SA Profiling has been working with Gorski Engineering on our truck and trailer setups, and we couldn’t be happier with the results. The build quality is excellent, and everything is designed to handle the demands of our day-to-day operations without compromise.
They’re easy to deal with, communication is clear, and turnaround times have been consistently strong. What stands out most is that they deliver exactly what they promise, which goes a long way in this industry.
They’re a reliable supplier we trust and look forward to continuing to work with into the future.
Penfield
Gardens SA
Editorial & Design
Editor Geo Crockett
0421 299 963 or geo .crockett@ primecreative.com.au
UDQUON8X4TRAYTRUCKWITHM5MOFFETT, ONLY 2021,with7.8mtray,360hp, auto, 1504hours.Boththetruckandforkliftcome workshop checkedandserviced.Thetruckcomescomplete with
Decemberof2024,rebuildandservicehistoryis available, comeworkshopchecked,servicedandcomplete with
This month's edition of Deals on Wheels magazine marks an exciting evolution in the development of our product.
From today, we have joined forces with our sister publication Earthmovers & Excavators, to bring readers a 260-page magazine that combines the trucks, trailers, parts and plant news you know and love with additional news on the earthmoving and excavating industry, its products, people and services.
We will continue to publish 13 times a year, bringing together two of Australia's most trusted machinery and classi eds brands to provide readers with the bene t of two great brands for the price of one.
To read the Earthmovers & Excavators magazine, simply ip this magazine when you get half way, and start at the other cover.
adventures play a part in a few of our other stories too.
In our upfront section, retired truckie and hot rod enthusiast Alan Shuttleworth shares the story of his home away from home - a semi-trailer kitted out with kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, study and garage, towed behind a classic W Model Kenworth. It goes to show what can be done with plenty of passion, a few handy skills and a willingness to give anything a go.
For the truck show goers we have our regular calendar, and plenty of photos and words from the organisers of the Birregurra Motor Show, Darnum Heritage Display and the Touch-a-Truck event in South Australia.
The synergies between trucks, transport and heavy machinery are becoming stronger with every new project.
Image: Illia Holovkostock.adobe.com
Speaking about covers, this month's cover story for Deals on Wheels features a stunning Bicentennial Mack restoration undertaken by trucking industry identity Jon Kelly.
His truck, named Ned Kelly, is the result of a childhood memory spurred by his time sitting in the cab alongside his grandad as he went about mastering the art of heavy haulage, one journey at a time.
With plenty of experience in the industry and a strong support team to draw on, Jon has done his absolute best to faithfully recreate a ground breaking model from the Mack line in Australia, and the pictures make it clear it was all worthwhile.
Family and childhood trucking
There are also stories on a classic Ford, a historic White and a couple of early Macks. The owners shared their restoration journeys with our journalist Tiane Gavillucci, o ering plenty of insight and inspiration for anyone out there who is still dreaming about their next truck adventure.
At a more practical level, Deals on Wheels and our online site at tradetrucks.com.au can help any reader nd the truck they're looking for. Every edition of the magazine features 100's of trucks and trailers for sale, and online there are more than 25,800 listings to be searched to nd the right gear to take you on the next step of your transport journey. Enjoy the read.
Truck versus Ute
A day at the proving ground, proves a point when it comes to smooth towing
It's no secret Isuzu has stepped into 2026 with brand new models to share and a determination to continue dominating the Australian truck sales market.
In the Light and Medium Duty truck sales space, Isuzu accounts for about 40 and 50 per cent of trucks sold, respectively.
It is a dominance built on a strong history of reliability, service and support.
A key market for the Japanese powerhouse is found in the trades arena - landscapers needing a small tipper, builders keen to keep all their tools in one place, and operators needing to negotiate tight suburban streets with trucks that get the job done without taking out the power poles along the way.
The revamped MY25 N-Series Ready to Work models, on sale now, o er a vast array of tray, tipper and toolbox con gurations on the back of trucks boasting the very latest in safety and comfort, fuel e cient engines, tight turning circles and outstanding towing capacity.
Deals on Wheels was lucky enough to have the opportunity to experience driving a variety of N-Series trucks at the Lang Lang proving ground in Victoria last month, with a driver's licence all that's needed to get behind the wheel of the base spec models.
This point on it's own is worth noting as a key market for the brand's light and medium duty trucks are people running businesses o the back of dual cab utes towing heavy trailers all week as a trade-o for car-like comfort and weekend wheels.
While this business model certainly has its fans, Isuzu has started to see movement in small to medium-sized businesses keen to have vehicles designed to suit their work in
a more e cient and safer way. A er a day at the proving ground, it's not hard to see why.
One of the comparisons on o er on the day was to take the wheel of Ford Ranger Super Duty ute carrying a three tonne payload across tray and trailer, and then try the same load on tray and trailer towed by the Isuzu NPR Tradepack model.
Around the track, through the slalom course of cones, and on the reversing test, it quickly became clear the Isuzu's strengths were many. A tighter turning circle, better visibility, and a superior capacity to carry the weight without the towball sag made towing a breeze. The engine braking ability of the truck vs the ute was another highlight made clear later in the day as the Isuzu rolled down a steep decline fully loaded with barely any need to touch the brakes.
Playing fair, while the new seats in the Isuzu are comfortable, sitting above the axles provides a di erent sort of ride to that found in a car or ute. A er a few minutes though, the familiar car-sized steering wheel, intuitive cabin layout and supportive suspension make the new normal a breeze.
What became very clear a er a few hours at the proving ground trying out di erent sizes and shapes of the new model trucks - think wide cabs, narrow cabs, high cabs, low cabs, tiny tippers and super stable work platforms with toolboxes built in and room le over for machinery, was that Isuzu has listened to its customers and created a vast array of body combinations for its light and medium duty trucks that are sure to suit most industries and applications.
Check out the range at isuzu.com.au
When it comes to smooth towing, the Isuzu won the battle. Image: Isuzu Australia.
TANDEMTAG ALONG 2006,Ramps,Approx 13T.S429. TA1271329. 36000+GST= $39,600
Home
ON WHEELS
Alan Shuttleworth is gearing up for long trips around Australia, with his 1962 Seattle pulling along his trailer home
Words: Tiane Gavillucci
Images: Alan Shuttleworth
Alan plans to live the dream with this cool Seattle leading the way
It’s the result of plenty of sleepless nights –Alan Shuttleworth’s brain just wouldn’t stop ticking.
At three or four in the morning some nights he’d be tossing and turning with early morning bursts of inspiration dragging him from his bed, back outside to his trailer in the middle of the night.
Anyone driving past his place in the early hours would no doubt see the glow coming from inside the trailer.
“They must have thought, ‘Al’s gone looney working all night,’” he says. “But it was on my mind, so I’d turn the lights on and get the truck in motion.”
And I don’t blame him. He’s got big plans for his home on wheels. It’s a rare 1962 Seattle prime mover hauling a purpose-built home and garage that Alan spent the better part of a year bringing to life.
The truck – with its unmistakable old-school character – has been in his hands for just over two years.
A er the truck had been sitting outside
for two years, he purchased it from an exCummins mechanic who has since passed away.
The trailer on the other hand, Alan has owned for 14 months, working on it all of 2025 tting it out.
“I've been trucking all my life, and I've been retired two years and two months now,” he says.
And like many retirees, Alan and his wife initially tried the typical travelling setup – a modern caravan and a four-wheel drive.
It didn’t last long.
“It didn’t really go down well,” he says. “I own a couple of hot rods and go to a few shows and noticed that a few blokes at these truck shows have this setup of a home on wheels. So I decided to build my own and it took me all of last year to do.”
The result is a step-deck trailer transformed into a fully functioning living space with a built-in garage, capable of carrying one hot rod at a time.
