Are you an owner driver?? Are you a man or woman living the dream and haulin’ ass with your own motor? Are you in the UK, the USA, Canada, China, Greece, New Zealand or Peru? Or any where in between? Then please can you post a photo of your pride and joy for us all to see? I’ll start off with the last truck I owned and drove across the UK, Northern France, Belgium, Netherlands and Western Germany.
The pile of MAN’s photo is copyright of Neil Jarrold.
Having spent the day yesterday with Richard Payne and having more than in depth run through on the 100 trucks, we have filled in a lot of gaps.
Now are you a current Centurion owner?? Or did you own a Centurion at some point?? If so please please please can you substantiate your claim with a truck photo and a photo showing the Centurion badge thank you.
DJ Ponsonby had, K7 DJP a 113 360 Topline Streamline but even Mike Ponsonby can’t remember what number it was. Any proof any where??
JR Smith from Tring were rumoured to have a Centurion reg number JES 200. Any proof any where??
I will be publishing the updated list this week. Although there are still queries but not many.
Who’s Centurion and what number is this one??
Can’t beat a little truck with a big cab! I’ve long been a fan of a Space cabbed 7.5 – 12 tonner, whether it’s an Atego, a DAF or the delightful MAN TGL. Having run both a MAN and a Mercedes myself, it’s very difficult to pick a winner between the two, they are both great trucks and full of big truck feel. The likes of DAF don’t do their own big cab but the Hatcher Components conversion is very good but isn’t factory finish and then there’s the Iveco. Anyway back to the little truck in the photo, you’ve probably seen it at one of many Truck Shows last year where owner Brian Hill picked up more than a couple of decent trophies including a number of 1sts. I’ve been trying to get to see the truck for a wee while now and of course meet Brian. The truck is used by Harrison Commercials to collect and deliver vans to and from auction houses and the like and their Newark base.
The truck was once a boggo standard TGL LX with a matching black box body. Fancing a new challenge and a change from the Italians Brian bought the truck and soon set to the bodywork. A local chap put together a fag-packet proposal for the beavertail bodywork and feeling brave Brian said yes! If you get a chance to look at the body it is a masterpiece in cutting and welding. As for the rest of the outside, a whole host of marker lights, spotlights, home made half shaft covers and some custom made graphics. The full set of light bars down the down and round both the top and bottom of the can were custom built by Jimbars. A small one man band is Jimbars but he does seem to be a favourite with the owner drivers, having even supplied a few bars to other MAN TGL ambassador, Steve Marsh Express. I have to say the exterior of Brian’s little MAN is one thing but oh the interior is something else. My photos are rubbish and just don’t do any justice whatsoever to the one off, cosy black leather lining that luxuriate the little German.
You’ve got to see it for yourself! Door cards, quarter lights behind the main Windows, the seats, the fridge, the engine tunnel, etc etc have all being given a very gentle covering of black leather to match the outside. Wanting something different a shoe maker friend of Brian’s suggested just straight diamond padded panels rather than the big button leather interiour that is fairly common place in custom trucks. I have to say once again the subtle approach wins my vote. I know it was dark and wet when I met Brian but not only did sitting in the pilots seat make me want my own Tonko Toy again but it just gave up that classy cosy, could-drive-all-night feeling. The whole thing edged a lovely set of Tartan curtains with blackout insides, perfect a for night out now and again. The engine tunnel that is pictured above was stitched free hand by the afore mentioned show maker and what a unique job he has done, Brian is rightfully well chuffed!
Great bloke and great truck. The more time I spent round the both truck and driver the more I liked them, so I had to leave Brian to his cosy night out in the leather luxury of N8 BPH. There might not be quite as many show appearances this year but if you get the chance, this truck is as good as any of its big brothers on the show circuit. It’s individual, unique not to mention very subtle and you definitely won’t find a better polished cab in the UK!
