Paraffin cab heater

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS OLD TIME LORRIES, COMPANIES AND DRIVERS (INTERACT
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Talking about the pink stuff, maybe Retired Old ■■■■ can answer this question.
Stevens of Macclesfield used to have pink motors because they started off delivering pink paraffin, is this true Casey or was it one of those drivers myths from years ago. :confused:

Regards Steve.

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Perfectly true, Steve. Reg Stevens bought a second-hand four wheeler after the war and mounted a tank on the platform. He had a contract with Pink Paraffin and travelled around the rural lanes flogging the stuff to the many customers who had no mains electricity or gas at the time. I’m a bit confused as to whether he had to paint the motor pink in order to get the contract or maybe the paraffin company paid for the paint. Either way, most of us thought it was a pretty awful colour which was improved somewhat by the time this photo was taken.

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But you have to admit the Daf was pretty good at climbing steep hills! Fully loaded, too. :unamused:

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Slightly off topic but anyone remember the BRAY engine heater? It was like a small kettle element that screwed into the block through a core plug. It plugged into the mains at night and gave you a warm engine on frosty mornings. I had one in a Rolls B40 engine in an Austin Champ and it certainly helped during the winter of 1962.

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Froggy55:
Here, in France, some drivers used to improvise very dangerous heaters, such as a big metal cans filled with sand and alcohol (meth’s). With your guy’s system, the smell must have been unbearable!

Yes Froggy, I remember being parked next to two Bulgarians one night and they had what looked like a one gallon paint tin filled with sand. What brought this to my attention was the bright flash which lit up the cab when they ignited whatever fuel they were using. :frowning:

Thanks R.O.F. that’s one of the things that I like about this forum, you get answers to questions that I have often wondered about for years. :smiley:
B.T.W. your reply has just reminded me of an old Blaster Bates story of when he bought a new Volvo 144. :laughing:

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TIDDERSON:
Slightly off topic but anyone remember the BRAY engine heater? It was like a small kettle element that screwed into the block through a core plug. It plugged into the mains at night and gave you a warm engine on frosty mornings. I had one in a Rolls B40 engine in an Austin Champ and it certainly helped during the winter of 1962.

I do remember a guy who obviously had fitted that device on his Ford Transit. I had helped him to renovate his engine, and there was a water heater connected to a domestic plug & cable.

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My Jaguar has a little Webasto heater fitted as standard from new, it’s brilliant. The Jaguar 2.7 diesel engine is notorious for taking a long time to get up to temp. in winter, the little Webasto is piped into the cooling system AND warms the car interior as well.

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grumpy old man:
My Jaguar has a little Webasto heater fitted as standard from new, it’s brilliant. The Jaguar 2.7 diesel engine is notorious for taking a long time to get up to temp. in winter, the little Webasto is piped into the cooling system AND warms the car interior as well.

Good thinking, My Idea of getting warm & I mean getting very warm, Is a bottle of Glenmorangie Single Malt, Just sitting back in my recliner chair aftre a hard day at the Office, :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: , & Relaxing ready for the next ,one Gently sipping the single nectars from Bonny Scotland, Oh Dear I should have said doubles, Im old & going bald but Im still as fit as a Butchers Dog , :angry: :sunglasses: Regards OldLarry.

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hi ,folks , i knew a driver who had a electric fire in his cab ,with a bulb conection on the end ,he would pull on to a layby with a telephone box take the bulb out ,plug in ,and a nice warm sleep , Cheers Barry

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barrywaddy:
hi ,folks , i knew a driver who had a electric fire in his cab ,with a bulb conection on the end ,he would pull on to a layby with a telephone box take the bulb out ,plug in ,and a nice warm sleep , Cheers Barry

Hi “barrywaddy” Please refresh my mem buds , Where was this lay by, :question: :question: :question: , Regards Larry.

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Clock turned back to winter’62/63drove an old Seddon rigid with the coach built cab, P6 lump David Brown gear box, NO heater.
Had a double flue parrafin greenhouse heater bolted to passenger side floor, it ran day and night!! Also used to mix parrafin with diesel to help prevent fuel ‘jelling’ in that sub-Zero winter.
Bloke called Noah ‘Jack’ Bishop who drove for Jempson’s with me used the old one bar electric fire trick after he found a key to fit the old style AA boxes, which conviently were sited in lay-by’s, personally I prefered B&B to cab Hotel!!

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The winter of 62/63 I had my first job in transport, I was fifteen and road a butcher’s bike all through that winter :smiley: :smiley: it was bloody cold. Regards Kev.