mizzo:
Yes Vic, the first two peddle I ever saw was at Milburns where I began my apprenticeship, it was an Ergo, but then again I’m only a youngster. Regards, Mizzo.
Now Les how you doing,i remember 1 two pedaler we had at Forth when you used the splitter you got an electric shock ,our engineer at that time said let it develop,used to use a rubber glove on this one
Hiya Vic, I’m fine hope you are, I’m just happy I don’t have to scrape ice and snow off my car to go and do the same to a truck at 05.00!! We had a 2 pedal ergo at Milburns which was ‘E’ reg driven by a chap called Fred Mecrow, he could play tunes with it as he could with a Foden 12 speed, I don’t remember it being much bother though, but as Mr Bewick says I don’t think there was owt like this before the ergos. Regards, Mizzo.
I seem to remember the splitters were better on the newer ones,were some on the box and the older ones on the dif ?, i seem to remember the older ones were a bit dodgy.But i could be wrong.Vic.
I had an Ergo Beaver in the 70’s on Bunney Hill Motors, but it wasn’t 2 pedal. It was a 3 pedal with a preselect gearbox. You moved the stubby lever into the next gear but it didn’t change till you stabbed the clutch. Maybe that is where the confusion arises.
As to the Long Haul. I too saw it many years ago, I thought it was on telly but I could be wrong. It wasn’t just the wheel changing but the whole thought of taking an Otto off road had tears streaming down my face. Also I seem to remember that the in-cab shots made it look as if there was no engine there. I remember thinking that those shots had been made in the studio.
Hell Drivers is also a great laugh, thundering round those lanes by means of speeded up film - hysterical. But what a line-up of soon to become stars.
I remember well, as a 4 wheeler Albion driver, being asked to take a mouth organ Otto down the road when the regular driver was on holiday. I couldn’t control the swell of my chest as I rumbled along, but the best bit was in the phone box after tipping and proudly telling the transport companies that I required a 14 ton reload, or whatever it would have been in those days.
Just out of interest, what would I have been asking for for an 8-wheel flat? Blowed if I can remember after all these years.
You weren’t too far off with 14 Ton, Unladen weights for an Eight legger were around 11 Ton and GVW was 22 Ton from 1930 to 1955 when it became 24 Ton, then in 1964 it became 28 Ton up to 1973, so around 13 Ton payload for an old Octopus, but hell who stuck to the limits then !
I did notice the reference to the two pedaller yesterday but thought I’d keep ‘shtum’ incase I started another riot, I’ll let Dennis and Larry handle this one. Franky.
Frankydobo:
You weren’t too far off with 14 Ton, Unladen weights for an Eight legger were around 11 Ton and GVW was 22 Ton from 1930 to 1955 when it became 24 Ton, then in 1964 it became 28 Ton up to 1973, so around 13 Ton payload for an old Octopus, but hell who stuck to the limits then !
I did notice the reference to the two pedaller yesterday but thought I’d keep ‘shtum’ incase I started another riot, I’ll let Dennis and Larry handle this one. Franky.
As were on about ULW and Payloads,there was a one vehicle outfit based in Kendal but running out of Barrow Steel called Furness Road Services,the “A” Licenced GUY Warrior Light 8 was owned by a James Tolfrey and his driver was called Ernie Edwards who I was friendly with.Well this Guy could carry a 17ton payload at 24 ton GVW.These Guys were truly “featherweights” AEC AV ?,5 speed Turner box and Single drive Eaton 2 speed axle.I think the trailing axle assemblies were supplied by Primrose Engineering but I’m not to sure if they were fitted on the line at Fallings Park,it’s quite possible they were as this model of Guy was very popular for a number of years so I doubt wether Primrose would have had the capacity.Cheers Dennis.
Tankerman:
I copied the video on to DVD years ago and took some screen shots from it.
Who the ■■■■ sheeted and roped that Octopus?,Victor by the looks of it,well they had to make it authentic I suppose,it had to blend in and look like many other Scouse motors at the time ! Cheers Bewick.
There was 2 pedal wagons in the 1950s as Scammell had the Super Constructor 6x6 and a Junior Constructor 6x4 but they had a Self Changing Gears of Coventry gear box in which was very similar to the first EPS Mercedes but no clutch, the Super Constructor was 875 BGJ and the junior was at least 2 years older. I recall the super as it was the first wagon which I drove legally at Pickfords and it was a left ■■■■■■.
cheers Johnnie
Sorry to dissapoint you lads but im not winding you up, the Octopus was Definately a two pedal , When Harrisons transport bought the vehicles off Leyland Moters ( via a man called Bill Molyneux ) their was a right mix of vehicles including two Octopus with the pre select box, 0ne with a 5 spd and two speed axle and trailing axle and the one my uncle drove, he,s still alive and kicking and sound of mind. At the time Leyland was in its last throws and they sold off all manor of stuff in the following years including all the internal scammel coupling moters which we cut in half selling the engines and gearboxes to Walsh and Deardon Blackburn and the couplings plus scammel tr to local farmers for agriculture use, we even sold some to Hrh Princess A nn for use on the estate. Also in the same lot were 4 Roadtrains , Rolls 265 ,Spicer boxes these had stood in Leyland so long the cabs had gone rusty and had to be sorted before they went in the fleet
Tankerman:
I copied the video on to DVD years ago and took some screen shots from it.
