What was going on in 69 (mind out of the gutter you lot)

thats interesting, would be good to go and have a look one day
Anybody know if it ever ventures out for shows or the like

Paul

.
.Talking about Western Gold...............
not sure of the year they kicked off, but there used to be adds in every transport mag and paper requesting subbies
for the start up of Western Gold..................I was under the impression that ,( other a couple of start up trucks maybe)
all units were subbies, except a W model KW with a 400 Cummins that was driven by a bloke that went by the
name of Pedro. Every thing that he uttered ended up with , Pedro said..............
When I was at KW St Peters I went up to their shed at Lidsdale to replace the fuel pump and jeccies in the Cummins that had a gut full
of water in the tank from a storm that water that had entered their under ground tank.............
Then at Lansvale..........there was a bloke from Bowral way that bought an SAR ,& put it to work with a driver on the Western Gold runs....
That bloke was known as the professor.......nearly .every time the driver had time off, the professor would take the wheel , run off the road,.
and we would resurrect it...................
Western Gold would cart anything that went in the back of a tipper...(and probably a whole lot more )................
When they were at their height every second truck you spotted was Western Gold colors...............
A bit like Rapids when they were going........they were every where............................
...................................Billy.....................................

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Jeffo...........
Rapid colors were green & white................
Here is a pick of my sons first truck...you might get an idea of their colors from that..........
Pretty sure the chassis was red...........no purple involved............
Rapid transport logo on the doors in red, white and black....................


...................................Billy........................................

Billy P,
For some reason, the name Bill Marinic seems to have been associated with Rapid Transport in my mind. OR, was it after it was sold, reinvented as Bill Marinic Transport.
They may have had a 4070 Inter bogie drive (or a subbie?) also at some stage. Also, didn't they have the contract with Lysaght's carting roofing products?
Memory's getting a little vague these days.
Dave

"What was going on in '69', "
Coming up nearly 48 years ago, too close to half a century to split the difference.
Funny how what seems such a landmark time in our own lives can be recalled so easily, but can't remember your own kids (or grandkids) birthdays.
July '69 Armstrong walked on the moon, almost seems blase to the younger generation, hardly given a thought now.
What were you doing?
I can still vividly recall working for Auscott's up at Trangie, central NSW on a dozer getting paddocks ready for seeding with cotton, being Seppo's and such a big deal at the time, they gave us the day off (no pay, of course) to watch it on a grainy old black and white TV.
Lots of transport companies come and gone in the intervening years, some good, some bad, some downright shifty!
Chased one of Jack Seaton's KW cab-overs down the old Hume, used to carry a placard on the back of the trailer, maybe an old 9'1" spread bogie which read "Seaton's-powered by Caterpillar".
Mention has often been made about Kenworths yard at Lansvale, NSW, quite a lot of transport companies, most gone now, who moved into that area when under developement, some migrated over the river to Chipping Norton.
Mitchell Bros had maybe one of the first of the plastic cab R model Macks, used to do a bit of over-dimensional stuff. They had a Holden ute that they wheeled into the workshop at one stage, ripped the lo-speed diff out and dropped a hi-speed sedan diff out of a Monaro, or some such thing into it. talking to the mechanic there one day who also doubled as the escort driver, told me that he got sick of being bagged up by the Mack, think it was only a 237 Maxidyne, sometimes pulled an extendable, light loads. Used to have "High and Mighty" scripted on the bonnet.
Read here on this forum at some stage about Sporne's , used to carry some big loads in the day. Met a bloke up at Garland Valley on the Putty, was on his way to Adelaide out of Sydney, had left on the Friday night, heard the portables were weighing at Jerry's Plains so propped for the night. Got going again on the Saturday when I saw him, maybe they (scalies) had packed it in for the weekend. Anyway, said he had to be in Adelaide on Monday morning, remember thinking at the time that he was well out of his way, but then again his company was well known for putting the pudding on. Mentioned to him that they used to often have a blitz out around West Wyalong or Hay, said he avoided both, so which way he went was anybody's guess, may have even doubled back somehow to get closer to the Sturt.
Another well known identity had a cab-over KW subbing for Cameron's, ran Sydney-Adelaide and used to go and load fire-bricks that they line the furnaces with, then go around to Camerons and load steel plate and top off with general. Got sprung going over the mountain at Mt Viccy and rumour had it they made him off load onto THREE semi loads! He gave it (driving) away not long after that and formed his own transport company.
Dave

Yeah Dave, Rapids were owned By the marinic Family. Were Bought Out By Mayne Nickless in the early 90's.
The Son in Law went & started 1st Fleet who got a lot of the old Rapid work back .Until 1st fleet self imploded a few years ago..

Dave & Seed are right about the Marinic family................
Rapids biggest customer (in NSW anyway).....was the grocery cartage out of Davids Holdings................
Blacktown was full to the brim with Rapids subbies.................
Also had the cartage out of Gosford Abattoir, where my sons Mack originated from..........
Another little side line was picking up blood from abattoirs that was delivered to fertilizer manufacturers..........
Also fuel cartage and god knows what else.................
............................Billy..............................

xspanrman wrote: Just read an artcle in VTCM by Paul Tol about the history of this Saurer truck after 1969.
Participated at the Illawarra Vintage Car Club.s Gold Rush Rally in May, 1975.
In 1997 Bill Cooper purchased this Saurer "that was in a state of advanced deterioration from a paddock in Wollongong'.
Using this truck and 3 others from Yunta, Jeff Gransden Motors at Edwardstown managed to restore the Saurer back to its former glory in the livery of Cooper and Sons Ale.
It is now displayed at Coopers Regency Park Brewery Transport Museum

I tell ya Im as thick as 10 planks
I was reading the latest Vintage commercial mag that turned up and I was reading away about a artical on old Saurer and then it dawned on half way thru its the same truck :lol: :lol: :lol:

As I said, thick as 10 planks LOL

Paul