Classic Truck

Classic Truck is the definitive celebration of classic and vintage lorries, trucks and vans. The historical content includes the entire spectrum of vehicle manufacturers and covers the current preservation scene, featuring meticulously maintained and restored vehicles. The magazine regularly features light commercial vans, buses and coaches, fire engines and military vehicles as well as covering related events held across the year.

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Classic Truck

Jack Allen Motor Bodies Ltd – Part 3 The Launch of the Colectomatic Refuse Body 1971 • The Colectomatic refuse body was an intermittent loader rather than a continuous loader such as the Dennis Paxit 111c or S&D Revopack. The major benefit was less wear and tear on the packing mechanism.

BREAKFAST MEET • In late October, around a dozen classic trucks met up at D's Diner near Cross Hands in Carmarthenshire for a chat a bit of breakfast and a warm welcome from Denise, Ian and staff, writes Ashley Lovering.

Autumn Wessex Sale Stars

PRESERVED TRAMCARS IN BRITAIN

IN PRAISE OF THE WONDERFUL COMMER TWO-STROKE Part 2 • Just to briefly recap, I spoke in Part One of this article about the upgrade to 117bhp that Commer announced in 1963. Perhaps that increase in power was something of a stop gap measure, as by that time they must have had the somewhat larger 3D215 TS3 on the drawing board. This incarnation would power the legendary ‘Maxiload’ 16-tonner, when it was introduced in autumn of 1964, just before the Earls Court extravaganza of that year.

A CENTRAL CONCERN • Joseph Lewis talks to Peter Martin on the development of his family's recovery business at Central Garage, Pershore, Worcestershire.

TURNPIKE TREATS! • Joseph Lewis enjoyed a first visit to the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Show, Turnpike Showground, Motcombe, near Shaftesbury, Dorset back in August.

Festival of Transport • Over the weekend of 30-31 August, the Great Harwood Festival of Transport was held at The Great Harwood Showground. For me this year, out of the trucks that were present, there was a nice selection of ERF's which stole the show. Attached are some of my favourites, writes Chris Newton.

YESTERDAY'S FARMING COMMERCIALS • Joseph Lewis enjoyed the 2025 Yesterday's Farming annual rally held at Leaze Farm, Haselbury Plucknett near Crewkerne, Somerset back in August, courtesy of the Baker Family.

CRANING WITH JOHN • In the March 2025 issue of Classic Truck, Tim Bolton chatted with ex-driver John Hodgkinson about his driving career. Tim's had another chat with John about his experiences with lorry-mounted cranes and John's looked through his albums for more photographs of his time with electricity companies.

Commercials at the Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show NEC 7-9 November 2025

YANKEE SCAMMELL COMES HOME • Mike and Julie Blenkinsop find a Scammell that became the subject of an export order in an emigration across ‘the pond’ in the early 1980s, to have a ten-year life on the showgrounds of the mid-western states of the USA but returned to its homeland with a lot of help from a dedicated enthusiastic ‘Geordie’.

LORRY GATHERING • On Sunday, 12 October, my wife and I attended a lorry gathering at the Lodge Farm Café, Holbeach thanks to an invitation from our friend and organiser Jim Read who was helped by his and our good friend Mark Wilks.

Blink and you'd have missed them • Over the years many manufacturers tried selling in the UK, while the established builders also offered some trucks that simply never sold in large numbers for a variety of reasons. Here are some of the trucks once sold here, but they were always a rare sight…

A rapid return to Newark • After enjoying the Truckfest Original show at Newark, it was back to the showground a month later to...