# Inventor of the Six Pack Plastic Thingy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 4, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287 "2006-10-04T18:34:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/1 "2006-10-04T18:34:05Z")
I’ve decided to post this here in MPSIMS because while I want a credible answer, I’m not sure if my rambling post is proper to GQ. Mods, feel free to move where appropriate… I’ve got this terrible cold. It’s not the flu exactly, just a nasty head/chest cold. I’m on the Nyquil/Soup/Sleep regime, so it’s making me a little loopy. This morning I decided to grab a soda from the fridge and lo-and-behold there was actually one left! There was that six pack plastic thingy still attached to the lone Coke, and in my state of boredom I asked myself: “I wonder who invented this handy packaging item? And by the way…what is the darn thing called anyway? Who can I call to order, let us say, 10,000 of these ‘six pack plastic thingies’. Would they put me on hold while they went about laughing hysterically?” So can anybody fight my ignorance? I can’t [Google](http://www.google.com/search?q=six+pack+plastic+thingy&hl=en&hs=gb&lr=&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&start=10&sa=N) the history of the six pack plastic thingy if I don’t know what the six pack plastic thingy’s proper name is. If I have that, then maybe I can find the inventor(s). [I know what you all are thinking, but suffering from a cold has caused me to have too much time on my hands.] ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/2 "2006-10-04T18:52:34Z")
Try “six pack plastic ring.” ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/3 "2006-10-04T19:04:06Z")
I don’t know if it has a proper name, but the sniglet for it is Flannister. ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/4 "2006-10-04T19:08:31Z")
[QUOTE=Ethilrist] Try “six pack plastic ring.” [/QUOTE] Thanks! I’m still sifting through those SER’s, and still getting mostly wildlife dangers and recycling stuff. Grrr. This is gonna keep me awake tonight, I know it. Maybe I should call the local brewers/distributors here and just ask to speak to someone who knows the proper name for it. I’m on a Quest For Knowledge now! [Insert Homer donut joke here]. ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/5 "2006-10-04T19:14:42Z")
[QUOTE=adam yax] I don’t know if it has a proper name, but the sniglet for it is Flannister. [/QUOTE] Good Find! Thanks **adam yax**. Those SER’s seem to point to everyday or slang words. Maybe I can find a trade name from that. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/6 "2006-10-04T19:50:19Z")
The only trade name I know of for six-pack rings is “perf-pak”, maybe that will help? ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/7 "2006-10-04T20:07:52Z")
[QUOTE=August West] The only trade name I know of for six-pack rings is “perf-pak”, maybe that will help? [/QUOTE] Yes, it did help. Their [website](http://www.sixpackrings.com/departments.asp?dept=2) refers to them as Six Pack Rings. What a great find, thank you. What I’m really looking for is the history\* of these things, since they have been around for ever in these parts. By the way, I’ve called the local Anheuser-Busch brewery, the local Dr. Pepper distributor, and the largest beverage distributor in town. They didn’t have a clue either. …of course it was probably a strange question to begin with. I blame it on the NyQuil medicine, not the chicken soup. 😛 \*as in who first thought this up? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/8 "2006-10-04T20:36:32Z")
[Ding, ding ding!](http://www.grip-pak.com/history/) Ernest Cunningham, and he got a life of legal nightmares for it. ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2006, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/9 "2006-10-04T20:57:53Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] [Ding, ding ding!](http://www.grip-pak.com/history/) Ernest Cunningham, and he got a life of legal nightmares for it. [/QUOTE] OMG. The drama here over what’s considered trash today. What a great find. > [@](#): > > Soon after starting his next job, Cunningham invented two packaging designs that would change his life forever – a plastic six-pack holder for bottled drinks and a second, related design for canned drinks. He offered these inventions to his current employer, but because the firm was not in the packaging field, it told Cunningham he could keep them in return for a nominal payment. Cunningham ultimately received two patents on his new inventions. However, it appears the six pack plastic thingy was already in use, just that Cunningham figured out a cheaper way of producing one. Very interesting story. > [@](#): > > ITW (in partnership with a single licensee, Owens Illinois ) controlled nearly 100 percent of the market for plastic six-pack can carriers and was the obvious customer for this new technology. This gets me closer…thanks. ---
