hiya,
Remember well Moores of Ayr passing me on the a6 like i was stopped in the 1960s, i had an ERF blessed with the 5 lw and a top speed of 39 mph downhill with a good tailwind the amount of times they’ve offered me boxes of matches when passing me is countless, sure they must have had tiger coach diffs in them they sure would motor on.
thanks harry long retired.
My old man’s 1957 Leyland Octopus with the 680 11.1 litre was good for all of 39mph - made a Scotland run from Somerset last a week. His firm bought another one in '59 that had coach diffs instead and was good for nearly 60.
Father in law had his Roadtrain with 320 ■■■■■■ (pump wound out a fair bit so god knows what it actually puts out) up to 90mph apparently with more left in it 
Would think you would need to be strapped into a Road train at that speed, most of them did there best to bust your back the moment they started to move. 
I know 
mines the same, bit bouncy, might fit a different seat in it.
Nice old truck, they did the job and well, but driver comfort never got a look in. 
Bet they are not as rough to ride in as a Seddon 13/4,they were like riding a Donkey,bucking and jerking. 
Cheers Dave.
About on the same level Dave, one of the most uncomfortable things I have ever driven, but saying that they did hop on a bit.
Hi, there are some tremendous stories here, some maybe classed as ‘urban myth’, but anyone who was driving in the pre-speedlimeter days will tell you, they are not far of he mark.
i can recall driving along roads such as the A75, fron Stranraer, the A55 from Holyhead or any other route from the Irish ports until the advent of speed limiters, when a V8 powered killing machine would pass on excess of speeds which were deemed acceptable on the motorway let alone on single cariageway road, would blow your doors off.
We all complained when speed limiters were introduced, but we tend to look at these halcian days through rose-tinted glasses. How many of you have stopped or had to deal with an accident as the consequence of a combination of an inexperienced driver, crappy brakes, bad roads and high output motors and high speed diffs
Well!!
I will say that I was dead against speed limiters on their introduction. My reasoning being, a modern driver, unlike years ago is under tremendous pressure to deliver. Before speed limiters a driver may do 70 MPH on a motorway and catch up, since the advent of speed limiters the only place he can pick up for lost time is where the speed limit is less than their limiter is set at, single cariageway roads…
We live in days of ABS, EDC, traction control and what we term as driver aids, which are really life-savers. As per usual when we point the finger, this time it lays with the drivers, maybe a minority, but still with the drivers.
Stories of douing 80 odd on the M2 live in the history books and that is where they should stay.
trucker.blackpool:
Hi, there are some tremendous stories here, some maybe classed as ‘urban myth’, but anyone who was driving in the pre-speedlimeter days will tell you, they are not far of he mark.
i can recall driving along roads such as the A75, fron Stranraer, the A55 from Holyhead or any other route from the Irish ports until the advent of speed limiters, when a V8 powered killing machine would pass on excess of speeds which were deemed acceptable on the motorway let alone on single cariageway road, would blow your doors off.
We all complained when speed limiters were introduced, but we tend to look at these halcian days through rose-tinted glasses. How many of you have stopped or had to deal with an accident as the consequence of a combination of an inexperienced driver, crappy brakes, bad roads and high output motors and high speed diffs
Well!!
I will say that I was dead against speed limiters on their introduction. My reasoning being, a modern driver, unlike years ago is under tremendous pressure to deliver. Before speed limiters a driver may do 70 MPH on a motorway and catch up, since the advent of speed limiters the only place he can pick up for lost time is where the speed limit is less than their limiter is set at, single cariageway roads…
We live in days of ABS, EDC, traction control and what we term as driver aids, which are really life-savers. As per usual when we point the finger, this time it lays with the drivers, maybe a minority, but still with the drivers.
Stories of douing 80 odd on the M2 live in the history books and that is where they should stay.
If I had a pound for every time I’ve heard that old ‘it was ok then but not today argument’ on everything not just speed limiters I’d be rich.I only ever knew of one fatal accident concerning one of the drivers who worked for the firm I was with for 15 years.We regularly ran at high speeds on night trunks with wagons like 2800 DAF’s.He was driving a small Renault tractor unit which could’nt even manage over 60 mph if that.The fact is speed does’nt cause accidents it’s how and where you use it and using it in the right conditions.But there’s just as many if not more accidents being caused by tiredness and bunching and for lots of other reasons than speed today with trucks running at 53 mph.But no I can’t remember ever having stopped to deal with an accident as a consequence of the combination of things like speed etc on clear nightime motorways.But as for Paddy and his V8 Scania exactly how many times did you actually see an accident involving that so called ‘killing machine’■■.Not once I’d bet.
There was a mention up the post about different types of wheels and rims used, there are basically 4 types.
- Split Rim. - 2 pieces of wheel bolted together with a solid rubber tyre, fork truck style, later types pressed onto a solid rim.
- Disc Wheel. - single construction as today either in alloy or steel, tubeless tyres fitted.
- Trilex Wheels. - 3 piece wheels without a centre disc, these are a rim made of 3 pieces, flange and lock ring which are then clamped onto a hub, normally with 6 nuts. These were common on the older Fiats and middle east lorries and occasionally on heavy Scandinavian types.
