I took my test from Grantham to Lincon and back (class 3) in 86 cant say the tree bothered me then 
Radar19:
My overhang is nuts on my 26 tonner.
Same here Radar, once that rear lift axle is up you gotta be on the ball but its so much more manoeuvrable 
Ha yeah not suprising 
, not much to worry front end overhang wise on a class 3 at oblique angles
Freight Dog:
Ha yeah not suprising
A Bedford and made to double declutch on a syncromesh
I passed my class one psv the week before on a proper crash box, now that was an experience, I kept getting the crash box wrecker to drive and not a clue at 21 years young
Respect. That sounds like a dog of a gear system!
The only even slightly cronky gears I had to put up with were the twin splitter on the Christian Slavesen ERFs and the Mercedes powerliner 2 EPS units Salvos insisted on hanging onto. The regulars would refuse the ERFs as they hated them so I became a bit of an unwilling hand by force. Still never liked the bloody things. Crap old technology, fogged by rose tinted glasses. Recall the powerliner 2 dumping into neutral on a turning hill fully loaded and the buzzer going. Hitlers revenge!
The rest I drove were all standard splitters and range changers 4/4 with split sort of thing with synchro. Nice and easy but still love the hiss and clunk of the changer. Sorry, sad mode engaged .
I only have limited experience but with the companies I’ve worked for their units are always better specced than the rigids
you can get in to bother much easier in an artic than with a rigid, like if you’re trying to find a new place and turn up the wrong road, it’s going to be easier to get out with a rigid most of the time, but the exception proves the rule
a top of the range rigid would prob be my choice if I was to make a choice! (although I’ve only ever driven base models so errmmm, yeah…)
To be fair I drove a twin splitter once in Southampton Marchwood, I dint have a clue, I just found something in the box that made it move and stuck with that and got it on the ship, that brings me neatly to a hire Scania 440 unit we have while one of our 480’s is in for repair, putting it away Thursday night and its an auto, I have never driven an auto unit before, so after going for the gear stick and feeling a space and a fool I just twiddled the stick took the handbrake off and it moved, good enough for me
Daffyd, my old girl was a tractor unit once and quite well spec’d for a 53 plate but more than a couple of nights out on a run can get claustrophobic, thats the time I drool over our artics