TO
INVERNESS AND BACK
From Ivy
House Tales 1970 to 1984 this story from about 1974
We had
just finished painting our “green-goddess”; a fairly ancient, long
nose 7.5 ton Ford lorry with new second-hand flat bodywork. The
lorry came from Glenton’s “Wonderloaf” bakery in Grimsby by way
of Herbert Epton the local heavy haulage contractor in our village of
New Bolingbroke. Herbert had the contact at Glentons who told
him when any surplus bakery vehicles were coming up for sale, they
were fairly high mileage but only lightly used having been delivering
bread all their lives. They had also been well maintained.
All the
Lorries came with big van bodies and had to be altered if need be.
The “green-goddess”
was the first of several vehicles we bought from Herbert and formed
the basis of our initial ECYB “lorry fleet”.
BACKGROUND
INFORMATION
Carting commercial
tyres from tyre retailers to the Tyre Manufacturers Adjudication
centres had become the basis of our independent business since I had
left the employ of Firestone. Moving boats, ECYB’s initial business
had been proved to be altogether too hazardous and fickle to make a
serious living. Firestone local boss Fred Popham and I had discussed
the whole matter at some length after I had admitted to ‘escaping’
for the odd day or two to deliver boats to various distant parts of
the UK.
(see “Filling up with
a Magyar 9” in Book Two)
My knowledge of the
tyre trade through working for Firestone had introduced me to the
problem encountered by all the tyre retailers in the UK in getting
commercial tyres with supposed problems, back to the official centres
set up and paid for by the UK Tyre manufacturers working together.
There they were examined by engineers from the individual
manufacturers on a rota basis and where necessary raised credits for
any manufacturing imperfections. Collecting these tyres from
retailers and their subsequent delivery had become the basis of our
business.
The first vehicle we
purchased was an elderly Volkswagen transporter "split windscreen" pick up which we
fitted with a tow bar. Next we purchased a small lorry from a poultry
farm at Swineshead; a short wheelbase BMC FG (three penny bit cab)
light truck of five tons or so gross capacity with a flat open body. It was
fitted with the same three litre six cylinder petrol engine as the
MG’C’ and really flew along. Not the ideal transport for our
needs but it was available and cheap. We added a 16 foot single axle
trailer to this vehicle to give it the capacity for twice weekly
trips delivering ‘complaint’ tyres to Burton on Trent our local
Tyre Manufacturers Conference depot. We soon outgrew this little
lorry and hence the search for something larger.
The first ‘Wonderloaf’
Ford, of about 1962 vintage was fitted with the same four cylinder
diesel engine as was original equipment in the famous ‘Fordson
Major’ tractor series of the late 1950’s; a long stroke, slow
revving engine, with bags of pulling power, but not much top speed.
The lorry had a normal type cab and long bonnet. We did not have pots
of money available for smart paint jobs hence ‘the green goddess’
was lightest green and white. Paint we had in stock!
The complaint tyre
collections had begun within Lincolnshire and initially only took a
couple of days each week. Other clients were needed to help pay the
bills and we had already begun to deliver goods for J.H. Rundle's
Engineering works based in the village. Their own lorry was engaged
on deliveries of really heavy items and we soon became fairly
regularly engaged in their smaller deliveries initially using our
Volkswagen Transporter pick up. (See Bus and the auger).
MAKING UP A LOAD
This trip to Inverness
was more unusual. John Rundle had happened to mention that they had a
complete set of three Cambridge (gang) rolls for delivery to the
Blacksmith at Inverness in Scotland but the amount they could afford
to pay for their transport would not cover the cost of a lorry on
its own. With some applied thought I asked if they had any other
items to go in that direction and it so happened that their iron
foundry were finishing an order of lead sash window weights for a
period housing project in Dundee.
I had another new
client in Skegness who made children’s slot machine amusements and
managed to add a consignment of their ‘money in the slot’ bar
billiard tables destined for Perth. The three items made a reasonable
load for the long distance run without having to bother finding a
load for the return journey. They were also
relatively high value and the billiard tables fragile.
