Oxford Diecast 1:76 1972 AEC 690 Dump Truck: Wimpy Construction

The AEC Dumper Truck or to give it its full title – 1965 10 cu. Yd 690 Dump Truck was produced on an Aveling Barford and a Scammell LD55 chassis. They would have had a badge on the front bar or grille denoting AEC, AB or Scammell but to make full use of the new tooling the badge has been omitted so Oxford can produce all three variants.

The specifications listed in the sales brochure of the period gave the in-depth details of vehicle components and operational attributes. The engine was a 4-stroke, 6-cylinder, vertical, direct injection diesel. Output was 192 bhp at 2000 rpm with a maximum torque of 557 Lh-ft (77kg-m) at 1100 rpm. The clutch was a hydraulically operated single dry plate 16” in diameter while the gearbox featured 5 forward speed and 1 reverse gear, all constant mesh, direct mounted with the engine. The front suspension had 3 ½”wide inverted semi-elliptical leaf springs with rubber pump stops and telescopic double acting hydraulic damper. The rear bogie had 3 ½” wide inverted semi-elliptical leaf springs pivoted at their centres on a transverse tube, mounted in cast steel brackets bolted on to the chassis frame.

The frame was of bolted construction and the standard wheels and tyre equipment comprised 14-ply Dunlop ‘Roadtrak Majors’ on the front and ‘Dunlop Powergate’ 20-ply on the back. The twin-ram, 3-stage tipping gear gave a 70 ͦ angle of tip in 12-14 seconds with double-acting cylinders on the last two stages. The hoist control gave four positions – lift, hold, power down and float.

An emergency brake contributed to the safety features mechanically operating the brake shoes on the rear bogie by means of a multiple pull handbrake lever.