I’ll be learning in a Volvo FM9 curtain sider if that’s any help.
No help to anyone! But good luck anyway. Pete 
I also have a 18t Mercedes atego which dwarfs the 12t MAN so I can offer the choice of truck. Not surprisingly every trainee has picked the 12t option.
Just remember if you pass your test on Friday start your new driving job on Monday this is when you start tolearn the job.
Loaded vehicle an delivery notes and not knowing where the drops are.
There’s more to the job than just driving!
About 3 years ago I bought a DAF CF artic to offer the option of artic training. There has always been such a who-ha on here about artic vs w+d I thought I’d do the “right thing” and offer it.
After a year - and 6 courses - I moved it on to L+T. One guy carried on alarming about the moral rights and wrongs of training in a w+d then when he came for his training on the artic instantly changed his mind and went for w+d. We were litterally on the yard, keys in hand, ready to make a start.
The discussion will go on for as long as the present system stands. Personally, I would love to have a line of nice new artics going out every day. Sadly, we have to earn a living and we dont do that by offering a service where the pass rate is lower and the costs higher.
I believe the correct perspective is that what trainers offer is the facility to pass a test and get the licence. Real industry training happens - would you believe - in real industry. It’s impossible for a trainer to offer all the training that would be required to substitute experience. Or, should I say, no-one would ever pay the thousands of pounds it would cost even if it were on offer. That being the case, surely it makes sense to make the initial training process as simple as possible so that you then get the opportunity to move on to industry training.
All the best, Pete
Peter Smythe:
I’ll be learning in a Volvo FM9 curtain sider if that’s any help.
No help to anyone! But good luck anyway. Pete
Thanks 
Well worded Peter. I don’t think anyone can argue with that!
Find a trainer with an 18 tonner and an artic and access to a large enough area of private land they can teach you to reverse properly and ask them to actually do this when they start talking about cones appearing in mirrors and lining up tie-wraps sticking out of mudflaps.
If you think all that matters is getting the pass and the easiest way to do it is learn to drive a puddle-jumper or a puddle-jumper with a trailer you’ll not do yourself any favours - you could drive down-plated versions of these vehicles on a car licence before 1997.
If you don’t believe me have a look at Boss&Driver’s posts on the main forum - thread title ‘Jobs For The Boys’ - and see how he’s getting on in the real world after supposedly being trained to drive.
Plenty of training companies with sensibly-sized vehicles so go with one of them.
elmet training:
I have just bought a new training truck which resembles a 7.5T C1 truck but Is plated at 12ton so you acquire your C licence. Very easy to learn in.My question is would trainees rather learn in bigger truck and maybe more realistic in the industry or just happy to pass in the smaller easier truck?
Could be interesting debate
I also think schools should put weight on in the back to make it feel real. The other day i got into my company’s truck for the first time to drive it. It was loaded weighing 26 tonne in all. To be honest, i wish i was taught in a loaded vehicle just to get that feeling of a loaded truck.
Own Account Driver:
Find a trainer with an 18 tonner and an artic and access to a large enough area of private land they can teach you to reverse properly and ask them to actually do this when they start talking about cones appearing in mirrors and lining up tie-wraps sticking out of mudflaps.If you think all that matters is getting the pass and the easiest way to do it is learn to drive a puddle-jumper or a puddle-jumper with a trailer you’ll not do yourself any favours - you could drive down-plated versions of these vehicles on a car licence before 1997.
If you don’t believe me have a look at Boss&Driver’s posts on the main forum - thread title ‘Jobs For The Boys’ - and see how he’s getting on in the real world after supposedly being trained to drive.
Plenty of training companies with sensibly-sized vehicles so go with one of them.
I think you have a good point, as for the drawbar, I’m going for my class 1 soon an the thought of the training in 1 doesn’t appeal to me. I’d rather do it in an artic. The firm I done my class 2 with, have 2 man le 12-220’s which they use for both, which makes good business sence for them, and is more cost effective as they are good for the 2 tests!
I also think schools should put weight on in the back to make it feel real
I agree with you. But consider the practicalities when it’s currently not allowed to present a loaded vehicle for driving test. So you we have one that’s loaded and another empty? Or do we spend time loading and unloading?
