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winkman t1_j31w7ea wrote

Right, but what could you even hammer with those?

397

crackeddryice t1_j31whut wrote

They were sold as sledges to get around a toy sled tax, but most people didn't use them as hammers.

138

winkman t1_j31xwb3 wrote

Those who do must be quite persistent.

3

staffyboy4569 t1_j349kmp wrote

No wonder theyve lasted 40 years, hes never hammered with them once!

12

pl233 t1_j35d8d0 wrote

Your average sledge won't survive a good hammered sledging, but you'll still have a fun time in the snow, and hopefully you'll remember it.

4

joepinapples OP t1_j36lv31 wrote

If I had a hammer

I'd hammer in the morning

I'd hammer in the evening

All over this land

I'd hammer out danger

I'd hammer out a warning

I'd hammer out love between

My brothers and my sisters, ah-ah

All over this land

3

crackeddryice t1_j31wty2 wrote

Well designed plastic items can last a long time. My plastic garbage bin sits outside all year long--100F to 0F--and it's fine after 24 years.

I'm sure plastic things that break are either poorly designed for their purpose, or designed to some minimum spec that is expected by the designer to break after so much time or use.

134

Walkop t1_j32mqlk wrote

Plastic is actually an incredible material, probably the greatest material invention of our time; it just so happens that it's also very, very easy to make it into cheap crap. Quality plastic has very very good characteristics.

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Mr_K_2u t1_j344dke wrote

Also easy for it to break down to a micro level and soon kill us all or do nothing at all. IDR if we ever found out what micro plastics do to us.

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Walkop t1_j34mzau wrote

Especially for cheap crap.

Microplastics would not be a big deal at all if we didn't turn plastic into a one time use product that fills the streets with untold millions of tons of garbage littered across the surface of the globe.

There's nothing wrong with plastic itself. It's the blatant and disgusting misuse of it that's the problem.

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oakteaphone t1_j3490fi wrote

>IDR if we ever found out what micro plastics do to us.

"Found" out?

We're actively finding out.

Some microplastics reduce sperm count and testosterone levels, though!

10

Mr_K_2u t1_j34i7oi wrote

As in the actual totality of the affect. I remember being told what you said but I never looked into it.

1

oragamihawk t1_j35rgrz wrote

CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic) is becoming really common in automotive and aerospace

1

UnfitRadish t1_j34lj35 wrote

That's wild. Our trash bins are stored outside in the sun year round and definitely don't make it that long. In the 25 years we've live in our house, they've been replaced twice and had to have the lids replaced roughly 7 or 8 times. The lids always become brittle much quicker than the rest. I assume because it's sitting flat and taking sunlight from sun up to sun down. They're nice bins, but the California heat and sun can be intense. Temperature range for us is 30 degrees to 115 degrees Fahrenheit. I will say the older ones we had were much more sturdy and lasted longer. They were round with really thick plastic and sort of domed lid. So nothing ever say on top and they never broke. The newer ones are identical to this and the lids are just a bit too thin.

6

ent_bomb t1_j35rkqj wrote

The manufacturer may have cheaped out and not used a plastic with a UV stabilizer, so even a thicker lid would become brittle with sun exposure.

3

Occhrome t1_j33n154 wrote

Hmm that’s true. Those lifetime brand chairs and tables will last forever.

3

MadCybertist t1_j326l8s wrote

Where do you live that it gets down to negative 100F and only up to 0F? That sucks.

−15

HikeyBoi t1_j3355x7 wrote

It is a common typing convention to use two hyphens in place of an em dash if that does not come standard on the keyboard. Word processing software will sometimes correct two hyphens into an em dash. That is how I type them at work.

8

MadCybertist t1_j33a9mt wrote

I mean, I get the em dash thing... but that doesn't really have anything to do with my comment. Unless I'm missing something.

There is a - in front of 100F making it negative 100F to 0F. Then -- comes after the 0F separating the temps and then finishing their sentence with 'and'.

​

Apparently Reddit doesn't like jokes - but what they wrote is negative 100F to 0F. Which is why I made my joke.

−8

HikeyBoi t1_j33b4ew wrote

The commenter attempted to use two em dashes kind of like parentheses for a quick informative aside.

If your comment was an attempt at humor, I recommend entertaining only yourself next time. Reddit has become clogged with unfunny halfwitted quips that add nothing to the user experience other than having to wade through them all for the good stuff.

4

dakta t1_j359kyl wrote

For pedantry, those are hyphen/minus characters. The widths of hyphen/minus, en dash, and em dash are different. They're three completely different characters, different Unicode code points and everything:

- hyphen/minus
\– en dash
\— em dash

And you can get to them easily from the iOS keyboard by long pressing on hyphen/minus.

