Truck Shite

[High Jetter]

Perhaps there was regulation or taxation that favoured UK truck makers? Makes sense.

[quicksilver]

Check out this rarity. Plenty of horseboxes around recently as we're into horse dancing season but mostly fancy modern types. Not this one though, a 35-year old AWD that looks very well kept and is possibly the nicest of the few AWDs still working. The passengers look enthralled at travelling in such a rare vehicle.

[Noel Tidybeard]

On 13/04/2024 at 19:36, martc said:

Any idea what this wagon is? Has the look of an early Iveco model from FIAT or Magirus Deutz, the badge looks like an OM but in all cases the grille is far to narrow.

 

isn't that a "club of four"? so named cos it was used by 4 brands

• volvo
• saviem (renault)
• iveco (magirus deutz)
• DAF

[worldofceri]

I started working for WS Transportation a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been allocated this Scania 18 tonner on pallet network and general haulage work.

Interestingly, it was originally a 4x2 tractor unit running in Eddie Stobart livery. In common with several sister trucks, it was stretched and converted to a curtainsider in 2021 (judging by the body builders plate on the door shut). At a guess, acquiring new trucks was difficult post-Covid, so the existing fleet was adapted to suit changing operational needs. Being a 410, it goes pretty well for a four wheeler! Here is a pic of it from the Eddie days, borrowed from ‘eastleighbusman’ via Flickr.

[bigstraight6]

19 minutes ago, worldofceri said:

I started working for WS Transportation a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been allocated this Scania 18 tonner on pallet network and general haulage work.

Interestingly, it was originally a 4x2 tractor unit running in Eddie Stobart livery. In common with several sister trucks, it was stretched and converted to a curtainsider in 2021 (judging by the body builders plate on the door shut). At a guess, acquiring new trucks was difficult post-Covid, so the existing fleet was adapted to suit changing operational needs. Being a 410, it goes pretty well for a four wheeler! Here is a pic of it from the Eddie days, borrowed from ‘eastleighbusman’ via Flickr.

I’ve  driven plenty of these in tractor unit form but as an 18 ton rigid it must be a lively performer! It’s a bit of a throwback to many decades ago where tractor units became rigids or vice versa.

[LightBulbFun]

57 minutes ago, worldofceri said:

I started working for WS Transportation a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been allocated this Scania 18 tonner on pallet network and general haulage work.

Interestingly, it was originally a 4x2 tractor unit running in Eddie Stobart livery. In common with several sister trucks, it was stretched and converted to a curtainsider in 2021 (judging by the body builders plate on the door shut). At a guess, acquiring new trucks was difficult post-Covid, so the existing fleet was adapted to suit changing operational needs. Being a 410, it goes pretty well for a four wheeler! Here is a pic of it from the Eddie days, borrowed from ‘eastleighbusman’ via Flickr.

thats interesting! whats the rules and regulations when it comes to that, I was under the general impression that literally cutting and shutting a vehicle in such a manner, would be a fast track to a Q plate...

 

im glad to hear you have managed to land some work I hope it works out well for you   do you think they might object to you smuggling some cars around in the back for the forum still?

 

 

[sutty2006]

5 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

thats interesting! whats the rules and regulations when it comes to that, I was under the general impression that literally cutting and shutting a vehicle in such a manner, would be a fast track to a Q plate...

 

im glad to hear you have managed to land some work I hope it works out well for you   do you think they might object to you smuggling some cars around in the back for the forum still?

 

 

It can be done quite easily, but I’m not 100% certain on the exact laws. They have to be IVA approved I think, which means it gets tested to comply with the rules of a rigid vehicle and a change of chassis and then a new VTG plate is issued. 
 

i am no longer working for Mercedes Benz. I am now I’m my 3rd week of working for Trailer Auto Group, a new company specialising in the refurbishment of trailers owned by part of the Culina/stobart group. We have over 150 old “Eddie stobart” trailers on site being stripped, blasted, repainted and rebuilt in “Stobart” or “Culina” livery. I am part of a 6 man team rebuilding and servicing the running gear on trailers. Much better, more relaxed and less stressful way of working. 