Inside sits a kitchen, shower, toilet, bed with
Storage and a mini home all in oneIn goes the hot rod
storage, heater and a solar power system, most of it designed and installed by Alan himself.
the
Alan’s trailer is a rolling home base for the life he plans to live in retirement – one that blends trucking, hot rods and long road trips across Australia.
A mate of his owned a caravan and camper business for 15 years, and he o ered to come over and help Alan out.
“Every Thursday for 14 weeks, Luke would come over,” he says. “He did all of the things out of my league, like the solar panels, the electricals, the plumbing.”
Everything else, Alan tackled himself.
He tted the windows, put the whole ceiling in, fabricated the shower recess and the toilet, then sheeted it.
“I bought a second-hand kitchen and tted it in, then got at packs from Bunnings, and put them together for the kitchen cupboards,” he says.
“I bought a caravan gas truck with a storage bed underneath, put a diesel heater on it and placed LED lights in.
“I’ve still got a bit to do. I haven't got the kitchen table and chairs nished yet, but I bought a couple of boat seats, and now I've just got to get a tabletop and put oating oorboards in the kitchen.”
The garage can only t one hot rod at a time. Alan admits, he thought about going double decker and using a car hoist at one stage, but he wants to keep the costs down. And that’s no small achievement.
People familiar with these kinds of builds have told him a professional caravan or motorhome company could easily charge around $150,000 for the same job.
“Last week there was one for sale on Marketplace with a 40-foot trailer, not a step deck, but it did have a ash kitchen with air conditioning and a ash bedroom with air conditioning with a very small car in the back, and it was $240,000,” he says.
Overall though, Alan’s project has de nitely faced its fair share of challenges.
“A lot of thought has gone into it, there’s been a lot of working problems out,” he says.
“I've extended the step deck on the inside,
Before Alan,
Seattle was sitting untouched for a couple of years
Here’s the bathroom
There’s everything you could need in the kitchen
Inside there’s enough space for a double bed
The study with the garage behind
It took Alan all of last year to get this up and rolling
Seattle was
and I've got my batteries in on one side. I got my steps up to the highest level on the top, and then my water pump and my water system is on the other side. This whole process has been challenging that's for sure.
“It’s taken a lot longer than what I thought it would, but I’ve gotten a lot of self-satisfaction out of it. Once trucking is in your blood, it’s in your blood.”
But the truck is a masterpiece in itself.
The Seattle is a rare beast, running a 335 Cummins engine paired with a Rockwell R170 52,000 lbs di and an aluminium chassis.
“I’m allowed to leave it le hand drive because it’s over 30 years old and you have to be in a club to leave it like that.”
“The brown is the colour it came in, the paint work’s a bit rough, but I’m leaving it as is. The rig is rare as it’s a le -hand drive with twin gearsticks.
“It drives well, no vibrations or rattles, but with its Cummins engine, it's super noisy, so I’ve had to insulate the oor and the rewall.
“My wife's a bit older me, and she’s bought herself some headphones and music to counteract the noise of the old school rig.”
Alan plans to take this home on wheels on long trips around Australia. Trips to Darwin, South Australia and North Queensland are all on the wish list.
“I just want to go away for weeks on end,” he says.
And the truck has already had its rst real test.
The
awarded “Best Vintage Truck” at Gundagai recently
That test was a trip from Wollongong to Gundagai – a journey that should have taken around three and half hours – that stretched into a nine-hour ordeal a er two major breakdowns along the way.
“We arrived just before dark and set up the caravan awning,” he says.
“I had to have a few beers to de-stress, but
you know, there’s always going to be a lot of problems on the maiden voyage.”
But that’s the highs and lows of trucking. It was never meant to be easy.
The plan now is simple – make the Seattle reliable, nish the last details inside the trailer and Alan can hit the highway with his dream nally complete.
AUSTRALIAN MADE
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2021 SINOTRUK C7H G7 540 with Ejector bin
540hp diesel
12 speed ZF AMT
$225,000
Tingalpa, QLD
07 3177 1607
Scan with your Smartphone camera to check out this deal!
Cla ic
Cl CURTAINS
If your job involves transporting up to six pallets per trip and it’s time for an upgrade, this 2025 Hino 300 Series with quick release curtains could be just the truck you need.
The truck will be available in May with the curtains and hanging gates tted already so its next owner is able to simply get to work.
The storage space dimensions are:
L 4.3m x W 2.5m x H 1.90m and the blue curtains o er side opening abilities too.
Another bene t for any buyer is the tting of the SmartSafe package o ering all the latest in accident avoidance and vehicle stability technology.
To nd out more phone Prestige Truck Centre on 03 9999 5162.
Scan with your Smartphone camera to check out this deal!
Hauling heavy machinery and oversize objects around requires specialised equipment and the team at Tu Trailers have made it their mission to get it right.
The 2020 Tu Trailer 4x4 Low Loader / Deck Widening trailer they build is capable of taking the deck from 2.5m to 3.5m in width and can be tted with single, bi-fold or HD ramps too.
It comes with high tensile ooring and EBS/ABS Braking, primed and painted to suit your colours in 2-pak paint.
Call Tu Trailers on 07 3085 2875 for more information.
2020 4x4 Low Loader / Deck Widening trailer
07 3085 2875
Choice of ramps
Deck widens from 2.5m to 3.5m
Price on Application
Crestmead, QLD
Looking for a reliable, powerful and fully equipped prime mover that’s ready to hit the road today?
This 2021 Iveco Stralis X-Way 460 could well t the bill with just 121,238 kms completed this well-maintained truck is primed for immediate work. The X-Way features a 460 hp engine and a 12-speed AMT transmission and sits on airbag rear suspension.
Fitted with premium ISRI seats, a sun visor and an LED light bar for enhanced visibility, the truck has a GCM of 45,000 kg. For more information phone
Iveco Stralis X-Way
Scan with your Smartphone camera to check out this deal!
Dressed in red and decorated with chrome this 2010 Kenworth T408 SAR has had one owner/driver since it was bought new.
The truck has recently had a rebuild on the Cummins ISX engine, with just 16km recorded since the work was completed.
It is tted with an 18-speed manual gearbox, Meritor RT46-160GP di s with a 4.3 di ratio and is rated to 97 tonne.
It is listed for sale in New South Wales.
To nd out more, phone Sammut Agricultural Machinery on 02 8279 7172.
Scan with your Smartphone camera to check out this deal!
Big cab
Fitted with super single steer tyres and with a recent in chassis motor rebuild by Volvo, this 2020 XXLT Big Cab Volvo FH16 700 is ready to get back on the road.
It features the Volvo auto shi gear box, air suspension and an alloy bullbar and is 130 ton rated for road train work.
Drivers are treated to an Ice Pack 2000 cab cooler, microwave, and double bunk, with plenty of room to stretch out.
Another highlight is the Jost greaseless turn table.
To nd out more phone Purga Truck and Machinery Sales on 07 3171 1897.
“Australian
ASH ANDERSON
INSTRUCTOR, DYNAMIC TRUCK SCHOOL
Built tough to suit the Australian freight task the 2009 Kenworth T658 has all the power and torque you need to haul all manner of gear around our great country.
This example, featuring a blue paint job, had a rebuild of its ISX Cummins engine in 2024 and features full cross locks, CTI and scales.
Photos show the truck has had some use for log hauling, which means it is tted with strong cab protection bars at the rear of the box.
Super STRENGTH TRAILER
Built with four axles for stability and strength the 2026 Gorsk TTRU Hardox Dog Tipping Trailer is perfect for any company looking to cart heavy materials for projects such as construction.