- Split rims, 3 piece wheels fitted with 9.00 x 20 or 10.00 x 20 tyre, inner tube, flap held on with a flange and locking ring, very common before tubeless tyres on trailers and lorries became the norm.
10.00 x 20 = 11R 22.5
Wheel Nut:
There was a mention up the post about different types of wheels and rims used, there are basically 4 types.
- Split Rim. - 2 pieces of wheel bolted together with a solid rubber tyre, fork truck style, later types pressed onto a solid rim.
- Disc Wheel. - single construction as today either in alloy or steel, tubeless tyres fitted.
- Trilex Wheels. - 3 piece wheels without a centre disc, these are a rim made of 3 pieces, flange and lock ring which are then clamped onto a hub, normally with 6 nuts. These were common on the older Fiats and middle east lorries and occasionally on heavy Scandinavian types.
- Split rims, 3 piece wheels fitted with 9.00 x 20 or 10.00 x 20 tyre, inner tube, flap held on with a flange and locking ring, very common before tubeless tyres on trailers and lorries became the norm.
10.00 x 20 = 11R 22.5
Those trilex/tublex/unilex type were also common on yank wagons and nearly every Swiss one had them on?.I think we used them over here on some wagons at one time too?.They always seemed to be a tried and tested idea without so many problems of wheel losses?.
hiya,
Many moons ago had an old Seddon, not Sed Ak which i ran on nights from time to time and it would do 90 comfortably and i used to run at that speed clear road permitting especially on nights passed two fire engines very early one morning was fully frieghted they must have thought they was parked up, they was going to an emergency as well, and they did’nt even flash me in.
thanks harry long retired.
harry_gill:
hiya,
Many moons ago had an old Seddon, not Sed Ak which i ran on nights from time to time and it would do 90 comfortably and i used to run at that speed clear road permitting especially on nights passed two fire engines very early one morning was fully frieghted they must have thought they was parked up, they was going to an emergency as well, and they did’nt even flash me in.
thanks harry long retired.
Harry what did they put in it to get that out one of those.Probably had to be a big ■■■■■■■ like most of the quick old British motors?.I can remember a big ERF domestic fire engine in the 1970’s with what I think was a V8 Perkins or ■■■■■■■ in it? and my old firm when I was driving fire engines made one with a 6V71 Detroit in it running at around 10 tonnes you would’nt have caught either of those.
hiya,
Carryfast, it was supposed to have a 290 Roller in it, have metioned this before and someone said that engine was never fitted in the Seddon but it certainly was the Roller engine, we had a few of these motors and none of the others could live with mine, it came from another depot and had been re-engined for some reason.
thanks harry long retired,
harry_gill:
hiya,
Carryfast, it was supposed to have a 290 Roller in it, have metioned this before and someone said that engine was never fitted in the Seddon but it certainly was the Roller engine, we had a few of these motors and none of the others could live with mine, it came from another depot and had been re-engined for some reason.
thanks harry long retired,
I know those old Eagle engines Harry we had them in the six wheeler Foden gritter/ploughs that I drove on the council with a Foden box.Those engines had a reputation for grenading themselves sometimes I think? but you’re right when they were going right they were brilliant.I think some of the problem with ours was that they replaced all the Foden boxes with 9 speed fullers which cut the gearing down to a stupid level where the thing was turning over at 2,000 rpm + at around 50 mph.
hiya,
Carryfast there was too much engine in the Seddon, the gearbox used to get problems from time to time and it was the only motor i ever did a clutch in with, but being the BRS it got repaired regardless of what it was costing and i never got carpeted so i was’nt doing anything wrong it was a case of too much power.
thanks harry long retired.
I had a new-1967-Seddon 13/4(KUB260E )on fridge work at Treat Products Leeds.Single axle 20ft Bonallack reefer trailer,Perkins 6-354 Can’t remember box but had 2-speed axle.Never more than 8tons payload.65mph on the level,didn’t like hills at all.No screenwash,pointless heater,no radio.Most uncomfortable ride imaginable.We then got a 32/4 with a V8,think itwas a Perkins,double reduction hubs and 2speed Eaton.Ratchet style handbrake forever jamming on.With a max length Bonallack/Thermoking gas powered fridge unit.This was the most frightening machine I had driven or have since!!!Hitting75mph with one more gear to go.I am sure the speed-limit for trucks was70 on the motorway then,may be wrong.
I took an old Atki 8 wheeler(48mph) with fridge box up to Edinburgh from Leeds,going over Berwick bridge the n/s split rim flew off,took a chunk off the coping stone,good job no pedestrians in way.
i got the 125k light on a 2001 124 420 scania W&D a few times. the speedo only showed it was doing just over 75mph and would hold that speed forever would drop to like 65mph up hills loaded
Hi Welshphil,
You are certainly right about those Seddon’s,the roughest thing that I ever drove,jumped jerked and lurched,offset steering wheel,and the perkins 6-354 was no better,had a K series Dodge with the same engine,as you say didn’t like hills,better ride than the Seddon,but gutless engine.
Cheers Dave.