Vintage Toys

XRF Test Results for Vintage 1972 Blonde Quick Curl Steffie Barbie Doll: Not Safe For Kids

August 3, 2023August 4, 2023

Published: August 3, 2023 Thursday Below are the full XRF test results for the Vintage Barbie Doll pictured. I do not know if this is an original / period vintage dress for this doll. The doll was purchased on eBay. Note: There was no warning on eBay – nor is one required – that this…

Is your Barbie safe for your kids to play with? A discussion on the concern for unsafe levels of Lead (& other toxicants) in vintage Barbie dolls

July 18, 2023September 28, 2023

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For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead-poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by…

XRF test results for a vintage Fisher Price brand plastic toy lion from the circus train set (made in Hong Kong): positive for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic and Antimony

October 18, 2022July 13, 2023

4 Comments

Introduction (for those new to this website): Tamara Rubin is a federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children, her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005. Since 2009 Tamara has been using XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission)…

Little Tikes brand vintage plastic toy phone positive for extremely high levels of Cadmium (a known carcinogen)

October 16, 2022July 13, 2023

Introduction (for those new to this website): Tamara Rubin is a federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children, her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005. Since 2009 Tamara has been using XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission)…

Vintage plastic toy thermometer positive for both Arsenic and high levels of Lead. This toy is not safe for children to play with

October 16, 2022July 13, 2023

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Introduction (for those new to this website): Tamara Rubin is a federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children, her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005. Since 2009 Tamara has been using XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission)…

XRF test results for vintage (1970s?) Fisher Price “Movie Viewer” toy: 5,087 ppm Lead, 249 ppm Arsenic & 55 ppm Cadmium.

July 12, 2022July 18, 2022

2 Comments

Published: July 12, 2022 – Tuesday While this vintage Fisher Price “Movie Viewer” toy is not marked with the date it was purchased at an estate sale where most of the toys were from the early-to-mid 1970s – so it seems like guessing “1970s” for the date of this toy is about right (as with…

XRF test results for vintage (1970s?) Fisher Price stacker toy… with ALL the bite marks! 4,289 ppm Lead, 517 ppm Arsenic & 18 ppm Cadmium

July 12, 2022April 24, 2024

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For those new to the Lead Safe Mama website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her four sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Tamara owns and runs Lead Safe Mama, LLC…

Vatming Toy Car (Made in Hong Kong): 154 ppm Lead + 56 Cadmium + 16,300 ppm GOLD + 3,401 ppm Platinum.

December 30, 2021January 1, 2022

XRF test results for the toy pictured Reading #1) Green painted area of toy 30-second reading Lead (Pb): non-detect Cadmium (Cd): non-detect Mercury (Hg): non-detect Bromine (Br): non-detect Chromium (Cr): non-detect Iron (Fe): 28,700 +/- 300 ppm Zinc (Zn): 712,200 +/- 1,900 ppm Titanium (Ti): 238,400 +/- 1,200 ppm Niobium (Nb): 808 +/- 34 ppm…

Red Antique Tootsie Toy Trailer Car (Made in Chicago): 94 ppm Lead + 73 Cadmium + 7,862 ppm GOLD! (Woah!)

December 30, 2021January 1, 2022

XRF test results for the toy pictured Reading #1) Red painted area of toy 30-second reading Lead (Pb): 94 +/- 34 ppm Cadmium (Cd): non-detect Mercury (Hg): non-detect Bromine (Br): non-detect Chromium (Cr): non-detect Vanadium (V): 1,530 +/- 237 Manganese (Mn) 302 +/- 68 ppm Copper (Cu): 809 +/- 74 ppm Zinc (Zn): 971,200 +/-…

Blue Antique Tootsie Toy Trailer Car (Made in Chicago): 77 ppm Lead + 107 Cadmium + 5,246 ppm GOLD! (Woah!)

December 30, 2021January 1, 2022

XRF test results for the toy pictured Reading #1) Blue painted area of toy 30-second reading Lead (Pb): 77 +/- 24 ppm Cadmium (Cd): non-detect Mercury (Hg): non-detect Bromine (Br): non-detect Chromium (Cr): non-detect Manganese (Mn) 82 +/- 50 ppm Iron (Fe): 219 +/- 47 ppm Copper (Cu): 1,402 +/- 65 ppm Zinc (Zn): 927,200…

Vintage Tonka metal dune buggy style toy car with yellow body paint. The Lead is in the TIRES! 14,300 ppm! (90 & up is unsafe for kids)

December 27, 2021July 13, 2023

5 Comments

Introduction (for those new to this website): Tamara Rubin is a federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children, her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005. Since 2009 Tamara has been using XRF testing (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission)…

Vintage plastic Tupperware blocks toy: non-detect for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Mercury (likely has BPA given the age.)