The Gorski premium body holds up to 22 cubic metres and the trailer features TMC drum brake axles, TMC LMV lightweight airbag suspension and an ABC EBS brake control system, compliant with ADR38.
Seven LED side lamps have been tted on either side of the trailer, which also has LED rear lamps and two reverse spotlights.
To nd out more, contact Gorski Engineering on 03 9988 9139.
2026 Gorski TTRU 4-axle Hardox Dog Tipping Trailer
”Bruce’s”
STORY
From boyhood memory to prized possession – Simon Watson nally claimed the White model truck he admired from afar for so long
Words: Tiane Gavillucci
Images: Simon Watson & Judith Russell
Simon is yet to restore the White
Long before the keys ever sat in his hand,
Simon Watson already knew this truck.
As a kid riding alongside his father in the cab of a big rig, he’d spot it sitting quietly on a property, half-hidden among years of work and weather.
“We used to travel past the original owner’s property, and the truck just sat there like many other items in the yard,” he says.
“It just looked like a cool truck; I had always liked it.”
That thought lingered, years passed and life moved on. But the truck never quite le his memory.
“About 22 years ago, I thought about that truck again. So, I travelled down, and I spoke to the original owner, which was Bruce Hill,” Simon says.
“I was there for about six or seven hours, and we talked about everything from how to run a country, to health and politics, as well as the truck of course.
“He still regarded it as quite a working proposition, but it looked more vintage class to me.”
Bruce wanted $17,000 for it, and Simon walked away from the o er.
A year later, Bruce passed away and the truck’s future was suddenly uncertain.
So, Simon made the drive again, nearly two hours, chasing a memory that refused to fade.
This time, the conversation was shorter, simpler.
“Mate,” he was told, “if you give me $5,000, it’s yours.”
And just like that, the truck, and its story, changed hands.
Today, Simon is the second owner of the White 2064, which was built in the early 60s.
“For a truck of its age, I’d consider its condition quite good. Its worked hard and done its fair share,” Simon says.
“To my disgust. I haven't restored it yet, but I use it like a yard truck. It's always ready to go.”
Simon has also found out about the history of the truck and its rst owner Bruce Hill.
Bruce was born in Launceston in 1926, lost his father at just seven months old and grew up in a family of six children scraping by in rural Tasmania.
It was a hard worker back in its day
It’s a vintage masterpiece
Bruce and his truck
He le school in Grade 6, started work in a sawmill as a teenager, and by the early 1950s, he had moved his young family of his own to Moltema.
Bruce began to harvest hardwood trees growing on the slopes of The Great Western Tiers and carted the logs 35 kilometres to his sawmill at Moltema where the logs were debarked and cut into ner timber, much of which was shipped to the mainland.
The White became the main truck he used to cart the logs, and the low-loader was attached to cart the heavy machinery.
His daughter Judith (Judy) Russell described him as a hardworking man.
“Dad was a character, he would get along with everybody,” she says.
“He was a hard working sawmiller and bushman, working seven days a week. Five days he would go to Launceston to do his business and on the weekend, he would maintain his own machinery in his big workshop there at Moltema.
“Dad would always lend an ear and have a chat to anybody that called in.”
Built in America, converted to righthand drive and shipped out, Bruce bought the White brand new from Websters in
Launceston, before registering it.
“Dad bought the White to cart logs from The Mersey Valley when they decided to ood the dams there,” Judy says.
“Huge money was made by the carriers at that time. Only one axle trucks could get in, and the White t the bill.”
“Dad was happy when he got the White which had a one-piece window, his previous trucks like the International and Leyland didn’t.
“My brother Bevan said it was one of the rst trucks to come out with the big west coaster mirror which used to vibrate and one time, it split the door which dad had to replace with a second-hand one. Then a log rolled into the door on the le and Dad had to replace that as well,” Judy laughs.
The White originally had 20 gears broken down to ve in the main gearbox and four in the joey.
Originally tted with a 160-horsepower motor it later received a 230hp V8 Cummins transplant – an upgrade that gave it more grunt, even if it ran a little hot under pressure.
“Ray Wells was the main driver of the truck, but before him it was Ivan Quarrell,” Judy says.
“Before the White, dad had two single axle
Originally, the White was built in America
Doing some good old log work
The rig was converted to right-hand drive and shipped out of America
Bruce bought the White brand new from Websters in Launceston
Twenty two years after seeing it as a boy, Simon rediscovered the White once again
hydraulic brake trailers used on the Leyland and International. The White had a new trailer with airbrakes from the Phoenix Foundry in Launceston.”
Bruce was a single father and raising a family all while running a sawmill and logging business, wasn’t easy.
“I wrote a book which was published in
2024, 'A Bushman's Daughter', it’s a memoir about growing up in Moltema, a rural community in Northwest Tasmania,” Judy says.
“I also wrote songs about dad and I’ve had them sung, they’re now up on Spotify, the album’s called ‘Whispering Gums’ by a Bushman’s Daughter. I'm not really a writer, but I was extremely close to my dad.”
Bruce passed away in 2004 and the estate got sued, meaning Bruce’s machinery had to be sold.
And that’s when Simon came into the story. Somehow, the White found its way to someone who had already chosen it years earlier.
Unrestored, the White named ‘Bruce’ as Simon calls it – and much to Judy’s delight –sits in his yard, untouched.
“I don't want to step too far away from its originality,” he says. “I would have liked to somehow maintain its patina.
"But in saying that some of that patina has been created since it's been here, because I live on the eastern side of Tassie, which is a much hotter climate than where it came from.”
AUSTRALIAN MADE
STEEL WET 1 WATER TANK
Time and climate have added their own touches anyway. When Simon rst brought the White home, moss still clung to its surface from the cooler northwest coast. Within months in Tasmania’s east, it had baked o under a hotter sun.
There’s talk of eventually pairing the truck with a more tting trailer, maybe taking it to shows so others can appreciate it.
But ‘Bruce’ isn’t Simon’s only trucking treasure. His Road Boss collection could be one of the biggest in Tassie.
“There's four of them as well as a Road Commander, but a cab over version, and I've got a couple of Western Stars too, some of them are in need of restoration, but there’s none like my White trucks.”
As a small businessman, Simon does a bit of seasonal work like grain haulage, wool, fertiliser and gravel.
“My father used to drive White’s, and that's why I became familiar with them. When I was old enough to get involved and buy a truck for myself, that's what I wanted because everybody had the Macks, the Super-Liners, the W model Kenworths and they were ridiculously priced.
“But the Whites were still quite feasible, but I’ve noticed these days the prices are sneaking up as well.”
From noticing his future truck from the passenger seat of his dad’s vehicle, to one day buying it for himself, Simon and ‘Bruce’ are quite the story – who knows what its next 40 years will bring.
This yet-to-be restored White represents a childhood memory begging to be revived
More than 1,500 visitors gathered as Darnum roared to life with 170 historic trucks
These days you take kids anywhere and they’ll have their face glued down at their screens, completely disconnected from the world around them.
The display was held in early February over two days
But on February 7 and 8 at the Darnum Heritage Display, event organiser Peter Farley noticed this was far from the case.
“None of the kids had an iPhone or iPad in their hand,” he says. “They were actually getting involved, looking around and asking questions.”
And who could blame them, with 170 gleaming trucks to look at of various sizes and ages, why would they be looking at a screen?
And the heritage display has now found a new place to call home.
“Our new facility is home to the Truck Club,” Peter says. “It’s about 12 acres, so we decided to do some earthworks and make it happen.”
“This is our new home, so we're not moving from here. It's like a fresh start for us.”
And what a start it was.
Darnum roared to life with reminders of the past with vehicles required to be over 25 years or over.
