hutpik:
Hi all.Thanks for that Ash.I think that apart from the power[150hp]and the top speed[46mph]i felt quite good,at least i had a sleeper cab.
**When all said and done the motor done 3 trips to Kuwait[not very fast],**and with the money it made enabled me to buy a good second hand F88 Volvo,so the pain had some reward.Also,if you had something like that you could get it repaired at almost any backstreet garage.Aydin rebuilt the gearbox for me in Istanbul and most of the parts were from boat,or agriculture shops.Most places had supplies of parts from the ‘‘colonial past’’ so many things could be ‘‘sourced’’ locally and made to fit somehow.Mike
Suedehead:
Brilliant pics,
Cant be arsed to delete and quote.
Was “neilz” about to check the oil in that Dodge
Also ,was most of them motors only going one way. . going as sellers or used on internals(if they made it that far)?
Suedehead if you look the answer is in the the post above yours
cheers Johnnie
Fair comment but i did ask if “most” of them were on a one way trip. :wink
truckerash:
After reading all the comments regarding this photo (put on the Astran/Middle East drivers thread by Orientmack), I thought it would be good to see what other “gems” we can find.
I have seen many photos of ‘Ancient Brits heading East’ but never seen this one before. There must be someone who knows something about it? Recognise it Bubbs?
One of Fred K Archers perhaps, Ash?
Suedehead:
Brilliant pics, Also ,was most of them motors only going one way. . going as sellers or used on internals(if they made it that far)?
Mate; Sellers never started til the late 1980’s early 90’s mate. These ‘Ancient Brits’ were all going both ways! …if they lasted that long
Hello Ash, I seem to remember a company from Yorkshire called Sanmar (or something like that) who used to run sellers down to the Middle East back in 1980. I once met a lad with an old Merc who had a couple of Brit units on a stripped down tilt with some back axles, engines and a couple of gearboxes on the back. I think that he was on his way to Baghdad and please keep those great pics coming .
Suedehead:
Brilliant pics, Also ,was most of them motors only going one way. . going as sellers or used on internals(if they made it that far)?
Mate; Sellers never started til the late 1980’s early 90’s mate. These ‘Ancient Brits’ were all going both ways! …if they lasted that long
Hello Ash, I seem to remember a company from Yorkshire called Sanmar (or something like that) who used to run sellers down to the Middle East back in 1980. I once met a lad with an old Merc who had a couple of Brit units on a stripped down tilt with some back axles, engines and a couple of gearboxes on the back. I think that he was on his way to Baghdad and please keep those great pics coming .
Regards Steve.
i don’t know about Sanmar doing their own sellers but Ian Hepworth who owns Assetwell in Askern used to buy anything Mercedes for export. There are a few others in the area, Jim Johnson, Tuxfords and later on Britcom. When I started going to Greece, most of the trucks were going out and coming back, although a few did expire by the wayside. Archie may know more about them.
I’ve seen photo’s on TN somewhere of Sanmar trucks heading East, but to the best of my knowledge, they’d already been sold on by Sanmar.
Sanmar were based in Normanton, Yorkshire, and were primarily container hauliers, although I know that they did send trucks down to Italy on
general in their early days. Not aware of them going any further.
Agreed.It was good that a few took cameras with them.More and more pictures keep surfacing.Excellent stuff.Rentco and Willhire were probably less impressed though!
Agreed.It was good that a few took cameras with them.More and more pictures keep surfacing.Excellent stuff.Rentco and Willhire were probably less impressed though!
Not sure what medal would be awarded to those who abandoned the vehicle/trailer/load. The owners of those items would probably consider a court martial more appropriate.
I recall this Scammell at sometime loading/unloading in Swiss then a while later at the top of MT Cenis. He was heading out to somewhere in the M/E. I helped him adjust his trailer brakes. However I do recall the driver had a limp and the unit was fitted with an ex bus auto gearbox. Driver had a bushy beard.
I remember on one of my first trips to Iraq in the mid 70’s meeting up with several lads at Zacho on the return journey two of which worked for Romatrans out of Enfield area then went to work for Radclives of Faringdon and an OD from Buckingham who pulled for them (Romatrans). One had a Scammel Crusader and the OD who must have been in his 50’s had an A series ERF non sleeper with no windscreen and one of the rear corner windows missing so the wind whistled straight through. He had already replaced the windscreen in the UK once and this was the ERF’s third trip, but I know he got knocked for the job and I think he decided or his good lady decided for him that M/E trucking was not for him after that but give him his due he drove back to the UK wrapped in a heavy overcoat and sunglasses for protection and the other two let him kip in their cabs. Another time I met an Irish lad in Dover west who had just returned from Tehran driving a non sleeper Guy Big J for a company in Witney, fair enough if it was your own truck but for someone else, really, there were plenty of firms with reasonable equipement looking for drivers to do M/E in the 70’s.
PASTTRUCKING:
I recall this Scammell at sometime loading/unloading in Swiss then a while later at the top of MT Cenis. He was heading out to somewhere in the M/E. I helped him adjust his trailer brakes. However I do recall the driver had a limp and the unit was fitted with an ex bus auto gearbox. Driver had a bushy beard.
PASTTRUCKING:
I recall this Scammell at sometime loading/unloading in Swiss then a while later at the top of MT Cenis. He was heading out to somewhere in the M/E. I helped him adjust his trailer brakes. However I do recall the driver had a limp and the unit was fitted with an ex bus auto gearbox. Driver had a bushy beard.
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