7 dangerous things that the children of the USSR had fun with

Modern parents often complain that theirchildren spend all their free time in front of the screens of computers and smartphones. They believe that because of this, every child begins to study worse at school, move less, become weak, and so on. At the same time, representatives of past generations recall how, in their younger years, they walked on the street with friends all day long and always found something to do. In Soviet times, children really led an active lifestyle, went to all kinds of circles, played chess and so on. But the childhood of Soviet girls and boys cannot be called safe - yes, today children can harm their health with a sedentary lifestyle, but decades ago their parents could easily get injured during not the most harmless entertainment. What were the children of the times of the USSR doing so dangerous there?

The games of Soviet children were far from the safest.

Content

• 1 Slingshots of Soviet children
• 2 homemade darts
• 3 Homemade water pistols
• 4 Homemade boomerang
• 5 Knife game
• 6 Burning slate at the stake
• 7 Smelting lead

Slingshots of Soviet children

In Soviet times, in the pocket of every secondthe boys had a rather powerful weapon - a slingshot, from which it was possible to shoot stones. Everyone knew how to make a slingshot with their own hands, because this knowledge was passed from mouth to mouth. Usually the children found a thick branch with a fork, took a tourniquet from the first-aid kit and pulled it between the two “horns” of the branch. It turned out a product with which you could shoot stones or other small things. At the same time, a stone could easily hit someone, or children could be injured by fragments of broken glass.

The most common slingshot

Perhaps, in modern parents, such a passion for children would cause horror. But in the era of the USSR, few people thought about the dangers of slingshots - somehow the children managed to remain unharmed.

Shooting from a slingshot was one of the favorite activities of Soviet boys.

homemade darts

Darts for playing darts in Soviet times weredifficult to get, and it is unlikely that any of the adults would give them to children's hands. I wanted to play, so the children made darts on their own, from improvised materials. To make a dart, a small piece of paper, four matches, a thread and a needle were enough. Homemade darts were thrown at a self-made target, sometimes it was simply drawn on paper. In general, playing darts is not so traumatic. But the children could quarrel and start throwing sharp darts. They could hit anywhere, even in the eyes, so darts in the days of the USSR was indeed a dangerous pastime.

homemade darts

See also: 5 gadgets from the USSR that everyone dreamed about

Homemade water pistols

Water pistols in the era of the USSR were alsorare. And why were they needed if you could make them yourself? Children took an empty plastic bottle, made a hole on its lid and filled it with water. When the bottle was squeezed, a powerful jet of water appeared and the children played "shooters". In the summer of these devices it was easy to quench your thirst. It would seem that this could be dangerous? The problem is that sometimes children took not a bottle of drinking water, but a container of shampoo or even whiteness. If water from such vessels gets into the eyes or mouth, big problems could arise.

Soviet shampoo "Krya Krya"

homemade boomerang

Along with darts and water pistols,Soviet stores had a hard time finding boomerangs. And even this device the children could do on their own. To do this, they took two rulers, twisted them and fastened them. It turned out good boomerangs - with the right twist, they even came back. Usually they scared birds, but a fast-flying weapon could well get into someone's head, so such entertainment can also be called traumatic.

Homemade boomerangs

You will be interested: How does boomerang work and who invented it?

Game of knives

In addition to the boomerang, many Soviet boyshad a folding knife. Usually he was carefully hidden from his parents, because this is far from a toy. With the help of them, they usually played "knives". The rules have always been different, but basically the essence was to draw a large circle with areas for each player. Throwing a knife into the ground, the boys seized other people's plots. Usually there were no injuries, but the very fact that small children had a knife would plunge modern parents into horror.

Knife game from the side

Outlining the circle before the start of the game. Photographer: Elina Gamanova

Burning slate in a fire

Walking on the street, children often found in the groundpieces of slate for roofing. It was a real happiness, because the slate could be burned at the stake - while it exploded and shattered into pieces. Why does slate explode on fire? The fact is that when heated, cement and asbestos expand, provoking small “explosions”. Needless to say, flying fragments of slate could hurt someone?

USSR slate factory workers

You will be interested: What were microwaves, computers and players like in Soviet times

Lead melting

At the very end, it is worth mentioning the manufacturelead figurines. Soviet children could extract lead from old batteries, melt it in a container and pour it into pre-prepared clay templates. Thus, it was possible to make toy soldiers and whatever you want. Not only could children get severe burns, but there was still a risk of lead poisoning.

Lead products

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Do you remember the other dangerous activities of children intimes of the USSR? If yes, write in the comments or our Telegram chat. If not, we recommend that you plunge into nostalgia and read about the forgotten equipment of the Soviet era - here is the link.