Pete Bostock, general manager at Sherwood Truck and Van has kindly sent me this old-timer and adds: "Hi Biglorryblog. Some time ago I think I spotted the Heanor Haulage HHT001 on your website. Here it is when we at Sherwood converted it for use as our wrecker. I remember it had a 8V92 engine a 15 speed Fuller with under drive and a Spicer 4 speed reduction gearbox. In bottom gear its top speed was around half a mile an hour. I would certainly tramp on a bit but has a tendency to get into a speed bounce at around 60. It served us well until eventually putting a rod through the block whilst attending a recovery on the M1 north around where the new Junction 29A in now. It suffered the indignity of being towed in by me on a straight bar by its successor which was a Scammel S24. Regards, Pete."
several years after this picture was taken,this hht?or one of the hht's ended up with parnaby of york,then keedwell's of somerset and finally g.e.keedwell of pyle mid-glamorgan,where the remains are still,i think?
What a sight for sore eyes. Thanks to Peter Searson of Heanor Haulage, the four Scammell based HHTs were something very special during the 1970s and '80s. Peter used the chassis of a lightweight Scammell (I ask again if you can spell this right when you say Scammel S24) Contractor which were ex dumper chassis or other old hand me downs. He than put in a variation of Detroit or Caterpillar engines (which Scammell wouldn't do) and added all sorts of multi speeed Fuller transmissions. Top that off with a Volvo F88 cab and you have one huge powerhouse. He made the first one above(ONN 686P) originally as an eight wheeler but this didn't work and the lead (dead) axle was removed.
As Andrew says, HHT002 (SAL 513R) was passed to Geoff Johnson and then Derek Paranaby before David Weedon bought it - but still kept it in Paranaby's colours. As Andrew says, another is residing in West South Wales while I saw HHT004 a few weeks back as its being restored in County Durham by Dave Evans and his friends.
How many speeds in reverse?