There were 80 historic cars, ve bulldozers and old military vehicles standing for attention. There was dairy equipment, a proud 70 tractors lined up alongside chu ng stationary engines; even a plane replica.
By the end of it, more than 1,500 people had come through the gates.
“I’ve been trying to think of the right word for it all,” Peter says. “But it was just mind boggling.”
That Friday night set the tone. Around 100 vehicles rolled in before the weekend had even properly begun.
“Friday was a bit overwhelming. The weather was perfect which is critical to the turn out of the event, so we were nervous about how big this display was going to be.”
Among the trucks, there were the usual showstoppers, immaculate restorations where no expense had been spared, but Peter lit up when he spoke about one particular, old school, Bedford.
“It had never been restored. It was all original,” he says. “It doesn’t look like it’s worked a day.”
Images: Graeme Harley
was plenty to see
There
at the new 12 acre facility
Cars, bikes, tractors, machinery, it had it all Classic Holdens caught the eye
This plane replica was popular
A whopping 170 trucks took part over the weekend
Check out the Leyland with its tractor freight
Saturday night brought 184 people together for dinner, catered by Peter’s wife and her friends. Around the tables sat men and women whose lives had been shaped by machinery, transport and hard work. Some were in their 90s.
“We had people there who have driven trucks since the 50s,” Peter says. “The stories that start coming out, and the laughing and joking - they were acting 35, not 90. They haven’t changed; it’s just their bodies that have gotten a bit older.”
Moments like these are why the Darnum Heritage Display matters.
“It’s such a good feeling to bring this event together and actually pull it o . To actually see everyone enjoy their heritage is great,” he says.
The trucks are close to his heart, but
this event reaches far beyond transport enthusiasts. It spills into the town itself.
The local football club ran the bar, the local Lions Club handled food during the day and the shops were buzzing.
Major support from Community Bank Drouin and District helped make it all possible, alongside Dixon’s Transport Insurance – both backing the event in a big way to keep the wheels turning.
“They tipped a fair bit of money into us to keep things happening,” Peter says.
By the end of the weekend, the engines quietened and the trucks eased out the gates, with the dust nally settling over the 12 acres that for one weekend, had become one big transport museum.
And if this says anything about Darnum, is that it’s only going to get bigger.
A few interesting vehicles made their way to the display 70 tractors were on show too
Yard, Workshop & Fabricating division located at Trentham, Victoria (Closed Saturdays). Please contact one of the above for an appointment.
Warh se
REBORN
A forgotten 1942 Ford, once part of Australia’s war e ort, in transformed for a new life back out on the road
Geo rey Hunt’s story of his Ford stretches back to 1942, when his grandfather drove it o the lot brand new during the middle of World War II.
It took eight years for Geo rey to finish fixing up this beauty
“They were general carriers out of Burragorang Valley, doing a lot of produce into the Sydney markets and onto the wharves for the war e ort,” he says.
The trucks were part of the national e ort, but the valley that once kept those trucks busy would eventually disappear. When the government ooded Burragorang Valley to create Warragamba Dam, the family sold their general carrying business. One truck, however, stayed behind.
“They kept this one particular truck for their farm out at Menangle,” Geo rey says.
“It used to sit out there for years, and we used to just pick up hay out on the paddocks with it, and then they drove it to the shed one day and that's where it remained for about 30 years.”
When the government eventually resumed the farm to build the freeway toward Mittagong, the old truck’s future suddenly
came into question. As the family cleared the property, Michael spotted it again.
“When we were cleaning up, I asked dad, ‘well what about the old 42?’ and he thought it had just about had it, but I wanted to restore it.”
That decision would spark an eight-year journey. At rst glance, the truck was far from promising.
A re had burnt the back of the truck, ruining the timber framework and the body.
“I had to source another tray and was lucky enough to nd a genuine Ford tray for that year model, so I put it on,” Geo rey says.
From there, he tackled most of the rebuild himself, but he wasn’t as proactive about it as his wife would have liked, so she let him know it was time to knuckle down.
“My wife said to me in 2010 that I wasn’t ddling around enough with the truck,” he says. “She told me I had ve more years.”
So, Geo rey got cracking, and acquired two old 1942 trucks to source parts, he did the full restoration, apart from the motor rebuild.
“I got an auto electrician to rewire it. I worked on the chassis, swapped the cabs and did the
Images: Geo rey Hunt
It’s been a hard worker for majority of its life
Geo and his wife Joan in front of the old Ford
O it rolls!
brakes and gearbox,” he says.
“I got the new motor tted, new radiators put in and xed up the interior, then painted it up.”
We planned a trip and when it was done, we ended up driving it to Alice Springs for the big 20th anniversary truck reunion.”
But it hasn’t come without its challenges.
Three years ago, while travelling between truck shows, the old Ford reminded Geo rey that it’s full of surprises, and the engine let go.
“We had just been to a truck show and were heading to another one the next week at Gundagai,” he says.
“I ended up breaking the crank in the motor, but I’ve changed the motor in it since.”
With trucks having been part of Geo rey’s life for as long as he can remember, the breakdown was just one of those things.
He says growing up around the family farm at Menangle, transport was always in the background. Alongside the farm work, the family also ran coal trucks hauling out of Burragorang Valley.
Geo rey’s path into the industry came with conditions. “Dad said that I couldn’t come on the trucks until I got a trade,” he says. “So, I became a panel beater, and then eventually I started driving for him.”
Later, Geo rey bought his own truck and ran it as an owner driver for a decade.
Joan Hunt enjoying a drink with the old rig
The Ford proudly representing its country
It now looks as good as new
The engine wasn't always so sweet
BUILT TO DEALS Showcase
Adapt
This Trailer Stonestar extendable drop deck delivers serious exibility, heavy-duty strength, and cost-e ective performance for operators
For operators chasing versatility without blowing out their eet size, Trailer Stonestar is making a compelling case with one of its newest releases – an extendable drop deck trailer that’s built to adapt.
Ease of use hasn’t been overlooked either. The inclusion of an auto air-controlled locking pin simpli es the extension process, allowing drivers to adjust the trailer length quickly and safely.
The extendable drop deck with ramp starts at 13.575 metres long
“Flexibility is everything in today’s transport game,” Trailer Stonestar national sales manager Mohammad Rashid says.
“Operators don’t want multiple trailers sitting idle, they want one that can handle a range of jobs, and that’s exactly what this unit is designed to do.”
The new extendable drop deck with ramp starts at 13.575 metres long and can stretch out to an impressive 19.67 metres, giving operators the freedom to move anything from standard freight through to oversized loads without needing to switch equipment.
Rated at 40 Tonne ATM, it’s built to carry serious weight while maintaining stability and performance across varying conditions.
The high tensile steel chassis provides the backbone, paired with a checker-plate steel oor that’s designed to handle demanding loads and tough environments. Underneath, a heavy duty K-Hitch 19.5 axle setup with air bag suspension ensures a smoother ride and improved load protection.
“We’ve focused on making it as userfriendly as possible,” Rashid says. “Time is money in this industry, so anything that speeds up loading and set-up is a win.”
Loading itself is made easier thanks to hydraulic ramps powered by a 12V system, o ering a practical solution for operators regularly moving machinery or vehicles.
At the rear, the trailer is fully equipped with safety signage and ashing lights, ensuring compliance and visibility on the road.
It’s a package that ticks multiple boxes - strength, adaptability and operator convenience - all in one unit. And with a starting price of $90,200 plus GST, it positions itself as a cost-e ective way to expand capability without expanding eet numbers.
The Stonestar Extendable Drop Deck is available now from Trailer Stonestar in Dingley Village, Victoria. To find out more, contact the team on 03 8547 8503.
