Scammell Scarab - The Mechanical Horse - Scammell Lorries Ltd - 1957

[Music] yes a scene of the english countryside but in these times of mechanical farming the presence of the horse suggests it belongs more to yesterday than to today yet even now in the country and in the towns the horse can still be seen though very occasionally playing his traditional and useful path a willing and patient worker man's true friend and companion even if in many fields of transport he has outlived his usefulness yet there was a great deal to be said for him for instance when coupled to a four-wheeled cart he could turn the vehicle round in its own length a point of considerable importance in railway marshalling yards loading bays docks and streets he could also be reversed anywhere where space was restricted as is so often the case in the congested towns and cities of today and another point the horse could easily be unhitched from one vehicle and backed between the shafts of another while one cart was loaded or unloaded he could take another on the road throughout his working day the horse was never idle splendid animals indeed but the glass on the coat and the glitter of the harness were great absorbers of time and elbow grease yes the horse had his drawbacks the attention he needed one way or another formed a not inconsiderable item for labor inevitably his patient plodding progress led to traffic congestion no wonder that with the coming of the internal combustion engine and the increasing call for speedy transport the horse began to vanish from the streets of our town there were of course certain areas like covent garden the famous fruit market in the heart of london for instance where congestion was not noticeably reduced by the introduction of motor transport many firms discovered that the conventional rigid lorry was not remarkable for its maneuverability it was no small wonder that there were those who remembered some of the advantages which the horse provided advantages which in the quest for speed the designer of a mechanical transport had overlooked so it was that a quarter of a century ago in 1932 to be precise a group of engineers faced up to the problem of producing a rarely modern vehicle in place of our old friend came the scattered mechanical horse a motorized vehicle with all the advantage of the horse but with much increased speed and carrying capacity the firm responsible for this development scam lorries limited the pioneers of articulated vehicles here was a three-wheeled tractor of quite astonishing maneuverability ideally suited to the traffic conditions of today an immediate success transport operators everywhere were quick to appreciate its advantages over its four-footed counterpart of a generation ago the advantages of the scarab are even more evident now than when it was first introduced for the number of vehicles on the road has increased during the last few years many times over the problem of traffic congestion grows worse every year the scarab does much to solve this problem notice for example how easily it turns in a confined space with the minimum inconvenience to other road users inevitably many loads have to be collected and delivered under difficult conditions scam lollies have produced a vehicle to meet a very real need at the same time on open stretches of roads the scatter is no remarkable maneuverability however remains its prime virtue and is the reason why so many users have adopted it in place of a rigid vehicle today this is a common sight in every town and city of britain just as familiar as the horse-drawn vehicle was over a century ago the trailer is always able to be turned in its own length and an estimable boom under all operating conditions an excellent example of this vehicle's extreme maneuverability is demonstrated here showing how it is capable of traversing an arc something better than 180 degrees no burden appears too great for this sturdy vehicle to tackle yet if the mechanical horse was to compete on more than equal terms for the live horse and the orthodox motor vehicle the problem of interchangeability had to be tackled and very effectively it was tackled too in with one load and off out again for another with no waiting uncoupling from one trailer and coupling to another has become a matter of seconds this patented and unique coupling gear is the very heart of the scammer mechanical horse design now let's see exactly how it works the coupling gear is in two halves one half being fitted to the tractor the other to the trailer here are closer shots of the undercarriage to which the gear is attached watch now how simply and easily the job is done the mechanical horse is reversed so that the ramps on the rear of the chassis engage with the flanged wheels on the undercarriage or trailer portion of the coupling gear as connection is made notice how as the ramps are inclined continue reversing raises the front end of the trailer a trip gear unlocks the safety catch of the undercarriage automatically retracting it the locking hooks on the mechanical horse engage rollers on the undercarriage and the trailer is thus securely locked in position at the same time the trailer brakes and rear lights are automatically engaged now let us see this coupling mechanism in detail the two ramps on either side of the tractor are aligned with the flange wheels on the trailers undercarriage this guide bracket trips the plate releasing the locking hooks allowing the trailers undercarriage to retract a bell crank operated by this slipper connects the braking mechanism two sets of double claws one on each side of the tractor connect with corresponding rollers on the trailer undercarriage lighting connections interlock with the same ease as everything else finally these hooks ride on the ends of the oscillating beam protruding from each flange wheel and