Born in the 60's, 70's or 80's

Aha - beg to differ then - as there are several instances of VHS-Hifi stereo (as in using the same method to record/replay stereo as NICAM machines) around in the mid 80s - our school had a Panasonic in 1985, and my mate bought a Samsung in 1989 (non-Nicam oddly enough!) to replay his films in stereo...

Here's a video that's even older than the one we rented - the original Panasonic from 1978. Our school had one of these in daily use until well into the 1990s!:

I'll never forget the "vrrrrooooop" noise it made as the head motor span up, and bled through the audio channel!

AT - check this out - is this the beast you used to have (it looks identical to the one we rented!):

 

Hehe yes I remember it well, the one we had was more silver coloured but the shape was the same.

Do you have any ideas when they were made?

 

I remember when we got our first colour TV back in about 1980 (or maybe it was 1979). Don't ask me why, but one of the first programmes I remember watching on it was Heart To Heart (i.e. Stephanie Powers & Robert Wagner) - think it must have been that lingering bright red background in the title sequence that stuck in my mind as being the first colour thing I remember watching on TV. The first TV set I remember us having prior to the colour one just mentioned was a black and white thing that rented, as was all the colour ones we have after that. We didn't actually buy our first TV set outright until 1996, something I never understood as it was just throwing money away to the rental company - my parent's reasoning was for the ease of servicing and replacement should the set go wrong but there were plenty of high street shops doing "option to own" schemes from the late 80's onwards (IIRC) so I'm still puzzled to this day. That first owned outright set has been passed down to me and is still in use at my place to this day - a 29 inch Sony (non-widescreen) Trinitron.

Oh, and our first VCR was bought way back in 1981, I clearly remember coming back from my first week at a new boarding school and seeing this beast, a Ferguson VideoStar - toploading with mechanical controls in black and silver and the weight of this unit was 16kg - they don't build things to those sorts of standards anymore!

 

Oi Henry - I can clearly remember your first week at school as well Well, kind of, what with nanu nanu starting at the same time too ...nice Live in 85 on that Ferguson eh? Nudge nudge - how much was the new head drum again!?

AT - I think they were made around 1979-1980 - I'd say 1980 is probably nearest due to being available in black or silver, and the fact they had still pause and colour picture search. Certainly most of these BEASTS of Baird toploaders were in use in schools right up to the late 80s, which is probably when Radio Rentals punted one out to my Dad for a good price. I kept begging him to rent a video from about 1983 (when even then, movies for Beta were getting harder to find at Upland Video Rentals on our estate - £2 to rent a tape and a tenner to join - that's in 1983 prices!!!). I used to love going to my mate's to watch videos though - things like Explorers and Flight of the navigator

Sorry - back on topic! Because the Baird/Ferguson machines are actually badge engineered JVC models, and the Thorn-EMI rental group had exclusive rights to rent these machines, this is one reason VHS outstripped Beta - it was very hard to rent a Beta machine, so consequently the rental demand for VHS movies was higher, so a nice little case of squeezing Beta out, despite it being a better system AND using smaller tapes. Oh, and apparently Beta-Hifi is FAR superior to VHS-Hifi - how typical!

Of course, the fact that porn was almost exclusively VHS based doesn't factor into it at all... He he he

 

Only on zerogain can a discussion about growing up in the '60's/'70's turn into an in depth debate about stereo/NICAM VCR's!

Born in '67 so I related to that first post a lot.

First car of my dads I remember well was his Ford Anglia Deluxe 997cc estate – MHY 851F – yes I remember the registration – how sad is that! No seatbelts in the back and, as the youngest, I used to sit in the middle leaning forward between the front seats to see what was going on. Before that he had an Austin A35 Countryman - I've only vague memories of it but I can remember it had those indicators that flipped up out of the side of the car (by the top of the doors) on little chromed stalks.

We got our first TV in the early 70's – a GEC – bloke delivered it in a Ford Consul Classic (the one with the Batmobile back end). We set it up, put the horse racing on (something we'd never normally watch) and marvelled at the greenness of the grass!

Our first VCR was a Fergusson Videostar toploader, our second (a Sharp) had a remote control on a lead which my aged Great Aunt would walk right through, pulling the jack from the VCR. The first hired video I watched was “The Wanderers†and, if you were over 10, it was easy to get hold of any hired film – The Exorcist, The Driller Killer, Zombie Flesheaters, The Bogeyman, The Burning and The Hills have Eyes spring to mind – I never got to see “I Spit On Your Grave†though.

My first memories of Top of the Pops were The Sweet singing Blockbuster and I can remember taping Bohemian Rhapsody off the radio using my Dad's “Amerex†music centre – this consisted of a tuner and an 8 track cartridge recorded/player.

My first bike of note was a Raleigh Tomahawk (like a small Chopper) after that was a racer. In fact the two things I wanted most in the late '70's were a pair of oxblood Dr Marten boots (with stitching) and a 5 geared racer. It took a while but I got them both.

My Doctor Who viewing was 30% John Pertwee and 70% Tom Baker. I saw Grange Hill from day 1 and still refer to Tod Carty as Tucker Jenkins.

