This pic has been shown on A1’s page, I was driving for JG,Fielder from early 1960’s we had almost a full fleet of them, a few 4 wheelers, lots of 6 wheelers, and lots of artics, the 6 wheelers had a stretched chassis with a Boy’s axle or a Primrose axle, originaly they were a 7 tonner but with the extra axle they took 14 tons, “and in those days often up to 20 tons”, the artics were a tipper chassis with a 5th wheel fitted and they also took the same weight as the 6 wheelers, the one in the pic was half only loaded in the pic and would have been going to fill up somewhere else, they almost never went out with less tan 14 ton on the back, in this pic it was only 2 high but usualy went 4 high with press-packs, they were truly the work-horse in Bradford in the wool trade, I often took the low loader to Staningley to load leather-presses to deliver leather trade and the main part of the press weighd 16 ton and with all the rest of it on you were looking at a 20 ton load, the biggest problem was half-shafts snapping but not too often, and tyers blowing due to the weight we carried, and guess what guy’s there were no computer crap on them or auto boxes, so you couldnt go to sleep whilst driving like they have today.:- J Graham
must have been horrendous driving a trader at 20 ton gross with them old vac/hyd or air hyd brakes and Armstrong p/steering complete with the most uncomfortable seat ever made.lol.
This pic has been shown on A1’s page, I was driving for JG,Fielder from early 1960’s we had almost a full fleet of them, a few 4 wheelers, lots of 6 wheelers, and lots of artics, the 6 wheelers had a stretched chassis with a Boy’s axle or a Primrose axle, originaly they were a 7 tonner but with the extra axle they took 14 tons, “and in those days often up to 20 tons”, the artics were a tipper chassis with a 5th wheel fitted and they also took the same weight as the 6 wheelers, the one in the pic was half only loaded in the pic and would have been going to fill up somewhere else, they almost never went out with less tan 14 ton on the back, in this pic it was only 2 high but usualy went 4 high with press-packs, they were truly the work-horse in Bradford in the wool trade, I often took the low loader to Staningley to load leather-presses to deliver leather trade and the main part of the press weighd 16 ton and with all the rest of it on you were looking at a 20 ton load, the biggest problem was half-shafts snapping but not too often, and tyers blowing due to the weight we carried, and guess what guy’s there were no computer crap on them or auto boxes, so you couldnt go to sleep whilst driving like they have today.:- J Graham
Great shot Jack together with a full explanation ! how many more have you got tucked away in your archive ? Cheers Bewick.
This pic has been shown on A1’s page, I was driving for JG,Fielder from early 1960’s we had almost a full fleet of them, a few 4 wheelers, lots of 6 wheelers, and lots of artics, the 6 wheelers had a stretched chassis with a Boy’s axle or a Primrose axle, originaly they were a 7 tonner but with the extra axle they took 14 tons, “and in those days often up to 20 tons”, the artics were a tipper chassis with a 5th wheel fitted and they also took the same weight as the 6 wheelers, the one in the pic was half only loaded in the pic and would have been going to fill up somewhere else, they almost never went out with less tan 14 ton on the back, in this pic it was only 2 high but usualy went 4 high with press-packs, they were truly the work-horse in Bradford in the wool trade, I often took the low loader to Staningley to load leather-presses to deliver leather trade and the main part of the press weighd 16 ton and with all the rest of it on you were looking at a 20 ton load, the biggest problem was half-shafts snapping but not too often, and tyers blowing due to the weight we carried, and guess what guy’s there were no computer crap on them or auto boxes, so you couldnt go to sleep whilst driving like they have today.:- J Graham
Great shot Jack together with a full explanation ! how many more have you got tucked away in your archive ? Cheers Bewick.
hiya,
All the Bradford and district motors had the rear ratchets like this Trader,
but you don’t see them anymore, they sure would be needed on some of
those loads of wool I’ve seen, a job of it’s own wool haulage.
thanks harry, long retired.
zeppy:
My dad drove a Trader box for a firm with their offices in Manchester by the name of G.P. Vickers.He was based at their east London factory.The memory I have of this funny looking truck was the amount of times it broke down on the recently opened Motorways and in particular the M1.I was only about 10,when he used to take me to South Shields to one of their factories and I can never remember getting there or back without a breakdown truck being called on the journey.This was invariably an electrical fault,usually the alternator or starter motor,but it was always an adventure for me.
