Evil8Beezle:
I have a switch similar to the one on the right, but i won’t press it unless I know what it does!
C’mon Evil, just look at the button. It’s obviously for lowering or raising the soft top! 
Radar19:
The switch on the left you will have. The one of the right is for getting more traction. If the wheels are spinning then hit that switch and it should left the tag just enough so more weight is on the drive axle.Having the tag up is more fun, especially in London.
I know that pic has been around for a while, but surely to God that thing would wheelie if loaded by numpties?
Radar19:
Ramon123:
Radar19:
Ramon123:
Nice place,used to deliver to Sainsbury’s there a while backGoing there tomorrow, so happy that it’s getting torn down next year.
Is it ? Building a new one or what ?
They are going to build a new one that stretchs across the entire high street. Spoke to someone there today, he said that some have signed a 3 year lease which is odd considering that they will start clearing out in late 2016.
My son told me there’s going to be a Westfield shopping centre
A quick question about the rear steer axle.
Can I lift it at anytime? I.e. when moving.
And when lifted, does this downgrade the load capacity?
(I’ve yet to look on the plate, but thought I’d ask here first as I’m lightly to get a little more info than the plate will tell me. How much more is probably debatable though! 
)
It wont let you lift it mate if the load sensor knows you need the extra axle.
If you have any problems out on the road, give me a ring. It doesn’t matter if you are fully loaded and weigh 26 tonnes.
We can just pop it on the back of mine. (Which is a proper truck).
eagerbeaver:
It wont let you lift it mate if the load sensor knows you need the extra axle.If you have any problems out on the road, give me a ring. It doesn’t matter if you are fully loaded and weigh 26 tonnes.
We can just pop it on the back of mine. (Which is a proper truck).
How can I say this…
Thanks, but now please go and …
Try not to worry about car drivers, especially the precious ‘think they’re something special’ drivers in the South East. It’s for you to command the road, not them. This is not to say you start driving like a ■■■■■ on the contrary when in London/the South East/any other city take your time and don’t get drawn into the rat race. And on the same token when you get to your drop take your time, and if in doubt pull over and get out and have a look. Oh and use google earth, if you go on street view when you find your drop point you can see where you’ve got to turn and what you’ve got to do. The only time I get in a knot (as a rule) is when I wing it.
All the best evil, I am a newbie class 2, had my licence for 6 months and been driving a 26 tonner all over the country for the last 4 months so I feel your pain . I did P&H, Brakes, Ikea, all of that when I first passed and it is the absolute pits. They expect FAR too much of you as a driver.
Anyhow, my current gig is a permanent job (you should start looking for one of these now I reckon), with decent kit, sure its multidrop but 90% are forklifted off the back and the other 10% are just tailifted off to their door. It is a million times better than Brakes etc.
Regarding the 26t wagon and things I have noticed thus far. The rear steer axle is both a help and a hindrance. Man it can flip that back end out wildly as I found out to my dismay when it clipped a railing as I was turning off a road into a tight back alley. The swing is worse with the rear steer axle down than it is when it is up. My advice is to avoid full locking as much as you can, even if it is a tight turn, a second or two’s half turn will give your back end room to manoeuvre. I also hate it in the services when an artic parks too close as I always worry about getting out without hitting anything. It seems to me that the 26t wagons need more room to turn in a small space than the artics all because of that tail swing. Anyone who has parked a 26 tonner in South Mimms will know what I mean.
You want to lower the back of the wagon right down on most drops to help the pallets come free and to make it easier to push them once you have a hold of them. Also when you get back to the yard raise the back end so it helps the pallets roll into position easier when it gets loaded.
I cant wait to get my class 1 and hopefully the company will put me through it at some point but for the time being I am loving driving the 26t around even if some of the places I have to back into are enough to make me ■■■■ me duds!
Evil8Beezle:
A quick question about the rear steer axle.Can I lift it at anytime? I.e. when moving.
And when lifted, does this downgrade the load capacity?
(I’ve yet to look on the plate, but thought I’d ask here first as I’m lightly to get a little more info than the plate will tell me. How much more is probably debatable though!
It will have weight sensors in it so the system will drop it if needed. Notice on the switch you can lock in the down position but not the up position. The only reason they are liftable is to save on tyre wear. The truck will be rated at 26 tonnes, that tag allows for more weight compared to a 18 etc. Next time you are on the road, have a look at some of those 7.5tonners, some are almost as long as mine yet they don’t even get close to the weight I can carry.