2

Allidoischill420 t1_j32bdpl wrote

>--and

It's a double negative, 100 and -0

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HikeyBoi t1_j335d2t wrote

Some people are used to typing em dashes by using two hyphens since common word processing software will autocorrect two hyphens into an em dash

5

joepinapples OP t1_j31rbok wrote

Used them today with my two kids. They were my wife & her sisters growing up in the 70s in Småland. Good times!

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Karmakazee t1_j32eapr wrote

Your wife and sisters grew up in an Ikea play area!? That’s amazing. Do they have an innate sense for decorating small spaces?

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middle-aged-tired t1_j32jjdt wrote

Any idea where I could get something similarly well made? We've got two little boys who are almost old enough to sled. I'd rather not buy a new plastic sled every year. I'm in Canada so my options might be limited.

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joepinapples OP t1_j32kl7s wrote

Sweden in the 1980s? 😂 no idea, dont know if they make these sort of sledding vehicles anymore

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RaXha t1_j3499wh wrote

Stiga still makes ones more or less just like these. :)

12

b1gd4ta t1_j34duu1 wrote

Shh you’ll spoil ops narrative

−9

False_Illustrator_34 t1_j34qxsm wrote

There was no narrative here though. OP said they straight up didn't know if they were made anymore and that's it

3

MadAss5 t1_j33cuvm wrote

I made a sled out of downhill skis, 1/2 in galvanized pipe, and a plank of wood. Its nearly indestructible compared to everything you can buy.

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Girthw0rm t1_j34f1vy wrote

Sounds like it weighs about 80 lbs.

Fun for every six-year-old!

4

MadAss5 t1_j34pcsx wrote

I just checked and it weighs 19lbs. It holds up to 3 kids so they can pull it up together but my 8 year can do it alone. It does have a bit of rope attached.

It truly is an awesome sled.

2

Girthw0rm t1_j34utqf wrote

That sounds sweet. I would have way over engineered it.

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MadAss5 t1_j34w23i wrote

The simplicity is the best part. Nothing to break or catch a kid.

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b1gd4ta t1_j34e6cb wrote

Describe turning process and weight of said luge sledge on the way back up please

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MadAss5 t1_j34p7od wrote

You turn by dragging your hands or feet. I just checked and it weighs 19lbs. It holds up to 3 kids so they can pull it up together but my 8 year can do it alone. It does have a bit of rope attached.

4

bezerkeley t1_j3412be wrote

Lucky bums on Amazon is OK. Certainly not disposable but I would not call it BIFL. Your little guys will grow out of them quickly, so should be good. Have fun with your little ones. That age is the best, enjoy every moment.

1

purju t1_j33kw91 wrote

my "pulka"s would break after a couple of year, as would my tailbone

5

FredL2 t1_j33sk58 wrote

This was my experience as well. Took my old pulka from when I was young to a skiing "friluftsdag" 12 years later, and it just disintegrated under my ass as I was going down a VERY mild slope

2

joepinapples OP t1_j36m42b wrote

Could be all the pulka-farts you’d subjected it too over the years eh?

2

CupOfSpaghetti t1_j32bo3s wrote

40 years ago was the 80s. Not the 60s. Fuck.

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circle_square_leaf t1_j33q0as wrote

This insight has gotten old and tired by now. It's 2023, just about a quarter of the way through the century.

−45

evoltap t1_j35tyug wrote

This insight never gets old, because everybody is getting old

11

vrijheidsfrietje t1_j328lhn wrote

I wish you would step back from that sledge, my friend!

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CedarWolf t1_j34577m wrote

You could go slide on all the ice that you've been livin' in.

2

No-Armadillo7693 t1_j32ff90 wrote

Another product the rest of the world has a different name for

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joepinapples OP t1_j32gm8a wrote

Uk English vs USA English innit

14

contheartist t1_j32jerg wrote

Canadians up here calling it a Toboggan

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joepinapples OP t1_j32ktx1 wrote

Surely these arent toboggans? Arent they on metal runners?

13

linotype t1_j35volg wrote

Canadian here. Definitely toboggan. A sledge is a heavy hammer. A sled is a snowmobile. A sleigh is the thing on metal runners that horses pull.

But where I’m from, nobody used those flimsy plastic toboggans. Getting a GT Snowracer for Christmas was a rite of passage. When we hit the hills, we called it “GTing” (jeeteeing). Those toboggans were for little kids.

