My first lesson was in a Ford Transcontinental with a 40ft flat bed, most of the following lessons were is a Volvo F88, took my test in the Trans con.
My US test was taken in a Frightliner pile of doggy do with a 53ft box trailer around Glen Falls.
My class 2 was in a G-reg Iveco flat bed and my class 1 initially was in a DAF3300 with 30ft tandem axle skelly (no box on). That later changed to a DAF85 340 ex Royal Mail which was much more fun.
Already had grandfather rights on 7.5t and below.
Took my Class 1 in the days before you had to take the rigid test first and it was in a Bedford TM with a 12m tandem flat. I took it a the terst centre in Leighton Buzzard and passed first time despite, or maybe because of, having to do a full on emergency stop when a van pulled out of a garage forecourt in Dunstable straight in front of me. The examiners clipboard went flying, he got the fright of his life, and as this was early in the test I thought I blown it and sort of relaxed and just got it over with. I can still remember the great feeling when he said I had passsed as if it were only yesterday.
i took my class 2 test in a volvo fl6 flat bed with white markers tippex on to the wheel arch so you knew when you was in the box.passed that first time.
then my class1 test was in a daf 65 drawbar combi (just short of 60’) which when i reversed into the box my instructor told me was about 1’ away from it 
.it had got lo and high range and a half split in each gear.
totally diffrent drive to a artic so imagine my suprise when i first drove one 
jon
I passed my test only 4 years ago at the ripe old age of 41 in a B reg scania flat bed after being white van man for the last 15yrs or so. The bloke i was working for at the time paid for it but i had to sign the pledge for 2 yrs or pay him an admin fee before hand, I can almost see him now riding into the sunset on his black horse stetson and spurs 
I am now working on someone to put me through my class 1 coz i cant afford it on my present income!!!
roy…
psv ford/plaxton 6 sp coach
class 2 daf 1900
class1 iveco eurotech 380
any body seen “tales of the road” on itv ,malcom of L&T got me through my psv.
all three tests were at patrick green,wakefield
apart from driving a 5 month old fh 12 globetrotter on my first day my regular motor was also a eurotech making it easier when i graduated .
good luck to anybody going for there test
jon
Hey Boots, I think I may have tested in the same old Ford Louie as you did here in Phoenix…!!! I did it with no lessons and went thru CDL Truck School, under the I-10/I-17 stack, was that the same people as you…■■?
As for my UK test, I did it before the need for rigid first, I did it in Livingston, and always had a Ford Cargo, although I really wanted and only got it twice was the Leyland Daf Roadtrain, it was much more like a REAL truck…lol
Stuart
July 1978, Leyland Mastiff + 30’ flat . 5 speed box + twin speed axle. Test 10a.m. Monday morning booked 7 p.m. ferry Monday evening , no pressure.
jon boy 100:
psv ford/plaxton 6 sp coachclass 2 daf 1900
class1 iveco eurotech 380
any body seen “tales of the road” on itv ,malcom of L&T got me through my psv.
all three tests were at patrick green,wakefield
apart from driving a 5 month old fh 12 globetrotter
good luck to anybody going for there test
–
jon
Doesn’t sound that many years ago Jon 
I bet you got the miserable bugger Phil Grundy as your examiner at Paddy Green as well Old bloke with tinted glasses and speaks to you like a Judge or something 
I also did my test in a day cabbed Ford Cargo with a 30 ft flat bed trailer, in Neath. I had a weeks tuition and passed first time on the following monday. The examiner was called Mr Pass!
I did have some experience of artic driving before the lessons, I was lucky enough to be allowed to drive on L plates pulling a 26 pallet fridge full of meat around the country, under the expert guidance of an irishman.
You never see those big orange HGV L plates anymore…
I took all but my last two lessons for my HGV 1 in a Dodge Commando, thankfully my instructer finally decided to invest in a modern Volvo F7 which I then used for my last two lessons as well as my test, all my lessons and test were in and around Cambridge, I was convinced that on my test I was going to end up ‘taking out’ several of the cyclists that ‘plague’ Cambridge, I did’nt and I passed first time! 
