TooTallMike

Thus with a combination of progressive winching and lifting it approached the narrow entrance. It was then heading for a low brick wall so I got it as close as possible and then lifted the rear end clear of the wall. We attached a Tirfor to a dead van and winched the rear sideways. I then lowered it, repositioned the WLF and repeated the Tirfor-ing. We secured the steering onto full left lock and I gently winched the truck round the corner and out of the field. We then put on the ‘A’ bar, lifted the rear axle because one wheel was locked solid, straightened the front wheels and towed the whole thing out onto a larger area of hard standing.

This is where the fun began. We tried to put in ground anchors to give a 90 degree pull but each time I started winching they just ripped out of the soft ground. After about 10 attempts we got bored and decided to just pull the back end of the Autocar sideways until it was straighter and then winch it backwards. It began to dig in on the side nearest the winch so I used my crane to lift the rear a little.

…and promptly got stuck again. Fortunately this time it was in an open area so we could put in ground anchors about 40’ behind and winch it out backwards. I then selected a drier route and drove flat out until I reached the hard standing.

So it was all going fine but I had to reposition the WLF in order to continue winching. I attempted a 3-point turn and got stuck. Proper stuck. Sunk down to the axles stuck. All wheels rotating but truck not moving stuck.

There was nowhere to run the rear winch to and I’d removed the front winch prop. when I did the engine conversion last year. (note to self: RE-FIT IT!!!) We excavated down to firm clay and jacked up the front wheels to build up under them with concrete blocks and timber. We found some old trailer ramps to put under the rears and lots of brush and cut timber to give the wheels something to grip on. We cleaned the treads to give it the maximum advantage and I rocked it until free. I then drove h@ll-for-leather across the field…

Someone once told me that Ward Lafrances float across mud. Well let me now tell you the truth…

Ok, we knew the field was wet. I admit that. In fact we knew it was pretty much saturated. ‘Springy’ would be a good adjective. Or ‘boggy’. Whatever: 14 tonnes of 62-year-old truck distributed over 10 tyres equals not a lot of floatation.

The intention had been to winch the Autocar out from its brambly resting place into the middle of the field and then winch it onto the hard standing. Because of the angles involved the pull had to originate from inside the field so we’d discussed using ground anchors and snatch blocks to run the winch rope out from the hard standing. However when we arrived we looked at the ground and I decided to risk taking the truck onto it and winching directly. We pulled the Autocar back about 20’ out of the undergrowth.

Hi Mark,

Good to see you here mate. Enjoy the site!

I found a hmvf.com :roll:

 

So did I - interesting adult sites offered! :schocked:

So this is where you're all hiding. Grasshopper and I were wondering what was going on! (ps I'm WW2 and I didn't get an email either :cry:)

Boy have I got lots to tell you all about! - watch the forum in the next couple of days for photos of the flying Autocar and the swimming Ward Lafrance (btw. they don't 'float' over mud despite what I'd been told... :-D ) Also lots more GMC and Jeep bits for sale very soon.

Nice to be back and the forum is looking good guys. Well done and thanks for all your hard work on our behalf :-)

- Mike

Well all we can do is wait for the first one to be pulled over using a truck and trailer and let the others know what happened.

I hope to have all my facts ready for when I get pulled and hopefully wont get some smart bum copper.

 

It's gonna happen sooner or later and I sure hope it's not me :-( .

The advice I've been given is to let them charge you without challenging it at the roadside. I'd be interested in people's opinions on this. I guess it's because you really don't want to be arguing with a copper since they'll always find something to book you for if they want to.

One of our guys was towing a fire engine on rear suspended lift behind a Militant Mk3. He was pulled over on the M25 and told that he couldn't rear lift and that his trailer board was inadequate. Despite it being pointed out that rear lifting is commonplace and the only lighting requirement for vehicles on tow is one red light at the rear after the hours of darkness, the policeman insisted on it. No more was heard of it though and we imagine he was torn up for @&$£paper by the Desk Sergeant when he got back to the station!

I guess the most important thing is to do your own research. Please don't take any of my quotes or opinions as law - you should double-check it for yourself and your circumstances. Also make it look good. Have the correct working lighting, tow with an appropriate vehicle, drive considerately etc. etc. and don't give them an excuse to pull you in the first place. :-)

Genius :-)

It is confusing but that's to our advantage because your average copper doesn't understand it either. I've been told by traffic cop friends that they'd look the other way if they saw us coming because if they pull you and charge you with something which turns out to be incorrect they are in for the high jump, what with the Human Rights Act etc.

The definition of load or goods and burden is quite restrictive but caravans and living wagons are exempt from a lot of of this. Sorry I don't have the reg's for this as I've never looked into them. Go to the HMSO website and look up the SI's I've already quoted. You'll have to trawl through them though and they are very dull :-(.

I really think you will find your trailer IS of a similar age to your truck ;-).