**Author:** ![if6was9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47c2d/32.png) [@if6was9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/if6was9)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2006, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/10 "2006-10-05T05:57:56Z")
I didn’t know all that, but I do know… If you hang one of them from a tree and light it, it melts slowly and little molten fireballs make a cool whiiiiizzzzz sound as they fall. Great at night. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2006, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/11 "2006-10-05T06:09:25Z")
[QUOTE=if6was9] I didn’t know all that, but I do know… If you hang one of them from a tree and light it, it melts slowly and little molten fireballs make a cool whiiiiizzzzz sound as they fall. Great at night. [/QUOTE] Well, now I know what I’m doing tomorrow night if there’s nothing on TV. ---
**Author:** ![fisherjoe2003](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@fisherjoe2003](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fisherjoe2003)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/12 "2010-08-10T20:42:34Z")
The mans name is Terry Boultinghouse Its called a 6-Pack concession trailer. He passed away a few years ago. Here is the link to the obit. > **[Historical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s](https://qconline.newspapers.com/?xid=1653)** > > The largest online newspaper archive. Used by millions every month for historical research, family history, crime investigations, journalism, and more. ---
**Author:** ![Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cabin_fever_1/32/2908_2.png) [@Cabin\_Fever\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabin_Fever_1)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/13 "2010-08-11T02:46:11Z")
Holy Cow Batman. I forgot I even asked this question. Thanks for the update to this zombie thread! ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/14 "2010-08-11T02:58:35Z")
> [@fisherjoe2003](#): > > The mans name is Terry Boultinghouse > Its called a 6-Pack concession trailer. > He passed away a few years ago. > > Here is the link to the obit. > > [The past: read all about it.](http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=419221) A “6-Pack concession trailer”? Where do you get that as the name for the plastic thingy? I’m no expert, but it looks like a concession trailer is something you serve food out of, maybe with sinks or compartments. Googling for the obvious terms only leads back to this thread. Nothing like self-reverence to prove a point. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/15 "2010-08-11T03:12:25Z")
Maybe they were called something else in 2006, but this link suggests they are merely “plastic 6-pack rings,” made of a polymer. You can buy 4000 for $140 here: > **[Jay's Import & Export](https://jaysimport.com/?gclid=CMqC3Ma4sKMCFQVGnQodcGFK3Q)** > > Jay's Import & Export No mention of a “concession trailer.” ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/16 "2010-08-11T03:18:28Z")
You can put one around your neck and tell people you were abducted by aliens. ---
**Author:** ![In\_Winnipeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a8b319/32.png) [@In\_Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Winnipeg)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2010, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/17 "2010-08-12T14:11:21Z")
I thought they were called “Sea Gull Traps”. !_%%_#$#@ Sea Gulls… ---
**Author:** ![dylanswirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/54ee81/32.png) [@dylanswirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dylanswirk)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/18 "2015-03-03T20:42:37Z")
Does anyone have a sketch of one? They are interesting to send to a printer because they do stretch when they are placed on the product. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2015, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/19 "2015-03-03T21:42:58Z")
I was so hoping this bump was from the person who invented the rings and wanted to sell 10,000 to the OP 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287/20 "2015-03-03T22:34:54Z")
The things are also called [rim-applied multipacks](http://www.hicone.com/index.php?id=31&L=0). They were developed by a company called Hi-Cone, which is now part of ITW. Illinois Tool Works is one of those corporations that you’ve probably never heard of that are absurdly diversified and their products are literally everywhere. From Hi-Cone’s [history page](http://www.hicone.com/index.php?id=9&L=0), they say “1961: After years of development, the first commercial use of the Hi-Cone 6-pack ring carrier began at Anheuser-Busch.” I don’t know if the historians at ITW or Hi-Cone would be able to identify a specific person who conceptualized, developed and brought the ring carrier to life. With that description of “years of development” it sounds like many people were involved. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inventor-of-the-six-pack-plastic-thingy/375287.md?page=2)