boardy77:
Hi Toddy2 just bought the publication Classic & Vintage Commercials! What a fantastic picture of the Guy Big J !
Reminds me of the trips with my dad… you never know i could have traveled in this truck, as in them days they just changed trucks and he went to northhampton evey night mon to fri from heywood.
Hi Boardy77 - Me too, I used to go on Night trunks with my late father - I remember that the artics never changed trailers, they used to get out of one & get in another for the return trunk, then they would get that one back about 4 days later,
They all used to hand in the keys & a mail sack, then get another set of keys & another sack of mail.
He was based at Beddington Lane - Croydon.
He used to drop me off on the corner of Purley way, go through the security gate & pick me up when he came out. I remember ducking down in the passenger footwell on occasions to go through the ‘check point charlie’
Hi Toddy2,
Gosh that brings back memories my dad used to leave me on the motorway bridge over the m62 (m60 now ) next to Birch services while he picked his truck up…at Pilsworth then i used to duck down under the dashboard in the foot well on the passenger side with his jacket thrown over me as we went back in the depot in the eary morning and then get into his car to come home… along with eggs, Mr kippling cakes or any other Bargin he bought from les’s cafe near Altringham!!! I remember going in a Mec tractor unit one christmas and it was auto my dad got to sywell and said you can keep that bag if S**te i will walk back!
Hi mate i used to do the same when i went out with my dad. My dad used to do a 2 day run up to york i spent all my summer holiday out with him.
Finally managed to upload a picture without the help of a 9 year old
Here’s a picture in the Original Colours/Livery
Can’t remember who sent it to me, so don’t know if I’m allowed to post it,
but what the hell - it’s a great picture, so It should be shared
Well it may have been a bit later, but Im sure the Depot was on Scotswood Rd, There was a carpet firm next door that burnt down around about that era, Regards Larry.
Finally managed to upload a picture without the help of a 9 year old
Here’s a picture in the Original Colours/Livery
Can’t remember who sent it to me, so don’t know if I’m allowed to post it,
but what the hell - it’s a great picture, so It should be shared
What a great picture loved to see the old colours
Thanks
Hi Guys just been to my mums and she has had a clear out and passed this item to me
It was given to my father in 1977 to celebrate the golden jubilee of London Carriers.
its in both liveries Blue and grey and Green
Hope it brings back some memories
hiya,
Put my name down at the Whitebirk Drive depot in Blackburn
about 40 odd years ago, now aged 76 and still haven’t got the
call to arms, ah’ well they didn’t say no, it was said to be the
top job in the area in those days.
thanks harry,long retired.
boardy77:
Hi Guys just been to my mums and she has had a clear out and passed this item to me
It was given to my father in 1977 to celebrate the golden jubilee of London Carriers.
its in both liveries Blue and grey and Green
Hope it brings back some memories
Andy
Wow - what a great piece of memorabilia,
Don’t get those from Stobbie’s fan club
boardy77:
Hi Guys just been to my mums and she has had a clear out and passed this item to me
It was given to my father in 1977 to celebrate the golden jubilee of London Carriers.
its in both liveries Blue and grey and Green
Hope it brings back some memories
Andy
Wow - what a great piece of memorabilia,
Don’t get those from Stobbie’s fan club
Stobbies Fan Club ■■?, Never heard of them, Regards Larry.
I worked at London Carriers Beddington Farm Rd Croydon or Croydon Unit as it was known to the staff.
Was there from 1965 to 1995 as a rounds driver. Jack Coffee was the depot manager when i started, he was based at the Beddington Lane site.
Good company to work for until sold off to Inter Forward in 1990. What bunch of evil so and so’s that company turned out to be. So glad to get out of there in 1995.
I was one of the youngest drivers when i started which unfortunately means now quite a lot of the lads have now passed on although glad to say still in touch with one or two.
