ye thats the beast 
robert1952:
stevejones:
few bad ones comlng out santander before improvements/ andgoing up old s.siera . the old ip5 after villa formoso especially after a night in elvis/bar the coqhuila can be hard work with tridem on and thirty ton bottled water thru b.c. canadaTalking of Somma Sierra (long, Spanish and steep), as I became more educated I began to learn important stuff like where flies go in winter, and how long a piece of string is; however, I was already approaching middle-age when I discovered how snow-plough drivers get to work. They sit there on Somma Sierra, near the top, with their engines running and their orange beacons flashing lazily in the flurries of flakes WAITING FOR IT TO SNOW. I kid you not. Maybe they should try that on the M62⌠Robert
Hi Folks,
Ford Plaxton
Cheers Malc
When Jack saw the giant, he let in the clutch and drove straight back down the bean-stalk without even putting another tacho in or touching the exhaust brake⌠Robert 
Hey, not nice to come down, luckily not a long decent,even coming up empty it, it doesnât allowed a change up
You had carefully to choose the gear you could get the top without a change, bit like the loibl an others
Belgium has no montains but this signs can you find frequently in the Ardennes on B roads.
Eric,
I got stuck halfway up Field Hill, learned how to chain up that night, not my finest moment 
newmercman:
I got stuck halfway up Field Hill, learned how to chain up that night, not my finest moment
The steep (excuse the pun) learning curve involved in finding out how best to chain up in the snow and ice on nasty hills may not have been our happiest moments or our cleverest moments but they were still among our finest moments for having survived and got our lorries going again in the face of adversity. My baptism of fire was in Turkey. Robert 
Youâre not wrong there Robert, despite the lorry sliding backwards down the hill into a jackknife as I got out to look at things. Watching your home slide away down a mountain is not something I ever want to witness again.
After getting it all going and cresting that hill I felt unstoppable. The next time I had to chain up it held no fear.
tiptop495:
Hey, not nice to come down, luckily not a long decent,even coming up empty it, it doesnât allowed a change up
You had carefully to choose the gear you could get the top without a change, bit like the loibl an others
Belgium has no montains but this signs can you find frequently in the Ardennes on B roads.Eric,
Hi Eric,
That looks like the dashboard of a 1-series Scania. Is that a 141 by any chance? Does she already have a TELMA retarder?
Anyhow, I hope you went down there in adequately low gear, but I am sure you did or you would not be here to tell the story!
Cheers
David
robert1952:
There isnât a single ânasty hillâ on this thread Iâd want to drive this one up!! Robert0
No Power steering needed there Robert!
Donât see a problem with that⌠
Once his 50 passengers turn up to sit on the front of that box, he,ll be fine.
mappo:
Donât see a problem with thatâŚ
Once his 50 passengers turn up to sit on the front of that box, he,ll be fine.
Robert Destination Calais!
been up some good hills all over europe and n/africa, but there is always one that sticks in my head been up there twice fully loaded
sutton bank 
Thatâs an interesting one Wayne,
What do they mean by âBrake Checkâ? Difficult to judge from a photograph but it looks awful sharp, both the exit and the following left hander. I would hate to try that at more than about 30 mph - I could see a roll-over coming up.
David
A brake check in BC is a complete check of the braking system for leaks, checking that the compressor builds air properly, the free play and applied pushrod stroke of the brake chambers and that the tractor/trailer protection valves (spring brakes) work when pressure drops.
Most drivers just walk around the truck and hit their tyres (or tires as they call them) with a hammer!
David Miller:
Thatâs an interesting one Wayne,What do they mean by âBrake Checkâ? Difficult to judge from a photograph but it looks awful sharp, both the exit and the following left hander. I would hate to try that at more than about 30 mph - I could see a roll-over coming up.
David
Probably a VOSA mis-spelling that should read BREAK CHECK ! Robert
OK, Mont Cenis has been mentioned, a truly scary place, especially coming down it with a 40â stepframe and the underrun bar scraping the road on the hairpins.
But going back a bit further in my career. Bridge Hill leading down into the village of Bridge in Kent. Now the A2050 it pre-dates both the modern A2 which by-passes it and the M2 which by-passes that.
I descended that in a Commer 2-stroke with a single axle tipper trailer full of coal. No worries about it running away but the Commerâs compressor wasnât up to the job. Despite being in crawler and only dabbing the brakes sparingly, it kept running out of air - and stopping dead. 
Better than running away with me of course but I descended that hill in 50 yard steps with a 5 minute break between each one.
Scarier than that. Loaded in Sheffield with 20 tons of steel I got to the top of Matlock Bank, the A 632 and, after seeing the dreadful drop, stopped. I had a Mk2 Atki with a 180 â â â â â â â and 6-speed box. I knew it was steep when the handbrake wouldnât hold it and I âproppedâ the front wheel against the kerb while I walked the route for a recce.
Halfway down there was a right hand kink with a bungalow below road level opposite. One house I definitely wouldnât buy. Then a little further on a left hand curve and the final run down to the cross roads at the bottom. The cross roads was staggered and I thought if I made it round the bends I could run of into the level road opposite. But it was a main road to cross and I spotted a police car parked up. I explained my worries to the 2 coppers inside and said if they saw me coming down at much more than walking pace could they please stop the traffic for me. Of course mate, they replied, and I commenced the long walk back up the hill.
Once on board I built the air up to max, put it in crawler and gingerly started to roll. I used the brakes only when the revs got too high, which was often, and my knee had the terrible shakes, I have never been so scared. I made it round the first bend, then the second, and could see the crossing below me. I was keeping the speed down quite well but wasnât convinced that I wouldnât need the âemergency laneâ. By braking hard 50 metres before the road I managed to bring it to halt at the line. I looked around to wave re-assurance to my uniformed âmatesâ as a gesture of thanks. Not a sign of the bludgers. 
Along with when I really did lose brakes in Cornwall with a Kew Dodge artic when I ran it into the solid bank to avoid the sleepy village below, that is my scariest moment on the road, miles worse than Mont Cenis. 
Bit of help needed here lads.A place I used to del timber to in the 90s in the stroud area.It was steep about 1 in 5.Just before the steepest part there was a set of lights.Before starting on the hill I had to ring the customer to inform how long I would be.Crawler gear had to be used at all times.Any ideas?
regards dave.