No Mick he was a scooter man !
malmic:
You don’t see many 8 wheelers with spoked wheels.
Yes Pete the mid to late 80s were pretty good but then the whole country went into recession and after the M40 was finished there were to many lorries for to little work.I suppose it was similar to what happened before the crash of 2008.That more or less wiped out the hired hauliers.
Thought as much Mick. You never know it might all come good again, I’ve still got my licence if you fancy setting on and I might get to drive one of those fancy Blue and White eight leggers I see running around in the current (until the next colour change! 
) Tarmac livery… 
I’ll get my snap bag and A-Z’s sorted ready for your call. 
Pete.
windrush:
malmic:
You don’t see many 8 wheelers with spoked wheels.
Yes Pete the mid to late 80s were pretty good but then the whole country went into recession and after the M40 was finished there were to many lorries for to little work.I suppose it was similar to what happened before the crash of 2008.That more or less wiped out the hired hauliers.Thought as much Mick. You never know it might all come good again, I’ve still got my licence if you fancy setting on and I might get to drive one of those fancy Blue and White eight leggers I see running around in the current (until the next colour change!
Pete.
I’m afraid it’ll be a long wait Pete
All that was left of Arthurs lorry and quite a few more after a fire ripped through my garage in 1999
A rather drastic way of stripping paint Mick! Being serious though it must have been traumatic for you as I imagine that there were customers vehicles in there as well as your own. I can’t remember the cause, was it an electrical fault? Who has the garage now?
Pete.
Moose:
Old Ballidon pics7654320
Good to see these again Moose, when you posted them previously I showed them to Cliff Wigley and he remembered that long wheelbase Dodge in the lower pic that is being loaded by a Chaseside or similar. He said that it was strange when loading shovel’s started being used for loading from the side instead of dragline buckets loading from the rear, folk didn’t think that they would catch on but for Donkey’s Years now they have been the normal way of loading tipper’s!
Pete.
Started in the Land Rover on the yard probably electrical.About 10 customer vehicles burnt out very traumatic at the time.Still got the garage for the time being.
Moose:
Old Ballidon pics7654320
Worked most quarries in Derbyshire and Staffordshire early in my career but never Ballidon. Why the funny little dumpers running from the face? - or could nothing bigger get on the plant at that time?
Steve
Ste46:
Moose:
Old Ballidon pics7654320
Worked most quarries in Derbyshire and Staffordshire early in my career but never Ballidon. Why the funny little dumpers running from the face? - or could nothing bigger get on the plant at that time?
Steve
That was all they had until the Fodens came I think Steve, I don’t know the reason though. A lot of the old lads who were still there when I started (1975) had driven those Muir Hill’s but they were long gone by then (possibly buried under the tip?) and there were a couple of Atkinson’s and a few Foden’s. Then the big Aveling Barfords arrived!
Pete.
Are they the I 3 bins that were on your right as you entered the quarry?
malmic:
Started in the Land Rover on the yard probably electrical.About 10 customer vehicles burnt out very traumatic at the time.Still got the garage for the time being.
That would be this land rover then, next to the Alruba FH unit, certainly put Longford on the map for a couple of days, if we’d sold tickets to the tourists that came to look, it would have paid for a new garage nearly.
Never mind Arthur’s lorry with it’s newly rebuilt engine being burnt to a molten heap, don’t forget he lost all his maps & pens & his favourite mug too.
1970commer:
malmic:
Started in the Land Rover on the yard probably electrical.About 10 customer vehicles burnt out very traumatic at the time.Still got the garage for the time being.That would be this land rover then, next to the Alruba FH unit, certainly put Longford on the map for a couple of days, if we’d sold tickets to the tourists that came to look, it would have paid for a new garage nearly.
Never mind Arthur’s lorry with it’s newly rebuilt engine being burnt to a molten heap, don’t forget he lost all his maps & pens & his favourite mug too.
and his glasses
1970commer:
malmic:
Started in the Land Rover on the yard probably electrical.About 10 customer vehicles burnt out very traumatic at the time.Still got the garage for the time being.That would be this land rover then, next to the Alruba FH unit, certainly put Longford on the map for a couple of days, if we’d sold tickets to the tourists that came to look, it would have paid for a new garage nearly.
Never mind Arthur’s lorry with it’s newly rebuilt engine being burnt to a molten heap, don’t forget he lost all his maps & pens & his favourite mug too.
and his glasses
malmic:
Are they the I 3 bins that were on your right as you entered the quarry?
I guess so Mick, I have a job getting my bearings to be honest! When I started there, and yourself I guess, the trucks entered the quarry via what is now (or was?) the wheelwash and of course back then there was a lot of fixed plant near the weighbridge plus some up near the garages. Where the entrance is now on the slope from the weighbridge was just a track for Land Rovers etc. It changed a lot in the years I was there and no doubt it has changed a lot more since I finished!
Pete.
Topley Pike quarry
malmic:
1970commer:
malmic:
Started in the Land Rover on the yard probably electrical.About 10 customer vehicles burnt out very traumatic at the time.Still got the garage for the time being.That would be this land rover then, next to the Alruba FH unit, certainly put Longford on the map for a couple of days, if we’d sold tickets to the tourists that came to look, it would have paid for a new garage nearly.
Never mind Arthur’s lorry with it’s newly rebuilt engine being burnt to a molten heap, don’t forget he lost all his maps & pens & his favourite mug too.
and his glasses
Alruba had a depot in Swad before going to Ashbourne and in Burton but can’t remember the road name which is stupid as I used to sell a lot of motors there.David Johnson was the man.Tony Cotton put me in touch with them where they made rubber wheels or something like.They had a fire at Swad aswell.Here is a bad photo of a 22 ton D-series
Tony
windrush:
malmic:
Are they the I 3 bins that were on your right as you entered the quarry?I guess so Mick, I have a job getting my bearings to be honest! When I started there, and yourself I guess, the trucks entered the quarry via what is now (or was?) the wheelwash and of course back then there was a lot of fixed plant near the weighbridge plus some up near the garages. Where the entrance is now on the slope from the weighbridge was just a track for Land Rovers etc. It changed a lot in the years I was there and no doubt it has changed a lot more since I finished!
Pete.
Fairly sure it is Pete .I think the entrance was underneath the elevator. On the left is the old top quarry and in the distance where the lorries are parked is the same as where they park now.
