I know this isn’t a lorry, or an AJS, but, it’s some engineering.
My old friend brought it over for a couple of days for a ride-out…
Ducati Panagale 1299…190 kgs, 210 hp…top speed, absolutely no idea !! but , its a tad quicker than the old Gold Stars that both Saviem and I owned at one time, (and still wish we did !)…riding it is absolutely awesome…
This is also not truck related and its no laughing matter either as it is causing our company considerable inconvenience having to avoid using the train and we have to book ferries well in advance on unorthodox routes to be able to keep operating into Europe. The money this is costing the International haulage industry is unbelievable and we are still faffing about with no real solution to the problem, our government seem incapable of sorting this out and the French don’t seem bothered either, high time for some defined action here best to load them in a plane and take them back to where they came from and if they wont go shoot them, this would be far cheaper in the long run. Alternatively we could abandon the human rights issue, who started that in the first place anyway? Just being an ordinary citizen of this country and having run my own business I am sure I could sort this out as I suspect many of you could also, some times I wish I was born sixty years earlier than I was, alright life and work may have been tougher but at least we would not have to put up with the crap we are today, that’s my rant for the day over cheers Buzzer.
Buzzer:
This is also not truck related and its no laughing matter either as it is causing our company considerable inconvenience having to avoid using the train and we have to book ferries well in advance on unorthodox routes to be able to keep operating into Europe. The money this is costing the International haulage industry is unbelievable and we are still faffing about with no real solution to the problem, our government seem incapable of sorting this out and the French don’t seem bothered either, high time for some defined action here best to load them in a plane and take them back to where they came from and if they wont go shoot them, this would be far cheaper in the long run. Alternatively we could abandon the human rights issue, who started that in the first place anyway? Just being an ordinary citizen of this country and having run my own business I am sure I could sort this out as I suspect many of you could also, some times I wish I was born sixty years earlier than I was, alright life and work may have been tougher but at least we would not have to put up with the crap we are today, that’s my rant for the day over cheers Buzzer.
As if things aren’t hard enough, then this crap happen, my sympathys John,
Buzzer, yes you are right ,the answers =have a lot of empty trucks come up from marseille , en route Calais ,GOVERNMENT SPONSORED let them get to Calais area all the drivers go for a ■■■■ ,let them fill up with our friends ,then lock the doors ,go to a ferry enroute to no where, the crew abondship, open sea-■■■■■ ,job done …regular services every week ,no duty free,
Seriously, it must cost you men thousands, trouble is the French know this, easy, you all go bump who has got the work.??More to this than meets the eye?
I am so pleased i am out of it even as i was driver, when things where changing in Calais in the late 1990s you could not for see what it has grown into.
i would have thought ZEEBRUGGE or OSTEND were better ports to be made secure. and used .I bet the Belgians would be more proactive.plus the extra threat againist S.H.A.P.E.would make it a sucure country.
Evening all,
Quite a lot going on is there not!
Calais my sympathies to Buzzer, and any other European British Haulier, (and what a dying bred, due to our ineffectual politicians of all hues)!
What can be done…very little…Unless someone has the guts to “finger” the utterly corrupt Italian administration, …the totally racist, and non involved French, but of course Cameron needs any Euro allies that he can muster to support…“Treaty Changes”…there will be none…and has no one in the corridors of power realised that this has been going on for over 25 years?..and totally ignored. The people smuggling gangs are well established, and the “wheels of power” in the Southern European Countries , “well oiled”…so do not expect any help there.
Extra funding, for security fencing, and sniffer dogs…oh for goodness sake, do they have to insult our intelligence…this is a multi million euro, (or whatever currency they choose to launder in), business. The only way to even try to stem the flow is to name the responsible politicians in Italy, and France, and invoke measures within the European Treaty to force the French to take action in their own land, and to reveal to all the stinking pot of effluent that is the Italian Political sham!..and add Greece, and Bulgaria to that action as well…(that is if our Politicians can find any of those countries on a map…or their personal Sat Navs)!
