Thanks for posting the photo’s, brings back memories of the old days,give my best to your Dad I remember him in the workshop,and also Mick Ansell,he lived up the road from me in Clanfield.
You might know Roy Muscato,and John Mynett from Petersfield used to do a bit of work for Robert Baille.
Regards
Richard
Great pictures indeed and makes you realize perhaps we should have taken more back in the day. Richard you gave me a memory jerker with the name Roy Muscato, did he not do timber haulage as well and paint his trucks a hideous orange colour or am I too far gone in the brain JD.
Just a little bit of background history, if anyone’s interested. Terry Walker, my father, pictured kneeling in the front. As you can see he trained in the Army with the REME and specialised in Tank Recovery, notice the ‘practice piece’ in the back ground. He would have been around 19 or 20 here. After the Army he went to AEC in Southall as a mechanic.
After AEC and, I think, a very brief spell with Wanteys Brewery, he went to work at Lucazade. After they got taken over by Beechams he and the Transport Manager, Amos Phipps, were asked to work for a new transport company which was being set up by one of the General Managers, a certain Mr. Robert Baillie. Mr. Baillie had contacts with the people who were setting up the Guernsey Tomato Marketing Board. They needed a country wide distribution network on the Mainland. I think that, at that time, the Atkinson Silver Knight was just about the largest, in terms of general payload, vehicle on the road. You can see from the photo that they already had experience with the Atkinson. That’s Terry Walker in the middle (with a suit on!!)
This would have been very soon after the move into the depot at Horndean, around 1971, as the Ford is still in the Percy Powell livery. It was Percy Powell who owned the depot, Letcombe House, before Baillie’s bought them out. (Before Powell’s it was a Laundry).
I think this picture was done to show off the first Brand New super Atkinson Borderer with its ■■■■■■■ engine. This photo surprised me just how early the Volvo F86 was around. I assume it’s the same ford (D series? after it’s new coat of paint. That reminds me… You can see that in all the pictures, now matter how clean any of the lorries were they never looked as shiny as the the original silver knights pictured in Croydon. Even the same vehicle, as pictured by Ray Smyth. The intention was for a really smart looking fleet. Midnight Blue was the chosen colour, with Gold Leaf Signwrighting. (I watched it being done a couple of times) and then clear lacquer over the top, hence the shine. This was great at first… in Croydon. The trouble was after being parked next to the sea in Peacehaven and loaded at Shoreham Docks, it didn’t take long at all for the salt in the air to get underneath the lacquer and turn everything nearly white. They were very soon re painted but without the clear lacquer and were never quite as impressive.
Thanks for posting the photo’s, brings back memories of the old days,give my best to your Dad I remember him in the workshop,and also Mick Ansell,he lived up the road from me in Clanfield.
You might know Roy Muscato,and John Mynett from Petersfield used to do a bit of work for Robert Baille.
Regards
Richard
Great pictures indeed and makes you realize perhaps we should have taken more back in the day. Richard you gave me a memory jerker with the name Roy Muscato, did he not do timber haulage as well and paint his trucks a hideous orange colour or am I too far gone in the brain JD.
Hi John,
Nothing wrong with your brain, yes he did round timber haulage from his house in Petersfield and then the Old Brickyard in Elsted between Midhurst and South Harting, I met him when he bought a BMC Mastiff tractor unit new in 1969,then an ex Madgwicks AEC Marshall,and a 2nd hand Ford D1000 4 wheeler,he also carried Midhurst white bricks but mainly timber,after that he had a Marathon and an F86. One of your old drivers Pete Clue drove for him as well as Gerbil. He ran to all the sawmills that you probably did,a Mary Hopkins moment again.
Sorry to Hijack the thread Ray,hope you are keeping well.I could go on about Percy Powell as well !!
Hi Richard, Hope you are well. With regard to Percy Powell, I joined Robert Baillie early 1970,just about
the time they acquired Percy Powell, and moved to Horndean. I did not know much about Powells,other
than they had quite a mixed fleet of vehicles. I recall an AEC Marshall 6 wheeler flat, GPH 395C,Park Royal cab,
3 AEC Mercury 24ton GVW Artic units, JRV 44F, LRV 974G,cant remember the number of the 3rd Mercury. Ergo Cab.
I AEC Mandator 32ton Artic, GTR 953D. Several medium weight Ford D Series Artic units, an F Reg TK Bedford
coachbuilt Pantechnicon/Furniture van, JRV 300F, and an almost new KM Bedford 16ton GVW Flat, Reg No ORV 126H.
As it’s now a housing estate this picture of Robert Baillie’s depot in Horndean may be of interest. This is the rear section of the yard with the wash bay to the right. the Ford D series is POU (can’t remember the rest at the moment) which is, I think the same one in previous photos, first in Percy Powell livery and then Midnight Blue. In this picture it’s one of the training vehicles. Bailies had three of these all together. You can also see the rear of the workshop , the offices and the VW pickup which would be a valuable thing by now if it had been treated a little less harshly!
The Bedford TK Training vehicle with trailer. How anyone even got to their test in this I don’t know. It had the snappiest, harshest brakes I’ve ever felt, touch the pedal and you nearly went through the windscreen. Bailies employed 3 or 4 full time HGV instructors over the years.
An A series ERF in the workshop. The only company I can think this may have belonged to was Chichester Grain, who employed an Ex Robert Baillie driver. (this is well before the CB radio craze and they all had two way radios to contact the combine harvester, hence the twin ariels)
The First ERF for Baillies. A day cab, I don’t remember this one at Horndean and I don’t know if it ever had a Jennings sleeper added.
I do remember the shorter headboards were steel rather than wood. I think it was because steel, loaded at Sheerness, tended to punch through the taller wooden ones.
Albert Johnson Quay. Portsmouth. The enduring memory I have from this picture is the Canteen, (you can see it behind the three ERFs on the loading apron). On cold wet mornings when I wasn’t at School and I was getting under my Dad’s feet I’d be sent down ‘for the ride’ with any driver kind enough to put up with me. He used to tell the Driver, “If he gives you any trouble… Kick his (backside)”…
The windows would be steamed up, the air was thick with tobacco smoke, choice language and plenty of laughter! There always seemed to be two or three card games going on. The characterful ladies who worked there made the best Tea and Sausage Sandwiches I’d ever had. I think it’s part of the reason Im now driving myself!!!
My First Driving Job!! This would be 1970. a few months before my 8th birthday. As you can see it was my job to clean the top edge of the drivers door window!!! I soon progressed to checking oil, water, lights and making sure the air tanks were up to full pressure. Sometimes I was sent in under the engine cover or up into the chassis or wherever the mechanics couldn’t quite reach.
Dad’s chugging along, thanks for asking. Sad to say he’s bad with dementia. He lives at Blind Veterans UK (used to be St Dunstans) near Brighton. He couldn’t possibly be looked after any better. They are absolutely Fantastic. I’d send him your best wishes but it wouldn’t mean a thing.
Top marks to Tim Walker again, He has certainly done well with the latest supply
of Robert Baillie pictures. The location he is not sure about is Baillies depot at
Wigan,on the A49, about 400 yards north of Junction 25/M6 exit roundabout.
The site is now occupied by a large Sainsburys store,and B&M store (Foremerly Homebase)
I got a phone call yesterday from John Porter, who was at Baillies when I started,early 1970.
Regards, Ray Smyth.
