well, it was my first time pulling a double decker today. personally i think i could not have happened on a worse day. had to go to carlisle and drop one of and do a swap over. i honestly have never experienced anything like it and it is fair to say that i was bricking it… the wind was unbelivable and i never have felt anything like it before. but i guess its all exoerience and ill be better the next time. as a new driver i suppose its hard to know what your limit is but when there is irish wagons flying pasy you it cant be that bad… how different is a curtain sider to a double decker in terms of wind and stuff… there was a few times when i thought i was away, i never been shook about that much befor in a wagon. very scary at imes. on the way there i was fully loaded with stock, and on the way back loaded with empty cages, so at least i wasnt empty, thank god… was anyone else up that way today… id say the M62 was worse…
We are getting some brand new ones soon they have 17" wheels and im not looking forward to it.
The biggest problem for me is undoing the curtains as they are so low to the ground.
nothing wrong with doulbe deckers as long as you load them right…
make sure you tip the top deck first.
i have never pulled a double decker but i was on the m62 last night in my truck which is a mega cube box truck, and it was awful in the wind bloody hair raising!!
yeah load them right, you see thats the problem there allready loaded for us (somerfields). im sure there ok to pull, it was just that it was dam windy today, im sure they must feel the wind more on them than a tautliner. im told there very top heavy, but with the wheels so small there suppose to be very easy to go over. at times i was doing 40 and there was wagons flying past me and i was blowing about an awfull lot, my ■■■ left the seat a few times… all down to experience i guess.
i always think drive steady away if your going to go over then you will just hold on tight.
i got caught by a gust on the m62 at the top of windy hill with a 16’ for taylors of martley taut and i just held on and i know the wheels came off the groud and i ■■■■ myself.
My guess is,that you were changing over at Golden Fleece services,with the sweaty socks.
Used to do it regularly when I worked at Sherburn.
More recently,I used to pull 16’2" double deck trailers out of Leeds/Huddersfield,and they are a ■■■■ nipping exercise in the wind,especially over the Ouse at Goole.
Ken.
yeah we met at services just of the a6 i think it was. dont know the name of them.
are double deckers worse than standard curtain siders. i think they must be as there is a load on top as well.
just to add aswell, on the trip there and back i saw one police wagon, i think they were taking shelter.
I used to pull those Somerfield NDC trailers out of Huntingdon and Wellingborough.
Sorry to see you had a scary time of it. I used to find the Fuel Saving Curve ones were much less fidgety at speed than the standard ones. We also had a few fitted with tail lifts for use on store work. 
The trouble is that your average loader at Somerfield sees a trailer not as a something that goes round corners and can travel at 50mph, but as an extension of the building that you just shovel cages into as quickly as you can in order to maximise your bonus.
Most give no thought to weight distribution - and I can say this with experience of being a Loading FLM.
All I can suggest is that you take them corners real steady - with badly loaded ones, I’ve had the wheels off the ground on roundabouts at under 10mph - and that is when the old chuffa starts going!! 
Also, some traffic FLMs will try and get you to pull a loaded one with a 4x2 unit if they are short of 6x2 units. Tell them to shove it if they do. Not only will you be overloading your drive axle, but that extra axle really does give noticeably more stability.
And wear the seatbelt so if it does go over you should at least stay in the seat. The alternative is flying across the cab and breaking your neck, which I read somewhere is what kills more people in roll overs than anything else, so it makes sense.
saw one fri night that looked like a double decker on its side as i came round the roundabout on the a52[ notts ] onto the gamston bypass ,makes you steady down a bit
jessicas dad:
i always think drive steady away if your going to go over then you will just hold on tight.i got caught by a gust on the m62 at the top of windy hill with a 16’ for taylors of martley taut and i just held on and i know the wheels came off the groud and i [zb] myself.
man some people are lying git,s
Just slow down in the wind and forget deadlines.
I went out today with 17’’ wheels and every gatehole was dangerous as I passed & I was riding my motorbike.
learnt how to drive w a double decker trailer… Didnt find anything wrong with it along the irish roads although i have no driven a truck w anyother type of trailer to compare it with… Just watch the bridge heights
teddy_0781:
jessicas dad:
i always think drive steady away if your going to go over then you will just hold on tight.i got caught by a gust on the m62 at the top of windy hill with a 16’ for taylors of martley taut and i just held on and i know the wheels came off the groud and i [zb] myself.
man some people are lying git,s
■■■■ off you knob head.
you really do talk ■■■■■■
Jammy I remeber pulling them 2000 trailers out off Preston Brooke down tp london big problem thats why they were allways in the trailer park in the mud
flying_fenman:
Sorry to see you had a scary time of it. I used to find the Fuel Saving Curve ones were much less fidgety at speed than the standard ones. We also had a few fitted with tail lifts for use on store work.
try one of BOOTS deckers. 16’4 on the back of a basic volvo FM and the trailer is flat faced. DHL obviously dont worry too much about fuel consumption 
Been dragging 159" trailers around for the last two years.Eventually you forget about the hight and treat it like a standard.The wind does make them twitch a bit,but ive been over the A66 with 50mph gusts hitting.Bridges are a pain and diversions can bring much frivolity.But all in all mate you`ll get used to them,just watch the brakes- small drums heat up very quickly.
motorhead:
Been dragging 159" trailers around for the last two years.Eventually you forget about the hight and treat it like a standard.The wind does make them twitch a bit,but ive been over the A66 with 50mph gusts hitting.Bridges are a pain and diversions can bring much frivolity.But all in all mate you`ll get used to them,just watch the brakes- small drums heat up very quickly.
And if the wheels lift as you turn out of the gate. Turn round at the earliest chance, take it back in and get it loaded properly.
I did that once with a Woolies decker on a night trunk for Exel. They were very unhappy people. But I’m not prepared to risk my life, or even worse someone elses, just because they are incompetent.
Loaded properly, they’re fine.
if you aint happy dont take it