Got my Heavy Rigid (HR) License yesterday, in a HUGE Hino

Just a piece of advice from an old codger.When Qld Fire & Rescue went from the antiquated board system in 1989 to a state department all drivers were ordered to attend a course at the Mt Cotton Driving Centre.My platoon whinged like hell about it, why should they go as they had been driving for years, some had semi and B Double licenses etc etc .I just said "orders is orders Bud" so we are going.Everyone of us thought we could drive but the things the instructors taught us proved we mostly "steering wheel attendants" and after 8 eight hours we learnt so much and had a lot of serious fun doing it. The moral, is go on a driving course like these and really learn how to drive a heavy vehicle.

Got to say, I had a ball getting mine.
At the beginning I told the instructor I didn't have to pass, I just wanted to do the course.
We had a ball of a time. The small roundabouts in suburban streets were particularly challenging. The instructor thought I hated cyclists but I was just trying to avoid hitting on coming traffic. It's amazing how narrow wide roads become.
Towards the end of the course, the instructor was whacking me with an umbrella every time I did something wrong. I had developed the habit of my left foot hovering over the clutch. A very bad habit in the truck drivers almanac apparently. I don't have that habit anymore. It's been replaced with a fear of umbrellas.
I found it a fun and challenging experience, especially with the non-synchro box (I now know what the term "missed a gear" really means). I highly recommend other people to add it to their bucket list.

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Originally Posted by Mick_Marsh

I found it a fun and challenging experience, especially with the non-synchro box (I now know what the term "missed a gear" really means). I highly recommend other people to add it to their bucket list.

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Yup you miss a gear on a steep climb with a road ranger and you could find your self in some real bother as it will easily select the next highest gear to the one you missed but not the one you need and can find your self stopped and starting over again and of course if its serious steep your kicking off in deep reduction if your lucky enough to have it

Congratulations, Spuds. I got my C class in 1989, which allowed me to drive anything at all. I learned in a Ford F-Series with a fifth wheel on the back and a little 40-foot trailer. We didn't cover air systems, changing a wheel, double wheels, or in fact anything except driving and reversing.

Luckily, nobody would hire me, so I didn't get the chance to kill myself learning on my own in an actual semi. This is why I'm a big fan of the licensing system now. Then I had to go back to just a plain car licence while moving overseas and back here again, and got my MR a few years ago.

I've been trying to get a full crashbox HR but I can't get my hands on a truck up here so maybe I'll do a proper course and learn what I should have in '89.

I should have got my lience in the 80's.but couldnt find a registered truck to take to the police station.around the farm an ex council austin with a long throw crash 4 speed.

then I sould have got it at landrover in a 6X6--but the rta didnt like me.

each time i go through the motions the rta move the goal post.boral sold of its coal transport along with my mates so no free HC [class 5] or B double ticket to drive.

after all you dont need a lience in those days if you are with a liecenced driver or operating a fire truck----then the RFS registered their fleet and you needed a lience and an RFS off road qualification.and work cover.

gone are the easy to drive C1300 and bedfords.
I finally organised to get a HR and they scrap our 6x6.

RFS paper work in hand mum pays for driving school as a 40th.
I book the course through the neighbours and the sub contract it to a mate up the valley--Volvo N of some type,HR crash box-15 speed road ranger.

8 hours of drving as I know how to drive--only three laps around the block to learn how to swap cogs before heading in to newcastle peak hour...roll up the next day for the 45 min test-with an arm sore from using muscles that have never had to work.

RFS course was a bit of a waist of time-instructors spent all the time on the once a year drivers.only thing that RFS needs is how to drve in convoy and a not get lost course.

I drive a hino FD at work,6 speed drives like a car.13.5 ton.40000Km in 2yrs.
we have a range of japanese trucks.
new hino FG single axle are 9 speed eaton split shift.these drive like they are fully loaded and you constanly swap cogs to keep it on the speed limiter.