When you work with a woman who’s name is Foden what would you expect her to send you photos of?? Yep my thoughts exactly, something with wheels and an engine. It turns out that she might not actually be related to the Cheshire family but she is aware of her potential family heritage, although a bit of extra training may be needed. Anyway whilst Miss Foden was out for a romantic stroll round a boat yard in Woodbridge, Suffolk yesterday she came across this old beast. Miss Foden is clearly not mistaken by the slightly jaded family badge on the front grill but I have my suspicions to what the crane actually is. Anyone got any ideas to who the manufacturer is?? No doubt one of you has.
The crane is still is regular use at the boat yard but could use a polish up next your up there Miss Foden. Also spotted in the boat yard is this rather nice, tidy and probably these days rare AEC Mercury. I have no idea what this would be used for in a boat yard so I can only imagine it’s been parked and left. Anyway top spotting Foden, I look forward to your next walk!
If anyone has any info on either truck please feel free to comment below.
Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together!! Mr John Templeton must be over the moon with his nearly finished brand new custom Scania. As most of you will know John Templeton is no stranger to a heavily customised truck, his last one being “Avatar“. The brief given to world famous airbrush artist, Matt the Painter, was; “It has to be busier than Avatar”.
I think that brief has been met don’t you?! Before we go any further all of these photos belong to Matt the Painter and I have his permission to use them. There are lots of people involved with such a massive project, from the boys at Coles Customs, Tor Trucks paint shop, an unnamed leather expert and of course Matt the Painter. So where do you start?……a blank canvas of course.
The eagle eyed amoung you will notice not only custom paintwork but also a number of custom parts; modfied side skirts (note the 3 exhaust holes), a completely flat panel on the rear of the cab, what looks like a lower windscreen panel, also a pretty amazing lower front bumper, you might recognise some of the parts used in the make up. There will of course be a few more custom parts added, lights and bits and bobs, but the second biggest custom area will be a amazing interior. The interior has been fully lined with black, red and white leather, approx 7 or 8 hides have been used. The painting also carries on inside the cab. Matt says there were approx 64 Heros on the external panels of the truck but he has added more, inside he has painted at least 14 on the ceiling panels alone, not to mention 20 or so on the rest of the leather panels. So those super hero fans can get to finding and naming as many as you can when you see it at a show this year. One of the ideas behind the theme was to appeal to all ages, kids and parents alike should be able to find characters they recognise. Although he’s painted somewhere around the 100 hero Mark, Matt says he’s got 600 odd Heros to choose from! Every hero imaginable or you’ve ever heard of from a 1938 Superman through to a female Asia spider woman type, called Silk from 2014.
In order to protect the truck and the paintwork the cab will get an initial 3 or 4 coats of lacquer, before having its first bake, then it’ll be flattened down before a further 3-4 coats of laquer, more flattening down, mopping and finally one hell of a polish up. The big 730 Scania will also have the chassis and wheel hubs painted too. I mentioned the three holes in the side skirt for a special exhaust system but I’m not going to say anymore. It sounds so unique you’ll have to see it for yourselves.
So what’s your thoughts on such a mad cap idea?? For a start we all know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea and I had said since I had my Atego airbrushed I preferred simple straightforward paint job but I have to say this is just amazing, I can’t stop looking at it. My good friend James coined the phrase “I can appreciate that” the other year. Meaning you know it’s an amazing motor but not your preferred taste. I have to say I’m right on the edge of turning my appreciation of this crazy multicoloured V8 into love and want!! You can’t deny its a one off, you can’t deny its already got people talking about it, you can’t deny it is a work of art! Whether you’d want to drive it everyday for what ever reason is a different matter, but I think I would…..
There’s been a lot of new recruits to the blog this year, on the www, Twitter and through the Facebook page so I thought I better tell you my credentials as I’m not just a wanna be trucker (although I do wanna be one again!), I have been there and done a bit. It goes something like this. Now this is a story all about how, my life got flipped-turned upside down, and I’d like to take a minute, just sit right there, and I’ll tell you how I became trucking nerd…… Oh no hang on that doesn’t rhyme!!
At the beginning of 1997 I was tasked on a college course to formulate a business plan that would or could work. It turns out the plan worked and the bank were keen so before I finished college I got a DAF 45 on order and started looking for work. In October ’97 I started as a Subbie for DFDS distribution in Coggeshall, Essex. I was soon covering…..
