Buzzer:
One from down Dean’s way, Buzzer
The MAN’s took over slowly from the Fodens that they operated Buzzer. 
Great photos Dean, out of interest how big a company were they?
Kempston:
Great photos Dean, out of interest how big a company were they?
Afternoon Dave, according to this clipping from 1980 they were running 24 motors. Have attached an intresting article with some cracking pics of
there vehicles.
Click on pages twice to read.
Wonder why the Abbot Self Propelled Gun is behind the Foden 8 wheeler in the collision between two Fodens and was it maybe involved somehow. It doesn’t have a Gun barrel fitted so maybe a driver training vehicle. I’ll see if anyone on the Artillery site I go on has any answers. Franky.
Geordielad:
Wonder why the Abbot Self Propelled Gun is behind the Foden 8 wheeler in the collision between two Fodens and was it maybe involved somehow. It doesn’t have a Gun barrel fitted so maybe a driver training vehicle. I’ll see if anyone on the Artillery site I go on has any answers. Franky.
Franky, That Abbot self propelled gun would have been a training vehicle out of Bovington army camp. Still see similar vehicles today out and about.
Not sure if this is a Abbot, but Paul caught it at the open day at Bovington where they have the mock battle.
Geordielad:
Wonder why the Abbot Self Propelled Gun is behind the Foden 8 wheeler in the collision between two Fodens and was it maybe involved somehow. It doesn’t have a Gun barrel fitted so maybe a driver training vehicle. I’ll see if anyone on the Artillery site I go on has any answers. Franky.
Pure speculation, but,
The lorry is shown, by itself, half across the road. Then with the Abbot close to it, it is at the road side.
Maybe the Foden has been towed out the way a bit by Army?
Not sure if this is a Abbot, but Paul caught it at the open day at Bovington where they have the mock battle.
That’s a Scimitar Dean a light recce tank, sent ahead of larger Armoured Groups, and built by Alvis. I put the photo on a military site but no one came up with what went on, up to now anyway. The tracked training vehicle could have just been helping out or been more involved as the 8 wheeler seems to have swerved into the path of the Elliots Foden for some reason! It is a road used by military driver training from Bovington Camp. Franky.
Dean way back in the 70’s when I was running fruit loads out of the Southampton docks there was a nice chap with a Foden with the big headlights name of John Eliott and know he was a relative of the company above, just wondered if you knew of him and if he is still about, remember he once let me tip in front of him as I had me Mrs with me with a babe who had run out of milk bottles, a nice gesture but it was like that back then, Buzzer
Franglais:
“Geordielad” Wonder why the Abbot Self Propelled Gun is behind the Foden 8 wheeler in the collision between two Fodens and was it maybe involved somehow. It doesn’t have a Gun barrel fitted so maybe a driver training vehicle. I’ll see if anyone on the Artillery site I go on has any answers. Franky.Pure speculation, but,
The lorry is shown, by itself, half across the road. Then with the Abbot close to it, it is at the road side.
Maybe the Foden has been towed out the way a bit by Army?
No idea about the accident chap.
Buzzer:
Dean way back in the 70’s when I was running fruit loads out of the Southampton docks there was a nice chap with a Foden with the big headlights name of John Eliott and know he was a relative of the company above, just wondered if you knew of him and if he is still about, remember he once let me tip in front of him as I had me Mrs with me with a babe who had run out of milk bottles, a nice gesture but it was like that back then, Buzzer
Buzzer, i dont know him but i know Paul Gee was chatting to him a while back as he sent him some photos of his
grandads trucks,so he is still about on facebook.
Geordielad:
Not sure if this is a Abbot, but Paul caught it at the open day at Bovington where they have the mock battle.That’s a Scimitar Dean a light recce tank, sent ahead of larger Armoured Groups, and built by Alvis. I put the photo on a military site but no one came up with what went on, up to now anyway. The tracked training vehicle could have just been helping out or been more involved as the 8 wheeler seems to have swerved into the path of the Elliots Foden for some reason! It is a road used by military driver training from Bovington Camp. Franky.
Franky, i dont know anything about tanks but have some photos that Paul took of the Bovington tank battle which i will pop on.
Talking of the name Alvis heres a few pics of some and clippings and a brochure about the Stalwart.
This one was taken in Poole near the docks and is from Bovington Camp.
This one is in the mock battle at the Bovington open day.
- Click on pages twice to read.
Brochure.
Great work as always Dean, interesting stuff.
Cheers Dene, great vehicles the Stalwart, in my mob the Royal Artillery we had two Stolly’s allocated to each Self Propelled Abbot Gun for ammo supply, one would have the Atlas crane, it would unload the pallets of shells then unload the other Stalwart. Six Guns to a Battery and three Gun Batteries with a HQ Battery also to make a Regiment, so a few Stalwarts around along with Bedford MK four wheelers and Land Rovers, oh and we had two Centurion Tanks for Observation Parties. Took a bit of planning to move a Regiment around Germany as you can imagine. Cheers Franky.
