5th time out with agency last night

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
1

alright guys and girls,
got a phonecall yeaterday aftrnoon asking if i would like to do a night shift trunk for them starting at 9pm .no problem i said .i arrived at 840pm and signed in and got handed my keys almost immediatly . its a 16 ton rigid your driving tonight son and your off to glasgow.
i went out and found my vehicle,did my usual daily checks and checked all my paprwork .

the vehicle was a 53 plate scania,iv neverdriven a scania before but the gearbox was just the same as volvo fl10 which is a 8 speed range change.

anyway to the point of my story ,
i have a class 1 which i passed through the ministry of defence 9 years ago but i have never driven a rigiid before and maybe it was just me but i found it totally different to driving an artic,i would go as far to say it was harder.they dont seem to manouvre aswell

2

I prefer driving a ‘bendy’ to a rigid. The problem I find when I get into a rigid after a while on bendy’s is, that for a split second, I steer the wrong way when starting to reverse! :blush: :blush: :blush:

3

marcustandy:
for a split second, I steer the wrong way when starting to reverse! :blush: :blush: :blush:

oddly enough I do that when I get in the car to go home reversing it out of the carpark after finishing my shift :blush: :blush:

4

Your not on your own milkman. I took my test in a class one. It was years after that I did any rigid work. The thing that always caught me out was at T junctions. It’s embarrassing when your facing the kerb and have to back up because you approached it as you would in an artic.

I drive a rigid all the time at the moment about ½ the time with a drag. A fraction short of 18.5 meters it has the turning circle the size of a small town.

But remember it works both ways.

Whilst their 6 wheelers were off road two drivers used the spare artic. One jumped in one morning and set off out of the yard at Hipperholme and took the gatepost out by a mile because he did it like a rigid.

The other one turned right into a builders merchants, after jumping out to ask where he needed to be he set off up the yard. As he set off the van at the side of him did the same. He stopped and not able to see the driver he waved for him to go. Nothing happened so he set off again, as did the van. It was only then when he realised that he was pushing it with the headboard of the trailer.

5

ye,i can relate to that,i went to steer the wrong way when reversing on to the loading bay last night.

i also found out the turning circle very quickly aswell when i turned down the narrow lane to get to the back door loading dock and found i couldnt get round so i had to reverse slightly ,felt like a bit of a prat but it was a learning experience.

give me a bendy any day of the week

6

Can’t comment about artic v rigid myself, but on a similar note I find myself reaching up to the dashboard of my car to put the handbrake on. :blush:

7

Andyroo:
Can’t comment about artic v rigid myself, but on a similar note I find myself reaching up to the dashboard of my car to put the handbrake on. :blush:

All the time, I also occaisionally fumble around the gearstick on the car looking for the collar and/or switch :unamused:

8

Ohh good its not just me then :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: .

Also do things like setting off in the car in 3rd gear :blush: :blush: .

Taking very wide swings going round corners & wondering why the other driver has a look of panic on his face :blush: sorry forgot i was in my car.

Mick

9

Andyroo:
Can’t comment about artic v rigid myself, but on a similar note I find myself reaching up to the dashboard of my car to put the handbrake on. :blush:

Ahh, you’re lucky then :slight_smile: All my handbrake ones are behind the gearstick next to the PTO switch…