Without being able to read the number plate I can’t say whether that is the Mandator GKM 240D. This was a spare vehicle allocated as necessary to cover routine servicing and MOT preparation during my time. It retained black chassis and wings to the end and did not feature a heavy duty bumper. If I am right the Mandator front axle is slightly narrower than a Mercury one, so a blown up image may reveal.
Morning cav551,I think the Aec registration no starts with cgh and maybe an h suffix?
Hello Chris,
Well there was a CGH, but what the rest of it was I don’t know. It may be worth trying to blow up one of the fleet pictures you posted some time ago to reveal a few more registration numbers. On one there appears to be a C registration tilt cab Mercury next to HKP 927 D, which would make it an early production vehicle. I won’t be able to help earlier than pre '73, but for interest do you have any earlier pictures?
edit add:
Referring back to a post by Tyreman it would seem possible that CGH would be H reg since he quotes one of the V8 Mandators as being registered CGF 420H . It would have been a little out of the ordinary for an AEC to be registered outside Kent and therefore probably not supplied by W H Gatward, however the V8s would probably have come as part of a special deal organised by Southall which may have included a Mercury unit at a special price.
I was notified the weekend of the news that ex Henley driver Nicky Woodman has passed away.
Nicky worked for Henley transport in the 1970s he also drove for Mitchell and Robertsons and had a long spell at G G Tomkinsons at Marden.
Our condolences to his family and rip Nicky
Sad news. Nicky was very helpful towards a youngster learning how it’s done. He was the first to let me help him sheet up without going round behind me and doing it again.
.
The TV news today is talking about small employers now being required to run a company pension scheme. Jack organised a meeting for all interested employees, at Spelmonden one Sunday morning in about 1975, with Stuart Wrightson a local Insurance broker, to hear a talk about the pension scheme he intended to set up.
Behind every picture theres a story so here goes.
we were approached by a religious orgainisation in Maidstone to supply an artic for Maidstone carnival,the company agreed to this and in my position as traffic manager the details were passed to me to organise.
The Saturday in question came I was working in the traffic office that Saturday morning when I took a call from the organisation asking where the lorry was.After 2 minutes of swearing and cursing I realised that I had forgotten about the carnival.
I was lucky that day as Reg Greenfield one of our long serving drivers was working,so I said to Reg get j270 oko onto a tautliner get yourself down to Maidstone market we have got a carnival to do ,ok said Reg but who is it for? I told him a religous organisation,oh was the reply up to the then Reg was all ok but doubts started to set in,but Reg wasn’t the sort to let anyone down and off he went.
Speaing to Reg Monday morning I asked how it went his reply it was great lovely people and they gave me a good drink.
For the next 3 years we covered this event they always asked for Reg and he always loved doing it
we were approached by a religious orgainisation in Maidstone to supply an artic for Maidstone carnival,the company agreed to this and in my position as traffic manager the details were passed to me to organise.
The Saturday in question came I was working in the traffic office that Saturday morning when I took a call from the organisation asking where the lorry was.After 2 minutes of swearing and cursing I realised that I had forgotten about the carnival.
I was lucky that day as Reg Greenfield one of our long serving drivers was working,so I said to Reg get j270 oko onto a tautliner get yourself down to Maidstone market we have got a carnival to do ,ok said Reg but who is it for? I told him a religous organisation,oh was the reply up to the then Reg was all ok but doubts started to set in,but Reg wasn’t the sort to let anyone down and off he went.
Speaing to Reg Monday morning I asked how it went his reply it was great lovely people and they gave me a good drink.
For the next 3 years we covered this event they always asked for Reg and he always loved doing it
F40 CKR fleet no 40 Erf E14 with ■■■■■■■ engine and eaton twin splitter gearbox In the livery of Mack Multiples who were our biggest customer for many years formerly known as Mack and Edwards and always based in Paddock Wood.
Many years ago whilst Jack Henley was about to take a young lady off to a hunt ball he was summoned by Donald Mack and asked if he wanted to buy the lorry fleet of Mack and Edwards so they could just purely concentrate on selling fresh produce,and leave the transport to someone else,a deal was struck and the fleet increased in size this was in the early 1960s and they remained our bread and butter right up to the very end when Jack sold the business,over 30 years of two companies trading together.
And the young lady she didn’t get to go to the ball,the business came first!
Many years ago whilst Jack Henley was about to take a young lady off to a hunt ball he was summoned by Donald Mack and asked if he wanted to buy the lorry fleet of Mack and Edwards so they could just purely concentrate on selling fresh produce,and leave the transport to someone else,a deal was struck and the fleet increased in size this was in the early 1960s and they remained our bread and butter right up to the very end when Jack sold the business,over 30 years of two companies trading together.
And the young lady she didn’t get to go to the ball,the business came first!
ERF E14 G54 PKL fleet no 54 the E series was the most popular ERF ran by the company at one time there was over 30 in the fleet
Man D160 NKP just after a repaint looking very smart,but I must say I wasn’t too keen on the new company logo nor the style of lettering on the front of the cab.
