Stone

The extra streamlining will come in useful when you want to do more than 52mph :rofl: Didn't stall at all in today's lesson, I might be improving! Did do 3rd to 1st instead of 3rd to 5th a couple of times though! Stone

Cheers for that. I might actually qualify under '• Not being used to carry passengers or goods for commercial purposes.' since under VOSA rules any equipment permanently or semi-permanently attached to your vehicle isn't classed as goods but as part of the vehicle... I think I'd better give them a ring though! Stone

You're right, it's a DAF 65CF240; W reg so 2000ish. Spent three hours crawling around this morning, my control of the range change box is frankly woeful so I spent quite a lot of the time looking like this :sweat:! If you were driving around Leighton Buzzard this morning and got held up by the incompetent numpty driving the big yellow lorry stalling on roundabouts, I can only apologise :cry: I've hired a car with a manual gearbox so I can practise between lessons, otherwise I'm going to have an accident! Stone

How do they define professionally? It hopefully won't affect me for the next 5 years but is it any driving done while employed or only driving when employed to drive? I'm an electronic engineer, the only reason I'm getting my licence is to move some of our kit from my workplace to trials sites. The kit just happens to be bolted to a vehicle - am I now 'driving professionally' or is it just that I happen to be driving while at work? The intent is clearly to ensure people transporting goods for a living have the training (and I can probably make work pay for it anyway) but it doesn't seem to be laid out that clearly. Add the cost of attending training to the cost of a week off work for self-employed drivers and it'll add up to a big chunk of cash... Stone

I always thought the Army never bothered with type-approval - they're exempt from C&U regs so it doesn't much matter to them. The FV432 isn't a bad example - lighting and rubber track pads to conform to C&U, but it's too wide to be legally road-registered! The fact that many of them end up registered anyway might give you a clue as to the joined-up-thinking behind many of these decisions - Neil's spot on, you can ring them up 5 times and get five conflicting answers. All you can do is read the appropriate legislation and try your best to comply...but it's certainly a lot easier with a V112G. Stone

On the Bedford you can switch on the move but low ratio only works in 4wd. The current DSA test specs require you to use a standard road-use transmission, so you can have four-over-four, slap-over or whatever. You have to demonstrate block changing (when appropriate) in the test as well so you can't get away just using the highest 4! (also, I've only driven an auto for the last 4 years, so that'll be fun ) No idea! Their website shows some fairly elderly DAFs so I doubt it'll be anything too whizzy. It's a bit scary how quickly you can do it now if you want to, once you have your medical and get your provisional you can complete the theory tests and get a test booked within a fortnight! Stone

We're not all bad Stone

Exactly. You're probably driving without insurance too :shake: Thank you. Only on private land! :cool2: (and I have to learn on something with 'at least 8 forward ratios' which is a bit scary!) I'll find out tomorrow Stone

Yes, it does; see here. C is described as 'Vehicles over 3500kg with a trailer up to 750kg' so there is no gap in the entitlements. The purpose of C1 is to allow young drivers to drive small lorries from the age of 18, likewise with D1 and minibuses - once you have entitlement for B and C you're able to drive anything from 550kg (the lower end of B1) up to a six-axle rigid at 44t! In reality you get B1 for free when you pass B, so gaining C actually allows you to drive pretty much any rigid-bodied vehicle, so long as it doesn't carry passengers or steer with tracks! I passed B1/B in 2002 so I don't have C1 entitlement either - but once I pass my C test I'll be sorted :-D Taking C is usually the best bet - in answer to the original question you could put ramps on your Bedford and carry a car on the back, but only if it was downplated and then your car would have to weigh less than 2000kg! It just ends up being way too complicated, far easier to just take the test and avoid being restricted. Don't forget you only have until 10th September 2009 to pass before Driver CPC comes in - if you don't pass in time you miss out on your grandfather rights and have to take twice as many theory tests! Stone

