Hi folks passed module 4 today for my class (C) (practical passed early nov) and soon as i receive my qualification im gonna bug the hell out of agencies etc until i get some work 
Well done mate, wish you well finding a job. Great feeling passing aint it 
Well done. I have mine booked for next week so hope I pass first time.
A cancellation came up so its been bought forward.
Dean
Dewyuk:
Hi folks passed module 4 today for my class (C) (practical passed early nov)
Hi Dewyuk,
CONGRATULATIONS on passing your CPC mod 4 test
Thatâs the fireworks sorted.
Dewyuk:
and soon as i receive my qualification im gonna bug the hell out of agencies etc until i get some work
Thatâs the spirit mate, keep it up and something will turn up for you. Good luck!!
Thanks folks,it is a great feeling yesâŚa great relief aswell lolâŚDar Good luck im sure you will be fineâŚtake your time and try not to forget anythingâŚif theres any questions you have for a rookie then fire ahead.
Cheers for the Fireworks too dieselâŚive been reading loads of the training blogs and diarys on here so was hoping the day would come for my own display hehe 
Dewyuk:
Cheers for the Fireworks too dieselâŚive been reading loads of the training blogs and diarys on here so was hoping the day would come for my own display hehe
Hi Dewyuk,
The fireworks hardly seem good enough for the effort it now takes for you guys to pass the LGV driving test.
IMHO, gaining the LGV licence is much harder these days compared to when I did mine back in 1979, cos we didnât have any of the CPC malarky and you could just go straight to Cat C+E on âdouble Lsâ even if you didnât have a car licence!! 
go straight to Cat C+E on âdouble Lsâ even if you didnât have a car licence!!
Yes, thatâs right Dave. Thatâs back in the days when we instructors really used to earn our money. The first lesson in an artic used to start off with the famous words âdown on the floor in front of you youâll see three pedalsâ
And they say it was the âgood old daysâ. I think not!!
Fact is, whether or not folk want to accept it, that drivers who go through the initial driver cpc are rather more knowledgeable than I was when I was let loose. Learning as you go is all very well and good as long as nothing goes wrong in the process.
Pete 
You have brought back a few memories there Peter and Dave. It is true, when I started training back in 1983 there was no theory test, no compulsory passing on a rigid 1st. Straight onto an artic and of course no CPC.
Just take a medical, apply to the local traffic area office for the HGV provisional (a little brown/black book with a front page stuck inside). After that take the lessons and test.
In the test was a forward steering excercise which was started straight after the reverse from within the bay. 3 cones placed on the centre line that you had to slalom through and end up driving into another bay at the far end of the area.
No trailer coupling excercise. I recall the examiner would ask a few questions about coupling at the start of the test. At the end of the drive he would show a few road signs you had to identify from a flip over book he carried.,
From memory most courses were about 8 or 10 days long. Imagine having the luxury of having that long now to get someone ready.
One thing has always puzzled me, why does everyone call it Class 2 when in fact all 2 axled trucks were HGV 3. Only rigids with more than 2 axles were class 2. You also got a full drawbar entitlement automatically when you passed either Class 3 or 2.
I do agree with Peter that a driver passing his Class 1 now is far more knowledgeable than back then.
P.S test fees were ÂŁ32 and training was about ÂŁ45 per day.
Congratulations on passing your mod4 dewyuk & good luck with the job hunt
Congratulations go bug them agencies, donât give up
Now then Dave all this talk of when I did mine 1979âŚLGV trainer 1983âŚwell now I do feel like an old â â â â 1971âŚbah humbugâŚcome on Pete I am sure you beat me
All the best
Rick
(a little brown/black book with a front page stuck inside).
⌠and oh, the joy of replacing the little red (provisional) sticker with the blue one (full licence).
I feel very old but I also remember when the PSV licence was like a bit of blue tissue paper and cost 5 bob (25p to you youngâns).
Apologies for wandering off thread - senior moment. Will continue my afternoon nap now.
Pete
I would agree that it is quite an effort to get through nowadays.In my opinion this can only discourage younger drivers from going for the licence (who knows maybe this is the Governments aim).If you consider the costs involved from day 1 (medical,theory test books,hpt cd-rom,theory test fee,module 2 fee,cost of training course,practical test fees,retest fee if necessary,module 4 fees,digital tacho fee,loss of earnings whilst training) and after all that jargon you could still end up walking away from it all -ÂŁ2000 with absolutely sweet FA to show for it
And when the test has been passed the final insult is the fact that your 5 year cpc periodic training cycle begins the minute you pass your test 
A little gripe i had at the time of training was that the chap that done the course with me did have to do initial cpc modules,this was because he had passed car licence before jan 1997(even though he had never been anywhere near a lorry in his life previous)âŚAfter he completed his training the hours were registered against his periodic cpc training and his driver card was issued to him grrrrrr!!
Not that the gripe was against him (fairplay as far as he is concerned)
Sorry meant to say he DID NOT have to do initial cpc
since were down memory lane i might as well askâŚWhat were your first wagons then folksâ â ?
Now then Dave all this talk of when I did mine 1979âŚLGV trainer 1983âŚwell now I do feel like an old â â â â 1971âŚbah humbugâŚcome on Pete I am sure you beat me
No Rick - you win. Passed PSV 1971, HGV 1974. Started training PSV drivers 1972, HGV drivers 1974.
Soon have a clue how to do it!!
I had a BIG artic - - 28 ton gross!! 120 bhp Gardener. Imagine how far the chest got puffed out when I got a nearly new 180!
Spent many a night on the parcel shelf of Beford TK.
Albion half cab bus (does that count on a truck forum?)
First vehicle I trained other drivers on was a Leyland PD2 double decker - half cab - crash 1+2 box, and a real, ratchet handbrake. No power steering and 36 mph flat out.
First HGV training vehicle Bedford TK artic with Scammel coupling. Enormous trailer - must have been all of 24â single axle.
Remember getting a Bedford TM artic with a tandem axle trailer; that was about 1985. Such luxury. Real posing vehicle! That was a 1978 (T) and was joined by another one 1983 (Y) which had a TURBO. My word.
Gold old days - never. Give me a 500+bhp any day. (Whatâs a ânight heaterâ?)
Pete
I googled them trucksâŚwow it seems like we are spoilt today in comparisonâŚ(like with most things). i would imagine they took some driving and getting used to though.
The trucks I mentioned such as the Bedford TK and TM could be driven by todayâs driver - no prob. But youâd go mad at the lack of gadgets. In fact, there werenât any!! They used to start up, go and stop. And that was it. No radio, electric windows and, in the TK, not always a heater.
If weâre going to be really silly I carry on about delivering Scammel chassis perched on a pallet. No cab, no body. Just a bloody great coat, gloves and scarf!! Used to deliver from Watford to Luton on a regular basis. Would be highly illegal now but was accepted practice then. Furthest I went was Watford - Wigan. A very long day when yourâe out in the elements.
But I repeat, these werenât the âgood old daysâ. Just damned hard work in dangerous conditions compared to today.
Sorry if I ramble - but itâs good to have an audience!!!
Pete
LGVTrainer:
From memory most courses were about 8 or 10 days long. Imagine having the luxury of having that long now to get someone ready.
Gees, i thought 5 days of stress were enough âŚ