can with a unique graphic is this quart from Bear-Ring; featuring a bear holding a piston ring. Not common, and difficult to find in high grade. Value in 9+ condition, $800.+

CAMEL: A very hard to find Quart Can in high grade is this Quart from Camel Penn featuring a camel graphic, and is highly sought after. Value in 9+ condition, $1,750.+

Beginning in the 1930s, American oil companies began selling oil in the standard One Quart Oil Can. These cans were branded in thousands of independent & incorporated brands, and were distributed to service stations throughout the country. One Quart Cans were displayed on racks on gas pump islands, as well as in windows of service stations, and were a great way of everyday advertising for thousands of brands of Motor Oil.

​One of the reasons that One Quart Cans are such a unique corner of the Gas & Oil collecting hobby, is that so many were disposed of in their time. Thousands of times a day all throughout the country, the tops of these five inch tall cans were popped, and their contents poured into engines of the everyday travelers cars. Once the contents were poured out, cans were quickly disposed of, or repurposed in some way. Over the years, I have seen amazing Folk Art done with empty Quart Oil Cans, and I have also seen walls insulated with empty Quart Oil Cans. These disposable pieces of advertising have now become a cornerstone of the Gas & Oil hobby, and are beautiful pieces of hand drawn American art work. 

One Quart Oil Cans started out with soldered edge seams, and later became crimped edge seams. The largest producer of One Quart Oil Cans from the 1930s to 1950s was American Can Company (CanCo), which had factories all over the United States, and produced a large majority of the oil cans we collect today. These cans showed incredible graphics from all of the various oil companies. One Quarts showed excellent graphics of Airplanes, Race Cars, Motorcycles, Boats, Animals, and many other excellent ways of graphic advertising. When it comes to One Quart Oil Cans, the more eye catching the graphic the better. 

One Quart Oil Cans are graded strictly, due to their size. The color & gloss on a can must be excellent, as well as avoiding any wear in the graphic or on the face in order to achieve a grade 9+.  A can that shows wear will affect the value heavily. When it comes to the can being empty or full, I have always thought this to be a personal preference, and does not affect the value of the can. I find that empty cans are far easier to handle, and if you drop an empty can, it will likely not be damaged, while if you drop a full can, the rims can dent easily and will heavily affect the value. 
When it comes to One Quart Cans, here are a few tips to help get you started. The rarer the better. I would personally avoid buying the very common can, because there are thousands of examples out there, and will most likely go down in value over time, as the rare cans will climb in value.

I would buy only mint condition cans, or the best example I could find of an extremely rare can when possible, because you may not have another opportunity. A pitfall to watch out for in One Quart Cans are buying wrapped cans. A wrapped can is a highly detailed vinyl decal wrapped around a can, creating a near perfect replica of an original. A way to spot a wrapped can is at the seam, and along the top and bottom edge. Some of the wrapped examples I have seen are very good, and are tough to spot. Another pitfall to avoid is buying a can that has been re-soldered, or that has been flattened or re-rolled.

These cans display very well, but do not hold the value of an all original quart. When it comes to buying a re-rolled or re-soldered can, I would consider the value to be one quarter of an originals value. 
The demand for One Quart Cans has steadily risen for the last decade, and we are inching close to seeing five figure One Quart Cans. One Quart Cans create fantastic displays of Motor Oil Advertising, and are not only a great way to get involved in the hobby, but are a great way to expand your collection. Enjoy the hunt, and buy what you like!

John Mihovetz

ACE HIGH: The beautiful can from Ace High Motor Oil has great colors and excellent car & airplane graphics. Tough to find, from the Northwest. Value in 9+ condition, $1,500.+

AMERICAN: Patriotic graphics on a great can from American Motor Oil. It features an iconic eagle graphic, and is very tough to find. Value in 9+ condition $1,000.+

POLLY: One of the most sought after brands in all of Gas & Oil is Polly. This quart can from Polly Motor Oil is highly sought after, and features their iconic parrot graphic. Can is fairly common, but very sought after and continually rises in value each year. Value in 9+ condition, $3,000.+

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