If the towing vehicle is over 7.5t (which it is unless downplated) then yes, you do need C+E. You might be better with a smaller towing vehicle (101FC maybe?) as C1E covers you up to 12000kg train weight so the 750kg trailer weight limit on C wouldn't be a problem. HTH! Stone

He's correct that the DVLA view it differently to VOSA and the C&U regs, but it's also seen differently by DSA! You need a Cat C for any vehicle over 7.5t MAM (with very few exceptions which are listed here). The confusion arises because tax categories do not match licence descriptions, which don't match VOSA regs - your friend will not be in a happy place if he's ever stopped! The DVLA might well register it as a motor caravan but you still need the right licence. (As an aside, registering as engineering plant means you're technically limited to 12mph on all roads, and registering as agricultural will drop you in it unless you actually own a farm - they've thought of most of the ways to dodge it already!) As an example of how weird it gets, our Bedford is registered on the V5C as a private HGV, is exempt from having a tachograph or plating / testing because it's 'not a goods vehicle' and has a tax disc that says it's an LGV! As the plated weight is 9650kg you need a Cat C licence to drive it, which is why I'm on a training course next week :cool2: As with all these things you can probably get away with doing it illegally for a while, but why take the risk? Stone

Thank you Stone

Army spec brake fluid - it's equivalent to Dot4. Stone

Are all military registrations of the format ##SP## for 'special projects' (ie prototype) vehicles? Saw one recently and was wondering what it was...looked a bit like a Bulldog but with more road wheels. Anyone able to look them up? Stone

Thanks for the pics! I'd expect the pump to be the hardest of that lot to fit - can it be done with the cab still fitted? If not I can see it turning into a right pig of a job as we don't really have any suitable lifting equipment around... There might be some budget left over if our current trial goes OK so I might push for it to have a bit of money spent on it Cheers Stone

Presumably they're what go in bandoleers ;-) Nice idea though! Stone

Wow, the guy they have on the phone is mega-grumpy! He just quoted me Steering ram £615 + bracket (£140) Hydraulic pump £410 New drag link £420 Reservoir £120 So £1705 before you even start on hoses or my labour :shocked: 'But we might have some second-hand bits kicking around' - are they having a laugh?! Stone

"Foxtrot Oscar" What a great story! :thumbsup: Stone

Ah, thank you, that makes a lot more sense now! Yes please. I don't think it's really that clean, it's just been pressure-washed a few times and the green paint on everything (including all the hoses :argh:) masks a multitude of sins We've not really done anything much to it - it's a working vehicle so it's pretty much as-from-Withams. But thank you Stone

I spent a frustrating half hour under ours earlier for something unrelated, so here's a couple of pics of what we have...do they let you see if the fitting holes are correct? If they don't I'll take some more, I wasn't really taking them for this purpose so never mind Couple of questions: 1) On which side does the ram mount? 2) What does the ram push on, the top of the drag link or further up the chain where the torque exits the steering box? Is the steering box still mechanically connected to the steering post-modification or is it completely isolated through the hydraulics? 3) How does the valve interface to the steering box? By the gear sticking out of the bottom-left side as you look at it? 4) I think I remember someone saying the engine block is drilled for mounting the pump - but how is the pump driven? Extra belt or by a gear? Ta Stone

Good to see someone else had to replace their Bedford door handle when the MoD didn't give them a key for it! :lol: Stone

I thought you meant this kind! :rotfl: Stone

From what I've heard the Russian parades tend to feature units going round the block several times to appear more impressive so you might not be far off the mark ;-) Stone

With British vehicles the camouflage is done on a very ad-hoc basis - no vehicle looks quite alike, and deliberately so. With Russian vehicles they go out of their way to standardise what they look like :cool: Since there seems to be a standard, has anyone got a reference for how each vehicle is painted, or was this done just for the parade? :tup:: Stone

The x-mod come recommended, they sorted me out with some much-needed Bedford bits :thumbsup: Stone