The late great Reg Greenfield long term serving Paddock Wood driver who stayed on with the company after the take over.
Seen here propping up H73 CKM new on the the road 1st September 1990.
Seen here propping up H73 CKM new on the the road 1st September 1990.
Nice picture Chris…he was a good old boy, liked by everyone.
The company ran a total of 32 Man tractor units over a period stretching from 1980 to when the last batch went on the road on January 1st 1995.
The first unit was FYJ 870V this being a 16.280 model and was allocated to Spelmonden based driver Richard Harris (he also drove the 2nd and 3rd Man units)
This was ran for 2 years and 11 months then replaced by FKP 250Y a 16.321 model,which was only ran for 16 months and then replaced with a 6x2 version 22.321 A130 RKR.
A130 RKR was pitched against an ERF C series GKR 310Y and a Seddon Atkinson 401 MOW 302Y,to decide which would be the best unit in the long run for 38 tonne operations,the MAN came out on top and on May 1st 1985 2 additional Man tractor units went into service B170 YKK and B180 YKK.
Even though FKP 250Y wasn’t in the fleet that long ( a total of 16 months ) there was one other Man unit that had an even shorter stay with the company,that one being K190 PKP a 22.372 this only lasted about 5 months thanks to someone helping theirselves to it!
The first unit was FYJ 870V this being a 16.280 model and was allocated to Spelmonden based driver Richard Harris (he also drove the 2nd and 3rd Man units)
This was ran for 2 years and 11 months then replaced by FKP 250Y a 16.321 model,which was only ran for 16 months and then replaced with a 6x2 version 22.321 A130 RKR.
A130 RKR was pitched against an ERF C series GKR 310Y and a Seddon Atkinson 401 MOW 302Y,to decide which would be the best unit in the long run for 38 tonne operations,the MAN came out on top and on May 1st 1985 2 additional Man tractor units went into service B170 YKK and B180 YKK.
Even though FKP 250Y wasn’t in the fleet that long ( a total of 16 months ) there was one other Man unit that had an even shorter stay with the company,that one being K190 PKP a 22.372 this only lasted about 5 months thanks to someone helping theirselves to it!
Nice to see some more pictures and memories coming through.
I did wonder what happened to K190PKP, as it was soon replaced by a different MAN. I remember at Michelin’s offices when they were at Wimbledon there was a framed photograph of Henley’s MAN’s all lined up, and K190PKP was closest to the camera. I wonder what happened to that picture?
I bumped into one of the ex Henley transport drivers last night,he had stayed with the company after the buy out and then after another take over etc etc,until the Henley name was like two or three companies ago.
Quite ironically we were both standing outside of Mack Multiples (formerly Mack and Edwards) in Paddock Wood,Mack were Henley transports biggest customer for many years I mean about 35 years,how many companies can boast having a customer like that for so long but the new lot they don’t do anything out of Macks now,how could it have gone wrong like that.
Jack Henley had the Mack work on a hand shake only no agreements or contracts,Jack I take my hat off to you!
Yes, that’s right, we don’t do anything for Macks anymore even though our yards next door!. Like you say, its a shame after 35 years or so. But I don’t get involved with the politics of the company, I just drive the lorry!.
E45 TKJ on its second and even harder life.
Originally it came home and was allocated to Paddock Wood based driver Roger Jenner,it was in the colours of Mack Multiples and was coupled to a Pacton chassis Boalloy Insuliner trailer and used for fresh produce deliveries for the likes of Sainsburys and Tescos etc.
It was then repainted in the the normal Henley Transport colour scheme and then worked hard,it would have been double shifted doing changeovers with vehicles from the Rochdale depot,it would not have been unusual for it to run on 7 day shifts and on 6 night shifts in one seven day week,but all of the vehicles were subject to a very strict maintenance regime and break downs seldom occurred,but those ERF E14 were bloody good motors to run.
Originally it came home and was allocated to Paddock Wood based driver Roger Jenner,it was in the colours of Mack Multiples and was coupled to a Pacton chassis Boalloy Insuliner trailer and used for fresh produce deliveries for the likes of Sainsburys and Tescos etc.
It was then repainted in the the normal Henley Transport colour scheme and then worked hard,it would have been double shifted doing changeovers with vehicles from the Rochdale depot,it would not have been unusual for it to run on 7 day shifts and on 6 night shifts in one seven day week,but all of the vehicles were subject to a very strict maintenance regime and break downs seldom occurred,but those ERF E14 were bloody good motors to run.
That’s a super photo Chris…I’m going to see Robert Golding at the weekend to pick up some paint. Apparently he was the vehicle painter and still has tins of original Henley paint in his shed!..the forthcoming Henley model should be a cracker when its done.
Mark R:
That’s a super photo Chris…I’m going to see Robert Golding at the weekend to pick up some paint. Apparently he was the vehicle painter and still has tins of original Henley paint in his shed!..the forthcoming Henley model should be a cracker when its done.
Mark do me a favour please do let me know what the colour of the paint is called it eludes me.Jack was always ribbed about the colour and his response was always the same,with lorries that colour you will never forget us!how true.