Most Dangerous Toy Ever Made!

Levent Suberk wrote:

Anything can be dangerous if not used correctly.
The most dangerous toy ever made I think were those old "Lawn Darts"!
Throwing steel pointed darts to a hoop where two other players are standing!

I still have the original (killer) items from the early 1980's (in the box).


Don't worry, lawyers will sue the manufacture (for millions) and all of those unsafe stuff will be gone!

I'm lucky to be alive?

Mom and Dad had seven kid in a 4 door Buick 225 Electra.
Drove from Chicago (Illinios) to St. Louis (Missouri) on old Rt 66. Back then it was about an 8 hour drive.
We were all stuffed in the car (no air conditioner) I was on the rear window deck,
my one sister was on my moms lap (in the front seat) and baby sister was on my dad's lap behind the steering wheel.

NO CAR SEAT FOR US BACK THEN!

Oh, one more thing, we were towing a Coleman pop-up camper.
Made it safely to and from Six Flags over St. Louis (1st year they were open -- 1971)

this crazy missile game thinks that a theter cars Not dangerous so but yes my has break a cable at high speed

I'll cast my vote and it is for the Chemcraft Senior #415 Chemistry set with the Atomic Energy upgrade.
The set includes a tube of Uranium 238 ore, a Radium test screen to show how radiation will exposure a roll of 35MM photographic film, and a spinthariscope loaded with Radium so you can look in and see the the electrons striking the screen with a flash of light.
Don't even ask how pre teen in the mid 1950's gets one for Christmas and still has it.......

66 Malibu wrote:I'll cast my vote and it is for the Chemcraft Senior #415 Chemistry set with the Atomic Energy upgrade.
The set includes a tube of Uranium 238 ore, a Radium test screen to show how radiation will exposure a roll of 35MM photographic film, and a spinthariscope loaded with Radium so you can look in and see the the electrons striking the screen with a flash of light.
Don't even ask how pre teen in the mid 1950's gets one for Christmas and still has it.......

I had to look that one up!!



http://statemuseumpa.org/chemcraft-uranium-toy/

I probably would've liked to have that atomic energy chemistry set. If you get radiation sickness and perhaps cancer, how else are you supposed to learn what not to do with the elements? I have a stash of radioactive "collectibles" sitting on a shelf in the corner of my basement. Vaseline/Uranium glass, 1930s orange/red Fiestaware, watches with radium paint, thorium-containing lantern mantels, Americium 241 sources pulled from the ionization chambers of old smoke alarms... saying this, I'm probably on a federal watch list now . I have a couple of Soviet/Russian Geiger counters and an old cold war era Civil Defense survey meter with dosimeter pens.


How about a glass blowing toy?

Yep.. Mr. Overlord you nailed it.
They pop up on eBay several times a year and depending on the completeness, manuals, charts, and condition they go from reasonable on the low side to $800 to $900 for complete mint condition.
How dangerous could they be if you can get one from eBay ? LOL
Porter Chemical Company stated many times that they lost money on every unit sold, in that, at the time, Radium was the most valuable element on earth. In reality, your glow in the dark watch face probably has more radiation.
Can you see the legal eagles go bat manure crazy if you brought one to the toy market today !!!
The best I can tell, it will still be radiating electrons for at least 8000 more years. Long enough for me !!!
FUN stuff !!!!

About 20 years ago, 22 homes very close to me were completely demolished due to Radium contamination. A watch and clock manufacturer along with a doctor who prepared needles with Radium were  disposing waste elements and it was being mixed into the mortar of these homes in the late 40's. When the foundations were removed completely, the demolition crews excavated a additional 15' of soil. I wonder what happened to all the contaminated waste. I remember vans driving around with these funnel like sniffing devices to locate probable homes that used the mortar. Somewhat ironic, the same thing that causes cancer, treats it as well.

I was able to sell my ancient dusty lawn darts for $40. And then got another $10 for the yellow target ring. Whoda thunk?

Makes me want to break out my set of lawn darts now too. If found at garage sales here, they do go for crazy prices. I was fortunate enough to find my set new in box for $2, right place right time.....

How about this one as a kid. Kenner's Mold Master set. Kenner made several versions military, construction and a girl's version. Basically you plug it in, wait until the melting chamber gets really hot and then stuff hard plastic in the top. When it plastic melts, you slide in a two piece mold and inject the molten plastic into the mold. And what kid waits until the mold cools before popping it open and building a tank........I could be a successful criminal as all my fingerprints were burned off as a kid.

That reminds me of the time I was to travel to England for "The Company". (This was in 2007)
As I packed my suitcase with the usual's (shaving kit, clothes, plug adapters for the different power in England, etc.)
I also took my dad's trusty Westlock "travel" alarm clock. I asked my mom if I could take it along.

I go to O'hare and get on my plane (no problems).
8 hours later I land at Heathrow airport.
Get off the plane, pass through customs, go to the baggage claim area and wait for my bag.
And still waiting for my bag after everyone has left (about 20 minutes).
Next thing I know here comes my suitcase with the police?
They had my Westlock travel clock in a hazardous waste bag.

