HR55,originally white and with red triangle transfers,then painted fleet colour with the ERF Freeway transfers
Fleet trucks
Westranah:
Sure this was an early L10 Euro one stc engine before the l10 Celects arrived
it was mel bentleys before the ec’s turned up wes,on the intermodal
Cracking pics, before my time tho.All LV/A s mid 70s
An Irish firm were dismantling gas works N London( best not say where exactly) I were on for Emmersons running it up to Sheffield. 1st time I pulls in for load n 1 of Jones were being loaded, pops into cab for the craic with him, I asked where the weighbridge were ain,t one judge it by tyres about to burst. Go to so n so 2 ml up the road n he,ll get you to 30t n pay you the difference, you buga we had a good holiday that year. Used to run to all sorts of jobs with Jones,s good lads would never pass you by if they could give you an hand. Onto h/shoulder one Sat morning just south of Blue Boar cos I hadn,t got a light for my ■■■ n 3 of Jones,s were amongst the12 others that pulled up to see if everything o k. bludy marvellous
Have only just come across this thread , but better late than never ay ?
my dad worked for Sammy jones for 15 years from about 1968 ( Les Mears ) from Nuneaton & was only a handful of out based drivers at the time , including the two west indian /caribean ? drivers from Leicester area ( Andrew & Vince ? ) . He is still plodding on and was 80 on boxing day . A few of the old timers still have a regular meet up for lunch at a pub on the A5 at Chasetown & reminisce the afternoon away .
I well remember going with him as a young un loading coal from Leicestershire to Dickinsons paper mill at Watford then back loading scrap metal from a yard off Seven sisters rd in Holloway( Smiths ? where he broke his leg once and a bloke called Mason I think fetched us home) .
On scrap work punctures were common place and I remember a line of half a dozen trucks stopping to help change a wheel .
Two other memories are , blocking a salesman with a pile of pennies in a phone box & going off for a cuppa , because he wouldn’t let Les make one call back to base for the next days work …The police were called , but let us finish our tea before Les let him out of the box .
Also the bloke in the foyer of the Blue Boar with a suitcase full of watches …at some point every member of our family had an xmas watch off him 
I’ve been driving hgv’s now for 36 years , so those early days of riding with my dad in a selection of Atki’s & ERF’s must have had some lasting effect on me 
Can remember these tipping trailers well,two of us took HR55 up to Michelin stoke one day where whilst trying to tip his container full of rubber blocks in the unloading Bay Area of Michelin the back end of the trailer gave way and the lot turned up on its side leaning against the frame work inside the building,this apparently stopped and held up the production line costing ££££££££ and there must have been 15 motors outside waiting to get in to tip,we couldn’t do a lot with a recovery truck and a crane was brought in to send his jib in and right it,once we got it out and the box off the trailer it was took back to Anglian road and scrapped.What was ironic to me was Michelin had there own container box removal system in that bay to take a box off ,the vehicle could pull out the bay whilst the box was tipped up and unloaded,then back the vehicle back into the bay,box back on,S jones being the leaders though had to have tipping skeletal trailers,unfortunately they was showing there age a bit added with rubber blocks not coming out the container easy when fully tipped up,not good,don’t think you would be allowed to do that today,I had a good half day out though and all adds to experience whilst being around some of the old s jones drivers who was waiting to get tipped that day and helping out,they didn’t seem to be phased by it at all keeping a good atmosphere and an air of calm,proper drivers
Just been for a cuppa with Les , and he gave me a list of some of the old timers he worked with in his time with Sammy,s , although he did point out the company was so large at one point there were drivers there who he probably never met .
Management : Michael Jones , Frank Hickin, Billy Smith, Ray Mason, Bill Cooper, Derek Cope .
Drivers : Dad Cooper, Bob Frost, Reg Oxford, Bill Taylor, Ray Tams, Peter Ellis, Mick Ellis, Gordon Taylor, ■■■■ Grantham, Jim Pound.
Fitters : John Williams , Ron Hawkins.