As for lifting it whilst moving, I know I can move mine but only at slow speeds, sub 10mph I think.
Cheers for the answers and advice people, much appreciated!
I’ve been driving the 26t rear steer a week now, and I’ve learnt quite a bit now about the handling/maneuvering, but still have more to learn and remember. To be honest, the rear steer still scares/worries me in certain situations, as said above, you get a lot of tail swing if turning sharply. And yes I’ve tried to only introduce more steering after moving forward a bit, as this gives the rear more clearance when it starts to swing. I’ve also found myself stuck at a junction wanting to turn right, but unable to turn while cars are passing close on the nearside. So I now properly understand the advice in this thread about straddling lanes!
It looks like i’ll be sticking with this truck for a while, as I’m booked on for next week with the same company, so will be getting more practice! 
I like the place i’m working at, as it’s all pallet deliveries, & more than half are fork lifted off. But when i have to use the tail lift, it’s still not difficult and I don’t mind a bit of physical exercise. But it’s nothing like P&H, and can’t understand why some of the drivers here moan! 
My agency called my yesterday to see if i could do a Saturday for P&H as they are desperate for drivers, and they have also upped the rate for Mondays as well, as apparently as they just can’t get drivers for those 2 busy days. I was grateful that I couldn’t work the weekend as I have to take a much needed 45, and I’m still bloody knackered after 12 hours kip! LOL
I even had the place I’m working at ask if I could do a Saturday, and my agency said they haven’t ever had a request for weekend work before. So maybe I’m doing something right! But it might also have something to do with me being ADR, and have spent the last week carrying ADR loads. I’m getting an extra £1 an hour for that, so I’ve probably recouped £40 (after tax) back for that training so far…
I know I’ve been rather quiet on the forum for the last week or so, but I’m bloody knackered!
I’ve racked up 55 hours over 5 days, and while these hours are not excessive, they do feel a lot for a Newbie learning the ropes, as I think I’m probably concentrating that much harder. And as another thread is saying (How are the training schools teaching new drivers? [Merged]) I’ve just be thrown in at the deep end and expected to get on with it, which is the sad reality of Agency work. But I’m not complaining, as I’m earning quite good money and took home £565 last week, and will take home something similar this week! Not bad for a Newbie in my opinion! 
I’m hoping that as my experience grows the job will become a little less tiring, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking…
Mines not a rear steer, not sure how they handle but when my tag goes up things get interesting. You also want to watch being asked to work by the company. Sometimes, if they are crafty will try and go around the agency because it sure as hell costs them more via the agency.
Radar19:
Mines not a rear steer, not sure how they handle but when my tag goes up things get interesting. You also want to watch being asked to work by the company. Sometimes, if they are crafty will try and go around the agency because it sure as hell costs them more via the agency.
Thanks for the advice Radar, but at the moment I’m leaving the wheels down all the time at present, just so I can get used to that first. I’ve only lifted it once so far while making a low speed turn with my arse close to a parked van. I got out and checked 3 times through the turn! 
Thanks for the advice about the employer trying to save a few quid, but not had anything shadey mentioned to me so far, as i couldn’t work for them today anyway due to doing a P&H shift last Saturday (Wish i hadn’t! ) But when you commit to a shift, you’ve got to honour it…
Quite unbelievably/strangely I was actually sat with my agency guy when I got the call from the transport manager. As it just so coincided that I needed to take a 30min break as i was driving past the agency, so I popped in for a free coffee!
Agencies seem to get slagged off all the time, but i get on well with mine as so far I think he’s been straight and honest with me, and I’m doing likewise. I’m signed on with a second agency, but never been out of work with the first, so not even done a days work for the second. But they like to call me up and fish about what I’m currently doing and who for. I declined to tell them who exactly I was working for through the first agency, as it stand to reason that they will then target that company and put their own drivers in there. I told my current agency about being asked who I was working for, and he thanked me for not saying. So with a bit of luck he understands that if he’s straight with me, I’ll be straight with him!