Then what do we all do with the people that sit in Calais? None identifiable by their lack of documentation, France d`ont want them…and I suppose neither do we…so what do we do with them…Because unless the flow is stemmed…there are a lot more coming into Calais…and a port near YOU!!!
“Collaborating, and working with the French Authorities on this problem”…surely Camerons gist is worthy of a page along side Neville Chamberlains “Peace in our time”…the only way to solve the problem is to expose the corruption within the cess pit that the European dream has become…and invoke, (or at least try to think about), plan B …to cast ourselves away from this corruption ridden land mass, and try to create a real future for this" Sceptered Isle…because at this minute it really a`int got one!!!
If I have upset anyone, I apologise, If Ive made you think......well Im glad…and if you wish to reprimand me…well I can take it!
And that was not the post I meant to make at all!
"
MaggieD:
HiWas this an early Kangaroo trailer ?
Regards
Richard
Evening all,
a cool glass of Bollinger by my side, (to calm my wrinkled brow), normal service is resumed!
Pete, you are not "Hi Jacking " my thread, because it is not my thread, its for everyone to share ! And I enjoy every ones contributions!
Now that Saviem LRS, of 1959, and its early, (1960), Kangourou trailer, is a very interesting subject.
The concept of improving journey times on very long distance hauls, by carrying a load bearing road vehicle on a railway waggon was originally conceived in the USA.
The restrictive factor was always the “loading gauge”, in the USA 15ft 6 ins,in Europe the “Berne” gauge, 14ft and 1/2 inch, and in the UK the W5 gauge of 12ft 6in. So the problem is, how do you fit any type of road vehicle onto a rail waggon, and still retain a measure of volume within the road vehicle?
Germany and Suisse, and Austria went down the route of small wheeled bogie rail waggons, which allowed a "ro. ro. operation.But capital cost was very high…so high that to gain utilisation “artificial” means had to be used to make the system viable. This took the form of licence insentives to use the system. Otherwise the cost would make it simply non viable as an alternative to road traction!
France invented the Kangourou…why Kangaroo…because the rail waggons had a “pouch” into which the road semi trailer sank, its rubber wheels only less than 500mm above the rails. As per Richards picture, the road running gear had hardened steel running wheels fixed to it, with a guide wheel on either side at the front of the trailer. The rear under run bar and lights would fold away as the trailer located its steel guide wheels on the guide track on the rail waggon. and also a rear mounted spherical coupling to be utilised in removing the trailer from the rail waggons “pouch”. The tractor unit used for loading/unloading had a lifting fifth wheel, which was essential when loading the semi trailer onto the guide rails on the rail waggon. As clearly shown on MaggieDs picture.
A potential road vehicle gross weight of 29tonnes was the guide weight. The rail waggon had a tare of around 11 tonnes, with a gross of 40 tonnes. Trains averaged at between 700/1000 tonnes gross.
The Kangourou system at last allowed a road vehicle of up to 4metres hight to be carried on a Kangourou rail waggon, (1963/1965). The earliest version, as Maggie Ds picture only allowed a profile up to 3.5 metres, with radiused corners to be carried, (1960/1963).
The first designated Kangourou routes were , Paris /Lille, Uzignan, (Narbonne), Paris, (For the Wine Trade),and Paris /Montmelian, (for Paris /Turin, via the Mt Cenis.
Then came the Dutch/French operation, Rotterdam/Paris, (the Trailstar of 1965). Followed by Paris/ Novarra, for Turin, and Milan. And if I remember correctly Paris /Cologne in about 1966.
The Kangourou system was simple, the road semi trailer had only a simple set of steel guide wheels added, (about 250 kgs), compare that to the UKs “Road Railer”, that was envisaged to be a complete road/rail train. The weight penalty of constructing the van body to have the strength to be utilised as a rail waggon simply killed it stone dead!
But UK constructors did have the licence to build Kangourou suitable semi trailers, R A Dyson, York, Fruehauf,and TW Walker.
