Shelvoke & Drewry Refuse Collection Vehicle types.
THE SD FREIGHTER 1922 - 1952.
In
1922 Harry Shelvoke & James Drewry founded Shelvoke & Drewry to
manufacture the innovative SD Freighter. With diminutive solid tyred
wheels, steering and gears controlled by two tillers and economical
running costs the two founders soon established a market for their
light lorry.
1922 The Original Freighter.
Since economy was to be a major selling point of the SD Freighter the earliest models were kept as simple as possible. Kaleidoscope caption 16
tells us that a canopy for the driver was £25 extra. The photo may well
be of the first Freighter. Note that it has been fitted with a raised
height body. The low loading height was often an advantage but
sometimes the body needed to be raised to suit existing loading docks.
Photo supplied by Darren Chessum.
1925 Glass Windscreens.
Many
of the early Freighters were supplied for normal transport duties with
refuse collection gradually becoming the predominant use. By 1925 glass
windscreens could be specified and some side protection as seen in caption 34 in Kaleidoscope.
From the same caption we learn that Lucas provided electrical lighting
for their Freighter whilst oil lamps remained the standard equipment.
Photo supplied by Shaun Taylor.
1927 “Dustless” Shutters.
In
the 1920’s refuse largely consisted of ash from open fires so when the
bins were emptied there must have been large clouds of dust – hence the
‘dustcart’ name. In 1927 SD introduced “dustless” shutters. See Kaleidoscope caption 58.
Judging by the photos this must have been a very popular option for
local authorities concerned about health hazards. It is less likely
that they were popular with the operatives who had to balance on one
leg whilst emptying the dust bin and simultaneously operating the
treadle operated shutters. Later hydraulic operation was introduced
which was claimed to be virtually silent in operation. An example of dustless shutters for
Manchester is shown.
Photo supplied by Shaun Taylor.
1929 A bit more protection for the driver.
According
to Kaleidoscope caption 45 the first fully enclosed cab came in June
1929 for the City of Salford, and this type of cab became standard for
general use Freighters, although those for refuse collection waited
longer. An enclosed loader cab didn’t come in until 1930 [Kaleidoscope caption 59].
Photo supplied by Shaun Taylor.
1931 Pneumatic tyres.
From
1931 pneumatic tyres became standard giving a very clear indication for
age dating purposes. These tyres were of 27 ins diameter compared with
the solids 20 or 24 ins dia. [Kaleidoscope captions 15, 59 & 60].
The photo shows the Freighter chassis with pneumatic tyres. A few
Freighters destined for factory use were still supplied with solid
tyres.
Photo supplied by Roy French.
1932 Barrier Loader & Moving Floor Loader.
In
1932 SD introduced the barrier loader. Initially this was loaded
through side hatches but later rear loading was substituted. This was
an unhygienic system. To overcome this difficulty SD acquired a licence
from the Principality Wagon Co. of Cardiff to use their patented moving
floor mechanism, which consisted of a heavy duty rubber floor that could
be wound forward when the space at the rear of the body was full. [Captions 67 & 68 in Kaleidoscope.]
Photo supplied by Malcolm Easton.
Quantities Produced.
By the end of 1924 100 Freighters had been built [Kaleidoscope caption 4 ] 200 Freighters had been built by November 1925 [Kaleidoscope caption 1] and by November 1929 the 1,000th Freighter was produced. [Kaleidoscope caption 4 ] By 1947 2,500 Freighters had been supplied for municipal use. [Kaleidoscope caption 79]
1945 The post War Mk II
During
the Second World War the entire output of the SD works was devoted to
the war effort. On resumption of production the Mk II Freighter was
introduced. I do not know how one distinguishes a Mk II from the
pre-war Freighters. The Mk II was little different from the pre-war
version, the main addition being a separate hand brake lever.
[Kaleidoscope caption 46] Production of the Mk II continued until 1948
and the very last one was produced in 1955.[Kaleidoscope captions 79 & 80] A total of 200 were produced post war.
[Kaleidoscope caption 128]
Photo supplied by Roy French.
1947 Fore & Aft tipper.
In
1947 a narrow version of the Mk II Freighter was introduced known as
the Mk II N type. A fore & aft tipping body was an option on this
vehicle. [Kaleidoscope caption 80.]
This was a forerunner of the successful F&A on the later ‘W’ type
chassis. This one was supplied to Stockton Council and was photographed when it was returned to
Letchworth for a complete overhaul. A total of 200 N type Freighters were produced. [Kaleidoscope caption 128].
Photo supplied by the late Peter Lear.
In view of the many unique features
of the SD Freighter a brochure comprising a re-print from Motor
Transport dated May 21st 1923 is available:- CLICK HERE
For other Vehicle Types click
below.