Bewick:
Spot on “CF” you are the “Man” anything can be “advertised” but in reality cannot be delivered !! The search continues for the illusive “Holy Grail” i.e. a Guy Big J with Factory fitted 8LXB ! All The best for 2019 “CF” I hope you will still be around to continue annoying all and sundry on TNUK for the coming year ! Cheers Bewick
To be fair your original question went along the lines has anyone driven ‘one’ or ‘seen one’ etc etc.
Not did GUY motors actually officially make any as part of their official product line up.As opposed to some dodgy aftermarket retro supplied Bitsas as part of a special order product upgrade programme.As and when bright switched on customers asked them for any and GUY could get their hands on an obviously difficult to get engine because demand exceeded supply.Bearing in mind the no brainer choice of 8 cylinder Gardner v NA ■■■■■■■ or AEC etc to put in the thing.
So I can believe that maybe someone saw one or drove one but it didn’t get ordered off of any easily obtainable standard options list.( A bit like an early mid 70’s 6/8 v 92 T powered Bedford TM in that regard ).
Bewick:
Spot on “CF” you are the “Man” anything can be “advertised” but in reality cannot be delivered !! The search continues for the illusive “Holy Grail” i.e. a Guy Big J with Factory fitted 8LXB ! All The best for 2019 “CF” I hope you will still be around to continue annoying all and sundry on TNUK for the coming year ! Cheers Bewick
Hiya,
Dennis when are the “believers” that the beast exists going to give up,
it’s only ever been drivers from memory who have driven the “beast”
I haven’t seen one post from a maintenance man that he has worked
on one lets face it it isn’t so long ago that the Big J was out there
earning it’s keep I drove them and the only Gardner engined one I saw
was a 180 and what a pill that was.
So these 150LX Big J’s David, what GVW were they ? Did they appear after the 6 BHP rule came in when the 180LXB’x were derated to 30:5 Ton GVW so were the SOM 150’s reduced to 25 ton or were they put into service prior to this date ? Cheers Dennis.
Harry,
You have said the only Gardner powered Big J that you have seen was the 180.
Not only did I drive a 240 Gardner powered Big J,SoM also had 4 150 Gardner Big J’s on contract to OCL and painted in their colours based in Manchester depot and worked out of the MIFT.
When they required testing I was one of the poor night trunkers that had to drive the flippin things up to Maddiston,bloody freezing with a woefully poor heater.
Bewick:
Spot on “CF” you are the “Man” anything can be “advertised” but in reality cannot be delivered !! The search continues for the illusive “Holy Grail” i.e. a Guy Big J with Factory fitted 8LXB ! All The best for 2019 “CF” I hope you will still be around to continue annoying all and sundry on TNUK for the coming year ! Cheers Bewick
Hiya,
Dennis when are the “believers” that the beast exists going to give up,
it’s only ever been drivers from memory who have driven the “beast”
I haven’t seen one post from a maintenance man that he has worked
on one lets face it it isn’t so long ago that the Big J was out there
earning it’s keep I drove them and the only Gardner engined one I saw
was a 180 and what a pill that was.
So these 150LX Big J’s David, what GVW were they ? Did they appear after the 6 BHP rule came in when the 180LXB’x were derated to 30:5 Ton GVW so were the SOM 150’s reduced to 25 ton or were they put into service prior to this date ? Cheers Dennis.
Harry,
You have said the only Gardner powered Big J that you have seen was the 180.
Not only did I drive a 240 Gardner powered Big J,SoM also had 4 150 Gardner Big J’s on contract to OCL and painted in their colours based in Manchester depot and worked out of the MIFT.
When they required testing I was one of the poor night trunkers that had to drive the flippin things up to Maddiston,bloody freezing with a woefully poor heater.
David
Dennis,
I’m afraid I can’t assist with your question,they were well used when I started,all Mk 1 Big J’s and all with the 150 Percy,they always pulled 20ft skeletal trailers and only delivered or loaded in the North West area,including Liverpool,however the dedicated drivers seemed to love 'em,sorry I can’t provide you with any more details.
Bewick:
Has anyone ever built one,sold one when new,repaired one,DRIVEN one,or at least seen one or possibly got a photo (side view) showing the 8 potter sticking out the rear of the cab .