I remember skateboards the first time around. On of my mates had one with green Kyrptonics and if you know what they were then you'll appreciate how jealous the rest of us were. We scrumped for apples and feared capture. I got caught by a bloke whose window I'd fired small stones at with my catapult – he shook me violently and threw my catapult in the river – I didn't run home and tell my Dad – in fact I was worried that my folks would find out I'd misbehaved!

My first hifi was a Pioneer CT something cassette deck (with Dolby B and auto-search), a Marantz PM350 and a pair of Mission 70's.

I own a mobile phone but, last time I checked, I found that I only use it once every 6 weeks. It's never on standby – I switch it on, make a call then switch it off. If people want to ring me they can phone me at work or at home, not in between.

My Dad used to listen to Terry Wogan – now I do because I can't stand the music on Radio 1.

Matt.

 

The first sound system I owned I bought in 1995, it was a £65 Matsui gheto blaster. After that broke I then used the CD-ROM for playing music. I bought what I thought to me my first proper HIFI in 1998 it was a Ventura mini system with all mod cons. It sounded awful.

In 1999 I walked past a shop called Richer Sounds and the rest was history. I realised I could afford a seperates system and saved for an another 6 months. I bought an Ariston CD player, anm Ariston AX910 amp, and JPW 310 speakers.

I've only a couple of months ago bought my first proper TV, a Philips 21" Nicam. The picture is quite simply for my standards stagering, white actually looks white and black actually looks black! Its normaly £180 in Dixons, but I bought it for £100 as it had no remote control and it has a small burn mark on the case you can't even see! I bought a generic remote control for £5 .It came with the full 12 months warranty too.

 

AT - I think you are the most honest and sincere bloke i've never met.

....................................

This deserves a reprint:

splendid

cheers

 

Hehe!

You've just described a childhood moMOry of mine alMOst exactly!

We did of course threaten to "get my dad on you", but he just laughed and said "ok, I'll come with you! I'd like to tell him what you've been up to too!"

 

I didn't know they had an estate version - what did they look like compared to, say Vyv's yellow saloon with flames down the side??

That wasn't the GEC in that pale wood case, with the soft touch channel buttons was it??? If so, my Betamax neighbours had the same one

Did the Ferguson look like the Baird higher up the page, or did it have piano key tape controls?

Respect - I wish I could do that. I hate using phones... ..but then I need one too - you can't win!

 

Like this:



More practical but it loses the saloon's finest feature - the angled back window.

Finding that picture led me to this (Norwegian!) website http://www.fordanglia.com/

It was dark wood from memory with a twisting dial to select up to 4 channels - there were only three back then though.

Piano keys.


Matt.

 

Blimey- that Anglia estate looks reeeeaaally odd.... The saloon is definitely a far better look.

He he he - so that Ferguson was really really old then - I knew someone in college with the same Ferguson piano keys jobbie; it kept needing servicing due to the age of the thing - all the belts were on the way out and the head drum was fairly shagged as well - mind you, with 14 years on the clock it wasn't too bad!

 

My first bike was a purple 3-speed Raleigh that I used to tear up, down and across Chobham Common and Wentworth Golf course on circa 1973 (I've always hated golf ), I progressed onto something a bit "slicker" after a while.
Green Kryptos, crikey. If I tried getting on skateboard these days it would break , but back in the day a "rad" setup would have been a Logan Earth Ski (From Kalifornia, naturlich), Gullwing trucks (the superfunky originals), and said Kryptonics - which came in different hardnesses :SLEEP: Hello, is anyone still awake Green, Blue and Red. Everyone really wanted a really hard set. Must be something in the male genetic makeup. Best skateparks were Brentford (wacky) and Wokingham were I saw the legendary Tony Alva SK8. Home park was a converted circus animal training barn that still smelt of Lion piss and Elephant dung. It also had famously unsk8able wooden ramps that transitioned to vertical in about 70cms. Rector Skatepants and gloves were not an option. I once fell off the big ramp- which was really big and had an overhang - just below the top. Quite spectacular, apparently.
First colour TV memory: 1970 Mexico World Cup and someone walking on the moon. Loved those rich, fuzzy colours. Modern telly (from say the 1974 World Cup onwards) is just so sharp and soulless.
Best motor memory: Fiat 130 and it's fabtastic toggle-laden dash. Ergonomics shmergonomics I say. A little later I also got to sit in Niki Lauder's World Championship winning Ferrari. A friend of mine's dad drove a Lamborghini Espada which was kinda fun, certainly more so than James' dad's Ferrari 415... Meanwhile, my Dad had "progressed" onto a.. Fiat 131
Ah, enough already. Those were the great days of the three day week, stagflation, and fag adverts on TV.

 

You want green Kyrptonics? I give you....

