Things you don’t see outside any more

[philthetube]

On a completely different topic, another thing you don't seem to see so much these days when you go on country walks is squeeze-through stiles, consisting of two wooden posts that you squeeze through. You still see them occasionally, but a lot of them have been turned into climb-over stiles by adding a horizontal plank of wood to them. Presumably this has been done to make it more difficult for livestock to stray from one field into another.

I found a Stone one near Arnside, I had to strip down to my T shirt to get through.

 

[AM9]

I'd rather for the meantime they got some Police attention - fitting blue bulbs (or retrofit LEDs) is classed as a modification - and because it's a bit "chavvy" insurance companies really don't like it so most people who have done so are probably not correctly insured. You have to fit the manufacturer's spec, which in an older car is a halogen bulb without a coating.

Though the scourge of newer cars is auto dim/dip, which doesn't dip until they see your lights, so you get momentarily dazzled, whereas a competent driver manually dipped *just before* rounding the corner. They also don't dip for cyclists or pedestrians. I'd ban them.

My wife has a Mercedes A180 which has auto dipping and in my opinion as a front seat passenger, it does it pretty well. Judging by when it seneses oncoming vehicles where there are bends of humps in the road, it seems that the sensor is actually a camera, maybe mounted behind the rear view mirror and that works quite well. It certainly responds at about the same time that the pool of light on the road appears rather than relying on direct sensing of the headlight beams. As such it probably beats what an average competent driver would do, There are plenty of 'less than competent' drivers that either fail to respond until they are flashed by somebody being dazzled or are just plain slow at dipping. Overall, I think that decent self-dipping lights are a safety improvement.

 

[D6130]

On a completely different topic, another thing you don't seem to see so much these days when you go on country walks is squeeze-through stiles, consisting of two wooden posts that you squeeze through. You still see them occasionally, but a lot of them have been turned into climb-over stiles by adding a horizontal plank of wood to them. Presumably this has been done to make it more difficult for livestock to stray from one field into another.

There still seem to be a few of them up North.

I found a Stone one near Arnside, I had to strip down to my T shirt to get through.

There are loads - possibly hundreds - of them in the South Pennines, Yorkshire Dales and Lake District....all with tall vertical stone stoops.

 

[najaB]

Though the scourge of newer cars is auto dim/dip, which doesn't dip until they see your lights, so you get momentarily dazzled, whereas a competent driver manually dipped *just before* rounding the corner. They also don't dip for cyclists or pedestrians. I'd ban them

Given that neither cyclists nor pedestrians are a vehicle coming the other direction, nor are likely to be travelling at speed it's probably more important to ensure that they are clearly visible to the car driver than to ensure they aren't dazzled by the headlights.

In any case, the situation is no worse than it would have been with non-automatic lights since, I presume, it is still possible for the driver to dim the lights manually.

 

[Gloster]

Something that is the the reverse of the title: you see it outside more nowadays. Cars that have to sit on the drive because the garage door is too small for today’s massive tanks. My house is from 1975, but I reckon there there is only an inch or two clearance for my small family car (Dacia Sandero) and then only if I folded the mirrors in.

 

[DelayRepay]

Something that is the the reverse of the title: you see it outside more nowadays. Cars that have to sit on the drive because the garage door is too small for today’s massive tanks. My house is from 1975, but I reckon there there is only an inch or two clearance for my small family car (Dacia Sandero) and then only if I folded the mirrors in.

My house is from the late 60s although I think the garage was built later.

My car is a Focus, so not a tank. It will fit in the garage, just, but I have to climb out through the boot. I know this because when my windscreen shattered, I had to do something to keep the car safe and dry overnight!

 

[Steddenm]

You don't see the Photoprint or Colourprint envelopes anymore neither. But that's more to do with going digital than anything else.

Also chemists with the huge photo processing machinery at the back and "photos within the hour" now replaced with the booths to connect your phone, memory card or USB stick to.

 

[Gloster]

You don't see the Photoprint or Colourprint envelopes anymore neither. But that's more to do with going digital than anything else.

Also chemists with the huge photo processing machinery at the back and "photos within the hour" now replaced with the booths to connect your phone, memory card or USB stick to.

A lot of camera shops have closed down too. Presumably the loss of the fee they got from handling films for developing and the change to mobile ‘phone cameras by many people did for them.

 

[dgl]

Something that is the the reverse of the title: you see it outside more nowadays. Cars that have to sit on the drive because the garage door is too small for today’s massive tanks. My house is from 1975, but I reckon there there is only an inch or two clearance for my small family car (Dacia Sandero) and then only if I folded the mirrors in.

My grans neighbours had an Isetta and the garage was built for it, naturally it meant that nothing else would fit!

 

[Matey]

Drinking fountains in public buildings. Large religious posters. Te best one that I heard of was "Jesus Saves" where someone had added, "with the Halifax".

 

[Gloster]

Large religious posters. Te best one that I heard of was "Jesus Saves" where someone had added, "with the Halifax".

I always remember one outside a church near the bottom of Blackboy Hill in Exeter which read, ’Lord, what a relief to know that you know all.’ I was always tempted to stop on the way back from a night shift and add, ‘but please don’t tell the wife.’

 

[Jimini]

Someone mentioned to me the other day about Scope's old 20th century name -- these charity boxes / games were very commonplace in the late '80s / early '90s as I recall. Possibly in chains such as Wimpy and the like (based on my memories from my youth). How times change eh!

 

[Pinza-C55]

Police Call Boxes.

