daz76

Have been chatting about this thread with my dad and father in law. Dad has been driving lorries and coaches all his working life and just stopped at 73. He lost a very dear friend a few years back who was a recovery operator. Despite all the flashing lights on a Scania wrecker a lorry drove straight into the back of the wrecker on the hard shoulder and killed dad's friend outright. Father in law is ex traffic cop and says he and his colleages were warned about the phenomenon where drivers are attracted to flashing lights on the hard shoulder like a moth to a flame. It seems that we zone out (probably the micro sleep Mike is talking about) and don't realise we are heading straight towards the police car/recovery lorry until it is too late. He says a number of patrol cars were totally written off this way and they were told to park the vehicle diagonally facing the verge so that it would be pushed off the road in the event of a rear end shunt. If flashing light s don't work I can't think what else could be done to stay safe

Does anyone know if spray on load liner (Speedliner???) can be successfully applied by DIY? Is there a DIY version available? I am thinking of using it on the floor of my old land rover to protect it and hopefully reduce drumming noise. I don't know if it requires a special spray gun or breathing apparatus. Any suggestions welcomed. Thanks.

:rotfl: Hasn't it been said that the best thing to promote safe driving would be a sharpened steel spike in the centre of the steering wheel.....:cool2:

Good find Tony. Are these battery powered or hard wired to the vehicle?

Hello Kevin. welcome to the forum

Good topic for discussion Mike. I recall seeing some 30MPH minimum speed signs on motorways but not for several years now. I read somewhere that one of the most likely places for accidents is on country roads. I keep the Explorer at my in-laws farm which is several miles from a main road. A lorry or tractor completely fills the road here there are numerous times when oncoming cars round a bend at a ridiculous speed and find the road completely blocked. High verges and hedgerows either side of the road coupled with blind bends don't seem to slow people down in the slightest :shocked:

A good point Gritineye. I suppose with enough room under the bonnet it would be possible to fit a canister type filter off a modern vehicle as long as the engine size is roughly the same. Probably more effective too. I suppose it depends on how much you're bothered by how it looks. Much better than running on your own oil! :nono:

Sadly some drivers drive whilst too tired or distracted. How many times do you see cars driving right up to the back of a wagon and then pulling out to avoid it. It's like they haven't seen it until the last second. I really think some car drivers don't look any further than the end of the bonnet. There's not much to be done about this. I drive regularly overnight and have witnessed 3 accidents in the last 2 years through drivers falling asleep at the wheel. 1 was a young mum on the A303 who clipped the curb and went backwards down the bank. The other 2 were caravanners who had left the north of england on a friday night after work and by the time they get almost to cornwall at 2 in the morning they are a danger to everyone, themselves included. Common sense seems lacking, but we've all driven tired I imagine...

Possibly an upright of some description, probably only plastic which could have reflective tape applied. This could be attached to each wing or bumper corner whilst travelling and taken off easily on the rally field. I'm thinking along the lines of the things attached to the front cycle wings on my Scammell Not much of an idea I admit and I'm not sure how the law stands either?

Safety is something we all need to think about and as Big Ray says this thread should be applauded for highlighting that. Even more modern vehicles (I'm thinking of Land Rovers in particular) have woefully inadequate rear lighting in my opinion, so it's not just for the old MV's. The Law? Personally I would try to stay within the bounds of the law as if the worst does happen you cannot be found at fault for doing something illegal. As always though each vehicle and it's lack of visibility to other motorists needs to be tackled with a common sense approach in each individual case. I have always found my local testing station helpful in advising what is ok or not. It's not just rear visibility either. When I lived in Sussex people would very often pull out in front of me on leafy lanes where the matt green paint of my Series 2 gave no reflection. Thankfully I was never travelling too fast, but a couple of these were very close calls. I got into the habit of putting the lights on when driving in shady areas after that. It is good to compare notes on what other MV owners are doing though. Looking forward to the rest of the thread. :thumbsup:

I am still trying to fill in about 13 years of Thor's history. I bought him from David Belt haulage of Templeton, Narberth. Carmarthenshire in 1993. Prior to this he was owned by P. Morgan, Red Stone Rd, Narberth who I believe was a garage operator. Under the Octagon Recovery scheme the Explorer was used for recovery, I have been told on the M4 in Wales. I don't know exactly, but the missing years are from the early 70's to mid 80's. Can anyone recall it being used on the M4? I know it's a long shot. It would have looked like this (but less rusty ). http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/attachment.php?attachmentid=7400&d=1233867885 The Octagon Recovery badges can be seen on the doors. Thanks. Darren

:tup::

Just realised I didn't add the Military reg number of Thor to the list. It was 93 BD 06. Don't know if you feel like adding it when you have time Bernard? :-D

That looks like a proper bit of engineering :wow: I hope it's relatively straightforward for you from now on Nick. Thanks for posting the photos.

Glad to know you had a good trip Rob. Sorry to have hijacked your blog with winching talk!

Glad to hear you've not lost sight of your goal. As Toner says, what are you thinking of buying?

Thanks Rob. The explorer would have had a cut out too which would safeguard the pull. Mine has been binned like a few others when the diesel engine was put in I suspect.

Is there any recommendation for maximum single line pull when using the winch out the front? All I can seem to find is "to be used for self-recovery only". No hard facts and figures :readbook:

We're all on the edge of our seats. How did it go? :drive:

Thanks for that. Unfortunately I won't be able to get there this year but I'll keep a look out for next year's event. Cheers. Daz

I'm sure it will all fall into place before long Nick. I know how frustrating it is to have the Scammell sitting there and no time to work on it. Haven't laid a spanner on mine for a year or so now I think because of work commitments. I hope the fitting of the engine goes well for you. :-D When you're back out on the road it will all be worthwhile. You can still put a Meadows Petrol in-it's not too late...:whistle:

Have a great run out Rob. No rush to look for the rivets either as you know how quickly my rebuild is progressing..:embarrassed: Let us know how you get on.:drive:

Appreciate that Rob. Thanks. I have rivets for the panels but not this type for the finishing strips. :tup::

Love the photos :tup::

Did you get the rivets from any particular company Rob or were you lucky enough to find them? Repanelling the cab and doing the doors is my next job and it would be useful to have an idea where to find some. Ta. Darren