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mushspeed

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Everything posted by mushspeed

  1. What an excellent grounding Jamie has...he has come through the hard way ..... I had the absolute honour to spend some time prior to and sit beside him at the International Towing Museum Hall of Fame class of 2019 induction ceremony in Chattanooga....it was an amazing experience... I dont know who was more nervous about the proceedings him or I.... A very genuine and down to earth guy and a wonderful family ... Keep safe and Good luck in the future Dude .... John 333.
  2. That looks like a very early Interstator it has a Knuckleboom crane mounted on a Magurius Deitz 6x4 chassis with a Wreckers International body ... The underlift is not long enough to get under the front axles of coaches pics 5 and 6 shows an adaptor plate that slots into the crossmember on the Setra coaches quite popular in Europe at that time. I cant be sure, but I suspect that was built in the UK By Wreckers International.... headed up by the legendary Bill Jackson... at that time... John.
  3. Taken at the Atlantic City Tow Show 1 year ago....Rest in peace Dominick....a legendary towman ....our thoughts and prayers go out to the whole Battelini family for their sad loss From your fellow towers across the pond ... John.
  4. Yes I'm here .....Everyone have a Happy Christmas and a Safe, Healthy and profitable new year.... From The UK
  5. Ed ....what a remarkable transformation you guys have made on the dump truck ... That is going to be a very versatile and important piece of equipment in your armoury ...different uses it can be put to is endless ... From a low outlay and a lot of spare hours and hard work .... you have produced an excellent vehicle which is going to make you a whole lot of money... Happy thanksgiving .... y'all stay safe and well.. John.
  6. Rowes ....it is great to see some of jobs you guys are doing on the opposite side of the world ... Thanks for posting and keep them coming... Keep safe and well .. John.
  7. That's what happens when you arrange a cheap £20 online tow.... Buy cheap ...pay fortunes !! Home made crane in the back of a pickup truck and only fit for the crusher ....these are the minority of guys giving the Towing industry a bad name... This just strengthens our case for Fully licenced and certificated Towing companies and properly regulated and certificated Towtrucks in the UK ... John.
  8. Randall ...thank you for your kind comments...much appreciated !! Further to our discussion about additional costs and your very valid and emotive point about the helplessness of the deceased family ....... Trust me ...I really get it !! I have attended countless industry meetings with work providers and govt transport officials .....and the majority in the room are completely supportive with all the safety and best practice initiatives discussed and a lot of progress has been made and is continuing...albeit slowly ... Time after time..... the same old objections are made by a few individuals using the argument " how can we afford all these extra costs when we dont get paid enough for the job in the first place " " we dont need all this extra stuff " THAT makes my blood boil !!! At one meeting I lost it..... and retorted ...." how bloody blinkered can you guys be ???? If our proposals save one serious injury or life then it HAS to be worthwhile...!! Perhaps standing up in a coroners court ....or being prosecuted by the health and safety executive...may focus your minds...... I know ...I have been there !!! " Rear facing reflectivity on tow trucks is something that can be improved considerably..... For the cost of a tank of diesel....good quality red or yellow adhesive reflective tape can be applied to most rear facing panels including transom panels, cab backs, drop down marker boards etc I know that the rear of towtrucks are often bristling with equipment and on many occasions difficult to apply ....but it can be done ... a little bit of coverage is better than none ... on Van's it is possible to achieve up to 90% coverage .... It is legislation in Europe that all trucks and trailers have to be fitted with red reflective marking depicting the Whole rearward outline of the vehicle .... A bit difficult on a mixer truck..... but they must have rear reflective marker boards fitted both sides and across the under run bar ... Highways maintenance vehicles are required to have yellow and red reflective chevrons across the rear panels ... It's all about increasing awareness and noticability ...
  9. Randall.....this subject is very close to my heart .....having lost a former operative and had three others including my son injured whilst working at the roadside ... There are some very good and comprehensive training programmes that are available from the Institute of Vehicle Recovery offering up to 30 different programmes from basic road safety through to advanced Rotator and incident management courses.... There is good coverage within those courses to advise the safest working practices at the side of road ....however there are no joint TIM courses between police and recovery operatives that I know of ... It is a requirement by police that all operatives working on their behalf and contracts..... must have undergone the necessary institute training.....additionally most of the UK breakdown clubs require their agents to have undergone the necessary training required by PAS 43 and sector 17 programmes Most of the high profile companies in the UK have very good training programmes in place ......provide excellent PPE, equip their vehicles with sufficient cones,. provide vehicle with suitable stroboscopic lighting ....high visibility and reflectivity markings .....they work very hard to improve the police and public perception .... There are still many companies that provide little or no training .....providing poor quality vehicles with no reflectivity....little or no PPE.....they are the ones giving the industry a bad name ... I have been working with a group of other industry experts to press for higher standards and requirements within PAS43 for several years but we have had only limited success.....the main resistance is additional costs to the operator ... We are anxious to push for legislation for towtrucks to have more rear facing reflectivity ....mandatory outline marking ...progressive turn signals ...message / arrow boards ....but it is a slow job dealing with govt departments....but we are going to keep pushing ....
