Smith & Robinson Memories
Classic & Vintage Commercials|April 2017

Another superb selection of period S&R photos from the collection of former Manchester depot engineer David Whalley.

David Whalley
Smith & Robinson Memories

This 1969 ERF was Gardner powered and probably had the most popular drivetrain of the time, namely a David Brown six-speed (6-500) overdrive gearbox and Kirkstall axles. This specification was much-favoured on ERFs and Atkinsons. By 1969 the ERF would have full air-braking.

The Campbell Technical Waxes contract ran for many years but as I recall it was confined to just one or two vehicles at most. The tank is a Butterfield and would probably have been purpose-built for this particular contract. It would have been very heavily insulated to keep the molten wax warm and have had inbuilt heating coils. The outer cladding was aluminium, which helped with unladen weight but was also at the time considerably cheaper than stainless steel. The tank barrel would have been 304 grade stainless steel but this tank was not a pressure vessel and the mainlids have only single bolt clamps so cargo discharge would be by pump or by gravity into the customer’s plant.

In service the painted exterior panels could retain their looks longer than the bare aluminium panels favoured in S&R’s own fleet, but all too often spillages occurred at loading points that left tank barrels looking like they had been carrying paint stripper.

This ERF KV is something of a mystery. This photo must, though, date from the 1960s as I know that S&R ran three ERF eight-wheelers that were bought specifically for a Proctor & Gamble contract carrying Fairy Liquid between Trafford Park and Thurrock.

Desperate to save on unladen weight, these ERFs had Rolls-Royce B8 petrol engines, Dunlop disc brakes and I believe that aluminium wheels were also tried. The vehicles were not, though, a massive success and were all withdrawn prematurely mainly, I was told, through excessive fuel consumption.

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Assorted AECs
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Assorted AECs

One of the most eye-catching ‘group’ displays at the 2016 AEC Rally was the five-lorry lineup of AECs owned and restored by the Laughran family, all of which had made the trip over from Armagh in Northern Ireland to be at the show.

time-read
3 minutos  |
March 2017
Commer Classic
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Commer Classic

Like the AEC we featured in 2009, Graham Reed’s recently-completed Commer TS3 restoration replicates one of the lorries his father started the family business with in the early sixties. This one, though, was a massive undertaking. David Reed tells the story.

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8 minutos  |
February 2017
ERF 44G Restored
Classic & Vintage Commercials

ERF 44G Restored

Peter Simpson tells the story of a 1954 ERF which, though preserved in the early 1980s, then fell on hard times. Now though, it’s back in fine fettle thanks to an extremely impressive home restoration.

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7 minutos  |
March 2017
JET Starter!
Classic & Vintage Commercials

JET Starter!

Peter Simpson tells the fascinating story of a low mileage Commer Superpoise and its rather special ‘load’…

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6 minutos  |
March 2017
Albion CX
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Albion CX

Peter Davies begins his in-depth profi le of Albion’s final independent product to realise its full commercial potential.

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5 minutos  |
April 2017
Smith & Robinson Memories
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Smith & Robinson Memories

Another superb selection of period S&R photos from the collection of former Manchester depot engineer David Whalley.

time-read
6 minutos  |
April 2017
Bedford Know Howe
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Bedford Know Howe

Nick Howe’s fabulous Bedford TK restoration has taken nine years to complete, and is now correct in every detail and a superb reminder of a similar Bedford operated by the Howe family firm in the late 1960s. Peter Davies tells the story.

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8 minutos  |
February 2017
Vulcan 6 Tonner
Classic & Vintage Commercials

Vulcan 6 Tonner

Peter Davies begins his in-depth profi le of a classic ‘premium middleweight’.

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5 minutos  |
February 2017
1974 Atkinson Borderer
Classic & Vintage Commercials

1974 Atkinson Borderer

Now residing in Northern Ireland is BAB 661M, a 1974 Atkinson Borderer now with W & J Chambers Concrete Products, and finished in their livery.

time-read
3 minutos  |
February 2017