hi first time on here who remembers salisbury bros chatteris in the 1970s they ran 3 atkis delivering overnight to london mkts
midland mkts and yorkshire mkts, 2 had 180 gardeners and 1 with a150 gardener, they were flyers @ over 70 mph, i remember the 3 long term drivers noel bedford /mick eley/donny overall
An internal shot of our workshop in Milnthorpe showing Atki’s “various”!
Evening Gentlemen, a great and long day annoying the “executive villagers”, slowing down their headlong progress in highly financed Range Rovers, BMWs, Porches, and sundry sardine cans, let alone redefining the sub standard tarmac road surface, that we have paid excessive taxes for,(and our county council have wasted revenue upon). I could wax lyrical about how a two axle Grain Trailer on full lock ripples, like a lake of chocolate in a strong breeze, the lane at our farms front gateway, (but I expect I will have to do so to some Yellow jacketed white helmeted council official, in the coming days!!) Why do they wear white helmets, do I have aggressive Squirells, are my Pigeons constipated)■■? But enough of this, the Harvest is in!! Tommorow I replant. To business, I hate to clash swords with such eminent contributors as ERF, but West Coast mirrors on D Series! purely a styling exercise, and those narrow flat glasses, well limited vision comes to mind, and the abominable mirror set up on the ERF 7&8LV, THEY WERE AWFUL IN THE EXTREME. Threequarter vision was compromised to such an extent that necessetated drivers having the neck articulation of a Gymnast! and they collected road “clag” like an enthusiast! Now in contrast the Atkinson mirror stayed clean, did not compromise threequarter vision, and those arms could mount those superb Zanetti split lens mirrors. More seriously, having endured some diabolical mirror compromises, and accepting that few if any vehicle designers ever drove their creations, what in your expert opinion were the best and most useable mirror set ups■■? I still think Atkinson the best, (on the Borderer type cab), bearing in mind the last lorry I bought was 2007, and that had a farcical set up!!! Lastly, Dennis, that photograph of some of your Borderers really shows off a handsome livery. Simple is often best, and gives the best impact. Well Cheerio for now, going to give the Bollinger a bending, I need all the strength I can get for tommorow, Adieu mes braves.
240 Gardner:
ERF:
240 Gardner:
[Anyway, wasn’t the B Series designed by an ex-Atkinson man??Not strictly true.
The B Series was at the end of the day an update of the A Series design chassis, with an all new SP tilt cab fitted.
It is difficult to assertain accurately exactly what input the man in question had to the finished B Series design.Actually, I was thinking about the cab and, more especially, winding up my pal The Limester
Incidentally, though, Frank Whalley did once tell me that the Mk.3 Atkinson would have looked more like the B Series than the 400. Even better, he reckoned that the design for the B Series started out with the Viewline!
It needs some lateral thinking to deduce that the Viewline and the B Series designs were remotely similar…unless I’m missing something 
gingerfold:
240 Gardner:
ERF:
240 Gardner:
[Anyway, wasn’t the B Series designed by an ex-Atkinson man??Not strictly true.
The B Series was at the end of the day an update of the A Series design chassis, with an all new SP tilt cab fitted.
It is difficult to assertain accurately exactly what input the man in question had to the finished B Series design.Actually, I was thinking about the cab and, more especially, winding up my pal The Limester
Incidentally, though, Frank Whalley did once tell me that the Mk.3 Atkinson would have looked more like the B Series than the 400. Even better, he reckoned that the design for the B Series started out with the Viewline!
It needs some lateral thinking to deduce that the Viewline and the B Series designs were remotely similar…unless I’m missing something
The Viewline was so ugly that they resolved to create something much better!
Saviem:
…I hate to clash swords with such eminent contributors as ERF, but West Coast mirrors on D Series! purely a styling exercise, and those narrow flat glasses, well limited vision comes to mind, and the abominable mirror set up on the ERF 7&8LV, THEY WERE AWFUL IN THE EXTREME. Threequarter vision was compromised to such an extent that necessetated drivers having the neck articulation of a Gymnast! and they collected road “clag” like an enthusiast! Now in contrast the Atkinson mirror stayed clean…
No clash sir, we like opinions here!.