Kempston:
Great work as always Dean, interesting stuff.
Geordielad:
Cheers Dene, great vehicles the Stalwart, in my mob the Royal Artillery we had two Stolly’s allocated to each Self Propelled Abbot Gun for ammo supply, one would have the Atlas crane, it would unload the pallets of shells then unload the other Stalwart. Six Guns to a Battery and three Gun Batteries with a HQ Battery also to make a Regiment, so a few Stalwarts around along with Bedford MK four wheelers and Land Rovers, oh and we had two Centurion Tanks for Observation Parties. Took a bit of planning to move a Regiment around Germany as you can imagine. Cheers Franky.
Thanks for the info Franky,like i said i dont know anything about tanks but i have this pic of a Centurion. I assume you were operating Antars in Germany ?
Click on twice to read.
Cheers Dean, the Centurion’s we used were Mk5 which were just upgraded early Marks, we didn’t use Transporters that was mainly for Armoured (Tank) Regiments when they had to move many Tanks for a distance and especially in the UK. Our camp (an ex SS training Camp) was located next to the Luneburg Heath training area, where Montgomery took the German surrender in 1945. So we more or less rolled out the back gates and onto the area for exercises, if we had an exercise or training in another part of Germany then the tracked Guns would be put on rail cars, run to the nearest unloading area then driven in convoy to wherever we were exercising. It would be a rare sight in the UK to see Armoured Tracked Guns and Tanks driving along our roads but in Germany it was quite normal since the end of WWII until not so long ago when the UK left BAOR. Although there were certain limits on places and roads we could use and at certain times. As well as British Army equipment being driven around of course the German Army (Bundeswehr), now part of NATO, also could often be seen, a convoy of Leopard Tanks was some spectacle and they didn’t dawdle. We actually had a German armoured training unit close by and their Artillery used the same live firing areas as we did, and usually at night but it was something you got used to. Good days but coming back to the UK during the 70’s was mainly covering various strikes, Fire, Ambulance, Petrol Drivers, Bin Men just to name a few and it seems we could see those days again! Franky.
Geordielad:
Cheers Dean, the Centurion’s we used were Mk5 which were just upgraded early Marks, we didn’t use Transporters that was mainly for Armoured (Tank) Regiments when they had to move many Tanks for a distance and especially in the UK. Our camp (an ex SS training Camp) was located next to the Luneburg Heath training area, where Montgomery took the German surrender in 1945. So we more or less rolled out the back gates and onto the area for exercises, if we had an exercise or training in another part of Germany then the tracked Guns would be put on rail cars, run to the nearest unloading area then driven in convoy to wherever we were exercising. It would be a rare sight in the UK to see Armoured Tracked Guns and Tanks driving along our roads but in Germany it was quite normal since the end of WWII until not so long ago when the UK left BAOR. Although there were certain limits on places and roads we could use and at certain times. As well as British Army equipment being driven around of course the German Army (Bundeswehr), now part of NATO, also could often be seen, a convoy of Leopard Tanks was some spectacle and they didn’t dawdle. We actually had a German armoured training unit close by and their Artillery used the same live firing areas as we did, and usually at night but it was something you got used to. Good days but coming back to the UK during the 70’s was mainly covering various strikes, Fire, Ambulance, Petrol Drivers, Bin Men just to name a few and it seems we could see those days again! Franky.
Intresting comments Franky. Did not realise they drove them on the roads and used trains over there. I take it they had to run on rubber tracks.
Heres a bit about Bovington from 1961 and some pics of one of the mock battles. As a kid these were a fantastic experience and i think some of
the adults enjoyed it as much as the kids. Always remember a Challenger starting up and coming down a rough track and flattening a car. 
I imagine you will know the names of these vehicles.
Click on pages twice to read.
Buzzer:
One from down Dean’s way, Buzzer
They also had a yard in Totton Southampton
robthedog:
Buzzer:
One from down Dean’s way, BuzzerThey also had a yard in Totton Southampton
Yes it mentioned that they moved to Southampton Rob in the article.
DEANB:
robthedog:
Buzzer:
One from down Dean’s way, BuzzerThey also had a yard in Totton Southampton
Yes it mentioned that they moved to Southampton Rob in the article.
0
When they moved to Southampton they were called Elliot Sargent IIRC, Buzzer
Buzzer:
“robthedog”They also had a yard in Totton Southampton
Yes it mentioned that they moved to Southampton Rob in the article.
When they moved to Southampton they were called Elliot Sargent IIRC, Buzzer
From memory i think all the Fodens were gone then and running just Man’s.