This firm gave up on the Trader a couple of years later,after some little toerag tried to set it alight in the middle of the night and they changed to Bedfords instead.There were quite a few companies in east London that used the Trader,one of which was Spurlings of Silvertown,who used them in artic configuration with twenty foot trailers and the local paraffin man had a tanker that he used to flog his esso blue(or was it alladin pink)from,door to door.This Trader was still parked up under railway arches,although in a very dilapidated condition,until a few years ago.The other big user of Traders was the Tolly Cobbold brewery in Walthamstow.I also seem to remember Blue Dart from Enfield using a few Traders,but I can’t be sure,but no doubt someone will confirm or contradict this.There were also a few rare conversions,such as a crew cab and even a sleeper cab.
All in all the Trader was probably a good little truck from the guvnors viewpoint,as it was a very easy truck to maintain,although most drivers wouldn’t agree,given the antiquated design and mechanics at the time,i.e,vacum brakes(on an artic,aarrrgghh),no insulation,etc,but then there wasn’t a lot more to compete with them at the time.Ford obviously eventually decided they were lagging behind with the Trader and decided the D series(which I believe originated from the USA)was going to boost their fortunes.They were probably right,but it was still a neat little truck,even if it was damned ugly.
My dear old dad (Ginger Sherry) drove for Spurlings at the Ford Tractor Plant Basildon, they ran trailers to Harwich and back. He had the unfortunate experience of a Trader artic for a few weeks (I think they usually had Leyland Comets), he game me a lift one day and I remember the poor old thing struggling and roaring up a steep hill. They stopped using them on that contract when the gearbox in one dad was driving came unbuttoned leaving him with a stick to waggle as he was coming into Harwich. I thought it was the usual silver 40 foot trailer on it but its a long time ago now and I could be wrong.
I started driving HGVs (officially) in 1968 as soon as I was 21 and the first vehicle I had was a flatbed Trader, I still look back on them fondly but probably because it was my first HGV on the road.
Thanks for the memories and photos on here.
The location of the photo of the blue bus outside Pyatt & Sons grocery store is Cheadle Staffs on the junction of Tean Road and Charles street. the building has been residential since the death of Gordon Pyatt years ago. Gordons sons are well known commercial vehicle restorers as was Gordon who ran a Jowett Bradford van.
Don`t know where the horse & cart was going but the Thames Trader looks to be turning left and going to Croxden Gravel about a mile out of Cheadle where they were like a**holes everybody had one…
Great photo — thanks for sharing it… Dave
3piece-wheel:
The location of the photo of the blue bus outside Pyatt & Sons grocery store is Cheadle Staffs on the junction of Tean Road and Charles street. the building has been residential since the death of Gordon Pyatt years ago. Gordons sons are well known commercial vehicle restorers as was Gordon who ran a Jowett Bradford van.
Don`t know where the horse & cart was going but the Thames Trader looks to be turning left and going to Croxden Gravel about a mile out of Cheadle where they were like a**holes everybody had one…
Great photo — thanks for sharing it… Dave
hello all remember driving a thames trader 4d delivering bagged cattle food around lancs farms in maybe 1963/ 1964 for fred bamber CARDINAL FEEDS
preston . 3 six ton loads a day as i remember.
hello all remember driving a thames trader 4d delivering bagged cattle food around lancs farms in maybe 1963/ 1964 for fred bamber CARDINAL FEEDS
preston . 3 six ton loads a day as i remember.
my dad bought a brand new trader 6d from quicks of Manchester 1963 for 1800quid on the road. I found some invoices from that year and he was doing 6 loads a day from ravenhead quarry at upholland to the then new ford plant at Halewood carrying between 9 and 11 ton per load no wonder it only lasted 3 years before he scrapped it!!!
