OK Lads I have put the marques in no particular order 
but sensible opinions only so which, and the reasons why, was the finest British built motor out of the three ? 
Bewick.
Hey up Dennis Iām going to say that the Atkinson were the premium out of the 3
Mainly due to sales and longevity
gazsa401:
Hey up Dennis Iām going to say that the Atkinson were the premium out of the 3
I couldnāt possibly comment Gaz ! 
But I reckon it will set the āElworth contingentā off and running eh! Cheers Dennis. 
Dennis
Take it this not meant to go a 4th way thenā ā ? Guy Big J 2ā¦!!
Sorry couldnāt resist, & didnāt mean to high jack the thread 
EW
Iāll put my hard hat on Dennis
The only Foden I drove was a S104 Demo
I had it for 4 weeks as a trial motor
It had a 6LYT 320 Gardner fitted and the Eaton twin splitter it pulled and went well but it had the poxy cable gear linkage which was stiff and I didnāt think the build quality was very good
I must admit the ERF E12 I had before was much better
Cheers Gary [emoji1303]
Different horses for different courses. Artics/rigids? Eras? I can only relate to max weight rigid tippers from the 70ās onwards and Foden win by a country mile in my opinion. The truck was designed from the ground up using components manufactured in house (apart from the engine if you dissregard the stroker) whereas the other two just bolted together parts bought in and apart from the cabs were much the same vehicle. Very easy to repair but they did have faults (weak gearboxes was one) and stuck with outdated but reliable worm and wheel diffs and transmission handbrakes while most others were using spring brakes, ie they didnāt move with the times, but they still did the job well enough and most had a long service life. However I think the best Fodens overall were the later Paccar produced ones and they used mostly bought in components as well! 
Now if Atkinson āproperā used the same chassis as the later Sed Ak 400ās then that was a poor chassis for tipper work and they broke springs and cracked frames regularly, plus they were just too blooming heavy!
Pete.
EW car truck & bus:
DennisTake it this not meant to go a 4th way thenā ā ? Guy Big J 2ā¦!!
Sorry couldnāt resist, & didnāt mean to high jack the thread
EW
Now then āEWā your comment will be the basis of a secondary thread i.e. Guy-v-Seddon-v-Leyland ( Scammell) ! So lets get the primary āBlood bathā over first ! Cheers Dennis.
windrush:
Different horses for different courses. Artics/rigids? Eras? I can only relate to max weight rigid tippers from the 70ās onwards and Foden win by a country mile in my opinion. The truck was designed from the ground up using components manufactured in house (apart from the engine if you dissregard the stroker) whereas the other two just bolted together parts bought in and apart from the cabs were much the same vehicle. Very easy to repair but they did have faults (weak gearboxes was one) and stuck with outdated but reliable worm and wheel diffs and transmission handbrakes while most others were using spring brakes, ie they didnāt move with the times, but they still did the job well enough and most had a long service life. However I think the best Fodens overall were the later Paccar produced ones and they used mostly bought in components as well!Pete.
And here was you just getting into bed with your Horlicks Pete ! Sorry mate youāll not get much sleep tonight ! Plus you will be having nightmares about Fodens ! Sorry again Mate ! 
Cheers Dennis.
Well Dennis, Im a Foden man as you well know, The best Foden Tractor unit I had MET 547 G, Ex BOC Motor, Did me very well 22 tonne pay load, But it loved 25 tonne I can tell you , It made a few bob hauling Fish plus Quarry work, I wish I had kept it just to play with & take it to the shows, I even pulled flat trailers down to London , When I was in my heyday, Take care my good friend, Regards Larry.
The Atki fails on comfort ,the FODEN fails on gear cables ,the ERF have always had good brakes
Punchy Dan:
The Atki fails on comfort ,the FODEN fails on gear cables ,the ERF have always had good brakes
Spot on Dan. Regards Larry.
Dennis,
Just reminds us that as a British organisation what a fighting force we had in Truck n Bus , even a 2nd tierā¦ā¦.Oh how did the Swedes ever get allowed in!
E.Wā¦
EW car truck & bus:
Dennis,Just reminds us that as a British organisation what a fighting force we had in Truck n Bus , even a 2nd tierā¦ā¦.Oh how did the Swedes ever get allowed in!
E.Wā¦
Err because Bewick drivers couldnāt drive proper boxes such as Foden 12 speed ect unlike Larry so old Denzāl had no option but to purchase the swede synchromesh box lorries
You tell 'im, Dan! Any time soon heāll claim the best thing about the Atki was āDriver comfortā. Ask him about the top-of-the-range office chair that he drove!
Drove all 3 in the 70s, the 180 common to them all, never had a Foden with owt else in. Erf with db 6 leisurely but a pain in the rrrs. Akky the best looker n cab comfort, for me, but that poxy db 8sp (I know what youāre saying Pete!) So for me Foden, 39 or 80/83.The 12sp box couldnāt be bettered. With a ā ā ā ā ā ā ā Akky hands down .Canāt help meself, Octopus with Fuller was all over them and with the added luxury of a heater that actually kept you warm. Cheers Coomsey
Punchy Dan:
The Atki fails on comfort ,the FODEN fails on gear cables ,the ERF have always had good brakes
Well we ran plenty of them and never had a gear cable break? The early ones with a short gear lever could be heavy though but once modified they were fine. Keep them lubricated well and the lever below the cab greased (I did mine monthly) and the change was as good as any other. The old 7 inch Foden brakes were good āstoppersā whereas the later Rockwell ones left a lot to be desired though! Asbestos free linings were possibly the difference there though? Again it depends on what era we are talking about as things changed, donāt forget that Foden had many different cabs available to operators at any one time to suit different requirements whereas Atkinson and ERF possibly only had a choice of one?
Oh and no Dennis, I was nowhere near my bed, rarely turn in before midnight as Iām still only a mere slip of a lad thee knows! No nightmares either, only dreams of maybe having just one more ride in a proper (Foden!) truck before the āBig Bossā finally takes me upstairs for good.
Pete.
This may bring back a few memories.
Click on page twice to view.
windrush:
Punchy Dan:
The Atki fails on comfort ,the FODEN fails on gear cables ,the ERF have always had good brakesWell we ran plenty of them and never had a gear cable break? The early ones with a short gear lever could be heavy though but once modified they were fine. Keep them lubricated well and the lever below the cab greased (I did mine monthly) and the change was as good as any other. The old 7 inch Foden brakes were good āstoppersā whereas the later Rockwell ones left a lot to be desired though! Asbestos free linings were possibly the difference there though? Again it depends on what era we are talking about as things changed, donāt forget that Foden had many different cabs available to operators at any one time to suit different requirements whereas Atkinson and ERF possibly only had a choice of one?
Oh and no Dennis, I was nowhere near my bed, rarely turn in before midnight as Iām still only a mere slip of a lad thee knows!
Pete.
Retired Old ā ā ā ā :
You tell 'im, Dan! Any time soon heāll claim the best thing about the Atki was āDriver comfortā. Ask him about the top-of-the-range office chair that he drove!
DEANB:
This may bring back a few memories.Click on page twice to view.
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Remember them well Dean.
Erf one two alley hoop n youāre sat down ready for the off! Akky n Foden never quite mastered the best mount up, wheel or step or a bit of both? N when you got to the threshold headfirst or the side on limbo?
Boss Trev Glover was a big man 6.6" ,heād move the 39s anytime, never saw him in a S80 .