Big Al the frying scotsman:
No wiretwister it was the one b4 what you said made a lot of sense it was mr caveman how just was trying to give me a bashing for askin for advice rather than just going out on my own and bulling my way through things.
ignorance is bliss…happy trucking.
Jesus dieseldog he’s only a new driver looking for a bit of help 
Big Al the frying scotsman:
Ok but where do you guys get the bottle to drive one in a city center you dont know? I am driving in my own fair city of glasgow and my stress level is unreal never mind driving the a82 loch side road to oban
I have done that in a Cat C was interesting btw but easier to go through Tarbet ( sp ) for Oban in a lorry
Having you CE opens more doors for you it did when I passed mine
You take care watch the road marking & sign post for the warning & where to turn round if need be
Glasgow easy compared to London btw
If in doubt get out & look take time dont be afraid to ask for help
Or if you do by any chance come across that 13’ 9" bridge on way to Clydebank Bussiness park call the police for help 
dont drive under it
Always remember your height be aware of it & how long you are
irish lorries:
Jesus dieseldog he’s only a new driver looking for a bit of help
I know,but ffs,if your doing class 2 in your local area,and the thought of driving a class 1 in the same location…(scares the life out of you),then how bad can it be?..some of the posts in here are sad from guys with no intuition,but what kind of help is he actually going to get from posters here?..just go for it and wreck it as you’ve no confidence,or don’t do it as you’ve no confidence…either way you wont know till you just get on with it and do it anyway. theres guys posting that they cant do the job as their trucks cigarette lighter wont work so theve no sat nav…what are things coming to when it gets to that stage.best thing is just to start on English/irish work with the tang truckers,and go balls out and in at the deep end,that way your in or out and you know where you stand.
Well mister dog i do apologise for useing the new fangeld technology to get feed back and advice. You do know you can email now with out fear of the germans shooting down your pidgeon and back to your first outburst would you now drive the truck that they gave you to drive?? Never mind what vosa would say on your first truck. But hey hind sight is great aint it?
And cheers animal its why i aint bent any metal yet and aye i didnt think of london i think we have it easy here in comparison. I still might get edinburgh and i dont even want to do that on foot
I find it easier to drive & reverse a CE now as opposed to a rigid they dont have such a big turning circle
You could go have an assessment to see how you feel about driving 1
Was talking to a driver the other day who has a C licence did do a test drive in a W&D felt uncomfortable driving it so left it was pleased to get out he is happy doing what he is doing
BTW I have the biggest balls 
Yeah someone said that. I am going to try that as i havent even sat in a cab of a artic never mind driven one so i think it makes sence to atleast try the assesment first
And as for your balls do you need to take them into account when workin out your mgw
If your confident & competent driving rigids, you’ll be fine in artics and will very quickly prefer driving them. The turning circle is superb. The thought of making the step up is more daunting that the reality. Everyones crap at reversing when they start, you’ll pick it up.
GO FOR IT.
Fair play rob thats the kind of feedback i was looking for i do belive in look before you jump. I am defo going for a assesment drive and see where i am at. As this is the time to make the leap and i am not long out of training so hopefully still in the groove to take the bull by the horns and pass
Big Al the frying scotsman:
Well mister dog i do apologise for useing the new fangeld technology to get feed back and advice. You do know you can email now with out fear of the germans shooting down your pidgeon and back to your first outburst would you now drive the truck that they gave you to drive?? Never mind what vosa would say on your first truck. But hey hind sight is great aint it?
il give you a reply once I work out what that ramble means… 
maybe not the best place to post as you were always going to get both sides of the coin on here! fair play for asking and as mentioned some say yeah go for it other are quite correctly pointing out if your that nervous about city centre driving it may not be the best option.
take the test drive and see what you think but at the end of the day if you want to be a driver for a living then to me the more strings to the bow the better.
you could also do a bit of market research and see if any local firms do trunking etc.
