Nostalgia is it a thing of the past?

MatBin said:
Plastic rockets with caps in the nose cone that detonated on impact with the ground, so you wedged as many caps as you could and threw it as high as possible to make the most noise when it landed.
Click to expand...

Oooh very posh, we used 2 bolts with a nut in the middle, put the caps in and screwed it together, worked a treat
 
Mr Bump said:
nostalgia my arse
most of it was s***e
s*** clothes, allways cold
s***e houses, old windows
crap heating
even s***ter cars
s***te food
shiitee technology

no thanks nostalgia is for old pharts who have f*** all else going forward
Click to expand...

Seriously...seek professional help.
 
PG Tips collectable cards. You could buy an album to stick them in and sometimes they came with a big folded up poster. I think you could send off for cards that you might be missing.

Collecting coins, usually to do with footbal,l or other freebies when you bought petrol. You got a card to press the into. Added bonus of actually managing to get a full set, unlike the cards and albums you get from newsagents now, that always have rare cards that no one has a chance of getting to complete their album.
 
Bobsyeruncle said:
Well f*** off back to your diesel thread then
Click to expand...
He will. His favourite car manufacturer JLR, want to put 2500 of its workers on a 4 day week and get them to take on extra efficiencies. As soon as that news reaches him, he will surely be along to gloat.
 
Chemistry sets - well known to be completely dangerous now but great fun as a kid :)

I remember trying to make fireworks with them but was never successful!
 
Bobsyeruncle said:
Nah, for that you need potassium nitrate, sulphur and charcoal.
Click to expand...

You could also have s little fun with a bag of sugar, a shoebox with a match or two?

PS we don't want to be telling the youngsters all the secrets, do we :)

PPS I had a library ticket that allowed me access and borrowing privilege from a wonderful reference library........a book dating from I think early Victorian period called the "Pyrotechnists Treasury" was a wonder to read...... ;)
 
Last edited:
Cockney said:
Mr Whippy big enemy was Tonibell ice cream. (Tonibell time)
Click to expand...
Something in my distant memory is reminding me of the "Ice cream" wars
Mr Bump said:
no thanks nostalgia is for old pharts who have f*** all else going forward
Click to expand...
Well and there was me thinking ( and have been told a few times) that I am a grumpy old fart
But you got me beat (y)
Oh and I'm sure we all have plenty of stuff going forward (y)
Bobsyeruncle said:
Nah, for that you need potassium nitrate, sulphur and charcoal.
Click to expand...
I was trying to remember the "Stink bomb" formula It was Iron filings flowers of sulpher and something else??
We cleared many an assembly hall with that ( and they never did find out "whodunnit" :D
Box Brownie said:
PS we don't want to be telling the youngsters all the secrets, do we :)
Click to expand...
Fair point, well presented (y) :D
Box Brownie said:
PPS I had a library ticket that allowed me access and borrowing privilege from a wonderful reference library........a book dating from I think early Victorian period called the "Pyrotechnists Treasury" was a wonder to read...... ;)
Click to expand...
Written By a Mr Fawkes by any chance? :D
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sky
Cockney said:
Exactly that. Still got my dads in the garage. :)
Click to expand...
So have I, and it still works. (y)
Old stocking/tights with the toe cut off, folded a few times over the air vents and held in place with a laggie band keeps the drill dust out of the workings.
 
1962/3 winter was cold and bitter and very long
1966 - World Cup Willie (and the collectable "coins" as I recall)
1969 - Concorde maiden flight
1969 - Man on the Moon
1970/71 - Arsenal do the double
1971 - First motorbike (still at school)
1973 - Met my wife (to be), got engaged 6 weeks later
 
Cobra said:
That's the fella (y)
Click to expand...

I used to use Ferrous Sulphide with TA to speed brewing time up a bit. :cool:

I made all sorts of fireworks and 'bombs' in my early teens - I was always responsible and made safety a priority though - unlike some of my peers who got into all sorts of trouble. One even blew three fingers off his hand. :facepalm: :police:
 
Cobra said:
I was trying to remember the "Stink bomb" formula It was Iron filings flowers of sulpher and something else??
Click to expand...
Cigarette ash and vinegar were also pretty bad, but not on an assembly hall scale.
 
Sky said:
One even blew three fingers off his hand. :facepalm: :police:
Click to expand...
That happened in the '90's when some teen found one of those "cookbooks" online. Big stink on the news, and a parental campaign to have the site removed, followed by victory celebrations when it disappeared.
A techie friend pointed out the owner had just changed the domain name; the site hadn't even been moved.
 
