building a prime mover

Billie jeffery, standing on the running board, a diesel mechanic from Sydney was the main builder of this truck, did his apprentice with the railways and coastal ship engines, didn't know how to drive when he came to Alice on a whim, we changed that!! grabbed him and kept him.

Ernie Warner left, drove the truck when it was "new" as you can see we took great care of the Royal Mail!! :

Lubra's lookout on the right, gives an idea of the width of the road :'(

Another land mark, Churchill's head, some soldiers during the war had put a log sticking out for a cigar, a very steep jumpup comming south, side bit, I was comming down with the mail truck and burnt out 2 exhaust valves in the blue diamond petrol engine, when I pulled into Renner springs and I could not get it started again, my mate George Richards pulled in behind me with Kittle's cab over Bedford semi with a load of tanks of oil, he said "you can't stop here, they don't sell beer" So we hooked a long chain between us and off we went untill Churchill's head, we were 3 parts of the way up when the Bedford ran out of breathe, George couldn't hold it of course, too steep, me behind a bit helpless, so he swung the wheel and did a perfect jacknife with the semi sitting on it's belly on the edge of the drop off, the prime mover still facing up the hill, the neatest piece of driving I have seen, a couple of the tanks had rolled off down the side of the hill, Jeff Kittle came up with a Foden and pulled us both up to the top, did not say one word! So this is me waiting on a new cylinder head from Alice. George became known as "Jacknife George" after that episode. The little trailer on top has a bit of a story, it started off as an army Inter K3 semi, hence the round nose, when the K3 died we made it into a trailer.
Around '55 Jim and Stan Martin started a parcel run to Adelaide using 2 Inter R130's, one they put under this trailer making it back to a small semi, the other pulling a "baby Quin" 4 wheel trailer, called it "Pan Australia Parcel service", had an eagle on the door clutching a parcel in it's claws, I asked Stan later why they stopped it, he said all the lables rubbed off due to the rough roads and they couldn't tell who owned what, they were great guys, first ones to bring brand new trucks to the Territry, Ford Thorntons with hercules diesels to cart out West.

As you can see, the Overland telegraph had only 4 lines on it, I had been having a beer with Tom the linesman at barrow creek and he was whinging about how boring the job was, I had stopped here to shoot a scrub turkey as they are good eating, though to me anything other than a rock was good eating, anyway the birds got away and ont the way back I thought of old Tom being bored so thought I would help him out, aimed at one of the insulaters and blew it into a million pieces, probably busted some poor buggers eardrum.

Bit off the thread but this is a picture of me on left, Len Tuit on the right on top of Ayers Rock in 1950, near my right foot is a coffee jar with 7 names and a dog print from when kurt Johannsen had taken the Foy family out there in the 1930's, they were the only ones who had been up there before us.

And finaly, with old age one tends to become a little anti social; this does not refer to any members of the forum who are always welcome to stop by for a few ales. >

Thanks for this great thread Ron, the stories and photos are truely Aussie.

ps. better get the mower out mate. : :

Hi Ron, I'm reading your post and breaking out into a broad grin with every instalment!!

I don't know if you truely understand the joy and enjoyment you are bringing to others with the fantastic stories AND pictures of your exploits of your life, I could read them for hours on end.

Currently I'm reading a library book "Great Australian Trucking Stories" and whilst it is enjoyable I think your stories and prose surpass even it!!!!!!!!!!

Just really wanted to say thanks, we're out hear listening, watching and waiting for the next chapter!!

Kind Regards David

Hear hear. (or is it here here?)
Anyway I agree, love it Ron, pity that the world does not care for ingenuity and "make do" anymore.. What you have done, and seen, and (luckily for us) taken photos of, is fantastic, and I think we can't get enough of it!
Cheers and thanks.
Richard