# The Story Behind 5 Banned Toys and Games



## Capt Worley PE (Jan 15, 2013)

> Mom always said, "It's all fun and games until somebody gets hurt." Once that happens, she failed to mention, the Consumer Product Safety Commission steps in, bans the malicious game, and orders that all existing copies of it be destroyed. The CPSC certainly means well, but its declarations often lead to debate: Is the game of lawn darts, for instance, a beloved backyard diversion or a malevolent impaler? That particular game may be poised to make a safety-conscious comeback in summer of 2010. In anticipation, PM revisited several other notable game and toy recalls in recent history that, for better or worse, meant playtime was over.



Read more: Banned Toys and Games - Lawn Darts, Slip 'N Slide, Cork Gun - Popular Mechanics


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## snickerd3 (Jan 15, 2013)

but you can still buy slip and slides...i didn't know they were recalled. Not that I ever found them enjoyable even as a kid...why the hell would someone enjoy throwing themselves at the ground is beyond me.

We had the yard darts though...great times easier than horseshoes.


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## csb (Jan 15, 2013)

My own nuclear power set?! WITH Uranium? Screw Lawn Darts!


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## FLBuff PE (Jan 15, 2013)

snickerd3 said:


> but you can still buy slip and slides...i didn't know they were recalled. Not that I ever found them enjoyable even as a kid...why the hell would someone enjoy throwing themselves at the ground is beyond me.
> 
> We had the yard darts though...great times easier than horseshoes.


If you got the angle right, it didn't hurt (as much) flinging yourself on the ground on a slip and slide. And then you have to factor in the fun of adding a little soap on top of the slip and slide before adding water.


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## knight1fox3 (Jan 15, 2013)

FLBuff PE said:


> snickerd3 said:
> 
> 
> > but you can still buy slip and slides...i didn't know they were recalled. Not that I ever found them enjoyable even as a kid...why the hell would someone enjoy throwing themselves at the ground is beyond me.
> ...


lusone:


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## EM_PS (Jan 15, 2013)

Lol, my son got a slip-n-slide (or some iteration of it) as b-day present last summer! I call :BS: on that banning


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## csb (Jan 15, 2013)

FLBuff PE said:


> snickerd3 said:
> 
> 
> > but you can still buy slip and slides...i didn't know they were recalled. Not that I ever found them enjoyable even as a kid...why the hell would someone enjoy throwing themselves at the ground is beyond me.
> ...


Each year the Bolder Boulder features quite a few of these.


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## MA_PE (Jan 15, 2013)

At my wife's family cottage by the lake we used to have some serious lawn dart competitions. We bought up (and continue to buy) any and all available original Jarts at yard sales etc. As they become more rare the competition has switched to cornhole.

I remember a day when my younger son was ~10. Just he and I were home for the day and it was hot and I was mowing the lawn. I noticed the slip and slide in the storage shed when I put away the lawn mower. I set it up and he and I had a blast playing with it.


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## Wolverine (Jan 15, 2013)

Add to the list - those neodymium magnetic ball bearings that used to sell on ThinkGeek I think, before they were banned.

Problem is: if a toddler (or adult for that matter) eats one and then 15 minutes later eats another one, they could find them on opposite sides of an intestinal wall with no solution other than surgery.

...But I have never had more fun than sitting across the hardwood floor from my teen rolling those things at each other one at a time. It was a hilarious study in chaos theory as they reacted to every nail in the floor and ultimately formed intricate cluster patterns as they collided or made it across.


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## Capt Worley PE (Jan 15, 2013)

Wolverine said:


> Add to the list - those neodymium magnetic ball bearings that used to sell on ThinkGeek I think, before they were banned.


They are number two on this list.

/&gt;http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/news/10-beloved-banned-and-recalled-products?click=main_sr#slide-1


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## Wolverine (Jan 15, 2013)

BWAHAHAHAHA! I only saw a list of five - now I see 'em. They are awesome fun. No wonder the Joy-Gestapo (Joystapo?) outlawed them.


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## wilheldp_PE (Jan 15, 2013)

Capt Worley PE said:


> Wolverine said:
> 
> 
> > Add to the list - those neodymium magnetic ball bearings that used to sell on ThinkGeek I think, before they were banned.
> ...


As noted in the article, Bucky Balls are still for sale... http://www.getbuckyballs.com/

EDIT: Apparently that site has a delayed re-direct to a statement from their lawyers telling you where you can get a refund if you have bought Bucky Balls. There are other resellers though... http://www.the-buckyballs.com/


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## csb (Jan 16, 2013)

Wolverine said:


> BWAHAHAHAHA! I only saw a list of five - now I see 'em. They are awesome fun. No wonder the Joy-Gestapo (Joystapo?) outlawed them.


I'm going to start calling management Joystapo.


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