The CKangourou trailers were mainly pulled by Berliet TAK, or FAR , (both 3, and 4 wheel) tractor units, as well as the heavier aBerliet GLs. The biggest operator was of course the SNCF Subsidiary Calberson, (and what a company that was…how many hauliers have a multi story depot…and a Radio Studio on the top)!!!Bailly, and Soc Transports Artisans of St Etienne.
Just how good was the service? Saint Quentin/Marseille, load Saint Quentin 15.00, unload Marseille 09.00 the following day. Paris/Toulouse, 11 hours… and that was back in the `60s, when the SNCF were running continuous braked trains of 700/1000 tonnes at 100kph, …what potential, and so much lighter, and cheaper than the German “rolling highway”…If only the Unions had allowed it to work as well as it could have!!!
The next stage was the "Lo. Lo, (Lift on lift off), standard SNCF Container, built to similar standard to the ISO box, and the hauliers who were involved in “Kangourou”, (and had gained licencing advantages over their rivals by being involved with the national rail network), were suddenly running double bottom outfits to and from the railheads…buts that is another story…and what a bugger they were to even attempt to reverse…well they were for me!!!
Cheerio for now.
What a rousing friday night post SAVIEM absoultly spot on, to be honest i do not know you or having never been in your company you but you do talk a whole lot of truth,i am sure you would be able to start a referendum . sorry revolution…
Your posts make me think you have been in high -end management, at all sorts of transport related manufacture ,sales ,also farming on a scale more than just the small holding.
I think you are English, living the dream in France for many years .
A book written about your history would make a very good read. your posts are like the “lETTER FROM AMERICA” BY ALISTAIR COOKE.
D.B.P.
As promised a up to date photo of the AJS building in Wolverhampton,first one from early 2000’s and second took today,talking to elderly gent who was wondering why i was taking photo’s he told me that the occupants of the building scrubbed off what was left of the sign a couple of months ago 
Cheers Pete
Hi Saviem, Couple of pics of Stafford Street Wolverhampton, First one Cannock road off to the left? and one of Evertidy’s Artics Bedford or Trader? Second showing Evertidy’s factory,did Chris Kelly add Evertidy to his transport empire or just supplied them with Scania’s?, sorry for the poor quality pic’s, Cheers Pete
Hello, hello do I need new glasses, am I believing what I am reading in the Mail on Sunday. Is there no one running this country with a modicum of intelligence ? we are doomed. Grab the job by the nadgers someone please, I can see civil unrest here in the not too distant future if some thing radical is not done soon. Are we too busy with our ordinary day lives not to bother to make any one in power listen to and sort this problem out once and for all, why do we always wait until the problem gets totally out of hand.
My god we are soft in the head here, you cannot blame these immigrants wanting to come here for a better life, and we seem to be giving them that on a plate. They have travelled hundreds of miles to try and achieve there goal of getting to the UK so a bit of chain link fencing sure ain’t going to stop them. At the end of the day it is the systems in place in the United Kingdom which are at fault and have caused this problem in the first place so don’t give any money or accommodation or anything for that matter only a one way air ticket back to whence they came and while we are at it stop the benefit system as well. I am pretty sure we all know someone who is skiving on the dole who is perfectly capable of a good days work, I must say there are probably some genuine cases that deserve help but long term unemployment is a no for me, the system is too generous so there is no incentive to get them off there backsides and back to work, even if it was litter picking on the roadsides or pulling ragwort and that would save the councils a lot of money, then issue them with food voucher’s only redeemable for food, no ■■■’s booze or pay as you go phone cards or scratch cards, they must be laughing at the one’s who get out of bed in the morning and go to work.
If nothing is done soon this place will be done for and I am glad I am of pensionable age and drawing towards the end of my time on this planet but I do fear for my grand children’s future as it is not looking great, Buzzer.
PS. Sorry for another rant on this thread but I do enjoy the feedback from you all of similar mind.
PPS. Well there you have it 6 o clock news, country facing crisis and David Cameroon goes on holiday, great.
