TIL about East Germany’s extremely durable drinking glass

19 days ago by solbt to c/todayilearned

A Berlin startup seeks to revive the legacy of Superfest, a line of extremely durable drinking glasses produced in East Germany.

Superfest, chemically strengthened glass

mmmm 36 points 19 days ago

Even though Superfest glasses soared in popularity, their lifespan was cut short once it became clear that the product was too durable.

Ah yes, capitalism striking again

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Godric -5 points 18 days ago

produced in East Germany between 1980 and 1990

Those East German capitalist pigs!

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Dreamcatcher 12 points 18 days ago

As per the article:

Before anything could be done to potentially decrease Superfest’s extreme durability, the brand’s parent company, VEB Sachsenglas Schwepnitz, went bankrupt after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

and Wikipedia:

With the political change, the GDR glass industry and its scientific institutions began to be wound down.

this would appear to be a result of East Germany being annexed into the capitalist West Germany, which happened 9 November 1989 – 3 October 1990.

Without commenting on East Germany, the annexation was handled terribly, and it's the reason AFD is rising in popularity in eastern Germany these days.

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deft 1 point 18 days ago

Do you have anything to read more about how the annexation gave rise to the AFD?

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deathmetaldawgy 3 points 18 days ago

Those East Damn German (s) ! Capitalist Pigs

fixed

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kalpol 15 points 19 days ago

We used to have the good Pyrex, and Corning Ware too. How times have changed

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davel 6 points 19 days ago

Last I heard, there were two Pyrex’s in production, and you could tell the good from the bad by subtle differences in branding.

Edit to add: https://lifehacker.com/...

So, how can you actually tell if you’re dealing with “real” Pyrex? As a rule of thumb, it’s safe to simply assume you aren’t—at least, not if you’re in the United States. The “real stuff” hasn’t existed at all in the U.S. market for at least 30 years. Pyrex started phasing out borosilicate glass in the 1950s and had stopped using it entirely by 1998, when World Kitchen (now Corelle Brands) bought the license to the PYREX and pyrex brands. Unless you buy your cookware from a vintage shop that can prove it was manufactured in the 1940s or earlier, you’re very unlikely to come across borosilicate glass pyrex.

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kalpol 4 points 19 days ago

Yeah although the dates surprise me. I thought I had borosilicate Pyrex from the 60s or 70s. Anyway, sucks that it isnt made any more, it is tough stuff.

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davel 5 points 19 days ago

You can still find similar products if you shop online specifically for borosilicate, but they won’t necessarily be from Pyrex. For instance, OXO has a good reputation: https://www.oxo.com/...

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LeighWeighTacoma 2 points 19 days ago

I believe France still makes Pyrex with the borsillicate instead of soda glass but every other plant uses soda glass

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DarrinBrunner 8 points 19 days ago

Here's a good article about them in German:

https://davidkrenz.de/2020/11/06/zu-gut/

Pook and the Schwepnitzer sales management travelled to the international trade fairs Leipzig and Frankfurt. “We built a wall where we stacked the glasses. Look at this, breakfast! No reaction," Pook said. “I had the best connections to all major customers, at Coca Cola, for example, it was said, why should we take a glass, which does not break, we earn money with our glasses.” How much did he sell? Not a piece. “The traders understandably said who was already sawing off the branch he was sitting on.”

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ShinkanTrain 4 points 18 days ago

God, those Coke glasses are absolute pieces of shit. The edges are so thin you can't convince me it wasn't straight up designed to break.

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fratermus 7 points 19 days ago

Sounded cool, so I looked on eBay. I can't afford 'em.

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whats_a_lemmy 4 points 19 days ago

Holy cow, no kidding. $80+ apiece

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SnarkoPolo 6 points 19 days ago

They should have made Trabants out of that.

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phoenixz 2 points 19 days ago

Trabant as in the car?

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Landless2029 4 points 18 days ago

I purchased 2x12 16oz ball wide mouth mason jars like 15 years ago. Only one got a chip in all that time.

Fun accessories too. I got sleeves to make them insulated, stainless steel lids with silicone gaskets for topping stuff to toss in fridge or just covering a drink while outdoors and even pour spouts to make tiny pitchers. They have measurments on the side so all my cups are measuring cups.