Anyone driven a Reg Knowles Gearbox ?
Dan, under the canopy at Alfreton the Knowles family had an S20 tractor that had Reg`s box in it.
Foden were stupid that they never took on board the Knowles ideas. They simplified, and innovated to make the lorries more user friendly. Fabulous, (and unrecognised ) engineers. Reg did a more practical headlight conversion as well!
I can always remember going for spares in the late 60s, and their “stop account” board was writ large behind the parts counter. Always at the top was NCB, witnessed by the number of National Coal Board vans waiting for the account to be re opened, so they could draw spares.
One of the few places were you could see Gardner engines stacked on stillages in the parts department. Mrs Knowles was lovely, once came from behind their computer, (grief they must have been one of the first ever to be computerised), put her “pinnie” on, to cook lunch for the family…and lucky me, because I had come back from Italy with a gearbox problem on my S20, she fed me as well!!!
Blooming great people, did they have a Fiat agency in the `70s?
Foden were too arrogant to realise that their Dealer was better than the luddites that they employed!!!
Cheerio for now
Thanks for the reply ,I have many stories from there as the Mrs s family were involved at knowles and also my family with lorries too ,I know where there’s a gearbox or 2 and a 2 stroke engine .my uncle recalls Reg and the wife coming out to the side of the motorway with a centre bearing ,reg and my uncle sat in the van whilst the wife fitted the bearing !
There is a lad who lives in Matlock and worked for Reg at Tansley when the gearbox was being designed and manufactured. I believe that it used Foden gears? He told me that they put a loaded eight legger on Steep Turnpike (a 1in 5 hill in the town) and demonstrated to Fodens man that they could set off with it and change up through the gears! Foden’s were not impressed and didn’t take up the idea so only a few were sold locally. I know that Charcon had at least one and I think that Longcliffe quarries took one as well? Reg also showed Fodens the twin headlight setup he devised to replace the useless 11" lights on the S80/83’s but again there was no interest.
I visited Reg for parts when they moved to Somercotes, as Saviem said the stop list was there for all to see and NCB were top and Tarmac 2nd! Reg told me that he changed to Fiat for one main reason, the factory listened to complaints and acted on them. Fodens came every year to dealers asking for feedback on the trucks and had the dealers any ideas to put forward, Reg said that no matter what comments he made the factory carried on just as normal so he chucked his lot in with the Italians!
Pete.
Looking at the diagram in the CM article, I guess that the overdrive bit went direct drive to give the seven ratios- 1234direct, then the 3 o/d ratios on 4th in the main box. I wonder why he did not set up the ratios so that 16 gears could be had? The ratio steps described in the article seem huge.
There is a weight saving in using a higher speed, lower torque secondary 'box, but the advantage must be minimal- the diff ratio was not far off that of the ordinary transmissions of the day, so the output torque of the secondary 'box would have been normal. I can see why Foden were not interested. If nothing else, they were fully tooled up to make their own 12 speed gearbox. The Knowles gearbox would have needed a proper test programme under its belt, to give confidence to begin production of the things- two prototypes run for a year and a visual inspection is nothing like enough.
windrush:
There is a lad who lives in Matlock and worked for Reg at Tansley when the gearbox was being designed and manufactured. I believe that it used Foden gears? He told me that they put a loaded eight legger on Steep Turnpike (a 1in 5 hill in the town) and demonstrated to Fodens man that they could set off with it and change up through the gears! Foden’s were not impressed and didn’t take up the idea so only a few were sold locally. I know that Charcon had at least one and I think that Longcliffe quarries took one as well? Reg also showed Fodens the twin headlight setup he devised to replace the useless 11" lights on the S80/83’s but again there was no interest.I visited Reg for parts when they moved to Somercotes, as Saviem said the stop list was there for all to see and NCB were top and Tarmac 2nd! Reg told me that he changed to Fiat for one main reason, the factory listened to complaints and acted on them. Fodens came every year to dealers asking for feedback on the trucks and had the dealers any ideas to put forward, Reg said that no matter what comments he made the factory carried on just as normal so he chucked his lot in with the Italians!
Pete.
pete it’s the esso engine and knowles box that the Mrs uncle has got ,who you know .
Punchy Dan:
pete it’s the esso engine and knowles box that the Mrs uncle has got ,who you know .
I don’t really ‘know’ the chap Dan and I don’t know his name as I only met him the once. It was just that I was in the Doctor’s surgery a few years ago and could hear this Foden two stroke running! 
I went over for a chat and he told me what I wrote in my post, it was Mick Whittles S21 generator unit that was running in his garage. I would have liked to talk more (I like a natter!) but his missus wanted him so that ended the conversation. Until then, despite walking past the house for years, I had never noticed the FODEN badge on the gate before! 
I wonder if it was the guy who bought the Foden two stroke parts book and other various truck manuals that Frank Gough was selling, he asked me if I wanted them and I made him an offer for them (thought that I would get them as I worked for him for five years!) but when I went to collect them he said that a chap in Matlock had offered him more cash so he got them instead! 
I didn’t bother trying to buy anything else from him after that. 
Pete.
windrush:
Punchy Dan:
pete it’s the esso engine and knowles box that the Mrs uncle has got ,who you know .I don’t really ‘know’ the chap Dan and I don’t know his name as I only met him the once. It was just that I was in the Doctor’s surgery a few years ago and could hear this Foden two stroke running!
Pete.
Hi Pete,
Mick Whittle, was that the lad from over Hinkley way,had a Micky Mouse Foden very nice blue paint job with fancy sign writing?
That’s the chap Pete, he ran Foden eight legger tippers for Witherley among others. He isn’t the lad I spoke too though, I think that Mick had sold that S21 by then?
Pete.