shock of connection is reduced to a minimum by spring buffers it is clear that since the trailer undercarriage can be swiveled through 180 degrees the coupling by the tractor can be made at as acute an angle as may be necessary the driver then releases the parking brake and the complete vehicle is ready to move away the whole operation has taken a matter of 15 to 20 seconds it should be emphasized that no special skill other than ordinary driving competence is required the driver will tell you it's simplicity itself nothing to it the complete vehicle is now ready for another job and the more restricted the space the more it's in its element now for uncoupling an equally simple and speedy operation first the parking brake on the trailer is put into the on position then a release lever in the cab is lifted and the motive unit is simply driven away notice how before the trailer is disengaged the retractable undercarriage returns and is automatically locked into an upright position thus providing solid support for the front end of the trailer before the mechanical horse moves off now let's have another look at the scattered mechanical horse on the job again extreme congestion is nowhere more apparent than in the london docks and for that matter most other dark areas in great britain and abroad many dock operators have found that by using the mechanical horse waiting time has been cut by hours per vehicle per day illustrating the economic advantages of the scarab compared with conventional rigid motor vehicles the problem here in the docks is to provide fast and highly maneuverable transport for loads from shipside to warehouse and then to the consumer a typical instance of so-called internal application the prime mover the mechanical horse takes away the loaded trailer while a second trailer is loaded without delay without wasting the time of either driver or machine the uncoupled trailer becomes in effect a mobile loading bay the mechanical horse is indeed a most useful servant in dock installation everywhere transport operators and warehouse men alike appreciate its extra speed and economy for short haul use the scarab is unrivaled ever since its introduction railway operators for instance have recognized its unique advantages in britain in pre-war years the four railway companies were amongst camel's earliest clients today british railways have a fleet of some 10 000 tractors and 29 000 trailers a proportion of approximately three to one british railways like many other operators require a shuttle type of service one trailer being loaded another offloaded while the tractor coupled to a third is left free for general collection and delivery work one scam or scalab with two or more trailers can often carry out the work of two or more rigid vehicles with consequent savings in outlay and operating costs here is a view of waterloo bridge spanning the river thames and in the background the embankment like all cities london has the problem of maintaining public health and this means an effective method of sewage and rubbish disposal to ensure clean streets scammer lorries have designed a wide range of specialized vehicles to fill this need they include refuse collectors gully emptiers and street washers they have many functions in the task of municipal cleansing but in each case the prime mover is the scammel scattered mechanical horse here for instance are some london municipal cleansing vans the location may change these and similar vehicles are in use all over the world operating conditions remain much the same a built-in barrier enables a partial or full load to be carried without any undesirable over spill alternatively a model can be supplied by the mechanically operating moving floor as seen here good design has done much to ease the task the municipal trailer is one of the most widely used vehicles in the scammer range one of the consoles in the london metropolitan area to use camel equipment is deptford many other municipal authorities up and down the country and abroad use vehicles exactly similar to these here a scammel bin carrier is being loaded outside a large block of flats in london unwinding the mechanism is a simple matter easily performed by one man and loading the full bins onto the trailer is taken care of by this device seen in operation here the heavy containers move into position with the expenditure of virtually no actual physical labor time is also saved enabling the maximum area to be covered every day much of london's refuse is taken away by barges downriver to the marshy areas bordering the mouth of the thames where it is dumped all in the case of certain types of refuse and sewage out to sea where it is disposed of in deep water scam municipal cleansing equipment is an indispensable link in this chain of refuse disposal here a trailer powered by the scattered mechanical horse moves into position preparatory to tipping its load into a barge again the tipping mechanism proves its work and the job is quickly done the vehicle will soon be on the job again the job of keeping london clean here is a collector again this time the tipping mechanism is actuated by a valve but the process is as quick simple and efficient as in the case of the previous vehicle again this load will be taken away by bug vehicles of this type are also in daily operation all over the world many operators report that they are still enjoying trouble-free service from mechanical horses bought as long ago as 1932. now for one of the most versatile vehicles in the range the road sweeper and collector the road brushes are driven by a separate engine thus ensuring that sweeping speeds are in no way dependent upon road speed the operator sits on the trailer itself which means that the driver is able to concentrate on driving the operator on sweeping a spray brush is fitted in advance of the