On a daily basis with anything between 15-20 deliveries and collections. What a way to learn my way about (no Sat-Navs then younger readers just a box of maps!) maps I hear you say?? Yep read THIS BLOG. I still use some of the short cuts now! A year or so later and DFDS moved to Purfleet and I didn’t follow. Local business soon started giving me work and I was soon UK wide with loads of virtually everything and anything. The poor little DAF couldn’t keep up and 2-3 years after getting her I traded her in for possibly my favourite truck from the BJS fleet, an MAN 8.163 with a Hatcher Space cab.
This little German served me very very well and in our prime we were doing Braintree, Essex to Larkhall, Scotland 3 times a week even now and again with a reload of lead rolls from David Park Transport in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 3 pallets just over 3 ton. From day one I had done the odd run to the Continent but never enough. I was so busy running round the UK that I only ever got to wave as we passed to Steve Marsh as he was also the owner of a smart Hatcher canned MAN. A massive if only, but I believe if only we had stopped for a cuppa I could have still been doing the Continental with a little Tonka you. Along with, tail lifts, computers, baseball hats, Chinese menu’s, supermarket light fittings, industrial door fixings and 50-75kg sacks of hand loaded hessian sacks of malt to name but a few commodities I took on a driver and put the real show truck of the fleet on the road and passed the MAN onto my only ever employee Steve Shackle.
The Atego was awesome and again worked hard across the length and breadth of mainland UK. She was well recognised and got in quite a few magazines. This lead to the start of some Mercedes-Benz friendships that continue to this day. A very big customer went pop with no warning and I was literally in the proverbial dirty river with no oars. So goodbye to the MAN, the Atego and Steve. At the same time I was offered traction work although I didn’t have a class one license at the time. I ordered a Mercedes-Benz Actros of the same man that sold me the MAN and the Atego and two weeks before it went on the road I passed my class one with no minor faults.
I can safely say that living in this Actros (Claudia), turned me from boy to man. I lived in her virtually for the three years I had her and the long distance lorry driver life was what I hoped it always would be. Bloody hard work, great friends, some crazy trucking about and much to my delight a lot more continental. Nothing silly by most of your standards but, Belgium Holland and just into Germany on a very regular basis. Amazing the things you see and the situations you can find yourself in, some good some bad, some exciting and some ‘kin scary and eye opening but none the less it was awesome! I bought and restored a Scania 141 the same age as me and had agreed with the people I was working for that they’d give me trailer with no more than 15 ton on so for odd weeks I could run the 141 on the continent. Sadly it never happened. The 141 did, the work didn’t and not long after I had to make the hardest decision I’ve ever made and had to give up BJS International.
The 141 got me going and the pinnacle was taking her to the Truckstar Festival in Holland. In the real world I got a job with a local firm driving an 8 wheeler around Essex for GB Finch. A fun job and I’m told I still hold plenty of fleet records. Drifting an 8 wheel tipper in wet mud is always good for morale.
I landed a job at HC Wilson Transport in the office and this was close to being what I wanted to do. Great people, great job and a great fleet. Routing trucks and securing loads all over Europe, Scandinavia and where ever the customer would pay, there’s a lot to learn in the world of international abnormal loads but it was rewarding. Oh the romance of international trucking!
Moving on from Wilson’s having sold the 141 to raise a family, I went to Kersey Freight as fleet manager and holiday relief driver! Long days and on call 24 hours a day was rewarded with the odd spell back on the road doing two trips to Paris a week. Good times although I have to say back then crossing the channel was a breeze.
Once again I got itchy feet and have now changed to the other side of the desk if you like and I have great job, spending my time talking about trucks to hauliers. Although not long after starting this dream job I did get offered the chance of being an owner driver again with a mini artic moving flash cars all over europa but age brings a certain amount thought and reality over what your spontaneous side wants to do. Funny old game, but I am a firm believer that once you get diesel in your veins you can’t get rid of it, hence the reason I’m trying to encourage my son to continue with his love of the local zoo and animals, but that’s the start of another hot topic in the press this week #lovethelorry. I now have friends across the UK and a couple else where in the world through the blog and I find myself taking a big interest in driver friends daily trucking exploits to satisfy my never ending urge to go back on the road. I’ve not been a truck owner for a few years now and I feel like I have to say that in an AA meeting style! Hopefully in the next year or so I can get another retro show truck to help my marriage and stop me annoying Mrs Blog every weekend!!