Images: Trailer Stonestar
• 03 8547 8503 The price starts from $90,200 + GST The
• Stonestar Extendable Drop Deck with B-Fold Ramp 1020H
The main street shuts down as classic trucks roll in, turning Birregurra into a buzzing community celebration
For three years, the main street of Birregurra has stopped tra c – not because of roadworks or a detour, but because of one man who pushed to make it happen.
When Michael Barry took over as president of the Birregurra Motor Enthusiasts Club, the idea had already been idling for years. Close the main street and ll it with chrome. Turn a quiet country strip into a rolling museum.
These Kenny’s were show ready
The people of Birregurra clearly had a good time!
“They had this idea about six years ago, before I became president of the club,” Michael says. “But they never got it o the ground. When I took over, I made it my mission to get it going.”
Six years a er the original concept was oated – and three years since engines rst rumbled down the streets – the Birregurra Motor Show has now found its rhythm.
This year, at least 20 trucks lined the street – maybe more. A strong showing of older rigs dominated the lineup, including classy Internationals and other vintage vehicles that carry stories in every scratch of paint.
With only a gold coin donation at the gate, exact crowd gures were impossible to pin down. But sometimes you don’t need headcount to measure success – instead
Images: Sylvia Tyrer
This International D1510 is a showstopper
The ‘Problem Child’ White
A dazzling Ford carried in a mini truck
The scrollwork on this Kenny is remarkable
A stunning red monster Mack showed o its stu
Jennings Livestock Carriers rolled in for the day
DEALS Events
What was under the hood was even more interesting
Awards
Agricultural/Truck/Other
Best Ute (Birre Mail): Chris O'Beirne - 1967 Ford XR
Best Truck (Modern Towing pre 1960): Ron Debeen - 1956 Ford F100
Best Truck (post 1960) - (Riordan Grains post 1960): Robbie Rose - 1988 Ford LTL9000
Best Club/Group Display - (Community Bank): Classic Cars Geelong Presidents Award – ‘Best in Show’ - (Colac/Otway Shire): John Walsh - 1970 Ford Falcon
Best Australian Car - (Colac Auto Care): Tony Hegyesi - 1957 Holden FE
Best USA car - (LM Restorations): Brian Johnson - 1956 Oldsmobile
Best European (inc British) - (Modern Towing): Stuart Harvey - 2008 Aston Martin
Best Japanese - (Keegan Quinney Memorial Trophy) - (Quinney Family): Josh Matthews - 2007 Mitsubishi
Best Original (all years) - (Community Bank): Takira Mason - 1969 Ford Fairlane
Best Hot Rod -(L M Restorations): Cli Rigby - 1932 Ford Roadster
Best Custom - (H20 Excavations): Mark Reilly - 1934 Federal Bus
Best Veteran/Vintage (pre 1949) - (Community Bank): Mark Reilly - 1934 Federal Bus
Best Vintage (1950 to 1975) - (Colac Auto Care): Joe Strawford 1964 Holden EH
Bikes
Best Original motorcycle - (Riordan Grains): Glenn Rodriguez - 2014 HD
Best Vintage pre 1950 - (Otway Artisan): Rod Wright - 1942 HD
Best pre 1950 - (Colac Tyres): Gary Kammermann - 1942 HD
Best USA - (Barwon Water): Darren McKay - 2001 HD
Best Japanese - (Birregurra Self Storage): Emmerson Jarvie - Honda Z50 x 2
Best European (inc British - (M & L Drayton Plumbing): John Crewdson - 2003 BMW
There was plenty to see and do at the Birregurra Motor Show
it was visible from busy shopkeepers and bustling local cafes.
And then there was a 1932 bus that had Michael impressed.
“This bus was absolutely fantastic,” Michael says. “The owner was allowing people inside of it. It had a blown small block Chevy motor in it, so it was pretty amazing.”
For Michael though, the standout moment was surprisingly not under a bonnet.
“I really enjoyed presenting the trophies to the winners,” he says. “Just seeing the smile on people’s faces a er getting their win was amazing.”
“It means someone noticed the hours spent restoring, polishing and preserving - and that’s quite special.
“We don't really make a pro t, but we did make one this year. The local shops were full of people and for our community, it was a good day out. A local band kept crowds entertained all day as well which was great.”
The show itself doesn’t exist to make money, in fact, pro t has never been the
driving force. But this year for the rst time ever, a pro t was made.
The show regularly feeds funds straight back into town. Two $1,000 scholarships go toward the local schools every year.
“I think we've donated over $40,000 to the Men's Shed in Birregurra so far,” Michael says.
“We support kids who need a uniform or money to go on excursions and things like that.”
“We like to support them. We try and put the money back into the community wherever we can.”
The Birregurra Motor Show is powered by community passion, with visitors rolling in and trucks glammed out head to tail. With the local band jamming all day long, the town lls, the money ows and they do it all over again year a er year.
Sometimes all you need is a main street, a few dozen classic trucks and someone persistent enough to make an idea move.
Crazy to think that just six years ago, it was all just talk.
What a line-up! This year for the first time ever, a profit was made from the show
These truck lovers from the Riordan fleet couldn’t be prouder of their trucks
CALENDAR Events
MAY 2026
Oil, Steam & Kerosene Family Fun Days
May 16 & 17, 2026
Menangle Park, NSW
Campbelltown Steam and Machinery Museum love to get out their machinery and put on a great display to educate and entertain you.
An old school International dressed in white at the Kids N Rigs truck show. Image: Paul Vandenberg Photography
TruckShowX (TSX26)
May 18-19, 2026
Hunter Valley, NSW
TruckShowX (HVIA’s technical/trade event) is pitched at industry professionals and focuses on technology, safety, decarbonisation, drive-day opportunities and the capability/technology expo. It combines an industry conference with opportunities to drive latest trucks and see manufacturer displays.
For more information go to truckshowx.com.au
Scenic Rim Truck Show
May 30, 2026 – Jimboomba, QLD
Come along to the Scenic Rim Truck Show, where passion for trucking meets the power of community! Held annually in the breathtaking Jimboomba area, this event is more than just a showcase of incredible trucks – it's a chance to make a di erence.
The show features a stunning array of trucks,
from state-of-the-art haulers to timeless classics, each with its own story to tell.
Rods Rides and Rigs
May 30, 2026
Loganholme, QLD
Rods Rides and Rigs in Loganholme is a dedicated model car and miniature vehicle show featuring detailed, scratch-built and customised models from local builders. The event is a familyfriendly, community-focused gathering held at Fitzy's Loganholme Function Centre.
Annual Vintage Machinery Display
May 30 & 31, 2026
Caboolture, QLD
There will be stationary engines, trucks and cars and tractors working displays all weekend with a grand parade each day. There will be burgers, a sausage sizzle and tea and co ee available over the weekend. Come and join in the fun and see history being preserved.
JUNE 2026
Trucking Australia – ATA – 2026
June 3-5, 2026
Hamilton Island, QLD
Trucking Australia (presented by the Australian Trucking Association) is a major industry conference that alternates locations. This event is strongly focused on industry policy, awards,
networking, and conference sessions aimed at fleet owners, senior managers and industry stakeholders.
For more information call 02 6253 6900 or go to the event page at new.truck.net.au/ta/
Alexandra Truck Show
June 7, 2026
Alexandra, VIC
Alexandra hosts over 300 trucks of all descriptions, log trucks, tippers, vintage and tow trucks. There are Utes on display, including B&S utes, working utes, town utes, and more. Don’t forget the hot rods on display, and a great line up of bands playing on the back of a truck in the main street. Great fun for the whole family.