Who the [zb] sheeted and roped that Octopus?,Victor by the looks of it,well they had to make it authentic I suppose,it had to blend in and look like many other Scouse motors at the time ! Cheers Bewick.
norfolk:
Sorry to dissapoint you lads but im not winding you up, the Octopus was Definately a two pedal , When Harrisons transport bought the vehicles off Leyland Moters ( via a man called Bill Molyneux ) their was a right mix of vehicles including two Octopus with the pre select box, 0ne with a 5 spd and two speed axle and trailing axle and the one my uncle drove, he,s still alive and kicking and sound of mind. At the time Leyland was in its last throws and they sold off all manor of stuff in the following years including all the internal scammel coupling moters which we cut in half selling the engines and gearboxes to Walsh and Deardon Blackburn and the couplings plus scammel tr to local farmers for agriculture use, we even sold some to Hrh Princess A nn for use on the estate. Also in the same lot were 4 Roadtrains , Rolls 265 ,Spicer boxes these had stood in Leyland so long the cabs had gone rusty and had to be sorted before they went in the fleet
Is your uncle the same Jack Harrison who was landlord at the Anchor at Hutton, then the Black Bull at Longton? If so, I went to college with your cousin Warren. I also visited him (along with the rest of our class from college) many times at Sharoe Green after the accident and before he was allowed home.
Norfolk wrote:
Sorry to dissapoint you lads but im not winding you up, the Octopus was Definately a two pedal , When Harrisons transport bought the vehicles off Leyland Moters ( via a man called Bill Molyneux ) their was a right mix of vehicles including two Octopus with the pre select box, 0ne with a 5 spd and two speed axle and trailing axle and the one my uncle drove, he,s still alive and kicking and sound of mind. At the time Leyland was in its last throws and they sold off all manor of stuff in the following years including all the internal scammel coupling moters which we cut in half selling the engines and gearboxes to Walsh and Deardon Blackburn and the couplings plus scammel tr to local farmers for agriculture use, we even sold some to Hrh Princess A nn for use on the estate. Also in the same lot were 4 Roadtrains , Rolls 265 ,Spicer boxes these had stood in Leyland so long the cabs had gone rusty and had to be sorted before they went in the fleet
What period Octopus are you talking about, this still seems out of kilter to me, I’m confused that a number of 50’s Octopus are still on the go when Roadtrains are being sold off, are you sure they were the Mouth Organ cabbed variety as in the film, by the time Leyland were throwing in the towel these would have been around 30 years old.
Before anyone starts with conspiracy theories regarding this info about ‘Diana’, it might be worth noting that it was only registered for road use in 1968 (ie. it had ridden on trade plates for the whole of it’s life in the Leyland Motors fleet).
I’m not an Leyland Motors afficianado by any means, but even I know that the Freightline (Ergo) Two-Pedal Beavers had been in production well before this date. To add some plausibility to the statement that ‘Diana’ had a two-pedal driveline, would it not be beyond the wit of man to be understandable that this driveline was being trialled on Leyland’s own works fleet? It would certainly explain why a 24-cabbed Octopus was carrying a G-registration mark and perhaps a non-standard gearbox■■?
sammyopisite:
There was 2 pedal wagons in the 1950s as Scammell had the Super Constructor 6x6 and a Junior Constructor 6x4 but they had a Self Changing Gears of Coventry gear box in which was very similar to the first EPS Mercedes but no clutch, the Super Constructor was 875 BGJ and the junior was at least 2 years older. I recall the super as it was the first wagon which I drove legally at Pickfords and it was a left ■■■■■■.
cheers Johnnie
Warren is my cousin and yes its the same Jack ,Markey .Y ou are on the right track with regards to the moters that came out of Leyland towards the end, all manner of oddball stuff including 2 units used as yard shunters in Leyland with hydraulic lifting 5th wheels, these were based on what i believe were early beaver■■? with 600 engines one had a5 spd box the other had the preselect box both had home made cabs that looked like nothing Leyland ever made. The engine number of one was 10 yes ten i had a photo of it at one time, i drove both these veh out of Leyland on trade plates and delivered them to there new places of work. Trouble is some people treat you like the whelk im accused of being in other words they think you lie on the sea bed eat sh… and then spout it ( i dont even like shellfish). But then what do i know im no expert!