  10. Michael....I have been working 750 s and latterly the 850 for many years and running low lines through a block onto the transom and down onto the spades was a regular occurrence...they are an incredibly versatile piece of equipment and I cant see how it puts unnecessary loading through the box.. Providing they are regularly maintained.... I have broken hooks, chains, shackles and other things strained ....even bent a boom .,.,....but we never broke a gearbox ... John.
  11. Randall.....your opinion is as always, very valued.....as regards a training video ......I totally agree ...this should be shown with the sub heading ..... " how not to do it " I am not for one moment decrying the presence of police on site ....the mere fact that they have got the traffic flow down to walking pace HAS to be good for the safety of the recovery operative and the motorist the RO can get loaded and get the hell out of there asap ... The police resources are so stretched in that area the recovery operatives are thankful for what they can get.....I am aware of times when there are only two or three traffic units on duty for the Whole of the county .....for what ever reason .......police resources are under huge pressure at the moment with the Covid issue ...and a good portion of the workforce dealing with the current lockdown enforcement, self isolating and positive infection ... As regards the positioning and equipment carried on the police vehicle normally they do carry about 8 ones , collapable police slowdown signs and blue stroboscopic flashing beacons .....I suspect they were positioned away from the rear of the police vehicle ...out of sight of this vidieo....probably ... ... I totally agree with you Randall.....this whole incident could have been dealt with differently without putting the officers in danger ... The police car could have been positioned a lot closer......some cones outlining the work area between the police car and the tow truck ... Both officers should have been positioned in the work area facing the oncoming traffic watching for errant drivers and signalling them to stay in the single running lane They were too busy chastising the two drivers that had strayed back into the work area ....this in turn was causing obstructions for the slow moving vehicles and putting their own safety at risk ... John.
  12. The A12 is the most dangerous section of road in eastern Britain ....running from London to the East coast ports and cities....across its length it goes from 3 lanes to 2 and back several times often creating high speed bottlenecks ... and very little safe pull off areas Paul Anstee aka Zoggie owner of Service On Site Recovery and his other staff members ... work this road every day and have had several hits and near misses... Paul is an avid supporter of the UK.... SDMO campaign and being one of the founders, has done more than anyone in the UK to bring the dangers to the attention of the UK Government, Local Authorities and the general public ...and is constantly working to raise the profile by distributing leaflets, decals and apparel.... Regularly attending meetings with police, transport officials and safety committees... It is great to see the Police actively working to assist and protect Recovery operators and it highlights the stupidity of some motorists and that even more education is required ... I only wish there was more resources available to provide protection on a much more regular basis.... John.
  13. We are seeing the worrying situation on the world news .... Whichever way the vote goes ...I guess there will always be a section of the population that feel so strongly against the result that they must resort to violence And that is very sad and upsetting for the huge majority of peace loving citizens.... To echo Randall's wise advice ...everyone keep safe, keep alert, wear your appropriate PPE ...and keep well... Our thoughts are with you guys.....
  14. Please convey our condolences, thoughts and prayers to Roberts family, friends, co workers and Monteagle Wrecker Service... From the UK towing industry.... John.
  15. What a senseless loss of life in such tragic circumstances ....our sincere condolences, thoughts and prayers go out to the families, friends and co workers of these two men... From the whole Towing industry in the UK .... WE FEEL YOUR PAIN BROTHERS !!! The guys appear to have done everything right .... but how the hell do you protect against gross stupidity of one reckless individual...? I hope the law is applied in the strictest manner....to the driver.. John.
  16. That is an awkward pick with those power cables there....even with a tator or knuckleboom ... Nice equipment, Nice job ... John.
  17. Ron....I take your point that not all hard hats are inexpensive......the price variance is quite significant .....from cheap visitor issue construction hats......right the way through to all the "bells and whistles" high tech rescue hats with every conceivable attachment ..... But Randall is also right ....if you weigh up the cost of an on site head injury of an ill equipped operative potential ..insurance claims..down time...staff sickness ....potential visits from the govt health and safety executive...or worse !! High quality hard hats are inexpensive... I have enclosed photos of the hard hat that I wear when I am involved in rescue and recovery operations .... it is a bomber helmet shaped helmet ... fitted with an enclosed drop down visor ....adjustable chinstrap....and clips either side to attach flashlights.... The second photo Ron posted is one of our jobs and Elliot is wearing a company issue basin type helmet ...fitted with an external visor and chinstrap...it also has attachments for work lights ... Sometimes I do wear a construction style helmet when I am not involved in any actual Recovery situation and I am comfortable the risk is low ... KY Nick ...I really like the external led lighting around the rim of your hat...I haven't seen that in the UK yet ...I also agree that enforcement should also be wearing hard hats when working immediately in the Recovery zone ....however ...sadly I cant see that happening until there is a serious incident or the regulations change There are a lot of cheap imitations on the market and probably without any quality assurance markings .... We only use equipment that has a C E and EN marking.....(see below ) this denotes it is manufactured and meets Statutory European standards ...