For more information go to alexandratruckshow.com.au
JULY 2026
North Coast Petroleum Casino Truck Show
July 31 to August 1 Casino CBD, NSW
The Casino Truck Show is one of Australia’s largest truck shows with a large parade through the CBD, Friday Night Lights, hundreds of trucks on display, trade stalls, live music and family entertainment. The show attracts tens of thousands of visitors and several hundred trucks (500+ trucks in recent years). For truck registrations, exhibitor packs and sponsorship, check the o icial site/contact forms when registrations open.
For more information, look for @ casinotruckshow on Facebook or Instagram or go to casinotruckshow.com.au/
AUGUST 2026
Golden Oldies Truck, Tractor, Bus and Quilt Show
August 1 & 2, 2026Dubbo Showgrounds, NSW
There’s a whole heap going on in Dubbo in August, when the best looking golden oldies gather up to show o their stu . The event will feature a truck show, a tractor pull, bus muster, quilt show, live entertainment, food vendors and various trade stands.
Team Shoalhaven BBR Annual Truck Show
May 2 & 3, 2026
South Nowra, NSW
The Team Shoalhaven BBR INC proudly presents the 2026 annual truck show Beyond Blue Beyond Bitumen Supporting Men’s Mental Health.
Rob Burns Memorial Show
May 2 & 3, 2026
Tumut, NSW
All categories of cars, trucks and plane models are welcome at the Anglican Church Hall, on River Street, Tumut.
Lowood Truck Show
August 15, 2026
Lowood Showgrounds, QLD
Stay tuned... The Lowood Truck Show is making its return, and we're keen to make it the biggest show yet!
Thallon Truck Pull
August 29, 2026
Thallon, QLD
The Thallon Truck Pull is good ol’ country family fun at its finest, with loads on o er for everyone. At the heart of this thrilling event is a spirited competition of strength and skill. Crews of six take on the challenge of pulling a 12-tonne prime mover over 25 meters in the fastest time. Each team gets three attempts—fastest time wins! For more information go to thallontruckpull.com.au
The favourite fleet of Koroit Truck Show went to the incredible Morris Transport team. Image: Warren Aitken
IN HIS
Father's tracks
A 1949 International rebuilt by hand carries decades of memories and a father’s lasting in uence
Images: Jack Ferguson
It’s
There it sat on a farm leaning to one side. An old 1949 International that used to cart 18 ton of grain on its back – far more than it ever should have – unused.
“Back when I was a kid, my dad had a Rio, and he used to pull a dog trailer behind it and cart Ampol fuel,” Jack Ferguson says.
“Before he passed away, I got this KB6 and found a dog trailer and put Ampol drums on it. Dad took it for a run and said, ‘ghee, this brings back memories son.’”
That alone is enough to make this truck special to Jack.
He found it at a clearance sale and bought it for $500.
“I borrowed a semi and brought two trucks home, and that International was one of them. It took me about two years to slowly put it on the road, and it's been on the road since for 34 years,” Jack says.
“It was pretty sad at rst. It worked as a semi all its life, and it still had the semi on it when I purchased it, but I ended up taking it o and rebuilt it as a cabin chassis.
“I restored it 34 years ago, but I haven't
touched it since. I did all the mechanicals, then I did some panel beating and I painted it.
“I’ve just put a brand new reconditioned engine back in it, as the truck decided to cark it on the way up to Echuca in September last year, so I had to scrounge around and nd another engine.”
“I'm only self-taught. But my dad taught me a lot.”
The truck’s now back on the road and is “running like a Swiss watch”.
Jack extended the chassis at the rear and found a tray to go at the back of the truck.
“I found this dog trailer, not quite like the one dad had, but it's a 1945 McGrath, single wheel 14-foot dog trailer,” Jack says.
“I had a run in with Vic Roads a while back who stated that I should have had ratchet straps to hold the drums down, but I wouldn't do it.
“Ropes were around back in the old days, and I wanted to keep my truck like that, but they said they'd book me if I didn't put the straps on. So, I ended up taking the drums o and I just run it like it is now.”
one fine looking vintage piece
The KB6 runs on club plates now, heading to shows when the opportunity arises. At the time of the interview with Deals on Wheels, Jack was heading o to Lance eld with his ngers crossed that the generator would be sorted in time. If not, he planned to take his 1955 Federal instead.
There seems to be a pattern in Jack’s shed –and it’s written on the bonnets.
“Every truck my father ever owned, has a name on the bonnet,” Jack says. So he followed suit.
One truck bore his wife’s name, ‘Beverly May’, and the KB6 carries ‘Old Timer’ – ironic, he laughs, “I’m older than the bloody thing.”
And the Federal in the shed reads ‘Pushing Time’, “As that’s what happens when we get older.”
His father once had ‘Sticky Beak’ painted upside down and back to front on the bonnet –readable only if you practically stood on your head.
If someone nally worked it out and walked away pretending they hadn’t looked, the joke had landed perfectly.
And lastly, his dad’s blue 1993 International was called ‘Blue Marlin’, a er the Australian blue Marlin sh.
“He actually sketched it on a bit of paper and stood there with a small brush and black paint, and drew the sh himself, then wrote Blue Marlin,” Jack says.
“So, then I thought to myself that with every truck I'll ever own, I’ll do the same. And that’s what I’ve done.”
Jack has used original paint on his truck in an attempt to preserve the history of these old vehicles.
“These trucks were working vehicles, and that's how I've painted them to be. They were never meant to look like all the done up trucks of today,” he says.
“I like to keep them original.”
And up until four years ago, Jack was still restoring trucks for others. Then came the open heart surgery where things took a bit of a turn. He’s also had some shoulder issues, which made things harder.
So, putting up his 1949 International for sale was not an easy decision, but something that had to be done.
Jack’s self-taught. He’s put motors together and has carted loads since the good old days when everything was di erent.
“I've been in the cabin of a truck since I was three years of age thanks to dad,” he says.
“I’m truly retired now, but I’ve been involved with trucks all my life. I started out on my own in 1963, and I’m still playing with trucks to this day.
“It's just in your blood, you can't help it, you live and breathe them.”
That’s what makes selling the KB6 so bittersweet, but Jack knows that the truck deserves someone who can keep steering it into its next chapter.
If you’re interested in this truck, please contact Jack Ferguson on 0458 262 031.
Jack bought this truck for $500 The rig was kept in its original form
DEALS Resto
TWO WHITE
Macks
One Mack keeps a family legacy alive, while another Ultraliner begins its long road back
Words: Tiane Gavillucci
Images: Tim Lavis
This truck has cruised around Tim’s hometown for as long as he can remember
An all white 1979 Mack FR700 has become part of a family story.
“It’s been in my hometown as long as I can remember,” Tim Lavis says. “I didn’t buy the truck. My father-in-law owned it for about 30 years, and when he passed away it became a part of the family.”
“Everyone uses it, no one really ended up with it. He just le it in the family.”
And like many great trucks, its story started long before Tim ever got behind the wheel.
Originally delivered out of a Brisbane dealership, the Mack rst went to a company called Sanbella before landing in Tim’s fatherin-law’s hands, where he stripped it right down, restored it and kept it working for all those years.
Back then, the truck earned its keep.
“My father-in-law originally had it hooked up under a oat,” Tim says. “Then he put a quick hitch tipper on it, so he did a bit of both.”
It wasn’t a showpiece. It was a worker.
These days the Mack has a very di erent job description. Truck shows. And quite a few of them.
Tim hasn’t done anything to the truck to reinvent it – mostly just to preserve it.
“We just polish it and keep it fairly clean,” he says.
“It's now got airbags under the cab, which it never had before,” Tim says.
There have been subtle tweaks done that only a keen Mack enthusiast would spot however.
Prior to becoming Tim’s, his father-in-law owned the FR700 for about 30 years
The 1979 Mack FR700 looking schmick
And
The Ultraliner before it was restored (Left) and the FR700 carrying another rig (Right)
o she goes!