Westranah:
Can remember these tipping trailers well,two of us took HR55 up to Michelin stoke one day where whilst trying to tip his container full of rubber blocks in the unloading Bay Area of Michelin the back end of the trailer gave way and the lot turned up on its side leaning against the frame work inside the building,this apparently stopped and held up the production line costing ££££££££ and there must have been 15 motors outside waiting to get in to tip,we couldn’t do a lot with a recovery truck and a crane was brought in to send his jib in and right it,once we got it out and the box off the trailer it was took back to Anglian road and scrapped.What was ironic to me was Michelin had there own container box removal system in that bay to take a box off ,the vehicle could pull out the bay whilst the box was tipped up and unloaded,then back the vehicle back into the bay,box back on,S jones being the leaders though had to have tipping skeletal trailers,unfortunately they was showing there age a bit added with rubber blocks not coming out the container easy when fully tipped up,not good,don’t think you would be allowed to do that today,I had a good half day out though and all adds to experience whilst being around some of the old s jones drivers who was waiting to get tipped that day and helping out,they didn’t seem to be phased by it at all keeping a good atmosphere and an air of calm,proper drivers
looks like brian pratt,he used to pull that tipping trailer and kenny derry had the other one
mickymidas:
Have only just come across this thread , but better late than never ay ?
my dad worked for Sammy jones for 15 years from about 1968 ( Les Mears ) from Nuneaton & was only a handful of out based drivers at the time , including the two west indian /caribean ? drivers from Leicester area ( Andrew & Vince ? ) . He is still plodding on and was 80 on boxing day . A few of the old timers still have a regular meet up for lunch at a pub on the A5 at Chasetown & reminisce the afternoon away .
I well remember going with him as a young un loading coal from Leicestershire to Dickinsons paper mill at Watford then back loading scrap metal from a yard off Seven sisters rd in Holloway( where he broke his leg once and a bloke called Mason I think fetched us home) .
On scrap work punctures were common place and I remember a line of half a dozen trucks stopping to help change a wheel .
Two other memories are , blocking a salesman with a pile of pennies in a phone box & going off for a cuppa , because he wouldn’t let Les make one call back to base for the next days work …The police were called , but let us finish our tea before Les let him out of the box .
Also the bloke in the foyer of the Blue Boar with a suitcase full of watches …at some point every member of our family had an xmas watch off him
I’ve been driving hgv’s now for 36 years , so those early days of riding with my dad in a selection of Atki’s & ERF’s must have had some lasting effect on me
Dickinsons you, be loading either Nailstone or Measham pit, long gone. If you were 1 cwt over they wouldn,t let you out
mickymidas:
Have only just come across this thread , but better late than never ay ?
my dad worked for Sammy jones for 15 years from about 1968 ( Les Mears ) from Nuneaton & was only a handful of out based drivers at the time , including the two west indian /caribean ? drivers from Leicester area ( Andrew & Vince ? ) . He is still plodding on and was 80 on boxing day . A few of the old timers still have a regular meet up for lunch at a pub on the A5 at Chasetown & reminisce the afternoon away .
I well remember going with him as a young un loading coal from Leicestershire to Dickinsons paper mill at Watford then back loading scrap metal from a yard off Seven sisters rd in Holloway( Smiths ? where he broke his leg once and a bloke called Mason I think fetched us home) .
On scrap work punctures were common place and I remember a line of half a dozen trucks stopping to help change a wheel .
Two other memories are , blocking a salesman with a pile of pennies in a phone box & going off for a cuppa , because he wouldn’t let Les make one call back to base for the next days work …The police were called , but let us finish our tea before Les let him out of the box .
Also the bloke in the foyer of the Blue Boar with a suitcase full of watches …at some point every member of our family had an xmas watch off him
I’ve been driving hgv’s now for 36 years , so those early days of riding with my dad in a selection of Atki’s & ERF’s must have had some lasting effect on me
the bloke called mason would it be joe mason by any chance?
Was Ray Mason , one of transport management
mickymidas:
Was Ray Mason , one of transport management
just wondered as my grandad was there used to drive a tvw eight legger reg number 5351 i think on the coal,also know ray mason take it was the one who went onto haywards walsall.
ergomatic man:
mickymidas:
Was Ray Mason , one of transport managementjust wondered as my grandad was there used to drive a tvw eight legger reg number 5351 i think on the coal,also know ray mason take it was the one who went onto haywards walsall.
curnock:
0ergomatic man:
mickymidas:
Was Ray Mason , one of transport managementjust wondered as my grandad was there used to drive a tvw eight legger reg number 5351 i think on the coal,also know ray mason take it was the one who went onto haywards walsall.
thats the truck he drove my dad used to travel in that as a kid regular think down oxford on the coal.
Happy Birthday to Les Slymn Ex Jones’ Fleet Engineer
Stanfield:
http://www.transportphotos.com/road/photos
210
K6 ERF was an early ec with the split front bumper,it later became a 6x2 for the intermodal work,it was last seen in stonegate eggs Cannock retiring as a shunter as I recall about 5-7 years ago