The writing was on the wall Dean, although we didn’t know it at the time.
I never drove or knew anyone who did drive an 86 8 whlr so can’t comment, I did have an Octopus which had 230bhp motor, I’m told, which on two Scotch a week earned me an extra £10 ,a lot in those days, compared to the Gardner’s n kept you warm. So for all I liked my Fodens I’d always have gone for the Octopus , but oh dear the poor old headless wonder in her !!! 
Cheers Coomsey
coomsey:
0
The writing was on the wall Dean, although we didn’t know it at the time.
I never drove or knew anyone who did drive an 86 8 whlr so can’t comment, I did have an Octopus which had 230bhp motor, I’m told, which on two Scotch a week earned me an extra £10 ,a lot in those days, compared to the Gardner’s n kept you warm. So for all I liked my Fodens I’d always have gone for the Octopus , but oh dear the poor old headless wonder in her !!!
Says more about the Gardner than the ‘Foden’.S83 with a Rolls 265 v F86/F7.The only part of the Foden they would see would be the tail lights disappearing over the horizon.
DEANB:
Some odds and sods.Click on pages twice to read.
Guy big J 1970.
Anyone drive one of these with the 350 lump in it. That was some serious power back then so must have gone well. Nearly double
the BHP of the standard 180 gardner.1/quote]
We had this discussion a few months ago on the Guy thread…it didn’t exist after the Earls Court exhibition
DEANB:
E.J.Seal Volvo F7 bulker. Dont recognise that name,anyone know where they were from ■■9
LTS Freight Volvo.
8
Magnet Southerns Seddon Atkinson.
7
Anyone recognise the mighty Scania 141 ■■?
6
Walkers of Tuxford Volvo F10.
5
Blue Circle Cement Leyland.
4
Rugby Cement ERF.
3
C.C.Pritchard Seddon Atkinson.
2
Gateway Supermarkets MAN.
1
EEC Quarries Volvo F7. They had a quarry at Worth Matravers near Swanage.
0
hi dean ,love the Pritchard Sedd Atk ,that is before they relocated to Pontypool ,did alot out of Coopers filters Abergavenny ,both now a memory ,regards Keith
Well its nice to see my article again. My Boss told me that I was getting the first Foden Haulmaster, bigger Gardner, rubber backend, but it didnt materialise so I got the last Foden that Ryton Gravel
ever bought. However it was the first new lorry that Id ever had till then so Ill always have a soft
spot for it. Here it is on the spine road having just tipped at Pioneer Concrete at Cramlington. This
was my last day as being on basic 40 hours for a while [ early 80`s building recession ] I was leaving
for pastures new. My son, now 46, would be so embarrassed.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Great pic pushrod. You were better off with that S83 than a Haulmaster in my opinion, the ‘bigger Gardner’ was no better than the 6LXB and less reliable and I still think the S83 had the comfier cab. Regarding power; the folk at Gardner’s Patricroft works used to tell me that when drivers complained of them being slow compared to ■■■■■■■ etc that whoever ordered the truck new should have specified a Rolls or ■■■■■■■ in the first place then! 
Pete.
On the previous page the maroon SedAtk livestock motor TPB is T.P. Bell from Carlisle.
The grey and red DAF David Cutler is an ex Browns of Carlisle motor.
DEANB:
Rumgally Bedford TM. Cant remember if we have had one of these on before. Anyone know where they were based ?4
TLT ERF. Anyone know where they were based ?
3
Godfrey’s Volvo F86 from Newark. Pretty sure we have not had one on before.
2
S.H.Brunton Haulage Foden. Not had one of these on before,anyone know where they were from ■■
1
BOC Leyland.
0
Some Welsh motors.
Ellis Volvo
9
M.E.Edwards livestock DAF.
8
GEWS Foden. Dont think we have had one of these on before ?
7
Roberts of Ffestiniog Foden.
6
David Cutler Transport DAF. Dont think we have had one on before ?
5
Hi Dean ,the GEWS Foden ,is on the causeway leading into Portmadog ,has our Paul been spending some time in North Wales ,? regards Keith
Between the hours of 7pm to 7am i think the Porthmadog causway was free to cross but other times there was a toll and no easy way of avoiding it I cant remember how much the toll was old age but something tells me 5p and could cross as many times as you liked think the toll money went to the local town council.It was fun crossing the toll with a tall wall on the left side sloping out when going north and a low wall on the left comeing southbound and it was Bloody narrow when you met a lorry or coach it was crawling past each other with mirrors in
Ha, I remember that toll. I hit it early one morning, black dark and driving rain. The headlights picked out a wooden school bench type contraption and an ageing couple were on patrol and were wet through. It was 5p and they put it in the cake tin on the middle of the bench which had about £1 or so in it. I quickly gave up pondering the futility of it when I came across that damned wall.
DEANB:
Rumgally Bedford TM. Cant remember if we have had one of these on before. Anyone know where they were based ?4
TLT ERF. Anyone know where they were based ?
3
Godfrey’s Volvo F86 from Newark. Pretty sure we have not had one on before.