“It's got di erent front cab mounts as well. Unless you know the type of truck it is, you're not really going to tell the di erence.”
But the Mack isn’t the only truck occupying Tim’s attention these days. Sitting alongside the FR700 is the Mack Ultraliner that Tim purchased during a lap around Australia.
And he bought it sight unseen.
“I bought it while we were on a trip,” he says. “And I had never seen it before.”
It’s been with him for about six months now, and the work has already begun.
“I’m gradually restoring it. I've stripped down the fuel tanks and everything, and I’m now getting it ready to sandblast the chassis and then I’ll get it running properly,” he says.
“It had been sitting idle for eight years before I bought it, so I need to put a clutch in it and do a few other things here and there to add my own personal touches.
“Otherwise, it's actually not too bad.”
Once complete, the Ultraliner won’t just sit around to look good. No, Tim has plans to put it to work.
“It will hopefully work as a oat truck, and I’ll buy a semi tipper to go behind it and hopefully work it a bit.”
For Tim, trucks have always been part of life, long before showgrounds and restoration projects.
Growing up on a farm meant machinery and trucks were everyday tools.
Originally, Tim trained as a light vehicle mechanic, working mostly on cars. But a move into the logging industry shi ed his path toward heavy machinery and transport.
Add in the in uence of family, with both brothers-in-law running earthmoving businesses and driving trucks themselves, it’s easy to see how the passion stuck.
Tim had never seen the Ultraliner before he purchased it
The Macks have always been hard working rigs
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Little kids got to get behind the wheel of big rigs at South Australia’s Touch-a-Truck annual event
It was a chance for kids to get up close and personal with a big rig, to honk the horns, chat with truckies and be immersed in the world of transport.
This is what Touch-a-Truck is all about.
Apex Park was buzzing
“This show allows kids to ask questions like ‘what does the truck do? What’s it like to be a driver and work inside the truck all day?’” event team leader Gordon Anderson says.
“The kids get up inside to learn; there’s also a few demos for them too.”
The rst ever event was supposed to run in 2022 as the world slowly came out of COVID and South Australia opened up again, but with the pandemic still running loose they ended up having to park it.
Touch-a-Truck o cially started the year a er and has been growing louder, bigger and more ambitious, now annually held at Apex Park.
Their fourth show this year was an absolute success, with over 7,000 people making their way into the grounds to see the gleaming big rigs.
“This was a big event, probably the biggest
event we’ve ever done,” Gordon says.
Thirty trucks rolled in – Around 10 from council, along with emergency services, tra c management crews – the lot.
One of the show’s stars was a giant re tender from Adelaide Airport, and the Solar Challenge vehicle from the University of South Australia.
“It's only because we're situated very close to the airport that we're able to get access to one of the tenders,” Gordon says. “I'm super excited about it. That's something that doesn't get out very much.”
Then there was the University of South Australia’s Solar Challenge vehicle.
“I know the Solar Challenge isn’t a big truck, but the vehicle was super popular,” Gordon says.
Part of the World Solar Challenge, the car which races from one end of Australia to the other on solar power alone captured imaginations in a di erent way.
“The University team is a part of that and have one of their solar powered vehicles.”
From SA Ambulance, to Defence, from
Images: John Kruger and the City of West Torrens
There were smiling faces everywhere
The event was a chance for kids to get up close and personal with a big rig
Military vehicles made an entrance
Buckle up!
A Scania fire truck welcomes visitors inside
DEALS Events
tra c management crews to the Torrens to Darlington project team, the lineup re ected the many moving parts that keep Australia functioning.
There were some vehicle displays for the kids to admire
Even familiar faces from the trucking world made an appearance, Casuarina Smith, known to many as ‘Trucking with CJ’ was there along with groups like Steering the Future.
But beyond the horsepower and truck stories, Touch-a-Truck carries something deeper for the team behind it.
“We're lucky to put on a summer festival together every year. Our council is very generous in supporting this event,” Gordon says.
The festival itself has been running for almost 20 years. Touch-a-Truck slots into that calendar at a meaningful time — postChristmas, when wallets are lighter but school holidays still stretch ahead.
“It’s a chance to bring people together and have that shared experience.”
And bring people together it does.
West Torrens is proudly multicultural, and the event re ects that diversity. Families of
every background wander the grounds and importantly also, the team works hard to ensure the event is inclusive.
“We get a lot of people with di erent abilities come through our gate,” Gordon says.
“We host a quiet hour at the start of the day for people with sensory di culties. We just try to make it as inclusive as possible.”
Touch-a-Truck values accessibility. Ensuring every child, regardless of ability, gets the same experience as the child before them behind the wheel of a truck.
“If I’m being a bit sel sh, the highlight for me is seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces – that makes the hard work all worth it.”
The event not only invited fun, but also education to kids and adults about life on the road and potential career paths for people looking into transport.
It was a full day of tiny hands gripping oversized steering wheels and high-vis heroes kneeling down to answer serious questions from little four-year-olds.
Touch-a-Truck was a great success, where an entire community gathered for machines that keep Australia moving.
Solo Resource Recovery educated the crowds
Heidelberg Materials rocked up in their vibrant green Mack
The SES paid Touch-a-Truck a visit too
Here’s the giant fire tender from Adelaide Airport
The grounds were packed
The kids were excited to speak with Casuarina Smith of ‘Trucking with CJ’
Legend Bringing back a
When a young Jon Kelly was just a kid rolling around in the cab of his Grandad’s truck, a fateful stop at popular NT roadhouse planted a seed that’s taken decades to grow
Words & Images | Warren Aitken
TIt would be very easy to rebuild a Superliner and base it on the old Bicentennials. But to build a picture-perfect replica. That takes dedication
he chicken parmy is an iconic Australian meal. It’s a stable of many roadhouses, pub meals and has even been attempted by McDonalds.
Finding the perfect chicken parmy is obviously very personal, we all have di erent expectations. But I can attest, and I reckon I would have the backing of every truckie that has passed there, that the Emerald Springs Roadhouse in the Northern Territory made arguably the best chicken parmy ever.
Perfect pounded boneless chicken breast, fresh enough you’d believe it had only recently walked in from the coop, run through a rigorous three step breading procedure of our, eggs and then the most delicious crisp breadcrumbs. Precisely pan fried to perfection then topped with a true Italianinspired tomato sauce, covered in just the right amount of mozzarella cheese and grilled into ecstasy, oh my mouth is watering at the memory already.
The three-day drive to the tiny Territory establishment was always worth it and I’ll admit there were tears when the parking bays were full. But why am I decorating these pages with pictures of a perfect replica of Australian trucking history and wa ing on about the gi from the gods of the perfect parmy?
Because I am trying to establish the extreme importance of a childhood memory that has motivated the enormous amounts of time and money that has led us to this truck. I am trying to lay the platform for the sacri ce a young Jon Kelly made that would decades later motivate
him to build a replica of that moment in time.
The year was 1989, the location was the aforementioned Emerald Springs Roadhouse, home to the world’s best chicken parmy meal –perfect pounded boneless – oh wait I’m getting distracted again. It might be better if I let Jon tell the story.
“Ned Kelly was always the pinnacle truck for me, I remember seeing it as a kid pull up at Emerald Springs,” Jon recalls.
“I was doing a trip with my grandad in the old R700, and we pulled up next to it.
“I was about eight or nine, we were sweating our ring out, peeling ourselves o the vinyl seats and we watched Jack Taylor walk out of the bunk, out of the full-length door and I just thought ‘what the F is this?’ I couldn’t believe it.