Evil8Beezle:
Radar19:
Mines not a rear steer, not sure how they handle but when my tag goes up things get interesting. You also want to watch being asked to work by the company. Sometimes, if they are crafty will try and go around the agency because it sure as hell costs them more via the agency.Thanks for the advice Radar, but at the moment I’m leaving the wheels down all the time at present, just so I can get used to that first. I’ve only lifted it once so far while making a low speed turn with my arse close to a parked van. I got out and checked 3 times through the turn!
Thanks for the advice about the employer trying to save a few quid, but not had anything shadey mentioned to me so far, as i couldn’t work for them today anyway due to doing a P&H shift last Saturday (Wish i hadn’t!
Quite unbelievably/strangely I was actually sat with my agency guy when I got the call from the transport manager. As it just so coincided that I needed to take a 30min break as i was driving past the agency, so I popped in for a free coffee!
Agencies seem to get slagged off all the time, but i get on well with mine as so far I think he’s been straight and honest with me, and I’m doing likewise. I’m signed on with a second agency, but never been out of work with the first, so not even done a days work for the second. But they like to call me up and fish about what I’m currently doing and who for. I declined to tell them who exactly I was working for through the first agency, as it stand to reason that they will then target that company and put their own drivers in there. I told my current agency about being asked who I was working for, and he thanked me for not saying. So with a bit of luck he understands that if he’s straight with me, I’ll be straight with him!
I enjoyed my time on agency. Hell, my best job was driving a little 7.5t Japanese toy with a sleeper box on the roof of the cab delivering expensive but tacky funtuire! I was on my own boss and I could do what I wanted, I was doing delivers to people’s houses at 9pm at night because it suited me. I was told I may be required to take the stuff to the door but after that it wasn’t my problem but I would help the customer carry the stuff in, put it exactly where they wanted it etc. I remember helping a rather nice lady with her stuff up 4 flights of stairs at 6pm because I’m nice like that! 
If they had told me they were looking for a full time driver I would of jumped at it!
Evil8Beezle:
Radar19:
Mines not a rear steer, not sure how they handle but when my tag goes up things get interesting. You also want to watch being asked to work by the company. Sometimes, if they are crafty will try and go around the agency because it sure as hell costs them more via the agency.Thanks for the advice Radar, but at the moment I’m leaving the wheels down all the time at present, just so I can get used to that first. I’ve only lifted it once so far while making a low speed turn with my arse close to a parked van. I got out and checked 3 times through the turn!
Thanks for the advice about the employer trying to save a few quid, but not had anything shadey mentioned to me so far, as i couldn’t work for them today anyway due to doing a P&H shift last Saturday (Wish i hadn’t!
Quite unbelievably/strangely I was actually sat with my agency guy when I got the call from the transport manager. As it just so coincided that I needed to take a 30min break as i was driving past the agency, so I popped in for a free coffee!
Agencies seem to get slagged off all the time, but i get on well with mine as so far I think he’s been straight and honest with me, and I’m doing likewise. I’m signed on with a second agency, but never been out of work with the first, so not even done a days work for the second. But they like to call me up and fish about what I’m currently doing and who for. I declined to tell them who exactly I was working for through the first agency, as it stand to reason that they will then target that company and put their own drivers in there. I told my current agency about being asked who I was working for, and he thanked me for not saying. So with a bit of luck he understands that if he’s straight with me, I’ll be straight with him!
Wait for the next recession, then see how much you like agencies !
They will promise you the Moon but it’ll be behind a cloud, start you one day at 05.00 & 20.00 the next, no work for 3 days then offer you loads of work over the weekend, could be a local job today but 25 miles away tomorrow, mess around with your money, Ltd company, Umbrella scams (oops sorry schemes).
Be careful Evil, they will be busy up to Christmas, but they will be slow after, put some money aside to cover the Lean Times, better still, get on somewhere permanent, you’ll probably end up getting your own motor & not have to cab hop all the time, maybe standard start times & better conditions (agency drivers often get the worst runs, but not always)
Sorry to sound like I’m slagging them off, but that’s the experience I’ve had with them, only worked about 6 weeks total for them in the last 25 years, apart for some odd part time weekend work that I signed up for during the mid 90s, other than that I’ve always been directly employed.
Not at our place, I heard from the usual agency guy that they sent him to Scotland! Scotland runs are sought after by everyone!
55 hours EvilB?
I did 60 this past week.
Toptrumps anyone?
I did 40 in three days so tired 
71.5 on my timesheet on Saturday
only 65.5 for me probably worked about 20 of them
50 - got a life outside my van