It's a gamble to change LDoY venue
Page 26
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YOUR EDITORIAL, "Wanted: good home for CM LDoY", (CM, September 8) will stimulate plenty of thought, but it is successful action after the thinking that is the difficult bit!
We (the IRTE) have gradually built up our National Conference and Display and our Regional Forum and Displays are taking shape equally successfully. The considerations are not original but worth repeating and are perhaps relevant to a CM LDoY re-think. First and foremost: Preparations and planning require joint and total agreement between the volunteers at both national and local representatives. Of necessity, the detailed work falls on the permanent staff (but volunteers can do a great deal as a united team).
Secondly: The demand from industry must be fully understood; their participation is where the income will come from. Centralised receipts of all income and all payments from the central funds will facilitate budgetting and control by the national executive of expenditure, after the income has been collected!
Thirdly: Attention to and provision of entertainment for both men and children. (Ladies seem to join in, either with the male or the child.) Fourthly: (We fail at Solihull!) Provide endless car parking space, preferably free. Attendance and response from stall-holders in terms of income from sale of space will compensate for loss of parking revenue.
May I offer for LDoY!
a Cranfield meets most of the requirements, but use of hangers for indoor displays would be an added attraction.
b Could Bus Driver of the Year be persuaded to join LDoY?
c The driving of demonstration vehicles and the steam engine obviously attracted a crowd.
d The BMX display and the three-wheeled scooters attracted the children.
There will be endless suggestions, but build up on the successful items and substitute gradual changes to the less attractive aspects. Change of location is a gamble which may pay off provided you are convinced that industry will continue to support.
This was my last LDoY officially, so you will be spared further comment!
J. A. FLETCHER Institute of Road Transport Engineers Kensington, SW7
How relevent is LDoY to real life?
THE LORRY Driver of the Year competition at Cranfield may be an interesting day out but wonder if it is relevent to the everyday life of a lorry driver. Yes, they are skillful and knowledgeable but in so many cases bad driving stems from plain bad manners.
Consider how often one is "cut up" by another driver or how one is kept waiting for a driver only to find that he has been too lazy to use his indicators and your wait has been pointless.
By all means let us encourage driving skill but a good lesson in manners would not go amiss. A. CROSS Heaciiingley, Leeds 6.
There were two Burfords
THE BURFORD commercial vehicle, about which V. C. Nibbs asks (CM, September 8), certainly had no connection with the beautiful Cotswold village of that name. There were in fact two Burfords, both American, at least in origin.
One, made by the Burford Motor Truck Co of Toledo, Ohio, USA, lasted only a couple of years ('1916-17). The other did rather better and was popular in Britain.
My information is that it was made by H. G. Burford and Co Ltd, South Row, North Kensington, London W10, but the Automobile Consolidated Alliance Ltd has also been mentioned as the manufacturer at some stage.
Production of Burford goods and public service vehicles ran from 1914 until 1935. The original maker was Lauth Juergens Motor Car Co of Fremont, Ohio, where the vehicle sold as the FremontMais.
Burford was involved with track-layers as well as with normal wheeled vehicles. The Burford-Cleveland track-laying agricultural tractor was marketed from 1917 until 1929 and Burford-Kegresse halftracks were built from 1925-35. Keg resse, if I remember correctly, was the half-track system, which I recall was fitted also by Citroen to vehicles to cross the desert.
ARTHUR SHERLOCK-MESHER Potters Bar Hertfordshire
All York asks is: observe procedure
REGARDING the Engineering News report "Brake test failures" (CM August 25) we would refer to the quote "virtually all trailers are incapable of passing the brake test without extensive reconditioning".
This is not the case with York axles. All we ask is that normal maintenance and lubrication procedures be observed.
Tests have shown that dry and/or rusty cam rollers, anchor pins, etc, can result in brake efficiency losses of up to 18 per cent.
It is, therefore, imperative that all brakes — not just those on "Armitage" tri-axles — be properly maintained.
PETER BLOOMFIELD Managing director York Technical Services Market Harborough We are always pleased to receive letters from readers but we do reserve the right to edit them.
Address your correspondence to: The Editor, Commercial Motor, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5AS