tk bedfords

I used to work on a large fleet of Bedford's in the early '70's, TJ's and TK's but most were TK's of all sizes. As mentioned, 16 and 20in wheels, 214 and 300cu petrol engines and 330 and 500 diesels, although I remember the big diesel in a smaller size too. 4 and 5 speed boxes, the 5 speed in a low first, or an overdrive 5th for highway work. And often an Eaton 2 speed diff as well....mostly electric, but some air shifts in diesels and early ones were vacuum shift.

No tilt cab on the TK, but it comes off easily enough, we had a gantry on wheels, so we could park the cab outside. The big diesel had drop guards so you could get in behind at the engine. We used to hate working on a hot engine on a hot day, but on a winter morning would warm them up before we climbed in behind the guards. It was pretty hard for the foreman to see what you were doing under there....so you could practically go to sleep before questions were asked.

g'day Motu .. you're making me laugh me head off !

i reckon yourself and my brother dave would have a good laugh as his early days go back to G V Clarkes in north melbourne when he was a pimply headed apprentice

i got a job at therapedic mattresses in thomastown in the credit squeeze in 1982..(lost my job painting trucks) for a couple of years till the economy picked up again...hence driving the old beddy... : :

aaahhh... they were the days.. ..cheers

As a young lad of 18 I would have given my left nut to get out of the S beddy truck and trailer I was driving and get my bum into a TK. I did however end up driving a KM but sadly it did not have the screamer power plant. The one I drove was 466 bedford power ( when I say power I use the term very loosely . This beddy had a lazy axle and I pulled a 3 axle trailer with the poor thing. In those days (early seventies) the kiwis used to as many axles as they could fit under these poor bloody things, then hook it to biggest trailer they could find and then complain that the truck had no guts
Ahhhh they were the days.

Even back then given the choice I'd rather drive an S model than the TK. Loved climbing up into that cab with the little door, the gearlever behind me, and the engine beside me, driving around up high. The TK was unexciting, just a truck....and that gearchange weighted over to 3rd/4th - many the time on a cold morning pulling out of an interesection and put it into top gear and stalled. The 300 TK's used to do 4mpg pulling a fridge body - my RL with flat top would do 15mpg unloaded.

...looking back, i reckon it was so cold in that cab, especially with the 308 set back in the frame..., there is nothing but draughty air coming in, being well forward of the engine and with rattly doors, crappy rubbers, bugger all proper heating etc .. (skinny bloke about 9 stone)..no wonder : : :'(

...yeah i couldn't get too excited about her but i will say this much...with the petrol 308 she had grunt the brand new isuzu JCR 500 turbo didn't have (surprisingly)

anyway ..once again, they were the days...and now i'm about 17 stone ! : :

I wonder how some of the current crop of steerers would go sleeping on that parcel shelf? At the time I thought I was it & a bit!!