[bigstraight6]

Youngest son next to a stunning ERF about 20 years ago, my once boss is part of the family who ran this in fairground days..

[danthecapriman]

48 minutes ago, LightBulbFun said:

thats interesting! whats the rules and regulations when it comes to that, I was under the general impression that literally cutting and shutting a vehicle in such a manner, would be a fast track to a Q plate...

 

im glad to hear you have managed to land some work I hope it works out well for you   do you think they might object to you smuggling some cars around in the back for the forum still?

 

 

It used to happen reasonably often years ago. Obviously buying a truck of any sort is a big investment so buying a second or third hand vehicle then modifying it to suit your needs can be more cost effective. 
It can be as big a job as a full chassis stretch or even just adding an axle to a chassis to turn a 4x2 into a 6x2 or 6x4 etc etc.

When the truck companies in Malta used to buy up lots of older British trucks and ship them home to Malta lots of them were converted on arrival. Tractor units became tippers etc etc. 

 

[quicksilver]

9 minutes ago, danthecapriman said:

It used to happen reasonably often years ago. Obviously buying a truck of any sort is a big investment so buying a second or third hand vehicle then modifying it to suit your needs can be more cost effective. 
It can be as big a job as a full chassis stretch or even just adding an axle to a chassis to turn a 4x2 into a 6x2 or 6x4 etc etc.

When the truck companies in Malta used to buy up lots of older British trucks and ship them home to Malta lots of them were converted on arrival. Tractor units became tippers etc etc. 

 

It still happens quite a lot. I've seen a good number of tractor units, particularly ex Stobart Scanias, made into 6x2 or 8x2 rigids. That involves not only a chassis stretch but usually moving the lift axle to the rear (most tractor units are midlifts but almost all rigids are tag axle) and in the case of eight-wheelers adding another steer axle.

This one for instance was a Stobart 6x2 unit (PO66 UHU, Isabelle Skye), not that you'd recognise it as such now.

 

[danthecapriman]

21 minutes ago, quicksilver said:

It still happens quite a lot. I've seen a good number of tractor units, particularly ex Stobart Scanias, made into 6x2 or 8x2 rigids. That involves not only a chassis stretch but usually moving the lift axle to the rear (most tractor units are midlifts but almost all rigids are tag axle) and in the case of eight-wheelers adding another steer axle.

This one for instance was a Stobart 6x2 unit (PO66 UHU, Isabelle Skye), not that you'd recognise it as such now.

 

That does seem rather a lot of work! But someone must have still declared it cost effective.

The other day I found a photo on Flickr of an MAN tractor unit and it’d been converted from a 4x2 into 6x2 but the info under the pic says that some MAN technician’s had to come over from Germany to inspect the work. It didn’t say why, but maybe it was part of the conversion and registration process? 
All it said was the technician’s were happy it was ‘as good as a factory built one’.

[High Jetter]

13 hours ago, worldofceri said:

I started working for WS Transportation a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been allocated this Scania 18 tonner on pallet network and general haulage work.

Glad you got into something fairly quickly, hope it works out for you.

I've thought for a while now, that Portsmouth (PO) postcodes are the only ones that could possibly translate to a number plate and vice-versa (if you count the 'O' as a '0') like that.

[Vantman]

I have had 4 wheel tanker chassis shortened and 4 wheel car transporter chassis stretched,done by local engineering companies,no paperwork involved apart from the invoice!

[sutty2006]

14 hours ago, worldofceri said:

I started working for WS Transportation a couple of weeks ago. I’ve been allocated this Scania 18 tonner on pallet network and general haulage work.

