A Japanese netizen recently took to Threads to share a bizarre vending machine encounter. They popped in a ¥1,000 bill for a drink, only to be showered with a whopping 19 coins in change! The wild tale quickly went viral, sparking a flurry of reactions and shared experiences.
The user, Ryuji Shimoi, explained that all he wanted was a ¥140 drink. He inserted a ¥1,000 note, expecting standard change. Instead, the machine spat out three ¥100 coins, ten ¥50 coins, and six ¥10 coins – a grand total of 19 coins! While the ¥860 sum was correct, the sheer volume was jaw-dropping.
According to data from the Japan Mint, this mountain of change weighed in at a hefty 81.4 grams – roughly the same as a smartphone! Looking at the coin breakdown, it seems the vending machine was likely running low on ¥500 and possibly even some ¥100 coins, forcing it to cobble together smaller denominations. The next customer might just be drowning in ¥10 coins!
Luckily, this particular machine was located inside Shimoi-san's workplace, so he was able to swap his coin hoard for larger bills at the counter.
The post blew up, with many netizens exclaiming, "I've never seen anything like it!" and "That's the vending machine giving its absolute all!" Others chimed in with their own coin-pocalypse stories: "I once got hit with 20 ¥10 coins as change, thankfully with one ¥100 coin to break it up." One user even joked, "Too many coins can jam the change slot – it's a real tear-jerker!"