front brush while a sprinkler head is fitted in advance of the channel brush the flow of water being regulated by the operator and the whole unit can be traversed to dodge obstacles careful attention has been given both to the appearance of the machine and to easy accessibility for maintenance the result fire cleansing allied to remarkable versatility another municipal cleansing vehicle is the scammel trailer type gulley emptier again like the others designed to work in conjunction with a mechanical horse this particular one is operated by the council of hoban london note its rugged construction promising many years of trouble-free service in a moment now you will see it in action a very efficient exhauster driven by means of a separate engine is responsible for raising and maintaining vacuum while a special straining device is fitted to the rear door which permits foul water to be run off and only dry sludge taken back to the tip this vehicle according to requirements can be supplied as a straightforward gully emptier or as a combined gully and cesspool emptier this flushing process is known as sealing and here is the scammel trailer type street washer specially designed to cover all the requirements of municipal authorities in connection with street washing channel damping water sprinkling sewer flushing and pavement cleaning whatever copious supplies of water are required water capacity is 1250 gallons these then are just a few of the vehicles designed by scammers for municipal cleansing no matter how many specialized designs you may require for the occasion or seasonal use the prime mover itself the scammel scarab mechanical horse need never be idle and this is true whatever your transport problem let us now illustrate a few more general applications where this versatile vehicle has proved its usefulness this is the loading bay of the famous london brewery the scarab here is employed in so-called shuttle type operation while one trailer is specially made to the company's own design is being loaded the scarab with a second trailer is making a round of deliveries to consumers over a wide area when the scarab returns for the empty trailer there's no time lost the driver finds another load ready to go uncoupling the empty trailer and coupling up the new load is as we have seen the work of a few moments only thus proving again the tremendous advantage over the rigid vehicle which must have necessarily stand idle during the whole of the loading and offloading time supplies are kept moving another advantage of this shuttle type of operation is that the need for storage space at the plant is reduced to the minimum these attractive trailers are a good form of indirect advertising in any setting they look right even in this quiet urban backwater this reliance on regularity and certainty of delivery of raw material is nowhere better illustrated than by the use of scalabs by news french manufacturers at this great factory the mechanical horse has abundantly proved its usefulness here a trailer is being backed up to receive another load newspapers must come out on time and scammels help to ensure that they do the extreme maneuverability of the scarab incidentally approves its usefulness in fleet street and other congested areas in the centers of large cities where most newspapers are printed and now finally a quick glance at just a few other applications bulk liquids for instance scam frameless tankers are designed and made to meet your particular requirements we can keep liquids hot or cold or root as you wish we know just the kind of trailer you require whether it's for petrol powders flower indeed any commodity big stores faced with the necessity of providing their customers with a rapid delivery service find the mechanical horse a vital component in their transport fleet here's another type of frameless tanker used by a well-known brewery for carrying beer in bulk whatever the load you carry there is a scammer trailer to do the job couples to the scarab it makes an unbeatable team these are just a handful of our many satisfied customers at home there are hundreds more abroad we also make mobile shops to operate for example on a new housing estate mobile dental clinics and x-ray units banks canteens television units wherever in fact mobility is the problem whether in industry commerce or public service of one kind or another we at scammers will certainly be able to help times change and industry today is in the forefront of these changes not least in the field of transport the horse on the domestic milk round may not yet have outlived his usefulness but when it comes to transporting milk in bulk and indeed any other product the mechanical horse caters for the mass market of today and tomorrow so whatever your transport problem why not talk it over with us we have the know-how the experience in carrying goods and raw materials all over the world we have the technical skill and design and craftsmanship in the factory to produce the vehicle for any job and in the scammel scattered mechanical horse we have the versatile reliable and efficient prime mover second to none get in touch with us once you we at scammers have the answer [Music] you

Channel: Classic Vehicle Channel

Views: 171,509

Keywords: British Transport Films, BTF, Pathe News, Transport Film Archive, Motor Archive Films, Classic Cars, british Lorry, british bus, london bus, btf, britsh transport films, pathe news, look at life, bedford, scammell, classic vehicle channel, classic transport channel, vehicle channel, transport channel, london, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970, 1980s, street footage, 60s britain, 50s britain, 30s britain, 20s britain, train, the mechanical horse, scammell scarab

Id: GkwEfeE6GGs

Length: 21min 31sec (1291 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 10 2022