Can anyone tell me how long single axle or tandem axle trailers from the 60s/70s were?
Ta very much.
Lonewolf Yorks:
Can anyone tell me how long single axle or tandem axle trailers from the 60s/70s were?Ta very much.
Most of them were 33-foot / 10-metres before the 40-foot / 12-metre trailers arrived. Robert
We had a few single-axle 30 footers in the early seventies, pre-metric. Axle right at the back.
Steve
Littlechild’s of Waltham Cross had some 40’ single axle trailer with the axle right on the back and I’m sure that must have been the mid to late 70’s……
Hello Chris
We had several trailers of this vintage-30ft single axle,33ft tandem axle(don’t think these were very common-the old man didn’t own that for long) and a 40ft spread axle tandem.all of these were flats.
What are you thinking of building lol?
And I think some people ran 33ft single axles-mostly high volume low weight I would imagine
Hello Chris
We had several trailers of this vintage-30ft single axle,33ft tandem axle(don’t think these were very common-the old man didn’t own that for long) and a 40ft spread axle tandem.all of these were flats.
What are you thinking of building lol?
And I think some people ran 33ft single axles-mostly high volume low weight I would imagine
Most 22/24 ton gross artics (Bedford km’s ,Ford D series etc would have ran with a 30ft single axle with the wheels right on the arse end
I had couple of 30 ft single axle trailers 1969 but from 1972 started buying 33 ft tandem axles as did most others unless it was specialised for light loads
Pre-1964 C&U Regs, (enacted 1965), maximum semi-trailer length 24ft (irrespective of number of axles).
From 1965 until 1969 maximum semi-trailer length 33ft (irrespective of number of axles)
After 1969 and throughout the 1970s maximum semi-trailer length 40ft (irrespective of the number of axles)
Trailer lengths have always been determined by the overall permitted length of the unit and trailer, so it was possible to “pinch” up to a foot on a trailer length by judicious positioning of the fifth wheel. For example some of the pre-1965 trailers could be 25ft.
My uncle drove for these in the mid to late 60’s and I’m sure they were among the first to use these 39ft flats, I know they were that length as they had a small sign on the rear saying so.
Steve.
Thanks guys thats given me summat to go on.
One more question, were they all double wheels or single?
Lonewolf Yorks:
Thanks guys thats given me summat to go on.One more question, were they all double wheels or single?
On the tandem axle trailers the standard was twin wheeled axles on 900x20 tyres and on the single axle trailers I believe they moved onto 1000x20 for the 10ton axle weights. I’m not just sure what size tyre was used on the Four-in-Lines but it may have been the 1000x20 because it was an 11ton axle weight Cheers Bewick.
Lonewolf Yorks:
Thanks guys thats given me summat to go on.One more question, were they all double wheels or single?
Hi Lonewolf,
I did my HGV driving tuition with BSM (yes, really!!) and passed my HGV 1 test with a Ford ‘D’ series tractor unit and 30’ single axle trailer, NOT of the four-in-line type.
The trailer was on a standard single axle with twin wheels and was right at the back.
It might be an idea to contact BSM: https://www.bsm.co.uk/ because they might even have some old pictures in their archives.
Good Luck!! 
pollystag:
My uncle drove for these in the mid to late 60’s and I’m sure they were among the first to use these 39ft flats, I know they were that length as they had a small sign on the rear saying so.
Steve.
Hi pollystag. The Trailer behind this Merc if I remember right is a 24 Ft Northern which Davis Bros had most of.then came the 33Footers which they might have been one of the first to run and later the Forty Foots.
Ben.
Hi Lonewolfe.In the 60s on Strathclyde they had 65ft tandem Trombones and and 70ft tandem flats with self tracking bogies,authorised under the construction and use regulations.
Ben.
I don’t know if this shot will help “LW” but it is a shot of a 33 Ft. tandem YORK SL 30 on 1000x22:5 Tubeless tyres. These Tubeless were the 900x20 equivalent. Cheers Bewick PS the unit is shod on 1100x22:5 Tubeless.which is the 1000x20 equivalent.
ben walker:
pollystag:
My uncle drove for these in the mid to late 60’s and I’m sure they were among the first to use these 39ft flats, I know they were that length as they had a small sign on the rear saying so.
Steve.Hi pollystag. The Trailer behind this Merc if I remember right is a 24 Ft Northern which Davis Bros had most of.then came the 33Footers which they might have been one of the first to run and later the Forty Foots.
Ben.
Hi Ben,
These were 39ft Brockhouse trailers, you can see it is longer than 24ft.
Steve.
Cheers Gents that is enough info for my latest masterpiece.