In the yard - 1982 ERF C series unit
Passed test on - X reg Ford Cargo artic
Revenue earning trip - Merc 1617 flatbed rigid
First civvy truck I drove was a Leyland Reiver. Couldn’t pull your socks up. Going uphill loaded, I used to count the stones on the road through the hole in the floor where the steering column came into the cab.
Dad’s AEC Mercury (when I was about 12) 1st for a living was a Dodge Commando 7:5 tonner in 1980.
7.5 ton Leyland Daf tipper. I told the boss, I have no licence for that, but he shrugged his shoulders and said; “It’s Northern Ireland; The cops are happy if no one is shooting them, so they won’t stop you unless you run over some one. Drive carefully, that’s all!” 
Hello gents, My first post! Did my class 3 in a bedford TK. Class 1 was done in a Scammel crusader 20 tonner again all courtesy of her maj’s transport corps!
Thames trader rigid, first artic was a 2 stroke Commer.
M reg Leyland Daf 45 150 TURBO stupidly long flatbed with front mounted crane. I loved it, I was 18 and a ‘trucker’
edit: I even think I remember the reg M827TCF
Solly:
Leyland Terrier.
Me too !!!
Volvo FL6 18 ton four wheeler with a massive 180hp through a member on here, doing HIAB cabin deliveries on sheet ice, that was an eye opener.
12yr old , in quarry , dads Lad cab leyland six wheeler , then the leyland super mastiff , then f7 tractor unit …
legally ; any 7.5t fridge for petit forestier , then 2 car transporter man 7.5 t . then iveco eurocargo 7.5t fridge , now Daf 45 lf 160 . BUT soon Daf lf 18t fridge [when i pass me test in 2 weeks FINGERS CROSSED LOL]
I see by the posts a lot of people went out with their dads as kids, pity employers won’t let you do that because of all the health and safety or ‘insurance doesn’t cover’ ■■■■■■■■. Not many of us young people getting into trucking these days.
On the farm an Albion Reiver (before 69),then age 20 Magirus deutz 6x6 semi legal…lol…Then wi the plates up …think it was a D series.
jimmy.
4 days after passing my class 2 in a 6 speed MAN I was dropped in at the deep end whilst out riding shotgun with the boss…He ran out of hours in Swindon and it was either find somewhere to stop or fill out a tacho disc and drive home…
And the truck in question?? A '95 ERF EC14 8 wheel tipper, complete with Eaton twin splitter gearbox.
What a wake up call that was, although once i’d got the hang of the 'box it was a dream to drive and boy did she fly!!
I’m not sure which bit I miss the most, the gearbox or the Jake Brake and Eminox…gotta love that big ■■■■■■■■■
First time I ever drove a lorry, it was my Dad’s 141 at BB Transporte in Krefeld. It was on a side-loading bay, and the forkies wanted it moved forwards by about 3 feet. I was 9 years old, and sat in the passenger seat reading, whilst Dad was away in the office. They persuaded me that I would be able to do it, so I gave it a go! It leaped about 6’ in the air, and about the same forwards - but I got a cheer from them as they could carry on. Not quite what I got from Dad when he got back…
Fast forwards several years, and I was doing some work in a local timber yard between exams. They had a 7.5 tonner which I used to do the deliveries in, but it was off the road one day, so they hired one from the local truck-hire place. I trundled off to Ipswich docks to collect some timber, and got there at lunchtime, so had a load of time to kill. I sat there reading through the manual, and got to the bit with the specs. As I was reading through, I got to the axle weight limits - can’t remember them exactly, but the front axle was something like 6 tons, and the rear axle around 13 tons. Then the penny dropped - this probably wasn’t a 7.5 tonner, and I could potentially be in the ■■■■. Never have I driven so carefully back home…
First HGV I drove after passing my test last March, was a MAN TGA 26.410, with a curtainsider trailer. I left the yard at about 0500 one dark morning, and finally stopped shaking about 20 miles up the road, then settled in and started enjoying myself.
Gary
roadrunner:
Volvo FL6 18 ton four wheeler with a massive 180hp through a member on here, doing HIAB cabin deliveries on sheet ice, that was an eye opener.
Sounds familiar
Artic for Addis while it’s driver drove my commer van, then when legal 1965 4 wheeler ERF reg. HPP881C
B series erf with a 180 gardener.
AlexWignall:
Sudden Accident 401, FEC 747T. The only decent feature was a door to get out of it.
This really made me laugh 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
My first truck I legally drove on the road was an F88 recovery truck, the brakes were crap compared to the Renault G260 I took my test in 
mercedes 814 on shop deliveries