The engineers at FoMoCo went out to the States to address a need expressed by customers for better rear vision, and the optional Western arrangement, ugly as it was, was far more than just ‘styling’. The standard D Series mirror arrangement at launch was a tiny 5" x 3" Wingard head on a drop pendant from the top of the door - Diabolical - as were the mirror arrangements on all lorries (remember the tiny ‘Lollypop’ mirrors on the Dodge artics?) including the heavies of the day, ERF, Atki and AEC included, but that was the norm, and everybody just accepted it. As I tried to say, the Western mirrors were far from perfect but were a massive improvement on what had gone before, and that improvement was built on over the coming years by ALL manufacturers.
I’m happy to admitt to being a novice in all matters Atkinson (& to being something of a whipper-snapper) so can anybody clarify whether there actually were plans for a Mk-III prior to the merger with Seddon? If so what were the key features?
A related question; we’ve heard a little of various peoples experiences of SA post-merger, but what are peoples memories once International Harvister came on the scene?
Thanks, Andrew.
fryske:
gingerfold:
240 Gardner:
It needs some lateral thinking to deduce that the Viewline and the B Series designs were remotely similar…unless I’m missing somethingThe Viewline was so ugly that they resolved to create something much better!
They are not even remotely similar, I agree. The link is that a senior member of the Atkinson engineering team joined ERF in a similar position and, of course, took his own ideas with him. Perhaps the SP cab is an indication of the general direction that Atkinson might have taken, had they not succumber to a takeover by whomever - I suppose we shall never know. Whatever they might have produced, I wonder how many operators would have demanded a dummy radiator grille…
The Viewline is certainly not pretty, Steve, and I write as someone who enjoyed owning one for 19 years! I think that it can best be described as having entered production as a work-in-progress design! For its day, it was reasonably comfortable, though
240 Gardner:
Perhaps the SP cab is an indication of the general direction that Atkinson might have taken, had they not succumber to a takeover by whomever
Succumber?
It surely would be had they relinquished the company to a Mr Peter Foden.
Pebbles 74:
I’m happy to admitt to being a novice in all matters Atkinson (& to being something of a whipper-snapper) so can anybody clarify whether there actually were plans for a Mk-III prior to the merger with Seddon? If so what were the key features?A related question; we’ve heard a little of various peoples experiences of SA post-merger, but what are peoples memories once International Harvister came on the scene?
Thanks, Andrew.
The only disernable difference you could notice was the re-designed door openers,they had I H cast into them and I’m not sure but it may have been about this time that SA offered the Rockwell drive axle,but someone better placed than me would know for definite! Cheers Dennis.
The IH influence started prior to 1981 (when the infamous flappy door handles were launched on the 401).
The European Truck of the Year in 1977 was the Seddon-Atkinson 200 and it’s engine came from?? When the 300 was launched, it too had an IH lump, so there was an early influence.
The 401 did look uncannily like it’s predecessor and cosmetically it was improved (new air intake up the back of the cab, plastic lift-up front grill, new interior, etc.) but (laughably) one of the supposed big steps forward was the zinc-coating of the cab panels and the introduction of SMC instead of steel in some parts of the cab. I can’t recall whether it actually slowed down the dissolving process - it certainly never stopped it. The two main improvements were fixing the stupid gearchange remote round to the way the rest of the world did it (Ridings used a DB remote to fix the backwards Fuller setup on the 400s) and the A on the grille which possibly doubled the value of the motor - at least in nostalgic terms; even though it was a pale (plastic) imitation of the classic original.
They were refined again when the 2-11,3-11 & 4-11 were brought out in 1987, but by this time they were under the control of Enasa - which in a small way was proved when Oldham stuck a Pegaso engine in one of Riding’s 401s, wittily named ‘El Capitano’.