Hino FM water carts are auto and these are not as easy to drive as you would think.lifting off the throttle often they feel that they get faster and then the water moves around in the tank and she gets Fluid..In new south wales we cant use the 26 ton as its a 22.5 ton maximum here.

new road patrols are isuzu bogey and auto--as they are expecting it to hard to get drivers.the reason for the bogey is the current single axle eaton 9 speed UD are over wieght on the job.

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Originally Posted by hodgo

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Another interesting feather of this box was unless you were told or shown how to engage reverse you would never get it.
You would engage second gear, press and hold a button on the dash board then when/ if the red light came on you engaged 1st gear.

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About 1964 I used to drink at the Queen's Arms in the Valley. A real blue singlet pub then. Transport companies all around before the exodus from the inner suburbs to Rocklea. Enright, Ryan's, Flynn's, Russell, North Coast, Lind and Sons, Nobles, R. Jackson, Aitken, Seymour, P.B. Thompson and no doubt a few others I have forgotten. A local bloke, Roy Spring, an interstater since the early 50's cracked a job driving a new Peterbilt cab over. Laurie O'Neil had not long been importing these. Springie showed it off at the pub and invited anyone to try to put it in reverse. Transmission was a 4 x 3 Spicer twin stick. Reverse was found as Hodgo described. Engine running, air up, clutch in, into neutral and flip an air valve on the dash, then up into first. We thought these Peterbilts were the duck's nuts compared to the old crap on the road then.

Those seven speed Spicer 1107 mentioned by V8Ian were a great box. Meant for buses but real slick shifters when run in and good on high torque low rpm engines like Formula Cummins and TT Detroits. One Darwin runner had one hooked to a Spicer 1241 aux. box with air shift, a great combination.

By the way, folks, Road Rangers are not a crash box. They are a constant mesh box with gear changes effected by sliding dogs. A crash box has gear changes effected by sliding gears and do need a degree of skill to operate. Road Rangers are dead easy to drive and can be used double or single clutch or clutchless, but the bosses generally don't approve the latter.

Well done Spudboy you will have a lot of fun and like the others I say go for the open license and learn how to crunch a bit. I was driving a low loader once and the clutch cable broke just after Dalby, had to keep going to Roma none stop which you can do in a crash box because once your going you dont generaly need to touch that pedal again.

I like the look of your camper truck, just remember that other truck drivers will always ask you if you like getting in and out of Man:o:wasntme:

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Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm

About 1964 I used to drink at the Queen's Arms in the Valley. A real blue singlet pub then. Transport companies all around before the exodus from the inner suburbs to Rocklea. Enright, Ryan's, Flynn's, Russell, North Coast, Lind and Sons, Nobles, R. Jackson, Aitken, Seymour, P.B. Thompson and no doubt a few others I have forgotten. A local bloke, Roy Spring, an interstater since the early 50's cracked a job driving a new Peterbilt cab over. Laurie O'Neil had not long been importing these. Springie showed it off at the pub and invited anyone to try to put it in reverse. Transmission was a 4 x 3 Spicer twin stick. Reverse was found as Hodgo described. Engine running, air up, clutch in, into neutral and flip an air valve on the dash, then up into first. We thought these Peterbilts were the duck's nuts compared to the old crap on the road then.

Those seven speed Spicer 1107 mentioned by V8Ian were a great box. Meant for buses but real slick shifters when run in and good on high torque low rpm engines like Formula Cummins and TT Detroits. One Darwin runner had one hooked to a Spicer 1241 aux. box with air shift, a great combination.

By the way, folks, Road Rangers are not a crash box. They are a constant mesh box with gear changes effected by sliding dogs. A crash box has gear changes effected by sliding gears and do need a degree of skill to operate. Road Rangers are dead easy to drive and can be used double or single clutch or clutchless, but the bosses generally don't approve the latter.

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As I'm sure your aware using a rr clutch less can be as smooth as glass when it's done right