Fire Engines Photos

Post war. It could be a hose layer or a MFB conversion of some kind. Try contacting The Fireground Museum in Rochdale. Bob Bonner BEM might be able to help you.

Added by Neal Glover on 20 June 2023.

Great coach lining! It really did add a touch of elegance to otherwise quite ordinary appliances. Although it does still occasionally appear on ( mostly volunteer ) fire trucks here in the US, it has long since died out in other countries where it was once very common.

Added by Rob Johnson on 21 June 2023.

The radiator cowl puts it 1940 or earlier. Later was a flat wire mesh grill. Agree has look of a hose layer but could have started as a heavy unit?

Added by Peter McCombie on 09 February 2024.

From Bob Bonner at the Manchester museum:

The appliance is GGN653, 1941 Fordson Hose Layer, Manchester Fire Brigade. Ex-NFS.Disposed of 1962, served at Wythenshawe fire station. The picture was taken by Joe Hain of Hyde, Cheshire in the 1950s.

Added by Petros on 11 February 2024.

Survived well into the sixties, like Newcastle’s ET conversion and Cardiff’s rebuilt foam tender - not to mention hundreds of wartime NFS heavy units, pump escapes and ATVs. Some were modified, including the commonplace conversion of many ATVs into a hose reel tender (which retained its ability to tow a trailer pump) and a slew of special roles, but many remained pretty much unchanged beyond getting a coat of red paint. Although many of these were built in a hurry under wartime conditions, and no doubt some corners had to be cut, they still provided the backbone of postwar fire protection for many years. It seems the last of them was probably not retired until the late 1960s.

Added by Rob Johnson on 11 February 2024.

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