Toys in the late 40s and the 50s

Some toys have endured – I remember having a Tap Tap in the 40s; toy cars existed then as now albeit that they were different – Dinky was, I think the main brand; the cars then had rubber tyres which could be, and were, taken off. Lead soldiers were there before plastic ones and were preferred. A Japanese tin tank was a great favourite of mine – made of old tins and sporting a cannon which sparked from a flint, I thought it was great; there was a risk of injury as the top was held to the base by tabs which were located through slots and then bent to hold it all together. Meccano was always popular but most of us did not have the big sets which allowed marvellous constructions. Baiko was a house building toy where one stuck rods into a green base and then slotted plastic tiles (some looked like bricks, some like windows or doors) to build really very good buildings – I wonder if it is still available? Water pistols were rubber bulbs fixed to a small gun and operated by squeezing the bulb. Cap guns (a roll of caps was inserted and the hammer fell and exploded the one cap making both noise and smell) were great for running battles emulating the black and white TV heroes like Hopalong Cassidy or The Lone Ranger – I suspect that they were more fun than any Wii equivalent. Many toys were made – go-carts with wheels from old prams or pushchairs and the chassis made of bits of wood, propelled by pushing and guided by bits of string connected to the front wheel axle; telephones made of two tins and a stretched piece of string; sledges to hurtle down any slope; boats of all sizes and shapes; loads of things and the making was as much fun as the using.