It seems that the clock face was painted with radium paint?

It set off some detectors at the airport.
I had to explain that it was my dad's clock and he had it for years, and my mom gave it to me to take on this trip.

Needless to say, I didn't get the bag of clock pieces from the police to take back home.
It was a nice clock that kept o.k. time, but it was a good alarm clock to wake you up.

Mom's old "travel" clock (just like dads but in a red color -- dad's was a light brown color) is in her bedroom in a dresser drawer.
Where it will stay? She has long passed away from old age. I inherited the house.

I had one of these when I was 7 or 8 years old. Mine was not quite as elaborate as these. Did have a fabric covered cord.
Check out the plug in the top photo. Think it might have gotten a little toasty?
My molds were metal and you had to blacken them with a candle flame so the army men wouldn't stick. Sort of a release agent.


Bob

I just sit amazed at seeing how rich and inspiring toys you boys born in the US had...back in the early 60's I as a child - even if born into a relatively well-to-do family of doctor parents, yet in Eastern Europe - could not even imagine such toys even existed. I remember once my father managed to get me an American electric toy car controlled with a hand-held panel connected to the car with an electric cord..that came from a package of Marshall-aid that the US sent to help post war European countries...one of my highest-valued, dearest toys in the 60-s...and my first encounter with a COX engine in 1974 was also kind of accidental, but changing my life, driving me towards engineering, (and making me a life-long COX addict) instead of medicine that my parents advised me to choose...I have a lot to thank to Western toys - that I was priviliged enough, or lucky to encounter, COX in the first place - for...

That tether car is a Bremer Whirlwind from early 40s, a very valuable model. The two bodies are Dooling F and worth 1K alone.
I can't stand them guys, they low-ball you to death then smile and shake your hand, I would show em the door with a kick in the ass.

dckrsn wrote:I had one of these when I was 7 or 8 years old. Mine was not quite as elaborate as these. Did have a fabric covered cord.
Check out the plug in the top photo. Think it might have gotten a little toasty?
My molds were metal and you had to blacken them with a candle flame so the army men wouldn't stick. Sort of a release agent.


Bob

Yes, I remember this!
My brother had this. Pouring hot lead (toxic -- lead poisoning!) in these molds.
And my dad bringing home from his job the sheets of lead.
Oh, by the way, the lead he was bring home was from a nuclear plant (Commonwealth Edison)
when they would have to re-lead the reactor chamber.

Those lead army men are in the crawl space under the house ( it is a tri-level house- so it's more of a storage area).

crankbndr wrote:That tether car is a Bremer Whirlwind from early 40s, a very valuable model. The two bodies are Dooling F and worth 1K alone.
I can't stand them guys, they low-ball you to death then smile and shake your hand, I would show em the door with a kick in the ass.

I am with you! They are cheating sob's
I use to watch them until I saw an episode where they saw some matchbox cars.
They low balled the poor lady saying that they originally went for 25 cents new with the box.
They purchase the entire matchbox case from her for $25.00 Though the cars were not in the original boxes.
The case holds 50 matchbox cars and if she had some of the rare cars in it. (even without the box) would have gone for a few hundred dollars.
And I do have a larger collection of matchbox cars, and display sets.

The speed of that era was about 60 mph, hardly dangerous. In the next decade with engines like Dooling and exotic fuels they broke 100. 200 plus is fairly recent and would be dangerous.

sosam117 wrote:

dckrsn wrote:I had one of these when I was 7 or 8 years old. Mine was not quite as elaborate as these. Did have a fabric covered cord.
Check out the plug in the top photo. Think it might have gotten a little toasty?
My molds were metal and you had to blacken them with a candle flame so the army men wouldn't stick. Sort of a release agent.


Bob

Yes, I remember this!
My brother had this. Pouring hot lead (toxic -- lead poisoning!) in these molds.
And my dad bringing home from his job the sheets of lead.
Oh, by the way, the lead he was bring home was from a nuclear plant (Commonwealth Edison)
when they would have to re-lead the reactor chamber.

Those lead army men are in the crawl space under the house ( it is a tri-level house- so it's more of a storage area).

I think we have a winner here Cast your own toy soldiers using hot radioactive lead!

Only way to top that would be to cast lawn darts instead of soldiers

How much money could I get off of Ebay for those radioactive lead soldiers?

I'm still casting muzzleloader projectiles with a melting furnace similar to that! And yes some of my lead came from radioactive shielding where I used to work. But lead does not absorb radioactivity! Been doing it for decades with no health problems. Another myth!

Those are some pretty neat toys to get a young person's mind to thinking OK Doug if anyone would know it would bee you good eye and Thanks for enlightening me .

OhBee wrote:I'm still casting muzzleloader projectiles with a melting furnace similar to that! And yes some of my lead came from radioactive  shielding where I used to work. But lead does not absorb radioactivity!  Been doing it for decades with no health problems.  Another myth!

Glad to see I'm not the only one casting muzzleloader bullets.