Interestingly, it was originally a 4x2 tractor unit running in Eddie Stobart livery. In common with several sister trucks, it was stretched and converted to a curtainsider in 2021 (judging by the body builders plate on the door shut). At a guess, acquiring new trucks was difficult post-Covid, so the existing fleet was adapted to suit changing operational needs. Being a 410, it goes pretty well for a four wheeler! Here is a pic of it from the Eddie days, borrowed from ‘eastleighbusman’ via Flickr.

Our shunter is OAC. 4x2 tractor unit. 
 

 

[danthecapriman]

47 minutes ago, Vantman said:

I have had 4 wheel tanker chassis shortened and 4 wheel car transporter chassis stretched,done by local engineering companies,no paperwork involved apart from the invoice!

When I left school my first job was with Sparshatt & son coach builders in Havant. We used to alter the length of brand new trucks. 
I don’t remember ever doing big conversions like adding axles or anything but we definitely would alter length. 
They usually came in as new chassis cabs direct from the manufacturer then got built up into whatever the customer wanted. 
One of the biggest rolling contracts they had was with John Lewis. We’d get a few new Mercedes rigid chassis cabs delivered a week for building into box delivery trucks with a tail lift. They’d come into the workshop and the first job was removing the light bar from the back, measure up and slice off a few feet of chassis. 
 

The other favourite was removals trucks. Usually they came in as used trucks so there was always a variety of lengths involved depending what their previous use was. There was quite often an amount of demolition involved in them getting them ready for the new body. Then they usually got a chassis stretch to maximise the space in the back. 
Someone in the office did all the paperwork though so I’ve no idea how or what was involved with all that, but the customer would usually turn up after the vehicle was finished and drive them away.

[bigstraight6]

Bedford KM 8 legger conversion, not an option available from the factory…

[horriblemercedes]

On 14/04/2024 at 20:59, danthecapriman said:

Here’s a quick question for all you big rig fella’s…

How come lots of the European manufacturers of commercial vehicles didn’t import or even build their trucks here in the UK?

Theres so many makes (back in the good old days I mean!) that came from Europe and were very very popular there but for some reason never made it over here. Berliet for example. Was it as simple as they decided the domestic products popularity meant it was unlikely their stuff would sell here? Couldn’t be arsed with the hassle of right hand drive? Maybe our little island wasn’t thought of as a substantial enough market?

I just think it’s weird how we’re so close physically to the European mainland yet we got bugger all from them really truck wise. Cars obviously made it here and sold well enough for the most part.

The same question from the opposite side - ERF trucks were great, yet I don't remember seeing any abroad in the 20th century. 

 

I think it's just that local operators were familiar with the local product. Over time that changed with tariffs disappearing and globalisation meaning we had a 'survival of the fittest' situation. The biggest makers bought the smaller ones and assimilated them and others failed 

Note also that a lot of the DAF trucks you see around the UK and elsewhere are Leylands - engineered and built by Leyland but with DAF branding as the Leyland brand is long gone. You still see Leyland stickers in the door jamb on modern DAF trucks. The ones that are Leylands, that is 

[quicksilver]

13 hours ago, horriblemercedes said:

The same question from the opposite side - ERF trucks were great, yet I don't remember seeing any abroad in the 20th century. 

 

I think it's just that local operators were familiar with the local product. Over time that changed with tariffs disappearing and globalisation meaning we had a 'survival of the fittest' situation. The biggest makers bought the smaller ones and assimilated them and others failed 

Note also that a lot of the DAF trucks you see around the UK and elsewhere are Leylands - engineered and built by Leyland but with DAF branding as the Leyland brand is long gone. You still see Leyland stickers in the door jamb on modern DAF trucks. The ones that are Leylands, that is 

ERF did do some export business, particularly with the EC series. Quite a lot went to Spain and a few to France and Benelux. They look a bit unusual because the position of the badges is reversed so the ERF logo is still on the driver's side on LHD trucks. As for why they weren't more popular, I guess the reason was lack of after-sales support; without a large network of dealers throughout Europe who could get a broken-down truck back to work ASAP operators weren't willing to take the risk of buying them for long-distance work.