When I first came to the USA, I started on rigids (class B ), I took that test (without lessons) around Atlanta in an old ‘Jimmy’, actually a White-GMC cabover…I passed first time. 
My test over here for Artics (class A) was taken around Memphis in a 1991 Freightliner FLB 110 cabover pulling a 53 footer, my first and only lesson (theory & pratical) lasted almost an hour, the test lasted less than half an hour…again, I passed first time.
Passing first time over here is really no big deal, it is so easy. I have yet to find a British driver that has’nt passed first time over here.
Rob K:
Doesn’t sound that many years ago Jon
yes ,phil grundy was one of them,he passed my class one(i swear i rolled back coming out of rothwell onmy hill start,unless it was just the cab )
the senior examiner for this region passed my class 2 . kitchen is his name
a bloke called brown for my psv.(i have still kept my sheets).sound bloke.
for the record
steeton 17/11/94 bedford/plaxton UYB 711M 14 minors 1 dangerous FAIL
mr girardoot (BESTWAY)
p. green 09/02/95 ford/plaxton JDB 937V 11 minors PASS(L&T)
p. green 16/11/01 daf K56 SHD 6 minors PASS (WHITEWAYS)
p. green 18/01/02 iveco L766 JHD 8 minors PASS (WHITEWAYS)
sorry no record of the L&T coach reg(found it.for some reason the old pass forms have the name, reg torn off,the new forms keep all info!)
grundy was the most stern the other two cracked some jokes and tried to relax you.the dangerous was on the big roundabout out of skipton wrong lane,badly signed,it has since been changed.
whiteways have gone bust,shame good set of people.diane was my instructor
cheers di
anybody else kept their pass/fail sheets
glad i passed both my wagon tests first time it still cost £1300 
jon
Ford cargo with 35ft trailer passed second time, 1st fail sheet I binned 2nd pass sheet only 3 minors , 1 mark for reversing, 1 mark for use of mirrors, 1 mark for giving signals properly timed, passed by a very nice woman on a saturday morning at the now closed Waterbeach test centre, where CliffWarby may have passed test
at this test centre a old fellow called Chalkie White was a examiner , ex copper , if he didnt like your face you were stuffed , a nasty little man , many a instructor had rows with the old sod.
Oh happy days
Class 2 - 10tonne Ford Cargo Boxvan
Class 1 Merc 1825 - tandem axle flat trailer
both tests passed first time ( with several minors!) in Taunton
( With Colin Hoyle at Taunton Training Centre)
Being an ex squaddie I took my HGV 3 test in a Bedford RL, my HGV 2 in a AEC 10 tonner with crash box, (max speed 30mph), my HGV 1 I took in Germany in a Bedford TM with a very small trailer(probably 20 foot), left hand drive but the reversing area was set out for a UK test but passed first time.
It didnt have a fith wheel but had a lever in the cab which released the trailer.
My trade was military railwayman so getting all these licence’s made sense to somebody I’m sure.
Me the same as Ticker except I stopped at class 2.
The AEC though actually does 32 mph, my tester lept across the engine cowling to check the speedo and make sure I wasn’t speeding in a 30 zone.
The gearbox on thes trucks were a right pig. If you got the change wrong you had to stop and start again also no power steering
Any more RCT’s,R.E’s or RECE mechs ?(REME)!
Come on let’s have more Ex Squaddie posts on here.
Scammells,A.E.C.'s Leylands.
Once again - thanks for all the replies.
I took my Class One up near Stoke … begins with an S?? Swynnerton, is it? Used a horse and cart, it was so long ago 
Passed my PSV at the old Chiswick LT training school … remember the Wrigleys adverts back in the 70’s where the bus was on the skidpan?? I have done that
Class one & two were DAF, PCV was Layland Leopard.
I’v also done the skid pan, long live the Route Master.
Black shorts and a red tee-shirt!