2
S.H.Brunton Haulage Foden. Not had one of these on before,anyone know where they were from ■■
1
BOC Leyland.
0
Some Welsh motors.
Ellis Volvo
9
M.E.Edwards livestock DAF.
8
GEWS Foden. Dont think we have had one of these on before ?
7
Roberts of Ffestiniog Foden.
6
David Cutler Transport DAF. Dont think we have had one on before ?
5
Hello DEAN ,yes John Roberts FFestiniog ,not featured hem before big fleet of bulkers that haul powdered slate ,thank you Trevor
coomsey:
The writing was on the wall Dean, although we didn’t know it at the time.
I never drove or knew anyone who did drive an 86 8 whlr so can’t comment, I did have an Octopus which had 230bhp motor, I’m told, which on two Scotch a week earned me an extra £10 ,a lot in those days, compared to the Gardner’s n kept you warm. So for all I liked my Fodens I’d always have gone for the Octopus , but oh dear the poor old headless wonder in her !!!
gingerfold:
“DEANB” Some odds and sods.Guy big J 1970.
Anyone drive one of these with the 350 lump in it. That was some serious power back then so must have gone well. Nearly double
the BHP of the standard 180 gardner.We had this discussion a few months ago on the Guy thread…it didn’t exist after the Earls Court exhibition
Cheers Graham.
kingswinford kit:
“DEANB”C.C.Pritchard Seddon Atkinson.
hi dean ,love the Pritchard Sedd Atk ,that is before they relocated to Pontypool ,did alot out of Coopers filters Abergavenny ,both now a memory ,regards Keith
We have had a few of Prichard’s on here Keith !
pushrod47:
Well its nice to see my article again. My Boss told me that I was getting the first Foden Haulmaster, bigger Gardner, rubber backend, but it didnt materialise so I got the last Foden that Ryton Gravel
ever bought. However it was the first new lorry that Id ever had till then so Ill always have a soft
spot for it. Here it is on the spine road having just tipped at Pioneer Concrete at Cramlington. This
was my last day as being on basic 40 hours for a while [ early 80`s building recession ] I was leaving
for pastures new. My son, now 46, would be so embarrassed.
Excellent “pushrod47” ! Now how about some pics of the Volvo F86 ?
windrush:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Great pic pushrod. You were better off with that S83 than a Haulmaster in my opinion, the ‘bigger Gardner’ was no better than the 6LXB and less reliable and I still think the S83 had the comfier cab. Regarding power; the folk at Gardner’s Patricroft works used to tell me that when drivers complained of them being slow compared to ■■■■■■■ etc that whoever ordered the truck new should have specified a Rolls or ■■■■■■■ in the first place then!
Pete.
Thanks for your comment Pete.
robroy:
On the previous page the maroon SedAtk livestock motor TPB is T.P. Bell from Carlisle.
The grey and red DAF David Cutler is an ex Browns of Carlisle motor.
Good man Rob,thanks for the info chap.
kingswinford kit:
“DEANB”GEWS Foden. Dont think we have had one of these on before ?
Hi Dean ,the GEWS Foden ,is on the causeway leading into Portmadog ,has our Paul been spending some time in North Wales ,? regards Keith
Driven along there a few times and can remember the micky mouse toll ! Just trying to remember i think the last time i was
there which must be at least 10 years ago i think the toll had either gone or the little hut was shut so you just drove straight through.
I think that GEWS pic was taken a few years ago Keith,but he has been to Wales at least 3 times this year.
ianto:
Between the hours of 7pm to 7am i think the Porthmadog causway was free to cross but other times there was a toll and no easy way of avoiding it I cant remember how much the toll was old age but something tells me 5p and could cross as many times as you liked think the toll money went to the local town council.It was fun crossing the toll with a tall wall on the left side sloping out when going north and a low wall on the left comeing southbound and it was Bloody narrow when you met a lorry or coach it was crawling past each other with mirrors in
tastrucker:
“DEANB”Roberts of Ffestiniog Foden.
Hello DEAN ,yes John Roberts FFestiniog ,not featured hem before big fleet of bulkers that haul powdered slate ,thank you Trevor
Thanks for the info Trevor.
Carryfast:
“coomsey”
The writing was on the wall Dean, although we didn’t know it at the time.
I never drove or knew anyone who did drive an 86 8 whlr so can’t comment, I did have an Octopus which had 230bhp motor, I’m told, which on two Scotch a week earned me an extra £10 ,a lot in those days, compared to the Gardner’s n kept you warm. So for all I liked my Fodens I’d always have gone for the Octopus , but oh dear the poor old headless wonder in her !!!Says more about the Gardner than the ‘Foden’.S83 with a Rolls 265 v F86/F7.The only part of the Foden they would see would be the tail lights disappearing over the horizon.
Nothing like stating the obvious “Carryfast” So the F86 would have been 201 bhp,so why would anyone be surprised that
a Foden with another 64 bhp would be quicker ! 201 bhp v 265 bhp 
Foden S83 with rolls royce 265 bhp from 1977.
Click on pages twice.
Hypnos Scania.
Wincanton DAF.
KEB Packaging Mercedes.
Rugby Cement Volvo.