  18. In the UK all employers have a legal requirement to ensure the health and safety regulations are correctly implemented to protect their workforce, the customer, the general public and the environment Employers have a duty of care to provide the suitable Training and PPE for members of the workforce relevant to the risks the individual may be exposed doing the jobs before them... However ..some employers choose to cut corners to cut costs ...or do not see the risks ....or ignore them My company operated a strict policy .and spent a lot of money on company uniforms and PPE .. All employees were required to wear company uniforms during working hours .....and safety clothing whilst working at the roadside or Recovery scenes or job sites Hard hats were MANDATORY on all Recovery winching and lifting operations .....No exceptions ....it was company requirements "NO PPE NO WORK .".. several times I sent individuals off of the job because they showed up without part of their ppe ... Additionally ...... I organised Recovery demonstrations and did the commentary at numerous tow shows and trucking events and would not allow anyone in the arena without hard hats and that included the official photographers....... However ...this didn't always work well for us and we lost a couple of good guys who walked out ....because they thought they were above wearing safety equipment we also had a couple of guys injured whilst working at the roadside......... including my son Graham ... Sadly ....we had one killed ..(.I think I may have mentioned this before on a previous post ) whilst attending a breakdown...and that was heartbreaking !!!! In my opinion...Hard hats are an absolutely vital part of your safety equipment and must be worn at all times on the job scene Your never see a fireman turn up at an incident without his or her hard hat and safety clothing on .... John
  19. Some UK work on the south coast 44 ton semi truck on 6 axles curtain side trailer loaded with paper bundles ...we cut the curtains on the bottom side ...uprighted and left load on ground and cleared with grab loader afterwards A really hard head on collision between car and cattle truck car cleared with knuckleboom crane ....Holmes 750 behind cleared truck ... 44 ton semi truck loaded with grain ...gone into concrete culvert .full of water ....used cushions to push trailer up the bank to enable to get slings round to do a lift . We got it out without losing any of the load very heavy rain and we didn't get it wet ... A loaded 32 ton tipper truck down a narrow road ...pulled over to miss a bus and slipped over the bank into ditch ...half the load came out ...uprighred with about 10 tons in the box A loaded 32 ton tipper in very wet and soft jobsite ....handy having an excavator nearby to offload most of the dirt ...2 x 2 part lines to haul backwards ... Just a few jobs from our photo file .....
  20. Brian... Thanks for your comments...despite the distinct lack of entries and spectators...the whole event was very enjoyable... and to top it off ... I won the class for best American Showtruck... with our Peterbilt 379.... well pleased !! As regards the left and right hand drive vehicles ....because Mainland Europe is all drive on the right and the UK is drive on the left ...we do come across LHD vehicles quite often... so like anything.. we adapt quite quickly... We do find however, that visitors to the UK from Europe do regularly have a lapse of concentration and they forget what side of the road and many accidents do occur...especially near coastal ferry ports and International air ports We had depot adjacent to the cross channel RO.. RO ferry terminal in Poole and we were towing stuff in daily ... in fact.... there are a couple of very high profile international cases going on right now... As a Recovery operator, we ran several heavy duty Tow Trucks that were LHD ....and from a safety point of view it was excellent .... When you were working on a very busy highway the driver was getting in and out of the cab on the Kerb side .... thus removing the risk of getting hit by passing traffic as they opened the door ... like everything... it has its downside .....passengers were subject to the risk of being hit when getting in and out ...and from a driving point of view...you always have be aware of the potential blind spots.... There are many arguments for and against...but I guess its all down to personal preference... meanwhile....stay safe and keep well... John.
