Fire Engines Photos

You would have thought Nerryweather would have used the standard AEC truck cab, instead of going to the trouble and expense of building a one-off custom two-door cab. Any ideas?

The other mystery is that this was a TLP with crew accommodation for two members, while other TLs - even those without pumps - were built at that time to carry up to five or six crew.

If you are going to use a TLP as a self-contained water tower (which is the reason to fit it with a pump) you need at least three people - a ladder operator, a pump operator and somebody on the ladder!

Added by Rob Johnson on 13 April 2013.

Rob...that TL ran with a driver only......Southport was a relativity small area with one station, if this machine turned out it went with the Pump Escape and Major Pump. If it went 'out of town'on make ups, a second fireman jumped off one of the other machines or an ambulance (it was a combined service) It was not fitted with radio so if it was stood down en route the police were requested to intercept and advise the crew.....rather basic by today's standards

Added by Barrie Green on 13 April 2013.

Sounds familiar! I grew up in Darlington, which had a similar manning "arrangement" for their 1960 Leyland Firemaster Magirus TL - although it had a very spacious crew cab, which could easily accommodate six or even seven in comfort.

When the Snorkel was added in 1967, the same driver was assigned to the Snorkel as well as the TL. (I am not at all sure who decided which one to turn out.) Not only this, but the same lone ranger was also assigned to the third due water tender or Land-Rover + trailer pump, depending on the shout. Talk about a one-man fire brigade!

Added by Rob Johnson on 14 April 2013.

That happened in a lot of small brigades. I was in the old St.Helens CB fire service and we had the same set up. It seams brigades had there own idea of crew cab as in Liverpool the first Simon Snorkel had a crew cab for the driver and oic but the crew if it had one sat on seats outside.

Added by Dave Price on 15 April 2013.

Hi Barrie, could you tell me what the rectangular shaped things are above the headlights and below the windscreen please, are they vents or indicators ?

Added by Paul Warnock on 15 April 2013.

Its a nameplate Paul.....all Southports machines carried names, the TL was called Salamander if my memory is correct, others were Red Rum (the famous racehorse was from the town...also had a chrome horseshoe on the radiator grill) and another was named Maurice Evans, a 28 year old fireman who was sadly killed when the top section of the wooden Metz TL (which this machine replaced) snapped off and he fell to the drill yard during a HMI visit display. Incidentally, the Leyland Metz, long believed to have been scrapped years ago, has recently turned up for sale on ebay and has been purchased for restoration.
The nameplate on this Merryweather is on the offside only, there is nothing on the nearside, what looks like something in the same location is a reflection of the ladder head.
When delivered, this appliance was fitted with large semaphore direction indicators, they had been replaced by the flashers by the time this photo had been taken and also the blue beacon added.

Added by Barrie Green on 15 April 2013.

There was no standard cab on any AEC of this era. The first and only standard cab on an AEC was the AEC/Albion/Leyland tilting (Ergomatic) cab in the '60s and '70s. On fire appliances it was normally fixed. Mk V (Tin front) models such as this had coach-built cabs according to customer order alhough some dealers preferred particular builders. Cabs could vary considerably- one or two piece windscreens with flat, curved or wraparound glass. Doors could be front or rear hinged or even sliding. Park Royal were probably the most prolific but Boalloy, Duramin, Hampshire Car Bodies, Homalloy, Oswald Tillotson and many others built cabs too. This Merryweather appliance may not have a Merryweather cab.

Added by Peter Goodall on 16 April 2013.

Hi Barrie thank you very much for that interesting information.

Added by Paul Warnock on 16 April 2013.

Peter - I am living and learning! It never occurred to me that AEC did not have a standard factory truck cab in the late 1950s, particularly as so many of them looked exactly alike.

Commer, Ford, Dodge, Leyland, BMC, Bedord and others all had factory cabs - not to mention all the major European manufacturers - and it would seem a rather uncompetitive approach to require every customer to buy wood-framed custom coacbuilt cabs when you could have offered a pressed-steel standard one.

Perhaps this was a reason AEC died out rather quickly, as the Leyland-designed Ergonomic was perhaps just too late to catch up?

Added by Rob Johnson on 16 April 2013.

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