Fishy tales...

This is the next project.  I took the cab off a cheap 'toy' lorry and plan to rebuild it into a realistic replica of the real thing, a Commer Diesel of the late 1950's. It will eventually become a livestock lorry.

 Commers were recognisable by the screaming of their 2 stroke engines and I had lifts in a few in my hitch hiking days (1960-1966).  

My most memorable rides in these little workhorses included one in a Croan's Kipper flatbed from MacMerry just south of Edinburgh to Durham.  I recall that the cab of the Croan's lorry stunk of fish, hardly surprising.  The sound these machines made gave the impression they were flying along but in reality they were tediously slow.

The other lift was down the side of Loch Lomond on a sunny Saturday night in the tipper back of a Banbury Sectional Buildings Commer from Crianlarich to Glasgow.  The driver stopped at Luss for some food.  Friend Peter and I were starving and the only food we had was a tin of sardines between us.  We pierced the tin, Pete sucked the oil out and we shared the few sardines.  I hate tinned fish.

I can't recall how we reached Spennymoor but I know we had no money and the trip was neither quick nor pleasant.  I haven't heard of Pete since the 70's.  I read in the Northern Echo that he was sentenced to Durham Gaol for motoring offences.