To clarify my first post (not!), see the following example for the Ward towing a pre-1960 trailer:

License:

car license if unladen truck & trailer

C+E required if laden truck or trailer

Taxation:

truck: exempt as built pre-1972; grey area when towing laden trailer (I go for still exempt)

trailer: exempt if unladen as built pre-1972; pay tax if laden

Plating & Testing:

truck: exempt if unladen 1) as it’s pre 1960 and 2) as it’s registered as (but not taxed as) a recovery vehicle; exempt if laden or towing a laden trailer as it’s registered as (but not taxed as) a recovery vehicle.

trailer: exempt if unladen; P&T required if laden

This is fun isn't it! :-D

These extracts from the reg's may help:

(and no, our vehicles do not count as military vehicles for the pruposes of law as they are not on active service.)

--------------------------------------

Statutory Instrument 1996 No. 2824

The Motor Vehicles (Driving Licences) Regulations 1996 - continued

PART IV

GOODS AND PASSENGER-CARRYING VEHICLES

General

Part IV of the Traffic Act: prescribed classes of large goods and passenger-carrying vehicle :

[Class C or C+E license]Exempted goods vehicles and military vehicles :

48.—(1) For the purposes of this Part of these Regulations, an exempted goods vehicle is a vehicle falling within any of the following classes—

(l) a vehicle manufactured before 1st January 1960, used unladen and not drawing a laden trailer;

--------------------------------------------

Statutory Instrument 1988 No. 1478

The Goods Vehicles (Plating and Testing) Regulations 1988 - continued

SCHEDULE 2

Regulation 4

CLASSES OF VEHICLE TO WHICH THESE REGULATIONS DO NOT APPLY

30. Motor vehicles first used before 1st January 1960, used unladen and not drawing a laden trailer, and trailers manufactured before 1st January 1960 and used unladen. For the purposes of this paragraph any determination as to when a motor vehicle is first used shall be made as provided in regulation 3(3) of the Construction and Use Regulations.

It's not just about licenses though.

There are 3 areas you need to look at:

Driving license: depends on: age of towing vehicle and trailer, when you got your license, how heavy the towing vehicle is, how heavy the trailer is, how heavy the combination is, what they are both registered as, whether they are laden or not.

Taxation status of towing vehicle and of trailer: depends on: age of towing vehicle and trailer, how heavy the towing vehicle is, how heavy the trailer is, what they are both registered as, whether they are laden or not.

MoT or Plating & Testing: depends on: age of towing vehicle and trailer, how heavy the towing vehicle is, how heavy the trailer is, what they are both registered as, whether they are laden or not.

If it's converted as a caravan, mobile home etc. you may be exempt from this. Many of the guys on the commercial vehicle rally scene who restore artic tractor units and tow box trailers converted to mobile homes drive them on a car license.

Many of these problems will go away when you locate the data plate which indicates your trailer was built before 1st Jan. 1960. It may look freshly stamped but that's because you had to wipe the grime off it to read it clearly...

I hate all this inconsistent legislation but it plays into our hands because as someone has already pointed out, it allows you the plea that you had researched it and thought you were in the right.

I think ti was just perspective playing tricks! I've blown up the middle and it's not as big as it looked at first.

Are there any more of these action shots?

I think some of those Jimmies may be Internationals because the grilles look wider and squarer (this also supports the USMC theory). The truck in the middle and the one to its lower right look too big to be 2.5 tonners. Could they be Mack NM? (could just be perspective playing tricks with my eyes but it just looks like the people in the back of the centre one are too spread apart to be in a GMC.)

Superb photo anyway!

- Mike

I found this empty packet at the bottom of one of my boxes of stuff & thought people might be interested to see it. It's dated 2/1943.

I'll add it to my box of 'beautiful things' to go on display in my museum one day :-).

Painted the majority of the top coat today. It's finally taking shape again and starting to look how I imagined it 8-) . Hopefully the wiring loom can go in tomorrow night if it's not too cold in the shed.

The open cab truck has been converted to 6x6!

We had hoped to extract the Autocar today but ran out of people. Hopefully we'll be better crewed next weekend. In the meantime I've run into a couple of guys in the US who have two of these trucks. They know of one other in Europe and then mine!!! Surely there must be more than 4 of these worldwide???

Anyway I'm sure they won't mind me posting a couple of their pic's for your interest:

Come on Mike - come clean!!

 

I get marked for style and grace on my gearchanges. Sadly also for volume... Getting better all the time though :-) .

As has been said, the biggest enemy is pressure: trying to do too many things at once, quick reaction to others' poor driving or one's own, or, of course, having someone sitting next to you with a scoreboard...

Relax and enjoy!

Grasshopper - don't you dare post on this thread :blush: !!!

or else: :computerterror:

I used gloss green Hammerite on the Cummins in the Ward and it's survived very well. Understandably it burnt off near the exhaust manifold but the rest is perfect. A petrol engine will run hotter but should be ok. (I've also done the MUTT engine in black but that's untested as yet). A big advantage of Hammerite is that it goes on over anything and once cured is resistant to most oils, fuels etc. unlike many normal paints.

The M8s were ex-Greek so that would tie in with these being the same. Perhaps he got a job lot?

What have I had in mine? : My 352 was my Sister's wedding limo a couple of years ago...