Frankydobo:
Cheers Kempston, the other company may have been Clarke Chapman another big Engineering firm. I do think I went to Allen’s but maybe only once or twice, those four wheeler Scania’s did a lot of work and paid for themselves over and over, my first trip in one was down to Cornwall with a mining machine and loaded China Clay back to Stoke, very reliable motors. The same wagon below and a similar machine. Franky.
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Hi Franky
Just wondering if you can remember when Tony Van Hee had the yard at the bottom of Beacon Lough Bank, next to the Victoria pub.
Tyneside
I remember it Bob, the motors were signwritten as “Smith and Van Hee”. Regards Kev.
I had forgotten about the name, any idea who the Smith was? Think at the time there was a fair number of 4 wheel rigids, few Leyland ergos amongst them.
Tyneside
Frankydobo:
Cheers Kempston, the other company may have been Clarke Chapman another big Engineering firm. I do think I went to Allen’s but maybe only once or twice, those four wheeler Scania’s did a lot of work and paid for themselves over and over, my first trip in one was down to Cornwall with a mining machine and loaded China Clay back to Stoke, very reliable motors. The same wagon below and a similar machine. Franky.
0
Hi Franky
Just wondering if you can remember when Tony Van Hee had the yard at the bottom of Beacon Lough Bank, next to the Victoria pub.
Tyneside
I remember it Bob, the motors were signwritten as “Smith and Van Hee”. Regards Kev.
The yard was there until early seventies,then the council,built a care home on the site and it was recently redeveloped into private apartments. I had forgotten about the name, any idea who the Smith was? Think at the time there was a fair number of 4 wheel rigids, few Leyland ergos amongst them.
Tyneside
Well I can remember them taking Gowlands Transport over, Who IIRC Had a yard on Kells Lane, Then I also remember them buying ABB 185 B, It was an ERF Artic unit with the Scammell pick up gear, That was new to Baxters Road Services Ltd, It was a right pill, It had the good old 5 Pot Gardner engine with a Eaton two speed axle, But the brakes were useless, Cabel to the trailer , I did a trip to West Thurrock with it when the driver that had it from new was off ill, This was when Bob Kinghorn took Baxters over in 1967, He soon changed the daft motors to proper ones, Like, A E C. Atkis, The good old days, Regards Larry.
I spoke to Bumper Russell this morning he said he started in 75 and Van Hee was at Pelaw then so thought they moved there 1970/71. He drove one of the Leyland four wheelers (I wasn’t sure if they were AEC or Leyland) he then left 76 but came back about 77 and had one of the Volvo F86 units KTN 650K but when he was on holiday it got wrote off so he got a new Transcon PTY 260S, that’s the one I recall Jim driving when I started there in the Workshop, I’d gone looking for a driving job having just recently left the army with my new Class One license I’d passed on my forces pre-release course. I did this in Liverpool with a civilian training company and other soon to be civvie squaddies. There wasn’t anything doing at Van Hee, similar to other places I’d tried in my area, I actually couldn’t have picked a worse time to look for a decent driving job especially in the Northeast at the beginning of the 80’s when the country hit a down turn! However I got chatting to the workshop Foreman and as I’d served my time as a fitter he said I could have a start so I had around five years there in the workshop, left for another place this time driving and about 18 months later came back to Van Hee driving still. My later driving work would be with Ouseburn Transport and Fergusons but I would say Van Hee was a better job. Great set of lads drivers and fitters sadly too many now not around. Franky.
Frankydobo:
I spoke to Bumper Russell this morning he said he started in 75 and Van Hee was at Pelaw then so thought they moved there 1970/71. He drove one of the Leyland four wheelers (I wasn’t sure if they were AEC or Leyland) he then left 76 but came back about 77 and had one of the Volvo F86 units KTN 650K but when he was on holiday it got wrote off so he got a new Transcon PTY 260S, that’s the one I recall Jim driving when I started there in the Workshop, I’d gone looking for a driving job having just recently left the army with my new Class One license I’d passed on my forces pre-release course. I did this in Liverpool with a civilian training company and other soon to be civvie squaddies. There wasn’t anything doing at Van Hee, similar to other places I’d tried in my area, I actually couldn’t have picked a worse time to look for a decent driving job especially in the Northeast at the beginning of the 80’s when the country hit a down turn! However I got chatting to the workshop Foreman and as I’d served my time as a fitter he said I could have a start so I had around five years there in the workshop, left for another place this time driving and about 18 months later came back to Van Hee driving still. My later driving work would be with Ouseburn Transport and Fergusons but I would say Van Hee was a better job. Great set of lads drivers and fitters sadly too many now not around. Franky.