The lead sash
weights went on first, laid flat on the back of the lorry. I
travelled to Skegness to put the billiard tables on top and then
returned to New Bolingbroke to load the Cambridge rolls on the front
behind the cab. All in all I should think the load exceeded my
maximum permitted four point five tons but the lorry looked happy
once everything was sheeted down and ready for the off.
I remember distinctly
that Saturday morning in Rundle’s yard roping and sheeting the last
of the load.
John Rundle’s father
(Jack snr.) was taking a great deal of interest in what I was doing.
Readers of ‘Changes to the Town Hall’ will recollect that ‘Jack’
was one of the original Management committee of that historical
building. Now well retired, he had been instrumental in the expansion
of Rundle’s during the era of steam. He still retained an active
interest in everything going on in the business and after watching me
for several minutes he said, “I’ve never been to Scotland, will
you take me with you?”
I was deeply honoured
that this wonderful elderly gentleman who was almost 80, years old
had sufficient confidence in me and this gaudily painted very second
hand lorry to wish to come on the round trip of between six and seven
hundred miles into some seriously wild countryside.
I think it was the
thought of passing Culloden and Balmoral, Tomintoul and Blairgowrie;
Edinburgh, Perth and Dundee that had excited his serious interest.
After a few moments I
said we would have to speak to his son John (himself in his late
50’s). John was quite speechless, but after I had explained that
due to promised delivery times and huge distances, I would have to
sleep in the lorry while travelling over the top of the Cairngorm
Mountains; there would be nowhere convenient to stop where a bed
could be found for the night.
I do regret that no way
could be found for the old gentleman to accompany me as he would have
seen splendour like nothing he had ever seen before in his whole long
life. But the journey was not without difficulty; due to the costings
and mileage I could take no longer than two days for the journey so
stops would not be frequent. Ministry Log Books were still the method
of keeping journey records so timings were ‘flexible’.
NOT WITHOUT INCIDENT
Dundee was my first
stop with the billiard tables and then I was back in Perth before the
end of that first day to deliver the original ‘Georgian’ pattern
lead sash weights at the prescribed building site where some of the
huge classic Perth residential buildings were being faithfully
restored. A brief stop here to choose my best route to find myself in
Inverness by 8am the next morning.
I really did stop for
the night on top of the Cairngorm Mountains; it was very cold I
remember and while wrapped in my sleeping bag stretched across the
bench seat of the lorry cab, gave due thought to old Jack Rundle and
what he would have made of the journey.
At daybreak I began the
last lap north allowing sufficient time for the blacksmith at
Inverness to open his shop; but fate was to take a hand and not long
after I started, one of the diesel injector pipes on the engine broke
clean in half just above the injector itself.
There was nothing I
could do; the engine ran on three cylinders and the remaining now
unconnected pipe pumped measured amounts of diesel everywhere except
into the engine. These older engines were very simple in design and
not sufficient allowance had been made for excessive vibration and
different engine speeds between the tractor where the engine was
first used and the lorry. From time to time I was to learn, these
pipes just broke off fairly regularly. Each of the four pipes was
totally different in length and shape; they were quite strong in
themselves but needed more bracing where their longer lengths passed
over the top of the engine. The lorry being an early 1960’s model
and very basic; it had no sound deadening material in the engine bay
or anything else to prevent the very strong smell from the diesel
fuel that was being sprayed liberally over the entire engine.
From the first public
telephone box I could find, ( no mobile phones around yet ) I
phoned ahead and explained my problem. Bit by bit I pressed on and
managed to arrive at the Blacksmiths shop only half an hour or so
later than expected. Forewarned, he surveyed the damage and quickly
stripped the pipe so that he could braze the two broken ends
together. I was even more pleased that old ‘Jack’ was not with me
on the journey as he would have no doubt found that last leg to
Inverness worrying to say the least.
REGRET
The trip back home was
uneventful, the repair held and a new pipe quickly fixed in place.
Unfortunately, ‘old
Jack’ Rundle died a few months later, he never did get to Scotland;
but perhaps it was best he did not make his first trip to Scotland in
a very smelly, second hand lorry with only three cylinders working
during its crossing of some of the highest mountains in the land!
ENDS
KS copyright 2013