Tori_T said:
That happened in the '90's when some teen found one of those "cookbooks" online.
Click to expand...

No such thing as online then - it was the late sixties. We had to do it the old-fashioned way by visiting the local library. Can kids read books nowadays? ;)
 
Sky said:
One even blew three fingers off his hand. :facepalm: :police:
Click to expand...
Ouch! I bet that requires more than a plaster!
Tori_T said:
IIRC, petrol stations were a source of Green Shield stamps (can't remember if anyone else did them).
Click to expand...
Sir Jack Cohen, the founder of Tesco, signed his grocery chain up to the Green Shield Stamps scheme in the 1960s.

I was about to say, someone I worked with back in the '70s, her husband was "paid" overtime with luncheon vouchers.
But it seems they are still available and used to "avoid" tax in some places ;)
I thought they were long gone, obviously not!

 
Cobra said:
Ouch! I bet that requires more than a plaster!
Click to expand...

Not the brightest button in the box - he made a bolt-bomb and instead of throwing it up in the air so it would detonate when it hit the ground; he held it and hit it with a hammer. :eek:

Darwin Award candidate for sure . . .
 
Did you have groups of boys behind the bike sheds "genie-ing" bangers?
Several sore fingers from that, but no losses.
 
Sky said:
he held it and hit it with a hammer.
Click to expand...
I heard reports of the class idiot bringing a shotgun shell to school and trying to fire it into a tree with a nail. Fortunately for him, his co-ordination wasn't that good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sky
Cobra said:
Ouch! I bet that requires more than a plaster!

Sir Jack Cohen, the founder of Tesco, signed his grocery chain up to the Green Shield Stamps scheme in the 1960s.

I was about to say, someone I worked with back in the '70s, her husband was "paid" overtime with luncheon vouchers.
But it seems they are still available and used to "avoid" tax in some places ;)
I thought they were long gone, obviously not!

Click to expand...
Our Green Shield redemption shop became Argos. School milk small bottles had a waxed cardboard top and a straw sized pop out centre. Collected them for craft class, wrapped raffia round, stitched them together to create placemats, teapot stands etc. Early 50s school days. Collecting NHS baby milk tins, Mum covering them in fabric joining them together to create pouffes. Still got 'Swinging on a Gate' by Humphrey Littleton floppy 45 Country Life margarine give away. Beatles fan club Christmas floppies are still saught after. Still get Cinnamon Balls and other sweets from a shop in Whitby, there was a shop in Saltburn Station also.
 
I am not going to detail what i/we did for 'school projects'..........................but one did involve the metal workshop (cannot remember the grade of steel but it was not 'mild steel') and the lathe drill, chemistry formulation, chalk and the lovely loud bang and the white splatter on the fence 50 yards away. NB one "load" even punched a whole in the fence!

But then I also designed a rig to create stannous oxide coated glass to have a go at dabbling with a home made LCD (yes, this was in the late 60's to very early 70's)..............the glass worked well with the conduction & low resistance and boundary gaps testing but then I found out how much the "liquid crystal" material was going to cost (of the order of £200 to £300 per enough to make one 6 inch panel) and that curtailed trying the full design :(

I really enjoyed all the tech & design/making stuff I learned and did at school :)

PS @Cobra the book I mentioned was published in 1878 but I have found it has been re-printed in 2002.................tempted to get a copy to remind me of my childhood.
The original reason I was allowed access to the reference library was because it was the only place in London to research poisonous snakes and the effects of the different types of venom, all for a biology project and it was while browsing the shelves I came across that other book.
 
Last edited:
Tori_T said:
Did you have groups of boys behind the bike sheds "genie-ing" bangers?
Click to expand...

Didn't every school? ;)

My cousin set light to his hair doing that and lost an eyebrow in the process. I wasn't with him, but I saw him a few days afterwards - he looked very silly. :LOL:
 
nilagin said:
PG Tips collectable cards. You could buy an album to stick them in and sometimes they came with a big folded up poster. I think you could send off for cards that you might be missing.
Click to expand...

I think there was another brand of tea that offered cards and albums too. You could buy the missing ones, as you said, and there were usually a couple that seemed very difficult to find in the packets!
 