The rules are due to change so that we HAVE to be loaded when going for test. That’s a very good thing and will mean, of course, that loaded vehicles are used for training. The DSA, as always, have done half a job with this. This minimum that an artic or drawbar can weigh under the new rules is 15 tonnes. So how representative of a 44 tonner is that? I can tell you - not a lot! And before everyone jumps up and down and congratulates the DSA on this “improvement”, consider the increased running costs that will be passed to the candidate. I hope the trainee think’s it’s worthwhile. No-one ever taught me to drive a loaded truck or coach. There are absolutely no statistics indicating any problems as a result of new drivers coming unstuck with loaded vehicles due to a lack of training. There used to be something called common sense. Where did that go then?
It’s also a fact that for a year I ran an artic for training. Determined to be better than anyone else, I ran 2 trailers. The first was a 38’ tandem box run empty for driver training. The 2nd was a 45’ triaxle box - fully loaded - that was offered for 2 hours loaded training - free of charge - once people had passed their test on either drawbar or artic. So that was 38 tonnes going down the road.
The take-up of basic training was 6 courses in a year and the number of people who bothered to come back for loaded training can be counted on 2 hands - and it was FREE.
For pities sake, what am I supposed to do?
Pete
I passed with Peter Smythe with the W&D setup on his nice new Iveco’s. Very colourful they were too 
After that and when the DVLA finally got my licence (mostly) correct then I took some local training with Data Academy in Leicester on a regular artic with a DAF 95XF and a twin axle box trailer, of which I am glad I did.
Since then I have driven a few artics and I’m getting better at it but it’s a long haul thing. Some people are naturals, I’m not. But I do like driving, which helps.
When I was doing my Class 2 first time around, others in the group were using a 12t flatbed (2002) and they all passed. I was in an old ex removals lorry that was not only a pain to drive but I felt unsuitable. Bits broke off on test and I still got it in the neck, and it was such a massive thing at the time.
Might have helped if I’d had more than 2 hours training a day for the 4 days and test on the fifth, but it still cost me over £2k at the time. After a 3rd retest I stayed away from HGVs for about 5 years until I got my PCV in a full size single decker. Another friend of mine passed in a 53 seater coach and still copes with the job today…
So it’s a lot down to personal preferences but surely you should have done some market investigations BEFORE buying the vehicle 
So some interesting views on here arguments for and against using a smaller truck. On a personal note at least I can accommodate every trainees preference as like I said got 18t and 12t vehicles.
Saratoga:
I passed with Peter Smythe with the W&D setup on his nice new Iveco’s. Very colourful they were tooAfter that and when the DVLA finally got my licence (mostly) correct then I took some local training with Data Academy in Leicester on a regular artic with a DAF 95XF and a twin axle box trailer, of which I am glad I did.
That is what I would highly recommend doing if going down that route - Get the licence then take extra training to be more ‘work ready’
size matters
ROG:
Get the licence then take extra training to be more ‘work ready’
might as well just start in a full size motor 
commonrail:
ROG:
Get the licence then take extra training to be more ‘work ready’might as well just start in a full size motor
Some of us do start of scared of the big stuff you know
It was daunting for me, even with a licence, getting into something as large as a DAF 95XF or a MAN TGA XXL but after you’ve spent a bit of time in it, it does get easier. I’m glad I took the route I did and I’m glad I went with the trainer I did, especially as the Class 1 pass rate from the DSA was higher by more than 50 percent than where I live locally!!!
Seriously, having a Class 1 regular artic pass rate that’s lower than 50 percent for an area is not a good incentive!
i did`nt have such problems…coz i started on the big stuff with the trainer at the side of me…whereas you were on your own.
Saratoga:
the Class 1 pass rate from the DSA was higher by more than 50 percent than where I live locally!!!
As far as I know the DSA do not record and publish pass rates for the various categories so how did you find that out ?
I have my sources Rog
I suspect I may have rang them at some point too, I did a lot of research back then and just because it isn’t on the web doesn’t mean I’ll stop searching there