(and you can look at loads here if it turns you on: http://www.btinternet.com/~p5/skateboards/wheels/kryptonics.htm)

 

Wow ! a hobby thats even sadder than Hi-Fi geekology. What a great site though, Skateboard wheels . This is just the thing a i love an bout the internet. i remember the Kryto wheels very well , although i was never rich enough to own a set or a board worthy of putting them on. A very good friend of mine had a skateboard sent over to him from a relative in Austaralia. It was bright yellow in colour and really skinny, it had Hard yellow Gel type wheels, called a 'Shark' i believe. It was the fastest skateboard i ever had a go on.
The big things down my street where doing 'Catamarans' around an acute <90 Deg pavement angle at the bottom of a shallow hill. The wipeouts where spectacular, arms , legs, blood and skin everywhere .
I had a metallic red Raleigh Tomahawk bike and my brother had an Orange Chipper.
Not too long after all of this CB radio hit the big time. 40 channel AM to start with but then the extra channels came in fairly rapid. My Dad is now a qualified Amateur radio operator (Ham) all started off from the days of : Breaker- Break, snakebite calling, anybody out there ? ( ). Stalker 20 striaght rod antenae, about 15" feet high i think, on the side of the house !! There was also a Wigwam shaped thing too - called a Skylab maybe ? K40 Microphones with a distinctive sounding 'roger bleep' (Hmm.. K40 may have been a Mag mount Car aerial ????). I grew out of it and discovered Girls !! My Dad never did though, I think he just liked spending lots of time in the shed, away from my Mum nipping his head !

I can remeber getting a Compact Cassette player one christmas. All mono , it didn't even have the proper piano key controls instead having a rotary dial. The first thing i can remember taping off the radio was a track called 'All around my hat'. i used to wander around for hours with my cassette player in the crook of my outstretched arm blazing out (ish) 'All around my hat' everywhere i went, .

Button badges, where huge in my school all the guys walking around in leather 'Bomber jackets' saying 'cool it', Heyyyyy, and 'Sit on it' there must have been about 200 fonzies in my school. I occaisionally watch it on the Sat channells, he's still cool now ! especially liked the crossover shows when Laverne and Shirley popped in to say Hi ! . little Joney would get it, too !
Cha-chi was to Fonzy, what Scrappy is to Scooby, a total arse.

 

That would be 1975 then - Steeleye Span; I know, 'cos my sister gave me a video of songs from '75 and that one's on there

I got into skateboarding in the second wave - 1988! My mate's sister had a girl's one and we would rag down the hill outside my house on it (sitting down - man we must have been small back when I was 13!!!). I got "done" by my mum for wearing out a new pair of trainers in one week (I used them as brakes!). I got my own deck in 1989 - a £30 All Pro one from Exsports - I could never ollie or anything else but could stand up and go fairly fast - I was the guy who got it banned from our school, due to kickflipping it through a window by accident!

I want another one though - boards are totally rad, dude!

 

Bloody hell – that takes me back! I've still got my old board from when I was a kid, its on top of the wardrobe. Its a disturbingly flexible fibreglass Pacer board with ACS 580 trucks and huge 70mm green Kryptonics. I had a go on it on the wooden floor of my front room when I moved in, before there was anything in the room to break - as a 14 stone 40 year old I can still do a 180!

Tony.

 

Hi,

This thread has brought a smile to my face.

I too was into skateboarding first time round. The site on this thread has brought back some good memories. I started off with one of those cheap & cheerful ones with rubber wheels. Surf flyer rings a bell. Then I went onto a plastic jobbie with proper trucks & urethane wheels. I then upgraded these with ACS 580 & G&S YOYO wheels.

This was on the plastic deck. Next was to upgrade the deck to a Chris Chaput "Chapstick". Next up was a set of Tracker "Full Track" with Sims Snake conicals & a Sims "Falmer" board. That Falmer board was about 10" wide. Those were great times. Skateboarding on the street & at various skateparks was good fun. The one in Colne was enjoyable.

I think I still have most of my old Skateboard books & mags. UK "Skateboard" & the US "Skateboarder" were the popular ones.

Those were the days

SCIDB

 

Humm, I see a pattern emerging here Avon 'blue stars ?' wheels had transulsent blue finish with Avon embossed in the side, 77' good year for brusies and grazes & fractured skulls If I remember well sort put me off skateboards on onto motor bikes. think the board was a Cyote' with strengthed kick back flip tail or some russ andrews bollox like that. oh injury filled happy days Tone

 

Yup - here's my excuse... Pure 77!



Tony.

 

Re: Born 1974...

In 1993 when I first got into the mobile phone industry, I remember thinking '' why the **** do people want mobile phones? I understand it if youre work absolutely depends on it, but why would anybody else want one?''

In 2003 I think '' why the **** do people want mobile phones? I understand it if youre work absolutely depends on it, but why would anybody else want one?''


brothers and sisters, rise up and chuck em in the bin!!

NB
I had a skateboard too. It was an orange plastic one... I couldnt ride it... I just stood on it by the side of the house and edged along the window sill till I came to the end! haha. I gave up early and moved onto a bike instead..

childhood kind of went like this for me...... sinclair spectrum, commodore 64, commodore amiga !.... mixed up with knocking around with friends till 15 years, and then clubbing/pubbing from 15 trying to get laid!! funny memories.