06 Remembering Stan
Stan Robinson’s untimely death in April 2012 was a loss felt not only by his family and close friends but by many in the road transport world. Bob Tuck looks back at the life of a man who had a passionate belief in the ethic of hard work.
12 News
News from around the world of classic commercials
14 Club focus
This month we take a look at the Mechanical Horse Club.
18 Heartbeat’s hauler
Johnny Murphy has owned several classic lorries over the years, but he doesn’t just take them to shows. These motors can work for a living whether that be haulage or starring on TV.
22 Model world
We continue the look at the fantastic model commercials made by master model maker Alan Fixter – with a particular emphasis on loads.
24 Italian showstopper
Dean Reader tracks down a rare Alfa Romeo commercial.
26 Your say
Five pages of your memories, questions and observations.
32 Subscription form
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34 Rescue Rover
Doing a mate a good turn is often seen as a reward in itself. But when a mate of Ivan Symcox asked him to keep an eye out for a six-cylinder engine for his own Land Rover to replace the worn original, he got more than he bargained for, as Dave Bowers found out.
38 Charlie Dobson – a man for all seasons
This Scottish entrepreneur’s life has been divided between making a living out of lorries, racing motorcycles professionally and being a hotelier/fisherman.
44 Happy days at Howgate
BRS may have closed its Howgate depot in West Cumbria back in January 1973, but John Curwen – for one – still has very happy memories of the time he spent working there.
50 Two’s Company
Kevin Brown from Carmyllie near Arbroath comes from a family of classic commercial enthusiasts. Bob Weir went to Tayside to check out his pair of ex-DC Thomson ERF 64Gs.
54 On location
This month Gyles Carpenter reports on the West to East Coast Run.
56 Manufacturer’s history
Australia presents the toughest range of working environments trucks could ever encounter. And as Ed Burrows recounts, king of this particular domain for the past half century has been Kenworth.
64 Classic collection
Dave Bowers meets farmer Bill Banks of Southport, who’s managed to assemble a fantastic collection of classics representative of those used by his family’s farm in years past.
68 Archive album
Four pages of pure nostalgia from the superb NA3T photographic archives.
72 From our archives
This month we feature extracts from the Commer Superpoise range brochure dated November 1963. Did you have anything to do with these lorries? If so, please write in and tell us what they were like.
76 When the American Circus came to Toon
Circuses aren’t everybody’s cup of tea – like a lot of things in life you either love them or loathe them. US truck enthusiast Norman Chapman saw the adverts for the American Circus but as he’s not bothered about clowns and ringmasters, he wondered if the circus had any US trucks.
80 One man and his Mogs
When the British weather is at its worst we rely on council gritters and snowploughs to keep the roads open. But there are times when something really tough is needed – but on a smaller scale. Alan Barnes found the ideal solution.
86 Replacing a legend
Volvo had a job on its hands to do justice in superseding the F88 but managed it with its innovative F10 range.
91 HC Marketplace
The place to buy or sell anything related to classic commercials.