November 21, 2021

1 Comment

Note: I do not know if these test results apply to all years of manufacture of this toy. The toy is not marked with the years of manufacture and there is no clue (from the markings) as to the year of manufacture. HOWEVER: the colors are distinctly different than the colors of vintage Tupperware plastic I have…

How old are your child’s toys? Mega Bloks Large Yellow Building Block (c. 1990-2007?): 5,402 ppm Lead (90 is unsafe for kids) + 88 ppm Mercury

December 27, 2020December 28, 2020

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Introduction to Tamara Rubin (for those new to this website!) Tamara Rubin lives in Portland, Oregon and is a child health advocate, author, documentary filmmaker, and mother of four sons. Her young men are now 24, 18, 15, and 12. She has won multiple national awards for her Lead-poisoning prevention advocacy work (including two from U.S….

1981 Colorforms Mickey & Minnie Mouse Doctor and Nurse pre-school playset: As high as 2,300 ppm Lead (90 ppm is unsafe)

June 4, 2020January 23, 2024

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

1981 Colorforms Tummy Ache the Junk Food Game, hamburger piece: 11 ppm Lead (safe by all current standards… but…)

June 4, 2020January 23, 2024

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For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

1981 Colorforms Tummy Ache the Junk Food Game, board with spinner: 29 ppm Lead (safe by all current standards… but…)

May 22, 2020January 23, 2024

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

This is a summary with links to all our articles on testing vintage toys! (Including FisherPrice, Legos, Hot Wheels & more!)

April 26, 2020October 18, 2023

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#VintageToys | Summary Article by Theme 2020 | Vintage Toy | Vintage Toys

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

1977 Walt Disney Winnie The Pooh & Tigger Too – read along book: 17 ppm Lead (safe by all standards.)

March 22, 2020March 22, 2020

2 Comments

Posted: Sunday, March 22, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

1977 Walt Disney Winnie The Pooh & Tigger Too – read along tape: 495 ppm Lead (90 is unsafe), 35 ppm Arsenic.

March 22, 2020March 22, 2020

Posted: Sunday, March 22, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

Vintage (1990s?) TYCO plastic building blocks (Duplo-style): Lead-free, Cadmium-free, Arsenic-free!

February 23, 2020February 23, 2020

Green TYCO building block – 30 seconds Copper (Cu): 150 +/- 15 ppm Nickel (Ni): 13 +/- 8 ppm Iron (Fe): 55 +/- 20 ppm Titanium (Ti): 2,167 +/- 295 ppm Continue reading below the image. Red TYCO building block – 30 seconds Barium (Ba): 189 +/- 108 ppm Bromine (Br): 19 +/- 3 ppm Iron…

Blue vintage (1990s?) Duplo building block – by Lego: Lead-free, Cadmium-free, Arsenic-free, Mercury-free!

February 23, 2020

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Blue Block – 30 second reading Barium (Ba): 198 +/- 108 ppm Copper (Cu): 538 +/- 28 ppm Iron (Fe): 38 +/- 24 ppm Titanium (Ti): 8,650 +/- 480 ppm This piece is discussed in detail on this video – link here. I will update this post shortly, but just wanted to start by making sure the XRF readings were…

Vintage (1990s?) AAA rubber toy blue whale (made in China): Lead-free, Antimony-free, Cadmium-free, Arsenic-free & Mercury-free!

February 23, 2020February 23, 2020

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Whale – 60 second test Barium (Ba): 492 +/- 56 ppm Br (Bromine): 22 +/- 5 pm Zinc (Zn): 304 +/- 33 ppm Iron (Fe): 210 +/- 68 ppm Titanium (Ti): 15,100 +/- 1,800 ppm This piece is discussed in detail on this video – link here. I will update this post shortly, but just…

Vintage (?) “Made In China” Parasaurolophus Plastic Dinosaur: 1,333 ppm Lead (90 is unsafe for kids) + 88 ppm Cadmium

January 31, 2020January 31, 2020

When tested with an XRF instrument the large gray dinosaur pictured here (year of manufacture unknown) had the following readings: Lead (Pb): 1,333 +/- 71 ppm Cadmium (Cd): 88 +/- 13 ppm Barium (Ba): 717 +/- 84 ppm Antimony (Sb): 625 +/- 34 ppm Bromine (Br): 62 +/- 10 ppm Tin (Sn): 127 +/- 23…

1986 Dor Mei Toys Spinosaurus: 5,341 ppm Lead. 90 ppm and up is considered illegal and unsafe for toys made today.

August 30, 2019August 30, 2019

The amount of Lead that is considered unsafe and illegal in a modern item manufactured for use by children today is anything 90 ppm or higher in the paint or coating or anything 100 ppm or higher in the substrate. As a result of the high levels of Lead found in this 1986 “Dor Mei”…