Separately, it’s an interesting concept that someone tried to introduce here a few years back. Many of the details have been lost to my failing rememberer, but it ended up in Brisbane, where it was supposed to revolutionise container cartage. It disappeared as quickly as it arrived. I saw it once, it looked odd with the front of the 40’ box level with the foremost projection of the prime mover. It was unpopular with the few drivers who had the misfortune to trial it. The driving position was akin to that of a sedan.
A bit like that low cab that Foden produced some years ago, I don’t think that was successful eother though I think it was originally designed for cranes.
A forward thinking company (apart from being late out of steam), Foden. The Twinload was a forerunner of a B-Double.
The Yanks on their forum keep talking about RGNs, does anyone recognise that term?
In the end I had to ask and the reply came back Removable Goose Neck. Is that what we call them in UK/Europe? Possibly we might use the more elegant Swan Neck?
Anyway that took me back to my first day on Econofreight, 40+ odd years ago when I was told that’s your Foden (snub nose to accommodate the 8LXB) coupled to that low loader, here’s the address go and pick up all this stuff and bring it back here.
The ‘stuff’ was site clearance involving several items which had to be driven on, no crane available and when I got there it took me some minutes to work out what the donkey engine on top of the goose/swan neck was for. With a bit of trial and error I managed to get it all loaded but where the 'ell was Elfin Safety? Nobody had bothered to explain anything to me…
One of my kind informants on the other side of the Atlantic posted this helpful video. I certainly didn’t have to go to all that trouble and I know which I prefer.
But it set me thinking, I never had to do it again so maybe I was lucky enough to stay heavy, high, wide and long as well as the low loader work I did do which was always craned on and off.
Of course back then there would have been no air suspension to lower and raise, would there? I certainly never had it on the Foden, Atki and Daf I had while there.