Just go for it bud, at least you know you have it !! 
i passed my class 1 way back in 1995 but i could only get class 2 work through agency so i spent 9 years driving class 2 ( 7 years in full time employment ) and that was multi drop in nearly every town and city in central Scotland and sometimes Aberdeen 
but i always had that class 1 itch that i wanted to scratch so i took the plunge and got myself a job driving class 1 and remember it was nearly 10 years after i got the licence…
yes i was rusty as ■■■■ but i kept at it and got the experience i needed and in the 5 years i did that job i only went into Edinburgh about twice and i cant remember ever being sent into Glasgow city centre and yes some drops were tight but every time you got a new drop you asked every question imaginable before you left the depot to make sure you knew exactly how to get there and what to do when you did…
you could just join an agency and to trunking work until you have the confidence and you wont fret when a customer says… " it goes in there pal !! " 
dieseldog999:
hard to believe what im reading here…I passed with richies/Livingston at 10-30 in the morning…at 2 pm I was loading for 5 drops England south coast,…guy j4 180 gardner,5 gears,no power steering,no heating,no, alternator,i went away with 5 big batteries in the pit and had to use the lights as a last resort,passenger door welded shut to pass the mot,and mirrors like a packet of ■■■■.thats the job when you just pass your test and your mad for tar.,6 months later I was doing European work,and a year after that I was doing 3 trips to Saudi and that was back in 1978. trucks are a doddle now ffs. just do it. if you’ve no bottle,then wreck a few agency trucks before you get a decent job…you will never know till you try,so geton with it and just do it. id rather be trying to squeeze in somewhere in an artic than a big rigid…pass your test…come over to Ireland and work for a month [zb] bricks.then the uk will feel like its all motorway right up the a82 and beyond.you cant imagine the roads over here compared to the uk…jump right in at the deep end,and get on with it,then wonder later why you fannied around on a rigid…simple as that.
Yes, but there’s no sod lives in Ireland! A lot fewer cars there to get in your way compared to the UK! Twice as many people live in London as in the whole of the Republic of Ireland for example. And in London, they are squashed into a smaller geographical area.
And, as has been said, we have our share of narrow roads too!
your right there,which is why I left the uk years ago as its just overcrowded and overrun with various imports.i might live over here I the land that time forgot,but i still drive all over Europe which makes London look like a village in some cases,but the bottomline is ,just go and do it with no messing.how hard is that? if your around any of the ferry roads,coming from,or heading to,then it definitely has its moments compared to most of the uk,at least in the uk so long as your not on the 75or 55 you don’t have 80 mad paddys right off the limiter coming at you still trying to overtake on blind bends on the cb etc.definately a different world.,each to their own? you never know what you can do till you try,long gone are the days of,have you been abroad before?.no?..heres your keys,5 drops in Milan,your late for the boat…if you need lens or bulbs for the trailer,then nick them from a layby on route to the ferry,■■■ off and keep er lit…ohhhhhhhhhh the good old days, 
Big Al the frying scotsman:
Some sound advice here i think i will just get some more experiance out on th road with dged and as someone said ow backin into impossable spaces ect is second nature then its time to move up. I will go for the assesment drive soon though and see how i go. Cheers for the upfront and honest advice and cheers for not rippin me a new one
Hi Al, I wish you well whatever path you choose to take, I know that where I work the guys who drive class2 swear by it & say they wouldn’t have it any other way. & the guys who drive class 1 including myself say they wouldn’t want to drive anything else either. So it seems like each to their own vehicle suitability.
Everyone of us has had to start fresh / new to each different class of vehicle we decided to persue to drive, and I will gladly help anyone where I can
Your own instinct will tell you what vehicle you are best suited to drive, although you may suprise yourself if you go for an assessment drive, you will never know if you don’t try. The trainig & test fees aren’t small & with variations at different establishments, just remember the cheapest is not always the best & can cost you a lot more in the long run. The newbies part of the forum has a wealth of information on this… .
If you decide to stay & progress in class 2, you could always gain ADR, to extend your flexibility options for work. Dieseldave has a wealth of information on this subject, I passed my ADR & do regular work with this & gain a bit more money on top of my usual wages
That sounds like northern Ireland nowadays diesel dog
Malky80:
If you can lower yourself to work for an agency, you wont have to wait long to get C+E work. Try to see the positive side of it. They’re paying you AND giving you much needed experience that nobody else will.
as an agency driver I can honestly say that the one I am with is good they treat you with respect,we have had a pay rise,and its decent work,i have been with them eighteen months now and do not feel the need to look for a full time position,but you are right about a lot of agencies,[ref lowering yourself to work for them]most of them are not worth your time,ADR for one
irish lorries:
That sounds like northern Ireland nowadays diesel dog
I just came back my holidays and flying into Belfast airport the captain said, hello ladies and gentlemen,we are now approaching Belfast and will be landing shortly,on disembarking the plane,please remember to set your watches back 30 years…