  21. The West Midlands trucking show went ahead last weekend amid fears of a 2nd nationwide lockdown With several local areas and cities already imposing severe restrictions.....the truck entries were a quarter of what they usually are The public attendance was also severely reduced ....but the visitors that did turn up were treated to a very high standard of vehicles on display and beautiful autumn sunshine Enjoy the pictures A 5 axle Volvo Rotator supplied and built for N.S. Clarke Transport and Recovery by Boniface Engineering / Miller industries The business end 3 on the right all Boniface Recoverer equipment Maxireach underlifts .....note the reflectivity on the rearward facing panels A 4 axle 520 hp Scania Rotator fitted with NRC equipment installed by the Roger Dyson group Egertons Recovery .....is one of UK's oldest established company and one of the largest operators in the country ... A new 3 axle DAF fitted with Boniface Recoverer equipment from the Egertons Recovery fleet A Mercedes 3 axle heavy duty truck by A J Autos of Bristol they brought 5 vehicles to the show ...all different sizes very well presented Aimee Jones and baby son Oliver daughter and grandson of industry legend and dear friend Roy Jones RIP Partner and son to Chris Phelps owner of Lanes Recovery of Wales ....future 3 rd generation ? A very well presented F 450 fitted with Miller Equipment from ASK Recovery South Wales A rollback transporter from Towrite Recovery of Bristol carrying a very heavy load ...good job DOT did not spot that lol ... Note the rearward facing reflectivity covering almost the whole of the cab A very good attempt to minimise the risk of being hit whilst working at the roadside ...the company is a dedicated supporter of the UK " Slow Down Move Over " campaign ... A pair of very light duty transporters from A J Autos .... they have a payload of about 1 ton and can be driven without a cdl licence .. Two Roll backs from A J Autos .... I caught a shot of my dear friend, colleague and industry legend Nick Ovenden .... Not a tow truck but a very interesting multi purpose vehicle ideal for all sorts of different applications A side view gives a better idea of the uses it can be put to ...the centre mounted crane suitable for machinery removals, recovery lifting , building materials ...etc The platform payload of 20 tons the trailer payload of 15 tons ...nice unit. A immaculately restored historic ERF rigid lorry from the same company Another immaculately restored Commer rigid truck ....interestingly it is fitted with a very rare horizontally opposed flat 6 cylinder 2 stroke diesel engine manufactured by Rootes In the late 60s they were very high revving and noisy and were not very reliable ...production ceased within 2 years in preference for more conventional engines A couple more historic vehicles immaculately restored by original operators RT Keedwell left ...Volvo F 88 right Volvo F 86 Another immaculately restored and still operational Volvo F 10 I had to add this one ...a fabulous paint job on this very latest 750 hp Volvo A Scania T Cab 460 hp the 3rd axle tags if not in use or lightly loaded Note the back ground view of a lot of the pictures ....the show ground was only 25 % occupied and very few spectators Difficult times ... we will not be attending any more events until the virus is brought under control Meanwhile stay safe and well
  22. Randall so absolutely correct you are ....taking it easy is not in my thinking ....I also have an inbuilt fear of being a couch potato or a golfer !! I have plenty of time to relax and retire when I climb in my box ....
  23. Hello Randall ....yes thanks Aileen and I are keeping well .....I hope Christine and you are keeping safe too ..... Aileen enjoying the late summer sun We have managed to get to a couple of Trucking Shows and I have won the best kept American Truck category in both events with my Peterrbilt 379 ...and "best illuminated at night" at 1 show ...plus we have done a couple of large convoys for cancer research charities.. Here is a couple of pictures of stuff at the show ....note the absence of large crowds due to Covid restrictions Our peterbilt..lit up at night ... I had planned on taking my Autocar to the historic vehicle display at the tow show ...but ...alas ...not to be.... this year There is a trucking event about 100 miles from us planned for next weekend....despite the current lockdown restrictions in place ....the show is going ahead...at the moment .....but ...we shall wait in anticipation...things are moving so fast at the moment .... nobody knows for sure what is happening tomorrow...if I get there I will post some pictures...I did however spot this at the last event ...and a candidate for our virtual database It is very sad and extremely frustrating that we are so restricted ....sort of every thing is on hold and the industry cannot come together at these important events However, I do enjoy reading your very informative articles and posts....whilst legislation and cultures between our countries are slightly different.... The goal is exactly the same !!! Safety, Quality service, training, " slow down move over ", quality equipment levels and best working practices..... I am absolutely sure that every one of us in the business has got numerous different stories to tell and will agree that you never stop learning in this job ...no matter how long you have been at it .... My Hall of Fame award is proudly hung above my office desk... Meanwhile...stay safe and well my friend.. John.
  24. Absolutely devastated to learn of Scoobys passing...we were only laughing and joking together along with Billy leonhauser in Atlantic City..a few months ago .that meeting was priceless !! And I shall never forget it ...two Huge characters ....now both gone ....boy that hurts !! I had the honour of attending Scoobys Mat Jack class at the show and his very complimentary comments to me as regards my honour in front of the whole room... Even in his illness he had time to make fun of it and the fact that chemo does not affect hair loss on his backside ... what a guy !!! My only regret is not being able to work on the job site or attend one of his training courses proper... Please convey our sincere condolences to his extended family...friends ...and work mates .....from the UK towing industry .. Rest in peace Dude ....you qualify for a pair of Gold Wings ...and see you on the other side... John and Aileen Coupland...
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