Hi FRanky, like you say theres no ta lot of them around, I know you will remember Trevor Turnbull who was Van Hees Traffic manager at Astwood Bank for a few years, Then bought one of Van Hees Scania Units, He is still going as far as I know, He has a couple of motors pulling for Gregories Transport, Regards Larry.
Hi Larry, yes Trevor seemed to do ok with the Ford and managed to keep working, it was decent number he had at Astwood Bank. Some of the lads wouldn’t stop there overnight, there was a graveyard next to where we parked and some said things used to go bump in the night ha, I never had any trouble sleeping there but it was a rough yard to get in and out of. I came up from Wales with tin plate no bother until I got into there and the back two stacks slipped to one side with the body flexing so much on one of those four wheeler Scanias, it was an easy job flipping the sheet back and Trevor repositioning them again with the forklift but I was glad to get out of there next morning and onto the road.
Cheers Franky.
franky this photo must have been taken 1978/9 Christmas holidays the transcon on the right were M-E motors pilot’s stan black big kris sammy swales derick bramell/billy bowden .
previous photo was jimmy ;von ;Ryan, photo was taken london most probably heading to silvertown with load of electrodes, ex big kris M-E motor
Ah cheers Jim, I noticed the ME trailers on the right side, was your motor PTY 260P one of those on the left. I presume Trevor by then was down Astwood Bank having done the ME runs earlier, shame the reg no’s are not more readable in the photo but a good shot of the yard then with the Traffic Office still to be added and the industrial units behind just beginning to be built. Any idea Jim where TC’s then after him my Ford came from, WOK 158T it wasn’t a local reg no, with OK being from Birmingham. I remember it had a higher set 5th wheel than the others so I had to drop trailers that little bit lower. Cheers Franky.
Frankydobo:
Hi Franky
Just wondering if you can remember when Tony Van Hee had the yard at the bottom of Beacon Lough Bank, next to the Victoria pub.
Tyneside
Not off the top of my head Tyneside but would have been sometime in the 60’s to 70’s maybe, I would think Bumper would know the date more precisely. The office at the Quayside Larry mentioned would have been when it was Smith and Van Hee, the original company when his Father was co owner. I do have this photo of the Pelaw yard from Bumper Russell with AEC Ergo and Seddon 13:4:354 four wheelers along with the 86’s, Transcons and Tony’s pride and joy the Volvo F89. This must be from late 70’s, when I got there 1981 only two F86 units remained on local work and about four Seddons with the Sed Aki 200’s replacing them. Franky.
trevor was still doing M-E at that time franky there was 5 m-e motors there is a tilt missing possibly in workshop, trevor came off the road when tony finished the M-E work old sid retired thats when trevor took over and moved the office to Astwood bank , loved parking there walk up to the pub, meal couple pints then back never had a problem with the old lady remember Alan Curtis said his sleeping bag was been pulled out the window only stop when he got to Alsester to put his nickers on
Hi Bumper I remember Van Hees having an office in Birmingham, I cant remember the address but it was a road behind The Midland Dairy building, I used to get some good return loads off Old Sid, This was in the 60s,Hope you are keeping well, Regards Larry.
Cheers Bumper, ha yeah I remember Alan recounting his ghostly experience, he wouldn’t stop there again after that. Here are a few photo’s from Van Hee Transports Middle East days as Dean asked if there were more, not my pics but donated by others, also one of the F89 before Van Hee ownership. Trevor Turnbull is in these photo’s with KTN 350P which was later driven by the ‘Milky Bar Kid’ when I started. I recall going out to him at Scotch Corner when his front anti-roll bar had come adrift, he said you drive it back so you can see what the problem is, then jumped in the workshop van and away. I started my way back but couldn’t go much above 30mph as the unit began to sway from left to right, crafty sod, I knew why he was so keen for me to drive it home! Franky.
larry old sid didn’t have an office he operated from his house in the highgate area of brom, area was starting to to be renovated so he sold up and retired, doris his good lady always made the lads a cup tea and sandwich
I was once delivering in Kidderminster and a lady probably in her 70’s came up to me and asked how the company was doing, then she said she had worked in the office when Tony was just a lad, so I presume she meant when it was Smith and Van Hee. Very nice lady we had a good chat, shame I can’t recall all she told me now but she had Tony sussed ha! Franky.
, I did a trip to West Thurrock with it when the driver that had it from new was off ill, This was when Bob Kinghorn took Baxters over in 1967, He soon changed the daft motors to proper ones, Like, A E C. Atkis, The good old days, Regards Larry.
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