Anyway that’s me. Happy to talk trucks with anyone and I always question those who spend every day and night involved with trucks but still say that hate them.
“Ever see a duck that couldn’t swim?!”
This gorgeous Dutch Mercedes-Benz 2563LS GigaSpace Roadstars Special Edition is on its way to the UK!! What a gorgeous beast although some would say I’m a little bias! It may have been the star of the MB stand at the RAI Show in Amsterdam this week and it might be left hand drive and it may have 630hp but I reckon it’s going to be some ones pride and joy and I can’t wait to see it in action. Look out for it from next week wearing UK plates!!
That’s Suffolk speak by the way. Every summer holidays I receive a motley selection of photos usually from the various port towns around the Mediterranean. My old boss man, Simon Wilson, often spends his holidays taking my kind of holiday snaps. Sorry my 2nd favourite kind of holiday snaps! This year I received a few emails from Mr Wilson and I have to say once again the standard of trucks is still very impressive. Perhaps even more impressive is that all of these old buses were found on just one Greek island, Corfu. 
This year the Wilson family holiday was a static one on the Greek island of Corfu. I know the Greeks love their trucks and it’s evident that Corfu is no different to the mainland. Lots of old glory still turning a wheel in sunnier climbs. One thing I have noticed is that quite a few of the tractor units appear to be on Bulgarian number plates, have a look at the two trucks below.
Both trucks have Greek names or livery on but are still bearing, what seems to be Bulgarian plates. We are know the distinctive small, yellow Greek style number plates and these are clearly missing on these two trucks. May be its just a batch of ex Bulgarian trucks that have been exported to Corfu, or may be there is a bigger connection that I’m missing. What else is still evident is the Greek love for V8’s and big horsepower trucks. A good selection of 500’s, R164’s and a lovely silver 610 Volvo FH. 
Its always a pleasure to see a line up of old motors still in daily use. It’s also a pleasure to receive emails with such photos. If you find something on your holidays then please feel free to email me, ben@truckblog.co.uk and I will happily post them up on the blog. Just make sure it’s not the other sort of holiday photos! Thanks to Mr Wilson for the photos and as always I will look forward to seeing next years! 
In the last two weeks I’ve had my morning commute slightly enlightened by something big, American and making a fair old noise. As I queue northbound on the A12 Ipswich bound at the Copdock roundabout I have twice in two weeks stumbled upon a big American tanker. Both have been foreign registered, the one above being French, but both pulling what look like food grade tankers as neither had any HAZ markings. I’m guessing that as they are on tanker work our French friends have decided that they can have something a little more exciting as the tankers are short, it allows more length for a decent tractor unit. Personally I think my choice would be a European truck such as the Volvo VN’s or a Tcab Scania as the ride is far better than the American metal. Saying that there is still something very enjoyable Bout motoring along with a big Kenworth on British roads. 
You might just note in the photo above I had my window slightly ajar. The reason being is that these lovely old Americans still have Jake Brakes in full working order, so trickling along in the morning traffic jam means you get a fairly lengthy tune from the Jake as the tanker rolls down towards the roundabout. Beautiful. I would have to assume that these tankers jobs are paying pretty well as the MPG can’t be up to much. While watching another Big Rig Videos rolling CB interview the other day, the driver seemed pleased with himself that on a good run when trying, he could get his MPG all the way up to 5.5mpg!!! Anyway I’m not fussed as long as the job they are heading to continues I’ll keep enjoying their soundtrack instead of the usual drivel on the radio in the mornings.
Below is the other Kenworth I saw a few weeks back. Now that big exhaust sounded even better than this weeks, both going forward as well as with the Jake.
www.truckblog.co.uk 