Taylor Barnard Scania.
R.J.Mason Volvo from South Wales.
White Arrow Express Iveco.
Nicholas Packaging Scania. Looks like a BOCM Pauls grain motor going the other way.
Derek Cooper Volvo from Kings Lynn.
Anyone recognise the Seddon Atkinson ■■?
The Foden/Rolls road test was interesting, we didn’t have any fitted with the RR 265 until the Haulmasters came out. Two points I picked up on; “The top line of warning lights was obscured by the steering wheel” but the steering column and wheel were adjustable for rake so maybe the tester didn’t realise? Also; “The difficult change from direct 1’st to low 3rd” was actually one of the quickest changes in the box and the way we always used the box, much better than going from 2nd direct to 4th low which was Fodens recommended change.
One of our vintage club members had a spell on a Haulmaster slurry tanker for the water board but was previously driving a Commer Maxiload for another company. Anyway he thumbed a lift with a Derbyshire Stone Foden just before he changed jobs and watched the driver using the box. The driver told him to jump across and have a go but ignore the gearchange instructions printed on the cab window but use it as a 12 speed and he managed ok. When he started the new job the manager arranged for Fodens test driver to come and give him tuition, not being aware of his previous drive! Anyway they set off and did about twenty miles and the test driver commented that he hadn’t seen the eight speed box used like that and admitted that it was better for making progress than the way Fodens advised!
Pete.
DEANB:
Carryfast:
“coomsey”
The writing was on the wall Dean, although we didn’t know it at the time.
I never drove or knew anyone who did drive an 86 8 whlr so can’t comment, I did have an Octopus which had 230bhp motor, I’m told, which on two Scotch a week earned me an extra £10 ,a lot in those days, compared to the Gardner’s n kept you warm. So for all I liked my Fodens I’d always have gone for the Octopus , but oh dear the poor old headless wonder in her !!!Says more about the Gardner than the ‘Foden’.S83 with a Rolls 265 v F86/F7.The only part of the Foden they would see would be the tail lights disappearing over the horizon.
Nothing like stating the obvious “Carryfast”
a Foden with another 64 bhp would be quicker ! 201 bhp v 265 bhpFoden S83 with rolls royce 265 bhp from 1977.
Click on pages twice.
3
2
1
0
The point was that the Brit bashers usually conveniently over look the obvious.As usual in the case of conveniently comparing the Gardner powered heaps with the small engined DAF and Volvo screamers.The Rolls 265 Foden was one of the best trucks I ever drove ( especially being S85 6 wheelers in my case ). Thanks for posting the road test.
Wasn’t it at Pritchards where a brand new Erf ECX Olympic was found in the back of a shed? Brand new and unregistered, it was doing the rounds for a while, being bought and sold a number of times as a potential show truck, because there was a definite question mark over whether it could be registered at all. Something to do with type approval or emissions ratings? It has disappeared but someone has it stashed away somewhere…it was fetching big money from memory…
windrush:
The Foden/Rolls road test was interesting, we didn’t have any fitted with the RR 265 until the Haulmasters came out. Two points I picked up on; “The top line of warning lights was obscured by the steering wheel” but the steering column and wheel were adjustable for rake so maybe the tester didn’t realise? Also; “The difficult change from direct 1’st to low 3rd” was actually one of the quickest changes in the box and the way we always used the box, much better than going from 2nd direct to 4th low which was Fodens recommended change.One of our vintage club members had a spell on a Haulmaster slurry tanker for the water board but was previously driving a Commer Maxiload for another company. Anyway he thumbed a lift with a Derbyshire Stone Foden just before he changed jobs and watched the driver using the box. The driver told him to jump across and have a go but ignore the gearchange instructions printed on the cab window but use it as a 12 speed and he managed ok. When he started the new job the manager arranged for Fodens test driver to come and give him tuition, not being aware of his previous drive! Anyway they set off and did about twenty miles and the test driver commented that he hadn’t seen the eight speed box used like that and admitted that it was better for making progress than the way Fodens advised!
Pete.
Thats a cracker with regard to the Foden test driver and the gearbox.
Piston broke:
Wasn’t it at Pritchards where a brand new Erf ECX Olympic was found in the back of a shed? Brand new and unregistered, it was doing the rounds for a while, being bought and sold a number of times as a potential show truck, because there was a definite question mark over whether it could be registered at all. Something to do with type approval or emissions ratings? It has disappeared but someone has it stashed away somewhere…it was fetching big money from memory…
Never heard that story before Paul. I wonder if the original buyer bought it and stored it so he did not have to pay so much tax ?
Austin range brochure.
Always thought the half tonner van looked smart.
The Thornycroft and Foden in this 1960 advert really had character unlike todays trucks. Mind you i dont expect they
were that good to drive.
Atkinson.
King Trailers.
Whats the truckpulling the low loader ■■ I think its a Maggie ?
1957 ERF advert.
Thornycroft’s “Mighty Antar” which was first shown at the Earls Court Show in 1950. At its release it was Britain’s most powerful
vehicle with a 250 bhp Meteorite engine. Anyone drive one ■■