Back to reality and away from those rubbish Sed Atk’s!!! This is a shot of what I can term a “tough old tractor” ex Oswalds of Ayr,■■■■■■■ 180/ZFspd/Kirkstall BDR,this girl had tramped over Shap a few times prior to the opening of the M6,but was still as reliable as the day was long!! Not a motor for a lad,you had to be able to change gear “proper like” or you’d get your wrist broken!! Never let us down in service and then shunted locally before being parked up for a well earned rest!!! Bewick
Evening Gentlemen, Dennis, ■■■■■■■ 180, now there was an engine. As far as I was concerned you could keep your Gardners, that ■■■■■■■ was like a breath of spring air! So responsive, light on the throttle pedal, quick die down, and the fast changes with that ZFbox were a delight. Not to bad on fuel, (provided a bit of discipline was used), and they would achieve quite remarkable mileages before overhauls were needed, and they were easy to repair with affordable parts and simple construction. I have rated ■■■■■■■ ever since the 180, (but not those awful Vs) and talking about Vs, we have to endure the V festival again, the racket stops the hens laying, the boom boom, makes me think the bottom end is dropping out of the tractor, and the traffic through the village at least keeps the Parish Council off my back! I have not a good record at understanding modern music, when I used to do a fair amount of business with Edwin Shirley Trucking, one day I was there, and there was a most untuneful racket coming from that Nissan hut “studio” that was on the site. When I laughingly remarked about the noise, Edwin and Dell were at pains to assure me that the artists, from whence issued this calcophony of discordent sound, would one day be “big” their name, The Boom Town Rats. Right, sorry Iam off thread, so its off to a large chilled Bollinger, an enormous plate of pasta, and the gentle sounds of Snr Scarlatti, Bon Nuit mes Braves!
I can’t allow a "■■■■■ handed toiler and tiller " of the West Midland prairie to degenerate ■■■■■■■ V’s!!! here’s a shot of my first new motor,a D1000,and a sweeter motor you couldn’t wish to drive! never “missed a beat” whilst in my posession!! Dennis
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Dennis, thats a lovely bit of sheeting and roping, you are better at it than me!! Glad you had better experience of those Vs than me, I acquired a Big J, V6, what an unmitigated disaster!! Sounded great when it was running well, which it did not do too often.Perhaps 240, or Marky would know if a Vale series was ever fitted into an Atkinson chassis? At the dark recesses of my mind lurks the thought that a crane carrier had one, late60s?? The V up the road has just started, must turn up the volume on the corn dryers generators, drown it out. Apparantly something called the Articulated Monkeys is “headlining” wonder if it is a class one act?? Cheerio for now.
Saviem:
Dennis, thats a lovely bit of sheeting and roping, you are better at it than me!! Glad you had better experience of those Vs than me, I acquired a Big J, V6, what an unmitigated disaster!! Sounded great when it was running well, which it did not do too often.Perhaps 240, or Marky would know if a Vale series was ever fitted into an Atkinson chassis? At the dark recesses of my mind lurks the thought that a crane carrier had one, late60s?? The V up the road has just started, must turn up the volume on the corn dryers generators, drown it out. Apparantly something called the Articulated Monkeys is “headlining” wonder if it is a class one act?? Cheerio for now.
Ha ha Artic Monkeys top band
Saviem:
Dennis, thats a lovely bit of sheeting and roping, you are better at it than me!! Glad you had better experience of those Vs than me, I acquired a Big J, V6, what an unmitigated disaster!! Sounded great when it was running well, which it did not do too often.Perhaps 240, or Marky would know if a Vale series was ever fitted into an Atkinson chassis? At the dark recesses of my mind lurks the thought that a crane carrier had one, late60s?? The V up the road has just started, must turn up the volume on the corn dryers generators, drown it out. Apparantly something called the Articulated Monkeys is “headlining” wonder if it is a class one act?? Cheerio for now.
I should have claused my statement about ■■■■■■■ V’s by saying it was the V8 I was applauding,the V6 was,I agree, a complete disaster!! It seemed unbalanced and rough to me whereas the V8 was smooth running and never missed a beat as far as the one I had.The two Perkins V8’s in the two Mastiff tractor units we ran also did us a first class job considering they were only cheap and lightweight! Cheers Dennis.
Saviem:
Perhaps 240, or Marky would know if a Vale series was ever fitted into an Atkinson chassis? At the dark recesses of my mind lurks the thought that a crane carrier had one, late60s??
Well, there was this one, with a 235 bhp V8 in 1964…
240 Gardner:
Saviem:
Perhaps 240, or Marky would know if a Vale series was ever fitted into an Atkinson chassis? At the dark recesses of my mind lurks the thought that a crane carrier had one, late60s??Well, there was this one, with a 235 bhp V8 in 1964…
Any feed back of how it fared “in service” Chris/ Dennis.
And this one…