Unfortunately there is nothing left of the sites now. In addition to others mentioned Mel Crawley and Philips Research Labs at Redhill have all been demolished.
City House at Croydon has been turned into housing so i have been told. Such a shame to see it all gone. Had some great times and they were great days.Sadly missed along with the people.
I passed my class 1 back in 1985, when deciding to train to become a HGV driver was more simpler and very much easier than it is today, from being a car driver to HGV Class 1 driver in one step! I drove my 1976 MK 2 1600 Sport ■■■■■■ to the old Wembley Stadium to the Wallace School of Transport (not sure they are still going?) to train in a Ford Cargo converted to a tractor unit with a 20 foot flatbed trailer for 4 days followed by my test a Yeading on the Friday. I wasnt even shown how to hitch or un-hitch a trailer (air taps in them days and cable brakes on the trailers!) and didnt have a clue how to complete a tacho chart!
Not the current car driver to theory test through 5 days cpc training to LGV 2 or should i say cat C then more training (and expense) to LGV 1, sorry cat C+E that is required today! No wonder there is a driver shortage, who can afford to take 3 plus weeks off costing £2.5k to become a LGV 1 driver to be told you need minimum 2 years experience?
it was the same back when i passed, though i did get lucky, the first company i worked for as an agency driver i must add, but i was there for nearly a year was London Carriers based in Potters Bar…i drove an H reg Guy rigid for most of that time…heaving steering with a steering wheel the size of a ships wheel, better right lock than left, no mod cons including radio, air con etc and a crash box that played tunes every time i changed gears despite double declutching and every trick i was shown and tried when cold. it was like stirring porridge every time a gear change was needed, which was often as my round was north and central london!
but looking back on it London Carriers were a friendly bunch, easy going and i must have done something right, even as a new driver,for them to keep asking me back!
sm08phy:
I passed my class 1 back in 1985, when deciding to train to become a HGV driver was more simpler and very much easier than it is today, from being a car driver to HGV Class 1 driver in one step! I drove my 1976 MK 2 1600 Sport ■■■■■■ to the old Wembley Stadium to the Wallace School of Transport (not sure they are still going?) to train in a Ford Cargo converted to a tractor unit with a 20 foot flatbed trailer for 4 days followed by my test a Yeading on the Friday. but looking back on it London Carriers were a friendly bunch, easy going and i must have done something right, even as a new driver,for them to keep asking me back!
Off Topic, but your Mk2 ■■■■■■ memory raised the nostalgia! In 91’, I drove my delapidated 1977 Ford ■■■■■■ Mk2 RS Mexico (with the 1600 Pinto, not Kent engine) to C&L Transport Training’s area of operation in the ‘orange coach park’ in Milton Keynes, where they had two Volvo F7’s with tandem axle box trailers waiting (3 ‘students’ for each truck). C&L Transport’s instructors were certainly worthy of appluase…good crack etc!!
I remember mr Strawbridge, had a white Sedatk 400 then later on a green 401 with a Gardner 300 in it i think.
Used to park it in Galiford road if i remember rightly, had a dodgy eye aswell.
ERF ECX:
I remember mr Strawbridge, had a white Sedatk 400 then later on a green 401 with a Gardner 300 in it i think.
Used to park it in Galiford road if i remember rightly, had a dodgy eye aswell.
That was him, Roy Strawbridge, about 4 ft tall with a dodgy eye & a big smile He could shift a lorry faster than anybody else I knew - Sadly passed away now - but i do see his wife & 2 sons every now & then.
Galiford Road use to have a company called Bow Forwarding, then Patmar Shipping & Forwarding (included Scanbow Transport) - Later became Patmar Services, which then became PSL Freight, which moved to the other side of the Causeway & the site was taken over by a Double Glazing firm - Now Ceva
I used to shunt trailers for Patmars (made up from Patricia & Margaret - 2 director’s wife’s names) with an Old Seddon Unit, out of one gate, along the road & onto a door - happy days