Evening all,
hello Pete, that looks like a Trader to me! No Chris concentrated on the supply of equipment, but he did invest in some other businesses. I can remember Cannock road like that…and having to dodge the Trolley Bus wires with high loads!!!1
Tony, did work for Brian Meridith at Fordhouse Transport. Boy , could he “bawl” down those flights of stairs!!! Always had a few new Big Js in stock against Tax…was one of them the one that ended up in the ownership of Trevs firm, when Chris took them over.
Brian did similar work to Craddocks, Mazak, and Copper, but again on the Thompson Trailmobile Tandem trailers.
Sad about the Retreat Street premises of AJS, …but what can you expect of Wolverhampton today?..I doubt anyone on the council even knows that we had the Worlds leading Motor Industry here…they would rather celebrate a “Bangra” Festival…PLONKERS!!!
Buzzer, I can identify with your frustration…but it a`int all like the Press print…and it really is not a simple problem to answer…and if you were a native of “up here”, and really felt an Alien, in your own back yard…you can only guess just how bad it really is!!!
I was recently down in the Var with my Daughters God Father,…no wonder Marine Le Penne is the Darling of everyone down there…
Sad times, the problem is not going away…and a bit of wire, and a few doggie noses at Calais really is a farce…how about Spain, Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania,…how many wire fences are we going to erect■■?..Go to the cause…not the result…
But Politicians never were Businessmen…
Cheerio for now.
Hi Saviem, Couple more of Stafford Street, first looking towards Elephant and Castle,Second of trolley bus turning into Cannock road,Cheers Pete
I saw this train the other day. Another idea along the same lines as the Kangourou.
Hi Saviem, Couple of pic’s of Billinghams Showroom on Snow Hill and second of commercial vehicle workshop in Bell Street,Cheer’s Pete
And an advert for Star
Evening all,
Three, to me, really rather personal posts from Pete Smith, and Chris Arbon, thank you both for taking the trouble and time to put these up, they are greatly appreciated.
May I comment on them, and perhaps take them" out of order".
Chris`s post on Triple Crown, (the three Crowns being, road, rail, road), a truly unique system that was originally the brain child of North America Van Lines. They needed a rail partner to make the concept work, and they chose Norfolk and Southern Rail Lines, ( now I think they are known as Conrail, N&S). Norfolk and Southern quickly realised the potential of the concept, and purchased the operation in 1986.
The concept was based on a Hub and Spoke system. The Hub became Fort Wayne Indiana, (the Norfolk and Southern base), and the initial outposts being, (in 1986), Detroit, and Saint Louis, joined in 1988 by Chicago and Atlanta. By the end of the 80s you had a network linking, (in no order), Dallas, (where I got to know them), Kansas City, Jackson, Atlanta, St Louis, Hamburg, Bethlehem, Detroit, Mineappolis, Chicago, and right into Canada, Toronto.
The concept involved the semi trailers collecting freight within a 300 mile radius of the rail head. On delivery to the rail head the trailers would be assembled into trains of between 100, and 120 units, which were shipped to Fort Wayne, where separate trains were assembled for each destination…a complex operation…but it worked.
The equipment, and the rationale:
The idea was to be simple, easy to use, and minimum disruption of the customers product.
The van semi trailers were all manufactured by Wabash, (as were the rail bogies). The trailer, with a tandem air suspended bogie, was conventional 53 ft, long, 102 ins outside width, with a 36 in king pin position. Overall height , (given a 47 in 5th wheel), was at 13ft 6in. (Remember the USAs loading gauge at 15ft 6 in).
Wabash manufactured its trailers to the rail loading of 200 tons compression, yet still managed to produce a trailer completely highway compatable with only a 6/800 lbs weight penalty, (dry freight/refrigerated options).
The Rail Coupler, which looked very like an arrowhead protruding from the front rave of the semi trailer, extended 22 ins, but under Federal Laws was totally excluded from the overall length calculation.
