Have driven all combinations including a long rigid with a big rear overhang round London for a couple of years. Took a day or two to familiarise myself and extra care when turning tight but at the end of the day no great problem. I actually found coaches harder to adapt to but again no hassle after a couple of days.
All rigids should be legally required to have a pivot point between the cab and an extra front axle.
This would make life much easier
On a 12m 6 wheeler with tag axle the tail can swing out by 1.4m, so if you were tight against the curb and turned hard right you’ll clear the path. So you need to make gentle long turns if the road is not that wide and if there are two lanes in your direction straddle the white line between the two and do your best to keep traffic out, you’ll still need to watch out for cyclists and motorbikes cutting through.
One thing to remember about a rigid is that it will always reverse out along the same track as it went in, if you get in a muddle just follow the wheel tracks out backwards. Unless it has a tag axle and you drive in with it raised, once you’ve dropped it you’ll make the turning circle worse and you might not get out again. Best bet is to drop the tag if you think it’s going to get difficuly, if it goes in it’ll come out. Better that than you go in empty, load up and get stuck so you have to unload to get out again.
There’s a lot of one trick pony’s about .everytime I seen an artic man trying to reverse a wagon n drag they’ve worn the king pins out before they have finished the manoeuvre 
I turned out to be the something like the fourth person to bump the same wagon within 4 weeks, including the supervisor!
Can nobody drive these days? Appalling state of affairs.
jakethesnake:
I turned out to be the something like the fourth person to bump the same wagon within 4 weeks, including the supervisor!
Can nobody drive these days? Appalling state of affairs.
Driving a rigid is usually a doddle, but several hours into the shift this thing hadn’t half taken its toll.
It was servicing an urban round, and you couldn’t make a single turn without worrying about wiping out traffic lights, parked cars, brick walls, or whatever - everything had to be judged within inches, every couple of minutes, all day long.
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.
The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
jakethesnake:
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
Maybe he’d sound like the hero you so clearly are?
toonsy:
jakethesnake:
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
Maybe he’d sound like the hero you so clearly are?
So you obviously think it’s normal to get in such a state driving a frkken lorry.
JEEZUZ. What’s the world coming to?
I could understand if he was landing an aeroplane for the first time but… 
jakethesnake:
toonsy:
jakethesnake:
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
Maybe he’d sound like the hero you so clearly are?
So you obviously think it’s normal to get in such a state driving a frkken lorry.
JEEZUZ. What’s the world coming to?I could understand if he was landing an aeroplane for the first time but…
I’d have felt more shame if it hadn’t turned out I was only the latest of many to come to grief in the same wagon on the same round.
The warning is there anyway. Don’t assume that because you can drive an artic, that a rigid with a very large swing-out is going to be a walk in the park.
The behaviour of the swing-out, and the perspective you have on it, is very different from the cut-in, and it presents at the same time as you’re monitoring the cut-in and the front corner.
Well, after 10 miles was back in the swing of it. The rear steer is a big plus and soon got used to it. If only reversing was so easy. The rear was cutting in a lot sooner than expected that I didn’t get used to but another day in one would sort that out.
Looking to get back into some real mans driving tomorrow though.
jakethesnake:
toonsy:
jakethesnake:
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
Maybe he’d sound like the hero you so clearly are?
So you obviously think it’s normal to get in such a state driving a frkken lorry.
JEEZUZ. What’s the world coming to?I could understand if he was landing an aeroplane for the first time but…
The irony being that the placement of rear axles too far forward is just creates a worse problem in the form of tail sweep and weight distribution.Based on an unnecessary flawed solution,to the non existent problem of cut in,because too many drivers are scared to deal with the latter.Preferring the out of sight out of mind approach of silly amounts of tail sweep.
jakethesnake:
toonsy:
jakethesnake:
Dear me, you sound like you are over thinking things or you lack confidence.
Something not right. It’s just a truck at the end of the day.The one I drove had no power steering. Wonder how you would feel after driving it round Central London every day… Lol
Maybe he’d sound like the hero you so clearly are?
So you obviously think it’s normal to get in such a state driving a frkken lorry.
JEEZUZ. What’s the world coming to?I could understand if he was landing an aeroplane for the first time but…
I just understand that bumps happen.
But more so I was referring to no power steering part as to what makes you a hero.
Really? Nah never 
It was the norm then, everybody was the same and it was a struggle especially fully loaded and trying to manouvre in a small yard.
No sync gearbox and no air assisted clutch either. Boy did I have strong arms and a strong left leg in these days!
It was fun then but if I was driving now I would prefer an auto like the last truck I drove had.
Bit late now, but if the rear steer was causing you issues (sounds like it might have been when reversing)… so for next time, in a merc there’s a button on dash to centre it and lock it straight. Looks like a picture of an axle with a triangle (germans idea of an arrow I think), pointing downwards at the middle of the axle. Probably located near lift axle / weight transfer button. Only took me about 2 years to figure out what that button did
It’s a Scania and you cant turn it off. Was asked to take it out again this afternoon and the reversing was no problem. We are an adaptable animal
Best thing to do is put the dinky toys away and just stick with the class one big boys real trucks
Popcorn…
toonsy:
Best thing to do is put the dinky toys away and just stick with the class one big boys real trucksPopcorn…
No need to worry about tail sweep with artics at all.The definition of out of sight out of mind. 