Thread: Another view on oil lubed bearings

Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm

Reduction hubs were already in the vicinity of 4:1 reduction at the hubs. Those old pommie bangers rarely had an overall reduction in the diffs faster than 5 or 6:1, often 7:1 and slower. With an 1800 rpm Gardner, 10.00 x 20 tyres and direct drive transmission, I calculate the final drive to be 4.76:1 overall which was a pretty quick diff by pom standards. They probably had an overdrive trans. which would be appropriate for the era.

Gardners of the 50's were produced in ratings from 112 to 150 hp so they were never going to go quick. They did have an almost flat torque curve and were noted for fuel economy.

Many Fodens were fitted with Fodens own strange gearbox which was beyond the ability of many drivers to handle. Most got replaced with Fullers at overhaul time.

Leyland and Albion reduction hubs were around 4:1, but the Fodens were direct and 2;1. Story went that it was the 3 speed epicyclic auxiliary box that gave issues and would occasionally jump into neutral at the most inconvenient times due to transmission mounting flex.
Wagoo.

Originally Posted by wagoo

Wagoo
Edit, don't know how they kept the engines cool, but recall one of Kurts comments that once up to cruising speed the drivers of the Diamond Ts spent most of the time standing outside on the running boards to get away from the intense heat in the cabs.Dont know how the Foden drivers survived at all sitting beside the engine in a cramped cab.

Wall and Co in Winton had a 1947 Thornycroft normal control truck which was essentially a WW2 British Army vehicle. It had a Meadows diesel and a 4 x 3 David Brown transmission, top speed around 35 mph. This thing was so hot in the cab that we all had our blocks of wood to prop the doors open to get some ventilation. If the dust was not too bad then the opening windscreen would be opened right up. We used to set the hand throttle, stand outside on the fuel tank, and hang on where the road conditions made this possible. Although on most of the tracks-passing-for-roads of Western Qld. then you would have been bucked off doing this. A truly bloody awful truck that was bought during the period of post war shortages when it was about the only available vehicle in two states.

A bit of information about Kurt here. (For those who are too cheap to buy the book. )
Sunday History Photo / Person @ ExplorOz Forum
Bertha at the Transport Museum in Alice Springs.

Bertha loaded in the 1950s.

Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm

Wall and Co in Winton had a 1947 Thornycroft normal control truck which was essentially a WW2 British Army vehicle. It had a Meadows diesel and a 4 x 3 David Brown transmission, top speed around 35 mph. This thing was so hot in the cab that we all had our blocks of wood to prop the doors open to get some ventilation. If the dust was not too bad then the opening windscreen would be opened right up. We used to set the hand throttle, stand outside on the fuel tank, and hang on where the road conditions made this possible. Although on most of the tracks-passing-for-roads of Western Qld. then you would have been bucked off doing this. A truly bloody awful truck that was bought during the period of post war shortages when it was about the only available vehicle in two states.

Was that the model Thornycroft that the British Army rejected as a tank transporter during WW2 and down rated to a 15 ton prime mover?

Originally Posted by wagoo

Was that the model Thornycroft that the British Army rejected as a tank transporter during WW2 and down rated to a 15 ton prime mover?

Don't know. Uncle Willy found it at a Brisbane dealer when he was looking for a heavy tandem drive body truck to do the Diamantina mail (and freight) run. He had won the contract back after losing it before the war. It supposedly came here via South Africa and was new when he bought it. The dealer in Brisbane said he got it from Sydney and the Sydney dealer had bought the stock of a broke South African dealer, so the story went. Supposed to have been built against a British Army order which was cancelled. The interior was all aluminium heavy gauge sheet, the back two cylinders protruded into the cabin, with the exhaust side handily against the driver's leg to keep him warm in a European winter. Pedals were steel with a fine check anti-slip pattern. Normal drivers footwear was heavy sole boots as you could not put light shoes on the pedals after 20 miles in summer. A hot, heavy, exhausting pig of a thing from a driver's point of view.

One point that needs to be remembered about British trucks is that until at least the 1980s, commercial vehicles in the UK were limited to 30mph. This, together with the fact that they were designed by people who lived in a cold climate (where the concern was keeping warm, not cool) meant that these trucks were never going to be suitable for Australian use, at least after road conditions improved enough to allow reasonable speeds. A notable exception was those trucks specifically designed for export - but only Bedfords come to mind.

John

Originally Posted by Brian Hjelm

........ I do wonder how they kept them cool in the NT desert summers. They were not blessed with large frontal area radiators or air flow from road speed but then they did not have a lot of horsepower to cool.
......

Kurt was not at all shy about modifying his vehicles to suit conditions - and if they needed a bigger radiator, he would not have thought twice about fitting one, or making other modifications to improve cooling, such as bigger fans.

Speeds were certainly low in those days, but the roads made high speeds impossible. In 1950, the only decent road in the territory would have been the Stuart Highway, with almost all other roads what we would regard as four wheel drive tracks. When I was in the Centre in 1965, the Stuart Highway south of Alice had dust holes big enough to literally lose a VW in, and without local knowledge, speeds above about 30mph were downright dangerous, even in a four wheel drive (my company car was a brand new FJ45V). Once you got off the highway, speeds were even lower.

John

Anyone remember the name of a humorous outback adventure film from the 1960's or earlier about a Pommy truck driver who got a job as a co driver of a Leyland Super Hippo road train.I think it might have been titled The Overlanders, but not sure. Saw it as a 10 year old(now61) and wondering if it would be available on DVD.
Wagoo.