Hey all,
As a former driver for Lenham Storage I have a big soft spot for the late Merc SK models. Am always looking to buy one for refurbishment and this one came up… sotrex.co.uk/trucks/mercedes … actor-unit
Was very tempted but unfortunately the other half wasn’t happy about the costs of taking it on and the work that would need doing to it. I know these are in demand these days, I’d just hate to see another one go abroad. Was a lovely motor to sit in it and imagine what it would be like restored. There are photos on these forums showing it run by Elstran Freighters from new and then ended up as a tipper running sugar to Tate & Lyle.
Cheers,
Ben
Just about the worst spec imaginable.Would only really makes sense £4,000 cheaper and then a turbo V8 and a decent Fuller box conversion.Then put it to work and run it into the ground. 
I think a member on here mrken was the owner of Elstran im sure he will help you out with more pics and info on it
chester1:
I think a member on here mrken was the owner of Elstran im sure he will help you out with more pics and info on it
Aye, have sent him a PM. He’s put 2 pictures on here that I could find. Looked a properly nice motor when it was brand new.
Ta,
Ben
Must be good for double manning. … W Betz had a few.
nodding donkey:
Must be good for double manning. … W Betz had a few.
This one had two bunks in it despite only being a relatively low cab by today’s standards. Very cosy.
Ben
Blimey them pics bring back some memories , passed my class 1 in 1993 and got one of these for 2 weeks running stuff from henkel at winsford down to boc at hatfield , loved driving it ! Was gutted when it went back and i got the keys to an fl10 
largebloke1969:
Blimey them pics bring back some memories , passed my class 1 in 1993 and got one of these for 2 weeks running stuff from henkel at winsford down to boc at hatfield , loved driving it ! Was gutted when it went back and i got the keys to an fl10
With a name like “Largebloke” you’d be right to be gutted! . Bloody FL10’s! I remember having to lie on the bed just to get my trousers on in one of them.
the maoster:
largebloke1969:
Blimey them pics bring back some memories , passed my class 1 in 1993 and got one of these for 2 weeks running stuff from henkel at winsford down to boc at hatfield , loved driving it ! Was gutted when it went back and i got the keys to an fl10
With a name like “Largebloke” you’d be right to be gutted! . Bloody FL10’s! I remember having to lie on the bed just to get my trousers on in one of them.
Very ■■■■■■ off bloke would have been more fiiting even more so when i was at archbold had a eurotech then got a volvo fh then after 3 months they sent it up scotland and i ended up with another ferkin fl10 arrrrggghhhhh
And largebloke1969, as you were pulling from Henkel I wonder if you ever had anything to do with Jiffy Packaging or Littler’s transport, in the same area?
Zetorpilot:
And largebloke1969, as you were pulling from Henkel I wonder if you ever had anything to do with Jiffy Packaging or Littler’s transport, in the same area?
No i remember seeing the jiffy motors they were on road 1 if i remember rightly , i worked for a company in haslingden called span express , there was us , am transport from shotts and bayliss from basingstoke doing work out of there
This was on autotrader ( commercial ) site a few months ago , and I posted it back then , although frankly I’m not surprised it hasn’t sold yet
Muppetmk1:
This was on autotrader ( commercial ) site a few months ago , and I posted it back then , although frankly I’m not surprised it hasn’t sold yet
Perhaps this is why… £12,000 exc. VAT and looks like this…
Ben
largebloke1969:
Zetorpilot:
And largebloke1969, as you were pulling from Henkel I wonder if you ever had anything to do with Jiffy Packaging or Littler’s transport, in the same area?
No i remember seeing the jiffy motors they were on road 1 if i remember rightly , i worked for a company in haslingden called span express , there was us , am transport from shotts and bayliss from basingstoke doing work out of there
That last one J554 TRO I used to drive that when I was at City Transport, them were the days.
jbboding:
Was very tempted but unfortunately the other half wasn’t happy about the costs of taking it on
I see an obvious answer to this conundrum 
Harry Monk:
jbboding:
Was very tempted but unfortunately the other half wasn’t happy about the costs of taking it on
I see an obvious answer to this conundrum
No need to find accommodation
I spend over half of my time working for enthusiast bus preservationists so I have got to know the pitfalls of taking on a large vehicle. Your very first sentence has set alarm bells ringing, so many people just simply fall in love with the poxy vehicle and cannot see reality. I will be the first to admit that I did it myself many years ago, but fortunately other things - like children - came along and took priority. You will spend many, many times what the vehicle can be sold for during the restoration. Even allowing for doing much of the work yourself this is still true. It saddens me to see so often the amount of money spent on the shiny bits as the first priority, to the neglect of what makes it go, thus ending up with an absolutely beautiful trailer when the money runs out. I have lost count of the times I have heard someone say that they had been advised that ‘it won’t cost much to get that one back on the road’ .The original estimate will be out by a huge amount. If you really are serious get a few prices for the oily bits and an hourly rate from a machine shop and from a sheet metal fabricator for the bits that have to be made. As a rough guide if you are paying a commercial labour rate then £1 worth of parts often generates £1 worth of mechanical labour. Finally having spent however much, you will always be at the mercy of losing your storage and being forced to sell.
However with eyes wide open, then good luck.
Thanks, Cav.
I was expecting the repair to cost £000s on top of the lorry itself. Thanks for the reply though, good to hear from someone that knows something about restorations. Something to bear in mind for the distant future, I suppose.
Spending more than the lorry would be worth was also a given but it would be the sentimental value of having restored one of these for me would be greater than any other project I could think of.
Ta,
Ben
Hello Ben,
Having been almost entirely negative I must say I admire your gut feelings towards the vehicle. AFAIK there just aren’t many Merc units around on the preserved scene. If an example of a particular model, particularly a fairly recent one, is to survive then someone has to recognise that one has to be wrested from the cutting torch. As I mentioned earlier I did this many years ago with a vehicle I had never seen an example of in the flesh, but finally realised after the best part of 30 years that I was never going to finish the job, so I sold it on to someone with the money, past experience and enthusiasm to do the lorry justice.
As an ex fitter at Lenham I can appreciate your feeling for what was an almost exclusively Mercedes fleet. When I was there the SKs were more than just a little bit tired; there certainly seemed to be no desire to spend any money on them. That however is the way to run a fleet, decide on how long a particular vehicle is going to be kept and then either go for resale value or run it into the ground; just keep it legal.
Rollo Tomasi:
largebloke1969:
Zetorpilot:
And largebloke1969, as you were pulling from Henkel I wonder if you ever had anything to do with Jiffy Packaging or Littler’s transport, in the same area?
No i remember seeing the jiffy motors they were on road 1 if i remember rightly , i worked for a company in haslingden called span express , there was us , am transport from shotts and bayliss from basingstoke doing work out of there
That last one J554 TRO I used to drive that when I was at City Transport, them were the days.
So them stains on the bunk were yours u mucky pup lol didnt have that truck long but loved driving it, the other one J6 GEE thats was taken just after it came back from the repairers after being blown over on the 74 , driver was off a while and i got it till he came back