3

joepinapples OP t1_j36lrld wrote

You guys all talk wrong. The Queens English definition is Sledge. You are correct with Sleigh. Toboggan is your own word so you may do with it what you will. 😁

2

linotype t1_j37fqbb wrote

> Queen’s English

Ummmm I guess you haven’t heart the news…

1

joepinapples OP t1_j37gf4p wrote

I definitely dont heart this comment

1

linotype t1_j37j05n wrote

Damn autocorrect.

Actually I was sitting here picking icicles out of my nose hairs when a thought occurred to me; you don’t really get snow over in the UK, so I don’t think you get to claim ownership over any terminology related to snow vehicles.

Come to think of it, my parents are both from the UK, I don’t remember them ever using any specific words related to toboggans. They didn’t them toboggans, and they certainly didn’t call them sledges or sleds. Hmm.

1

joepinapples OP t1_j37mw70 wrote

Unless yer parents were called Liz and Philip and lots of lovely big houses paid for by taxpayers it doesn’t really count.

1

Niro5 t1_j32ozn9 wrote

In the southern US they call a toque a toboggan!

5

[deleted] t1_j33bzcn wrote

I’ve lived in the south for much of my life (west of the Mississippi to be sure). I have literally never heard that.

I personally just call them my “knit hats” or “knit caps” if I’m feeling randy. Everyone else around me call them “beanies”

2

CedarWolf t1_j3453nf wrote

I live in The South. Folks around here do call those hats 'toboggans,' 'beanies,' 'knit caps,' and 'wool caps.'

2

attorneyatlawl16 t1_j36gzr5 wrote

Born and raised in Arkansas and never heard knit cap until I left the state. Was almost always toboggan and occasionally beanie.

1

AsPerMatt t1_j348wb3 wrote

Canadian here, def not toboggan. Those are sledges, or sleds.

2

contheartist t1_j34qkk5 wrote

I too am Canadian, anything that you can toboggan upon was reffered to as a Toboggan by my people's. It's a big country tho, I can barely understand what newfies are saying.

3

bassjam1 t1_j3235t6 wrote

I'm in the US, but my parents still have a nearly identical sled to those from my childhood. It's at least 35 years old and still gets used by the grandchildren.

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joepinapples OP t1_j323kwu wrote

Plastic is both terrible and excellent at the same time!

9

Mood_Number_2 t1_j32ywse wrote

Terrible plastic is terrible, excellent plastic is excellent. Exactly the same as various metal alloys.

8

intermediatetransit t1_j32qdsc wrote

Swede here. Seems a bit like it's got more to do with the use-case than anything else. Our sleds ("pulka") are pretty flimsy I'd say, I think this overall has more to do with it being a highly situational item that just doesn't really wear out that much if you use it properly.

You use it for maybe a few weeks every year, and the wear isn't that much since you're just using it on snow.

13

joepinapples OP t1_j32vdav wrote

När man genomför med moderna pulkor blir det en jättestor skillnad faktiskt. De har är ju typ två gånger tjockare plast än vad man köper på intersport osv.

11

Nyuusankininryou t1_j32yu4r wrote

Köpte en pulka på biltema åt min dotter förra vintern. Åkte själv ett provåk varvid den sprack direkt. 70kg var för tungt.

10

intermediatetransit t1_j335f32 wrote

Intersport, Biltema, Stadium etc is surely the lowest quality you can possibly find.

1

cgs626 t1_j31xr71 wrote

The one on the left is garbage it's missing the handle. Time to replace!! /S

Seriously they look brand new that's crazy!

3

MadCybertist t1_j326pjb wrote

Was the picture taken in a mirror?

3

cgs626 t1_j32livo wrote

The handle to pull it not ride it. I didn't also notice the missing handle on the one on the right too, lol.

2

MadCybertist t1_j32x5iz wrote

lol. I didn't even notice that only the handle on the right one.

2

joepinapples OP t1_j32asv0 wrote

The mirror of time reflects on us all my friend!

1

CedarWolf t1_j345msx wrote

You're lucky you've got enough snow. I've got one of those as well, in orange, and it split down the middle, beneath the seat, because we really don't get enough snow here to merit owning a sled - those few winters we did get snow, though, we did as much sledding as we possibly could, and that's how the plastic sled got split.

1

jdehjdeh t1_j32wygx wrote

TIL: my childhood was vintage

I have really strong memories of these things, especially when the snow wasn't very thick and you would hear an almighty noise as you went over a stone or a bit of exposed concrete. Hoping it didn't wear its way through to your bum

3

broadarrow39 t1_j32y4q4 wrote

I have an identical one of a similar age and it's still going strong. Though doesn't get much use in the UK with our lack of snow.

