Petes at the pier

Several nice Peterbilts showed up at the Fairview Cove container pier this week, all with drop deck trailers.

First up was this chromed and shiny one from Bedford, NS based Salto Freight Systems Inc:

Carrying one container on his Lode-King trailer.

With nice fender skirts and other trim.

Then a blue one from D.A.LePage Transport Ltd from Brantford, ON:

Well illuminated cab,

and slick Fastrak tarp system on a Wilson trailer. The tarp system, with aluminum bows, is demountable, including the front bulkhead, which includes a man door (partly visible in the photo below).

And finally a sign of the season, a salt streaked emerald green and black one, looking almost white, operating for Clarke Road Transport, Flatbed Division:

Winter salt keeps the roads free from ice, but makes an almighty mess of shiny trucks.

Clarke in based in Halifax, and has flatbed terminals in St.John's, NL and Milton, ON, and runs nearly 200 trucks in  LTL and TL divisions across Canada. It also has warehousing, expediting and other services, and is a major intermodal operator. Most trucks are owner operators.

Actros - number 3

There was a third Actors hiding in the Fairview terminal that I didn't see yesterday. It emerged today, also being hauled by a Mills Western Star.

This Actors has an enclosed/tarped box and a big knuckle boom crane on the back. It was also being transported cab facing ahead, unlike yesterday's so that the Merc star is a little more visible. At one time towing trucks facing ahead was a no-no due to unwanted intake into the air filters, but I suspect if this truck was fitted out for Afghanistan it can take just about anything.

Sorry about the light pole shadow, but you don't have much choice with a one chance rolling shot.



Actros rolling out

Two Canadian military Mercedes Actros rolled out of Fairvew today after arriving by ship earlier in the week. The trucks did not roll on their own tires however. They were securely chained down to a pair of Mills Heavy Hauling's trailers and Western Star tractors.
First out was a short chassis, fifth wheel variant, presumably the tank transport version which was ordered to haul the Leopard tanks. Originally Canada rented tanks for use in Afghanistan and some Dutch tractors to haul the tanks until it could get its own.

Next out was the original type, this one with flat bed fitted. While I call these trucks, the military refers to them as the Actros Armoured Heavy Support Vehicle System. The system incorporates several different interchangeable functions on the long wheelbase chassis. The initial order was for 86 of these.

No matter what they are called, they are still impressive 8x8s.

Western Star hauls Simba

Not the future lion king, but a mine drill. This Western Star leased to Fastrax has a newly imported Altas -Copco Simba on deck today. There was some snow on the trailer. None here yet, but it is cold enough and it is coming.

For more on the Simba line see: http://www.atlascopco.ca/caus/news/productnews/120315_atlas_copco_launches_simba_quartet_---_20120320_09_13.aspx

Leyland DAF - a blast from the past

The once proud Leyland Truck name has all but vanished from the world, and it has been many moons since Leyland gave up on the Canadian market in the 1950s . However the name does live on in a very small way.

In 1987 Leyland Trucks Division of the Rover Group merged with DAF Trucks of Holland trading as Leyland DAF in the UK, but still DAF elsewhere. Unfortunately that merger flopped and was declared insolvent, and the two companies spun back off through management buyouts.

In 1996 Paccar Inc (parent of Kenworth and Peterbilt) bought DAF and continued to produce DAF trucks in Eindhoven, Netherlands. In 1998 Paccar bought Leyland, to produce DAF trucks in their Leyland, UK plant. They have since expanded to Brazil, with operations in Belgium.

The Leyland name was obliterated from trucks, except for British military vehicles.

And so the two brand new Leyland DAFs that arrived in Halifax by ship last week must be British military. As the second one left the terminal this morning I was able to identify the body as a glycol recovery unit, manufactured by Beam A/S of Denmark.

No idea what powers the truck (likely a Cummins) and the Beam unit is separately powered, usually with a Mercedes package.  

The truck is right hand drive and is apparently destined for a British military airfield in Canada, just in time for winter. But where would such a base be? The RAF does not acknowledge any base in Canada, but does participate in a NATO training plan, but that is run jointly by the Canadian military and Bombardier. The British Army has a large establishment at CFB Suffield in Alberta, but has no fixed wing aircraft there.
So this is a Truckspotters Alert to keep an eye open for these two units. Today's track was being hauled by Clarke.