 

[GusB]

Police Call Boxes.

There are still a few around, although some have been converted for other uses such as coffee kiosks; I recall seeing a few in Edinburgh. I remember one in Glasgow city centre from my childhood, but I cannot recall exactly where and I have no idea if it's still there.

 

[Steddenm]

There are still a few around, although some have been converted for other uses such as coffee kiosks; I recall seeing a few in Edinburgh. I remember one in Glasgow city centre from my childhood, but I cannot recall exactly where and I have no idea if it's still there.

There's one in the city centre on the walk between Central and Queen St stations which is still there and hasn't been converted into anything. There's also one on Sauchihall Street which is now a shop selling that cannabis oil stuff.

 

[GusB]

There's one in the city centre on the walk between Central and Queen St stations which is still there and hasn't been converted into anything. There's also one on Sauchihall Street which is now a shop selling that cannabis oil stuff.

Thanks for confirming. I've probably seen both, but it's the first one you mentioned that I definitely remember.

 

[SargeNpton]

Police Call Boxes.

Outside Earls Court Underground station last November...

No idea though whether it's bigger on the inside.

 

[simonw]

Drinking fountains in public buildings. Large religious posters. Te best one that I heard of was "Jesus Saves" where someone had added, "with the Halifax".

I always thought it was 'but xxx (name of a popular footballer) scores on the rebound

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Police Call Boxes.

In a similar vein, AA and RAC roadside telephone "sentry" boxes, essentially painted wooden shelters alongside the roadway on main roads, in predominantly rural but strategic locations, from where you could call for help if your vehicle broke down. Believe you needed an AA (or RAC) members key to access same. Used to be a few thousand of the things. Not many left these days.

 

[Bevan Price]

A lot of camera shops have closed down too. Presumably the loss of the fee they got from handling films for developing and the change to mobile ‘phone cameras by many people did for them.

I think it was more the change from film to digital cameras that killed many camera shops - with an end to regular sales of film as well as processing. Most of the local camera shops near me had closed long before phones had decent cameras.

 

[32475]

In a similar vein, AA and RAC roadside telephone "sentry" boxes, essentially painted wooden shelters alongside the roadway on main roads, in predominantly rural but strategic locations, from where you could call for help if your vehicle broke down. Believe you needed an AA (or RAC) members key to access same. Used to be a few thousand of the things. Not many left these days.

That reminds me that I can recall an AA patrol man saluting our car as we drove past in the early ‘60s. I was a young passenger in short trousers on the back seat of the family Austin 1100 and Dad had recently joined the AA and had mounted the chrome and yellow badge on the radiator grill. I remember he was terribly proud to have been saluted. Now that really shows my age!

 

[DelayRepay]

That reminds me that I can recall an AA patrol man saluting our car as we drove past in the early ‘60s. I was a young passenger in short trousers on the back seat of the family Austin 1100 and Dad had recently joined the AA and had mounted the chrome and yellow badge on the radiator grill. I remember he was terribly proud to have been saluted. Now that really shows my age!

Wasn't it the case that if the AA patrol man didn't salute a member, it meant there was a police speed trap ahead and they should slow down?

 

[SargeNpton]

Wasn't it the case that if the AA patrol man didn't salute a member, it meant there was a police speed trap ahead and they should slow down?

That was the case in the very early days. The AA was formed specifically for that purposes -only later becoming a breakdown club.

 

[GusB]

In a similar vein, AA and RAC roadside telephone "sentry" boxes, essentially painted wooden shelters alongside the roadway on main roads, in predominantly rural but strategic locations, from where you could call for help if your vehicle broke down. Believe you needed an AA (or RAC) members key to access same. Used to be a few thousand of the things. Not many left these days.

They are quite rare, but there are a couple of examples of AA boxes that still exist nearby. The closest one is to the east of Lhanbryde on the A96, while there is another a bit further away where the A939 and A940 diverge at Dava. I'm fairly sure I recall my grandfather having an AA key attached to his keyring - it was like a Yale key, but diamond-shaped.

 

[DelW]

I'm fairly sure I recall my grandfather having an AA key attached to his keyring - it was like a Yale key, but diamond-shaped.

Diamond for AA, or hexagon for RAC:

(Some of us never throw anything away, though I've no idea when I last carried either of those with me )

 

[swt_passenger]

Diamond for AA, or hexagon for RAC:
View attachment 127795
(Some of us never throw anything away, though I've no idea when I last carried either of those with me )

I wonder why they bothered with different shapes given that they had identical blades to fit both organisations‘ locks?

 

[Matey]

Wayside garages with one pump and a small tin or wooden shed cum workshop. Operated by a man who stocked oil plus a few spares and was willing to lift the bonnet if the driver was in trouble. A classic example appeared in the film "Genevieve"

 

[Killingworth]

Wayside garages with one pump and a small tin or wooden shed cum workshop. Operated by a man who stocked oil plus a few spares and was willing to lift the bonnet if the driver was in trouble. A classic example appeared in the film "Genevieve"

Cut from a panoramic view so low resolution, Cluanie Inn on the A87 from Invermoriston to Kyle of Lochalsh in 2015. I first passed that way in 1965 and it was just like Matey describes.

 

[150249]

A Stagecoach South West bus that turns up on time

 

[D6968]

Wayside garages with one pump and a small tin or wooden shed cum workshop. Operated by a man who stocked oil plus a few spares and was willing to lift the bonnet if the driver was in trouble. A classic example appeared in the film "Genevieve"

Also in ‘Danny, the Champion of the World’