3

roltskar t1_j331bos wrote

Clearly you live near a hill with no trees to run into. I remember that even old sleds with metal frames were destroyed by hitting something. Or when someone built a ramp

3

glaurung_ t1_j34vx0v wrote

My childhood ('90's-00's) involved a lot of smashing up plastic sleds by pulling them around a pasture behind a pickup truck (and later a four wheeler). I don't recall a plastic model that survived more than a day or two of frozen cow pies and tree roots, but we eventually dug up an antique wooden toboggan that we beat to hell, but which as far as I remember is still in one piece, sitting in some rafters at my parents house.

Not totally relevant to this post, but it was fun! We lived in an area too flat for any proper snow sports so it was the next best thing. I suspect that my wife and I will have a heated debate one day about whether our children will get to do this...

1

roltskar t1_j35ondz wrote

A skier drawn by a horse is an actual sport for the record. But generally, as long as the speeds dont get too high it's a fun sport, but people have died due to extreme speeds and forgetting that the sled has no brakes. A helmet would be also wise.

1

yaketyslacks t1_j332crz wrote

Plastic is so good we are ingesting it into our bodies so that we may live forever

3

AUnknownuser2 t1_j352rgu wrote

Those Swedes do know how to make a strong (annoying at times) strong reusable things

3

joepinapples OP t1_j36mhkg wrote

We are currently reusing fascism in our politics. Surprise! Its going terribly. Who could have known?

2

norssk_mann t1_j35rvqw wrote

U.S. here. You can just buy a deer sled here for like $30. They are made for hunters to haul deer out of the woods. Wider and shorter than regular sleds, but they fit one adult well. They look roughly the same as the sleds pictured here. I bolted backpack straps on mine and strap it on when i go snow shoeing.

3

zBarba t1_j32ha2z wrote

I have something similar but with left/right brakes. It's a shame it doesn't snow anymore, the damn climate changed

2

yelruh00 t1_j32v79d wrote

It looks like the handle is broken on one of them...

2

Nyuusankininryou t1_j32y08j wrote

Stiga?

2

joepinapples OP t1_j3387wb wrote

Nej

1

IOnceWas t1_j33lfvy wrote

Jag gissar inhemsk tillverkning av vapenskölden under varumärket att döma. Hammarplast kanske. Tidigt 80-tal.

1

Tjodhild t1_j36cwal wrote

Hade en exakt likadan, också köpt i närheten av Hammarplast — men Hammarplast hade väl en helt annan logga? Det står ”sno rider” precis under dragsnöret och nedanför det, till höger om loggan, står något — kanske tillverkarens namn? Vore kul att veta; min pulka höll i 30 år och hade säkert hållit ännu längre, om jag inte hade lånat ut den till en som var ovarsam…

1

nostrumest t1_j33a3xc wrote

Those used to be the best. Mine was yellow.

2

Occhrome t1_j33mxm4 wrote

How tho. The ones we buy always break.

2

The-true-Memelord t1_j33mza0 wrote

Ay! We love sled-things here. Many different kinds. Do not try the one that looks slightly like two skis and a wheel, though.. Pain.

2

valeyard--- t1_j33p65n wrote

People intentionally making products less durable because customers only come once when the product lasts for decades.

2

fashionablygone t1_j341md3 wrote

Ah man the memories, we had these as kids in early 90s/00s and they'd get so fast sometimes the only way to stop was to roll out of them. Good times tbh

2

Aracobb t1_j342ndh wrote

Nice pulka!

2

Sutarmekeg t1_j34ozpy wrote

If you haven't already, I suggest using those for sliding on snow as opposed to their original percussive purpose.

2

AuxiliaryPriest t1_j34slg3 wrote

From the thumbnail, I thought I was looking at two blue urinals. I read the title and thought, Swedish Sledges, that must be what they call two urinals that are installed right next to each other. I'm dumb.

2

xSympl t1_j34ww20 wrote

We were lucky to get a trashcan lid to sled on lol, take the handle off and put some rope through the holes and you had steering, speed, and a great way to help your mom meet doctors lmao

2

mlfa t1_j35grxv wrote

That is impressive considering how many sleds I went through as a kid

2

mdrops t1_j34dxig wrote

anyone else think hockey pads from thumbnail?

1

gurlcode t1_j34feuw wrote

Had these growing up in the 90s in Canada! I remember using the black handles as brakes to slow down!

1

Jokkesmokke t1_j34munr wrote

I had one of these ( think, looks similar). They never break untill you smash into hard stuff like lamp poles or rocks.

OP can you see who manufactured these sledges (pulkas)?

1

Whole_Suit_1591 t1_j35mbbo wrote

Cars from 40 yrs ago and longer leaked plastic fumes from the dashboards and stained rhe windows in high heat sunny days.

1

jdupuy1234 t1_j35nt98 wrote

at first glance, my brain saw porta-urinals

1