I remember kids in the playground offering their entire stack of swaps in return for those rare cards, but everyone already had all of those by the time that degree of desperation started creeping in (which was generally about the time non-promotional boxes started reappearing on the shelves).
 
Flying saucers, they looked like polystyrene but I can’t remember what they tasted like.
 
Box Brownie said:
the white splatter on the fence 50 yards away. NB one "load" even punched a whole in the fence!
Click to expand...
Errr keep it clean this not the prawn channel :p

Box Brownie said:
PS @Cobra
research poisonous snakes and the effects of the different types of venom,
Click to expand...
Let me help you with that :D

gribb99 said:
Still get Cinnamon Balls
Click to expand...
I was trying to remember what they were call horrible things!

Mr Bastable said:
they looked like polystyrene but I can’t remember what they tasted like.
Click to expand...
You have answered your own question :D

They were made of Rice paper with sherbet inside IIRC
 
Last edited:
Cobra said:
Errr keep it clean this not the prawn channel :p


Let me help you with that :D


I was trying to remember what they were call horrible things!


You have answered your own question :D

They were made of Rice paper with sherbet inside IIRC
Click to expand...

In order of the above ;)
- now wash your brain out with carbolic soap................. :police::bat:
- the different toxins and their effects made for fascinating reading.
- nothing wrong with cinnamon ~ my favourite spice in most puds :)
- rice paper..................great on the bottom (shut up at the back there ;) ) of almond macaroons.........mmmmmmmmm! yummy but sad that you rarely see them now :(
 
Last edited:
nilagin said:
PG Tips collectable cards. You could buy an album to stick them in and sometimes they came with a big folded up poster. I think you could send off for cards that you might be missing.

Collecting coins, usually to do with footbal,l or other freebies when you bought petrol. You got a card to press the into. Added bonus of actually managing to get a full set, unlike the cards and albums you get from newsagents now, that always have rare cards that no one has a chance of getting to complete their album.
Click to expand...
I managed to collect just about all the petrol station freebies sets in the seventies. Cleveland petrol (remember them?) gave away miniature busts of footballers and Kings and Queens as well as little facsimiles of military campaign medals.

Shell had coins commemorating flight and cars, as well as 3D animal cards. Esso had sets of football related stuff often coins. One was FA cup winning sides over the years with the winner that year (1972?) having a special larger gold colour coin produced after the cup, I was disappointed when I got it as it was too big for the aperture in the album I seem to remember.

When I was in my twenties I thought I would retrieve all the sets from my parents place only to find my father had thrown them all out, I don’t think I ever quite forgave him for that :)
 
I've got 2 Robertson Jam gollywog badges somewhere in a tin at the back of the wardrobe.

And....I just saw a Tonibel ice cream van on the A249 in Kent! :D
 
MatBin said:
1970/71 - Arsenal do the double
Click to expand...

Cobra said:
Errr keep it clean this not the prawn channel :p
Click to expand...

Euphemism tennis. ;)

Tori_T said:
I heard reports of the class idiot bringing a shotgun shell to school and trying to fire it into a tree with a nail. Fortunately for him, his co-ordination wasn't that good.
Click to expand...

We had a brief period when things we called split bullets (actually the cartridges for heavy-duty nail guns) became freely available in school, and for a couple of days we had enormous fun creating really terrific bangs. Alas the teachers caught on quite soon and they were legitimately banned: they were the real thing and really dangerous.

Around this time probably 72-74 ish us (11-12YO) kids were buying fireworks to dissassemble & pack into other things. Aerial bombs were very good, creating a moderately powerful explosion in a small space and much better than any kind of banger you could buy by that time (in the 1960s bangers actually did more than make a PhhuuT! noise).

A little later still we had a school chemistry club for a while. Mixing roughly equal quantities of sodium nitrite and sodium thiosulphate in a test tube did indeed produce a 'sharp report' as the recipe had described (and create a need to pick pieces of glass from ones hair). We also made increasing quantities of nitrogen tri-iodide, which found its way onto benches and into locks, yielding small explosions and staining skin purple. The club came to an end after a) a particularly large amount being prepared and left in a cupboard, where it exploded overnight causing significant damage and b) a couple of the guys setting off a quite substantial smoke bomb in the lower 6th common room, requiring building evacuation. One of my fellow chemistry club members had a home lab, and managed to gas himself with Chlorine, spending some time in hospital having his lungs sorted out - he ended up as MD of some kind of chemistry related business, but I've lost touch now.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top