Lets up date this thread to read " AEC 505" and we may get, at least, a more positive response from asking for shots of an 8LXB !! Cheers Bewick.
Bewick:
Has anyone ever built one,sold one when new,repaired one,DRIVEN one,or at least seen one or possibly got a photo (side view) showing the 8 potter sticking out the rear of the cab .
Lets up date this thread to read " AEC 505" and we may get, at least, a more positive response from asking for shots of an 8LXB !! Cheers Bewick.
WELL !
That’s done it , you could have woken the Macclesfield immigrant , glutton for punishment eh .
Not too easy to get a pic of the two rear cylinders on an AEC 505 engine though, they were usually tucked in well. Apart from one with a Leyland engine all the Big J’s I worked on had the 505 fitted.
Hi All
will this assist, from the Commercial Motor archive?
Keywords : Rolls-royce Eagle, Hospitality / Recreation
• Power ratios of up to 8.62 bhp /ton are now available for Guy Big I4T 32-ton tractive units following the announcement today of three new engine options for the range.
The options which are now available are the turbocharged Rolls-Royce Eagle Mark III 290 (developing 271 bhp net installed to BS AU 141a 1971), the ■■■■■■■ NTL 290 (276 bhp) and the Gardner 8LXB (246 bhp). Power-to-weight ratios with these engines in vehicles operating at 32 tons gcw are 8.47, 8.62 and 7.7 bhp/ton respectively.
Borg and Beck twin-plate clutches and Fuller RTO 9509A range-change gearboxes are specified with crawler ratio of 8.76:1 and first gear of 5.861:1. Overdrive top on this nine-speed gearbox is 0.741:1.
Hi All
will this assist, from the Commercial Motor archive?
Keywords : Rolls-royce Eagle, Hospitality / Recreation
• Power ratios of up to 8.62 bhp /ton are now available for Guy Big I4T 32-ton tractive units following the announcement today of three new engine options for the range.
The options which are now available are the turbocharged Rolls-Royce Eagle Mark III 290 (developing 271 bhp net installed to BS AU 141a 1971), the ■■■■■■■ NTL 290 (276 bhp) and the Gardner 8LXB (246 bhp). Power-to-weight ratios with these engines in vehicles operating at 32 tons gcw are 8.47, 8.62 and 7.7 bhp/ton respectively.
Borg and Beck twin-plate clutches and Fuller RTO 9509A range-change gearboxes are specified with crawler ratio of 8.76:1 and first gear of 5.861:1. Overdrive top on this nine-speed gearbox is 0.741:1.
Bewick:
Has anyone ever built one,sold one when new,repaired one,DRIVEN one,or at least seen one or possibly got a photo (side view) showing the 8 potter sticking out the rear of the cab .
Lets up date this thread to read " AEC 505" and we may get, at least, a more positive response from asking for shots of an 8LXB !! Cheers Bewick.
Didn’t know they put AEC engines in them. Most of the talk on the internet seems to be about the 8LXB version.
Hi All
will this assist, from the Commercial Motor archive?
Keywords : Rolls-royce Eagle, Hospitality / Recreation
• Power ratios of up to 8.62 bhp /ton are now available for Guy Big I4T 32-ton tractive units following the announcement today of three new engine options for the range.
The options which are now available are the turbocharged Rolls-Royce Eagle Mark III 290 (developing 271 bhp net installed to BS AU 141a 1971), the ■■■■■■■ NTL 290 (276 bhp) and the Gardner 8LXB (246 bhp). Power-to-weight ratios with these engines in vehicles operating at 32 tons gcw are 8.47, 8.62 and 7.7 bhp/ton respectively.
Borg and Beck twin-plate clutches and Fuller RTO 9509A range-change gearboxes are specified with crawler ratio of 8.76:1 and first gear of 5.861:1. Overdrive top on this nine-speed gearbox is 0.741:1.
I’ve just had a tasty shot of a 1969 Big J 8 wheeler sent to me ( which I can’t put on TNUK) it has a ■■■■■■■ NHT14 350 BHP engine and double drive bogie plated at 56 ton pulling a trailer ! Some machine that ! Eric and me would have been “The dogs” up and down the road on that but maybe that engine hump in the Big J was a bit intrusive compared to the Octopus ! Cheers Dennis.
