Description
Reliant Girder Fork Truck in British Railways livery. Reliant side valve engine (Austin 7 derivative) rebored and reground and requiring running in. 4 speed gearbox ( from an early Reliant car). Original 3 speed crash box supplied.. Chassis and forks in excellent order. New carburettor. This vehicle is on the road but, as always, there are still a few jobs left to do. I have fitted an auxiliary fuel tank (to avoid modern fuel going off in the tank) but this requires a better filler. The driver’s seat was hurriedly made for a show and needs improvement. A new wiper blade needs sourcing. Depending upon how much you intend to use the vehicle on the road, these little vehicles are very low geared and would benefit from a higher ratio crownwheel and pinion from an early Reliant car.
I have included a photo of an original factory catalogue showing a 10 cwt version of he Truck. (this is the 6 cwt version). Also, a photo of a consignment of girder Fork Reliants on their way to the LMS yards.
A real head turner but not the most luxurious vehicle to drive!I am the technical adviser for the Raleigh }Motorcycle and early Reliant Club.. These vehicles were developed from pre 1935 Raleigh Safety Seven three wheelers designed by T. L. Williams who was chief designer at Raleigh. 1935 saw Williams start the Reliant company making very simple single cylinder vehicles at first, then using V twin JAP motors and Austin 7 engines and the finally when Austin stopped producing the 7, making motors, gearboxes and back axles themselves. They represent a lost age where manufacturers like Reliant, James with their handivan and Bond with their minicars competed for trade at the bottom end of he market.
I have built 4 of these girder Fork vehicles. All of them came minus heir bodies, not surprising as while the chassis are well engineered and pretty substantial, the bodies were light as possible to get under the 8 cwt limit. Hence, they tend to have fallen apart.