sammyopisite:
There was 2 pedal wagons in the 1950s as Scammell had the Super Constructor 6x6 and a Junior Constructor 6x4 but they had a Self Changing Gears of Coventry gear box in which was very similar to the first EPS Mercedes but no clutch, the Super Constructor was 875 BGJ and the junior was at least 2 years older. I recall the super as it was the first wagon which I drove legally at Pickfords and it was a left ■■■■■■.
cheers Johnnie
This is a 240 Contractor we had PGO 712E & SYO 384F at Sheffield the late Eric Morton had 875 BGJ and then had PGO 712E when it came new and BGJ was handed down until about 1970 when it was taken out of service as it was having a few to many engine problems ( porous liners Albion engine ) I always liked the super constructor better than the contractors as they were 6x6 and a lot more manoeuvrable and if they had popped a big ■■■■■■■ in it would have been perfect.
cheers Johnnie
sammyopisite:
There was 2 pedal wagons in the 1950s as Scammell had the Super Constructor 6x6 and a Junior Constructor 6x4 but they had a Self Changing Gears of Coventry gear box in which was very similar to the first EPS Mercedes but no clutch, the Super Constructor was 875 BGJ and the junior was at least 2 years older. I recall the super as it was the first wagon which I drove legally at Pickfords and it was a left ■■■■■■.
cheers Johnnie
This is a 240 Contractor we had PGO 712E & SYO 384F at Sheffield the late Eric Morton had 875 BGJ and then had PGO 712E when it came new and BGJ was handed down until about 1970 when it was taken out of service as it was having a few to many engine problems ( porous liners Albion engine ) I always liked the super constructor better than the contractors as they were 6x6 and a lot more manoeuvrable and if they had popped a big ■■■■■■■ in it would have been perfect.
cheers Johnnie
sammyopisite:
There was 2 pedal wagons in the 1950s as Scammell had the Super Constructor 6x6 and a Junior Constructor 6x4 but they had a Self Changing Gears of Coventry gear box in which was very similar to the first EPS Mercedes but no clutch, the Super Constructor was 875 BGJ and the junior was at least 2 years older. I recall the super as it was the first wagon which I drove legally at Pickfords and it was a left ■■■■■■.
cheers Johnnie
This is a 240 Contractor we had PGO 712E & SYO 384F at Sheffield the late Eric Morton had 875 BGJ and then had PGO 712E when it came new and BGJ was handed down until about 1970 when it was taken out of service as it was having a few to many engine problems ( porous liners Albion engine ) I always liked the super constructor better than the contractors as they were 6x6 and a lot more manoeuvrable and if they had popped a big ■■■■■■■ in it would have been perfect.
cheers Johnnie
TIDDERSON that is my dad stood with his back to the camera and it would be late 70s or early 80s as Sheffield depot was shut around 82/3 as he passed away in 88 and had been retired (early ) around 4/5 years
cheers Johnnie
So seeing that we are in this debate for the : Long Haul : heres another one for you : Standing out side for many years was an old blue Leyland Marathon (this wasnt at Leyland by the way ) in winter it had a sheet thrown over it , hundreds of people walked past it every day, taking not the slightest bit of notice, it looked just like an ordinary marathon except it had a strange box upthe back of the cab approx 3ft long 1ft deep and the top stuck up just above the top of the cab, air intake? … On climbing inside the layout was exactly the same as any marathon except for two things , it didnt have a gearlever coming out of the floor it had ; you guested it a semi auto box ! the other thing was ; in the centre of the cab sat a set of gauges two large ones had Boost pressure and Fuel pressure whilst a third said Turbine temp. When you got out and looked at the box at the back of the cab you found it was the exhaust for the Gas tubine that lived underneath, Ah all you experts shout they only built 2/3 they all had the ergo cab ,1 is in the Leyland Museam , one is owned by Mr Thomas and the other was owned by Shell or somthing. Did it run oh yes it did ! the last man who took it out was called Barry … (Ill keep you on your toes for his full name ) he had it out on public roads when he stalled it and had to be towed back in , where it stood out side until approx 6yrs ago when it was moved inside and for a time even more people walked past it never giving it a second glance. So you see lads (experts) somtimes you get it wrong ,the thing is it takes B… to admit it.
Bewick:
Looks to me like we could have another Big J 8LXB scenario developing here!!! Cheers Bewick.
No we haven’t Dennis - just smart alecs who won’t accept they don’t know everything. Ring any bells with you??
For the sake of argument, I never knew ‘Diana’ had a semi-auto gearbox, but I knew of it’s existence for many years and that Bill Molyneux was involved in the procurement of it & others. I also knew about the Marathon with the sheet over it and where it was - but never knew it was a turbine motor with a pre-select box. That said, I would never dispute it because I’d like to think other people can educate me with their knowledge without having to resort to insulting them first. You (and a few others on here) should try it sometime - you might gain a little respect.
,our engineer at that time said let it develop,used to use a rubber glove on this one