Bewick:
I’ve just had a tasty shot of a 1969 Big J 8 wheeler sent to me ( which I can’t put on TNUK) it has a ■■■■■■■ NHT14 350 BHP engine and double drive bogie plated at 56 ton pulling a trailer ! Some machine that ! Eric and me would have been “The dogs” up and down the road on that but maybe that engine hump in the Big J was a bit intrusive compared to the Octopus ! Cheers Dennis.
harry_gill:
Hiya,
Dennis I see they’re raking up all the “seen before” [zb] yet again.
Hiya “H” how are you keeping mate ? Aye “H” it’s called “raking through dead ashes” or “flogging a dead horse” !!! Cheers Dennis.
Hiya,
Not keeping too badly Dennis if you can say still breathing is anything
to go by not in “passing a HGV medical condition” but can still shuffle
about and annoy the missus by my inactivity, thanks for asking Dennis,
hoping yourself and your good Lady are also keeping well.
Bewick:
I’ve just had a tasty shot of a 1969 Big J 8 wheeler sent to me ( which I can’t put on TNUK) it has a ■■■■■■■ NHT14 350 BHP engine and double drive bogie plated at 56 ton pulling a trailer ! Some machine that ! Eric and me would have been “The dogs” up and down the road on that but maybe that engine hump in the Big J was a bit intrusive compared to the Octopus ! Cheers Dennis.
Erm… could be another ‘wild goose chase’ here…■■■■■■■ introduced the Big Cam NHT350 in 1976…so was there a ‘Small Cam’ version available in 1969? Over to the ■■■■■■■ experts
Bewick:
I’ve just had a tasty shot of a 1969 Big J 8 wheeler sent to me ( which I can’t put on TNUK) it has a ■■■■■■■ NHT14 350 BHP engine and double drive bogie plated at 56 ton pulling a trailer ! Some machine that ! Eric and me would have been “The dogs” up and down the road on that but maybe that engine hump in the Big J was a bit intrusive compared to the Octopus ! Cheers Dennis.
Erm… could be another ‘wild goose chase’ here…■■■■■■■ introduced the Big Cam NHT350 in 1976…so was there a ‘Small Cam’ version available in 1969? Over to the ■■■■■■■ experts
I think the small-cam predecessor was the NTC 335, which did indeed go in some Big-Js (Pickfords had some I believe). Never heard of a Big-J with a 350 though. It may have been re-engined with a 350 from a plant machine, of course… Robert
Bewick:
I’ve just had a tasty shot of a 1969 Big J 8 wheeler sent to me ( which I can’t put on TNUK) it has a ■■■■■■■ NHT14 350 BHP engine and double drive bogie plated at 56 ton pulling a trailer ! Some machine that ! Eric and me would have been “The dogs” up and down the road on that but maybe that engine hump in the Big J was a bit intrusive compared to the Octopus ! Cheers Dennis.
Erm… could be another ‘wild goose chase’ here…■■■■■■■ introduced the Big Cam NHT350 in 1976…so was there a ‘Small Cam’ version available in 1969? Over to the ■■■■■■■ experts
I think the small-cam predecessor was the NTC 335, which did indeed go in some Big-Js (Pickfords had some I believe). Never heard of a Big-J with a 350 though. It may have been re-engined with a 350 from a plant machine, of course… Robert
And the NTC 335 (AKA CU335) became an option in the 6x4 Leyland Marathon in 1976, which begs the question, if the NTC 350 was available then why wasn’t that option offered? I’m with you Robert, this 1969 Big J is a re-engined job. Unless of course someone proves us wrong…
gingerfold:
And the NTC 335 (AKA CU335) became an option in the 6x4 Leyland Marathon in 1976, which begs the question, if the NTC 350 was available then why wasn’t that option offered? I’m with you Robert, this 1969 Big J is a re-engined job. Unless of course someone proves us wrong…
Probably re-engined from a 8LXB when the two extra pots affected the useable load space? Just a suggestion like…
