However, I started thinking back to some of the toys we had as kids growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, and I have to admit that I'd never buy these for my grandsons. What were our parents thinking?
I didn't have this exact Space Jet gun, but I had a similar one. They shot sparks that have been known to set many a pile of dead leaves on fire...and a few other things, I'm sure.
 |
| Spark gun gunaxin.com |
I did have one of these toy sewing machines, and, yes, they did really sew...with a real needle. Crazy, I know.
 |
| Toy sewing machine rubylane.com |
I'm not sure when this particular brand of yard darts came out, but I remember that my brother had them or something very similar in the 1960s. These things were insanely dangerous, because the wind could catch them and take them far from where you had aimed. I remember my brother trying frantically to retrieve one that was sticking straight up in the neighbor's roof before they complained to our parents. I guess it was lucky it was just sticking in the roof and not in the neighbor's kid's head.
 |
| Pointed metal yard darts momversation.com |
The mania for western movies and television shows made BB guns and knives popular. I guess our parents thought that as long as they had pictures of heroes and heroines on them, we couldn't shoot or poke our eyes out.
 |
| Knife sold as a "toy" urlesque.com |
I did have one of these toy irons, which used "real electricity" and really got hot. Maybe that's why I spend so much money today having my clothes dry cleaned.
 |
| Toy iron vintagekitchentoys.com |
The most disturbing "toy" of all is this Atomic Energy Lab that came with four types of real uranium ore. A Geiger counter could be purchased separately...I guess to see how much radiation had seeped into your skin while playing with your new lab set.
 |
| Atomic Energy Lab orau.org |
 |
| Geiger counter orau.org |
If we survived playing with our toys, even a trip to the Dairy Queen could be dangerous. Check out these spoons we used to eat our ice cream while rattling around loose in the back seat with no seatbelts on. Talk about poking your eye out!!!
 |
| Plastic spoons lobsterlu.com |
These are quite deadly........I wonder what the accident rate was with children in the 50's? Mind you even trampolines I used as a kid are now frowned upon! When will it end!
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand they are not plastic and look heaps of fun, not the iron though, that is not fun at any age! :)
I will admit we had fun burning and poking and otherwise injuring ourselves through childhood. It didn't seem to do much lasting damage to us. I, for one, was a real daredevil, and I never even had a stitch or a broken bone or had a trip to the emergency room.
DeleteCrikey! I'd have definitely done myself some damage with the toy sewing machine. I can barely operate a sewing machine these days let alone as a kid! The knife (although dangerous for kiddies) is very cool, as is the Space Jet gun.x
ReplyDeleteI was sewing with the real sewing machine by the time I was 9, so I guess it makes perfect sense that they'd buy me one of the toy ones when I was 5 or 6. All the boys had BB guns by the time they were 7 or so...because by the time they were in their early teens, they were getting .22 rifles. We grew up fast in the States in the 50s and 60s, especially in the rural South.
DeleteOh wow, words fail me. And this is the absolute shocker- "Atomic Energy Lab that came with four types of real uranium ore." But I have to admit, it looks very cool. That might have been the kind of deadly toy I'd have if I lived in the 50s.
ReplyDeleteI actually had a pen knife when I was 9, I cut my finger within minutes.
Yes, I could easily imagine you with the Atomic Energy Lab and Geiger counter, sold separately. :)
DeleteOh my! I love how they put "Safe" on the "Atomic Energy Lab" box. Um, not really! Great collection of "toys".
ReplyDeleteMakes you wonder about all the other things we're told are safe, huh?
DeleteTrip down memory lane for me. My brother had the spark gun, it was a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteYep, sometimes the more dangerous something is, the more kids enjoy playing with it. I was certainly no exception. :)
DeleteWell you came out alright didnt ya! Haha I dont think its so much a risk, as long as common sense is involved. Kids are kids and we all do risky stuff, then we grow up and think MY GOD?! All while "our" kids are doing risky stuff. Memories made, batteries not included.
ReplyDeleteRight...We rode in the back of pickups, didn't have seatbelts in our cars and played with dangerous toys...and somehow most of us turned out just fine. I think kids in every generation are going to seek out risky things to do, simply because they're kids and think they're immortal. :)
DeleteI used to have a spark gun, I remember I loved it. *hahah* I never tried lighting leaves on fire though. It's a shame I don't still have it so I could give it a try now. *lol* I do remember turning the lights off and shooting in the dark though.
ReplyDeleteThe sewing machine is so cute.
The Mister and I bought a set of lawn darts this year at the yard sales. (So far no one has been injured.)
I just seen a toy iron and ironing board for sale here on craigslist. The woman selling it said it was a gift to her in the late 1940's. I was tempted to purchase it... but I had a serious talk with my brain and realized.... it would just sit around.
I was not a girly-girl at all...so I received a huge mix of toys...cap guns in hand-tooled leather holsters, toy pianos and electric organs, dolls of every variety, pogo sticks, hula hoops, BB guns, elaborate doll houses. They'd throw the doll stuff in from time to time in the hopes that I'd get out of the trees in the backyard and play with something frilly, but I preferred riding horses and setting leaves on fire with my spark gun. :)
DeleteOh gosh, this post made me laugh out loud!! So funny. Even funnier, my family saved their lawn darts so they could try to impale another generation of kids. I was an avid lawn darter! Now, who thought it was a good idea to stand behind the hoop the darts were being thrown toward???
ReplyDeleteIt's frightening the things kids can think of to do with lawn darts. The day my brother landed one on the neighbors' house, he was throwing all kinds of things up there to try to knock the dart off...or at least knock it over so no one could see it. I imagine all that junk stayed there till they had to have a new roof. No telling what they thought! haha
DeleteI'm in education and it is maddening how P.C. we have become. I am reminded of Margaret Mead commenting on how native children were given machetes and were treated as though they would be able to learn and master those tools. How much should we protect and how much is too much protection, with no opportunity to learn? I certainly don't want children hurt but I feel that some people and our society that loves bringing people to court are missing out on allowing children to experience activities.
ReplyDeleteIt would be interesting to look at 1950's accident reports. The Jarts and the atomic energy lab take my breath away and do scream, DANGER.
I was in education too, and I agree that children have to explore and do hands-on activities in order to learn, and we perhaps restrict that too much these days. I think Mick was right when he said that common sense is the key.
DeleteI also think a lot of the motivation for a school district to restrict activities is the fear of being sued in this highly litigious society.
The Atomic Energy Lab is interesting. The samples of Uranium that it contains look rather small. I have a 56 gram piece of Uranium 238 metal. If you are more than 2 feet away from the sample, you don't pick up anything beyond background level radiation, which I tested my 56 gram sample with a geiger counter.
ReplyDeleteI doubt there is even a gram of Uranium in that energy lab in those ore samples.
When it comes to things like Radon, you would need to have several kilograms of Uranium ore for the Radon to be a danger.
You can safely handle Uranium metal as well as chunks of ore, the major concern is finely divided particles of water soluble Uranium compounds that can easily be inhaled or ingested. Uranium is a heavy metal, so it is not stuff you want inside your body.
Uranium has a very long half life, so it is actually rather low level radiation compared to things like Cobalt 60.
1 gram of Cobalt 60 is like a billion times more radioactive than a gram of Uranium.
So the radiation is not actually a major concern.
They actually use Uranium as radiation shielding, as it is 70% denser than lead.
So it is good material to stop radiation from much more radioactive materials.