Haulage was in the main by dedicated owner operators , or small hauliers. The tractor must have a fuelled weight of under a maximum of 18500 lbs, be tandem drive, and be equipped with a fifth wheel with a 12 in forward/ rearward slide capability. From memory the package available to the contract hauler was compatable in basic terms with the industry norm, (perhaps a little better than Schneider, or Werner),and on a par with Bekins. The advantage was that preference was given to low net weight, and many day cabs were operated, as highway hauls were modest, and a degree of end user/owner driver compatability was encouraged.
How did it work?
The tractor drops the semi in the depot, (say Dallas), and goes to pick up another loaded trailer for delivery. There are no trains to load onto! The Wabash rail bogies are stacked away from the rails. A fork lift puts the bogie on the rails, a dock spotter (type), loader connects to the semi van, and reverses it onto the bogie, with the vans air suspension raised. The rear underrun bar folds up 90 degrees, securing the vans doors, then the air suspension is deflated, the van rests on the king pin on the rail bogie, which lifts the road wheels clear of the rails. That bogie, and van are then reversed into the front of another similarly connected semi, the protruding "arrowhead coupling drives into the connecting slot on the rear of the semi, (leaving a gap of only 12 ins between the connected trailers…see Chris`s photographs)…a major selling point for the service as there is literally no room to break into the trailer rear doors…and so on until you have 100 plus semis connected together…
But the other real advantage to the shipper…because the vans are connected so rigidly, there is no coupling back lash. Literally as those Triple Crown Trains moved, they moved as one, no clanking, banging, just smooth, and of course just like a well driven lorry, no damage to the shippers goods!!! The train, because it only has rail bogies, and not rail cars with semi`s loaded on them, is considerably lighter, and therefore needs a lower horsepower, and more economic engine to move 100 plus units…good selling point…less emissions…which when I was there was a big selling point!
I remember their first clients being Chrysler, and Ford, then Heinz, and Miller Beer, and eventually as I was coming back to Europe, I think that Schneider were using them for their long hauls. My Mack colleagues were trying very hard to get an exclusive deal for the ultra light 11 litre, with a short cab for Norfolk and Southern to lease to their contract hauliers, as they could offer 300 hp at 16000 lbs ready to go! …Makes a big Iveco look a tad portly does it not?
Triple Crown must have become under pressure in the late 2000s as rail capacity decreased, as a consequence of increased utilisation, particularly against double stack container trains, but it brought back some particularly happy memories for me seeing those pictures of a typical Triple Crown train…thank you Chris…(and they were nice people as I recall)
Cheerio for now.
pete smith:
Hi Saviem, Couple more of Stafford Street, first looking towards Elephant and Castle,Second of trolley bus turning into Cannock road,Cheers Pete
Hello Pete,
Now those are personal memories,
My late Uncle drove, (for many years) , a Trolleybus from the Oxford Street Bilston Depot. He mainly worked the number 7, and 2 route Darlaston, to Whitmore Reans, which I believe was the longest Trolleybus route in the UK…he was also an accomplished Violinist in a Dance Band…and his Bus Drivers trousers with their distinctive blue stripe down the leg, looked very smart with his Evening Jacket.
When they pulled the Elephant and Castle down, I tried without success to buy the Elephant and Castle statue from the , (shifty), demolition “expert”…without any success…obviously already spoken for no doubt!!!
When I see Peter Lisle, (my old friend, who is the end of the line of the Lisle family who were Star Motor Company), I will ask him about Mrs Strickland, that sounds an interesting story, and probably a lot more to it than appears in the advert! I will report back in due course!!!
I shall raise a Bollinger to you all tonight, thank you!
Cheerio for now.
Hi Saviem,I may be wrong but i remember an article in the express and star a few years back about a lad from Low Hill/Scotlands area had the said statue in his possession?, anyway a couple more Star adverts for you,2nd pic is better photo of Ms Strickland,if you google"Diana Strickland Star car 1920’s" it comes up with a couple of articles and the history of Star,Cheer’s Pete
Here’s a couple more pictures, Buzzer.