There's a thread discussing them on Trucknet: https://www.trucknetuk.com/t/left-hand-drive-ec-series-erfs/98494

 

[willswitchengage]

14 hours ago, horriblemercedes said:

Note also that a lot of the DAF trucks you see around the UK and elsewhere are Leylands - engineered and built by Leyland but with DAF branding as the Leyland brand is long gone. You still see Leyland stickers in the door jamb on modern DAF trucks. The ones that are Leylands, that is 

Nowadays all Leyland is really is another PACCAR factory. All LFs and CF65s (i.e. everything with a Cummins engine) are made in Leyland, and as are RHD larger CFs and XFs or whatever it's called these days. However most of the parts come from abroad so it's really just an assembly site.

[martc]

On 18/04/2024 at 14:44, Noel Tidybeard said:

isn't that a "club of four"? so named cos it was used by 4 brands

• volvo
• saviem (renault)
• iveco (magirus deutz)
• DAF

Could be, but which one? The lack of grille and strange looking badge have stumped me.

[martc]

[martc]

What lorry is this, a Leyland confection?

Info for the photo - '31-444 exits the single line chord from Sleaford station at Sleaford North Junction with a Skegness to Sheffield service, 25th July 1987.'

[Vantman]

28 minutes ago, martc said:

What lorry is this, a Leyland confection?

Info for the photo - '31-444 exits the single line chord from Sleaford station at Sleaford North Junction with a Skegness to Sheffield service, 25th July 1987.'

Leyland Constructor,available as an 8 or 6 wheeler.

[Captain Mainwaring]

1 hour ago, martc said:

What lorry is this, a Leyland confection?

Info for the photo - '31-444 exits the single line chord from Sleaford station at Sleaford North Junction with a Skegness to Sheffield service, 25th July 1987.'

Do love a 31!

[bigstraight6]

Some old lorries I saw in Cyprus last September.

[martc]

The predecessor to UAZ 452 'bread loaves', the UAZ 450, 1957, better looking than the more recent variety IMHO.

[808 Estate]

Its a cute little baby artic.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/van-details/202209089582501?sort=year-asc&advertising-location=at_vans&page=4&postcode=so157np&fromsra

[bigstraight6]

National Carriers had many of those small Ford D series artics, but I can only remember the earlier cab versions..

[Matty]

On 19/04/2024 at 10:26, danthecapriman said:

When I left school my first job was with Sparshatt & son coach builders in Havant. We used to alter the length of brand new trucks. 
I don’t remember ever doing big conversions like adding axles or anything but we definitely would alter length. 
They usually came in as new chassis cabs direct from the manufacturer then got built up into whatever the customer wanted. 
One of the biggest rolling contracts they had was with John Lewis. We’d get a few new Mercedes rigid chassis cabs delivered a week for building into box delivery trucks with a tail lift. They’d come into the workshop and the first job was removing the light bar from the back, measure up and slice off a few feet of chassis. 
 

The other favourite was removals trucks. Usually they came in as used trucks so there was always a variety of lengths involved depending what their previous use was. There was quite often an amount of demolition involved in them getting them ready for the new body. Then they usually got a chassis stretch to maximise the space in the back. 
Someone in the office did all the paperwork though so I’ve no idea how or what was involved with all that, but the customer would usually turn up after the vehicle was finished and drive them away.

My first start was similar with Solomon Commercials here in Haslingden. Highlights till I found my bearings were putting a 20mm drill bit through the cab backward loom on a brand new Actros (Cicley commercials had a beano on that one), and getting my dimensions wrong and cutting several feet more than I should of out of the main chassis legs on an also brand new ERF. To be fair I welded it back on and once you've built the body on the customer would never know 🤣

[ETCHY]

On 19/04/2024 at 20:34, bigstraight6 said:

Bedford KM 8 legger conversion, not an option available from the factory…

Gotta love a KM. Our neighbour when I was a kid drove a tipper one.

He used to bring it home, battered & plastered in shite. Brilliant !