“He let me look in the bunk, look in the cab. I couldn’t believe this truck; it was beyond belief.”
Now to tie all this back to my opening diatribe, you need to appreciate Jon’s next admission.
“Jack and Smiler (Jon’s Grandad) went in the roadhouse and got on the piss for 10 hours and I reckon I sat in that driver’s seat until they came back out and shooed me away. I was happy to sit in there and not have dinner,” he says.
For a young man to sacri ce the world’s greatest chicken parmy just to spend time in a truck – I don’t fully comprehend that level – but it was the birth of an obsession that wouldn’t be ful lled for another 30-odd years.
To understand that almost OCD addiction
of an eight-year-old, you really need to understand the preceding years, as well as the years that have passed since.
Jon Kelly is a name synonymous with Australian transport. He is an easy target for many keyboard warriors as much as he is a source of invaluable Australian trucking history to those that need it.
He has built some of the most well-known and recognisable custom trucks and he has been involved in some of the biggest and lo iest heavy haulage moves in Australia.
He is an ironically private man that lives a life out in the open, through the likes of social media and multiple TV shows. And most of all, he is an extremely passionate trucking man.
“I was really lucky that I got to grow up in a time of really cool old trucks,” he says.
“What I want to do now is help preserve our history through trucks.”
Jon grew up on his grandfather’s boot laces, Frank ‘Smiler’ Nilon.
Smiler was a legend of Australian transport; he was one of the rst drivers to ever cart machinery into the Mary K uranium mine – eight hours in an old Foden to cover just 45 miles is a sign of a patient professional.
By the time Jon was on the scene and old enough to reach the passenger seat ( ve years old, for the record), Smiler had his own Mack and was building his longstanding relationship with Hasting Deering and
forging the heavy haulage pathway between Brisbane and Darwin.
Every opportunity Jon could get, he was accompanying his grandfather out on the road, sitting in the passenger seat of the various Macks that Smiler progressed through. From the Flintstone to the R700, the Super-Liners, Value-Liners and even the CLs, Jon learned the ropes, the skills and the loads.
By the time he was 10 or 11, Jon was more than equipped to drive the loads. I’m not sure what the statute of limitations is on child labour, so we’ll all just pretend he wasn’t ever ‘actually driving’ in those days.
It wasn’t just his grandad’s trucks that fascinated the young Jon – it was all the big boppers that ran those western highways back in the day. With an almost Rain Man-like ability, Jon could pick out the trucks coming down the road and the history with them.
Retaining that nostalgia is what drives him now with his Heavy Haulage Assets business. Finding old trucks that he encountered, experienced and sometimes just admired. Bringing life back to them and restoring memories.
Even from the early days, Jon’s drive and focus was on having his own truck and doing the big jobs. Meeting Jack Taylor and having that time in Ned Kelly turned that truck into not just an idol for Jon, but a goal as well.
During the ‘90s and Jon’s teenage years, he
Jon is fortunate enough to have a shed full of resurrected memories, which includes Ned Kelly and several others that bring back plenty of childhood memories
absorbed himself in trucks and trucking.
While the rest of us were slacking o in school, enjoying MC Hammer music videos and guring out how to replace the bourbon in the liquor cabinet with cold tea, Jon was helping his grandad with pricing out and submitting quotes for massive moves, planning said moves, perfecting the patient art of heavy haulage and competing with Smiler to perfect the gear change.
enough to have a couple of years’ experience walking legally into a pub. He was a kid.
The bane of Mick McCormick's life was manufacturing these Bicentennial iconic door handles. All to keep to the originals' design
By the time he hit 19, Jon had saved up enough to purchase his very rst truck in a 1988 Mack Super-Liner out of Melbourne.
I would love to tell you it was a truck that would hold a very special place in Jon’s heart, but truth be told, he had it for a month, did a month-long spruce up on it and before he even got it back up to Brisbane, he had sold it for a very good pro t.
What made that rst truck so memorable, however, was the fact that the cash he got for selling it allowed him to be in the right position at the right time to purchase Kingsford Smith –the sixth Mack Bicentennial o the line.
“Kingsford Smith was my rst o cial working truck – the rst that I registered and went to work with,” Jon says.
“A normal Super-Liner was around $80,000 back then and I got Kingsford Smith for $110,000. Nobody really understood how important they would be in transport history.”
It is fair to say starting your transport career with a Bicentennial Mack Super-Liner as a kid is pretty ful lling, and more so for a kid whose memory was still in the driver’s seat of Ned Kelly back in Emerald Springs. I do say kid as well, because at this stage Jon was only old
From that rst working truck, over the next few decades Jon learnt and grew. Many trucks have seen the HHA touch, and many have been refurbed and passed on to customers. Jon’s passion for trucks and for heavy haulage became widespread. All you have to do is mentioned names like Gangster’s Paradise, J-Cash, The Majestic or Bandit-1 and people know.
Throughout all the ups and downs of Jon’s career, there was always that lingering itch, that ‘missing out on the chicken parmy for this one truck’ feeling.
“A er that moment when I was eight or nine, I was always like ‘can we get a Bicentennial’, ‘can we get a Bicentennial’, ‘can we got one’ – I was like those kids screaming are we there yet,” Jon laughs as he recalls how frustrating he must have been.
“Even when I bought Kingsford Smith, that was really cool, it was a great truck, but it wasn’t Ned Kelly.”
That itch never faded for Jon and over the years as he bought and sold other trucks, when he found himself ush, he made several attempts to purchase the original Ned Kelly. Jon came close a couple of times to getting his hands on it, but timing meant it just never quite lined up.
Jump to 2018 and Jon was pretty much out of the heavy haulage game – his focus had moved into the truck sales side of things. This involved some refurbs and rolling the trucks out the door to new owners. It also allowed Jon to start purchasing and restoring to original
There is just something extremely familiar and reassuring about the interior of a classic Mack Superliner
Rebuilding and reupholstering the interior of these one of a kind sleepers was one of the longest parts of the rebuild. Getting the Bunk as close as legally possible, plus scouring the world for that distinctive crushed green velour – but worth it in the end
Another iconic feature of the original Bicentennial Bunks was the flat fronted piece where the name was printed on each of the 16 trucks. It also meant Jon had to get his own fabricators to manufacture one when he had a new bunk built
a lot of the big bangers he had admired and idolised as a young fella from the passenger seat of Smiler’s trucks. The crew of experts he had assembled to assist and organise some monumental overhauls meant Jon had the skills on hand to maybe undertake a massive emotional project in building a Ned Kelly Bicentennial Replica.
“I had just purchased a 1988 Mack SuperLiner o Grant Angel up in Mataranka, and I was driving it home and just thought ‘you know what, I reckon I could make this a Bicentennial’,” Jon admits.
Now replicas are nothing new in the automobile world. In cars, the 1967-1968 Shelby Cobra is the most replicated car in the world. Chances are if you see one it is almost guaranteed to be a replica. In Australia, believe it or not, the A9X Torana is the most popular replica, closely followed by the XB Coupe. As far as trucks go, more o en than not they are classed as ‘tribute’ trucks, like the amount of Optimus Prime inspired trucks you see on the roads, but replicas are something not really attempted in our world.
“I just wanted to do it for me and for my boys,” Jon says.
“If they can do it with the GT Falcons, I can do it with a Super-Liner. Plus, no one has done a Bicentennial Super-Liner back to 100 per cent brochure perfect, with the exhaust, the gold rims, the quarter guards, the straight up and down bullbar and the original KAB seats. That was my vision. It took me seven or eight years, but I have gotten it done.”
While the timeline was extensive, a lot of that was purely due to life getting in the way.
The project began with a hiss and a roar, dealing with the biggest and most exclusive part of the Bicentennial Super-Liners – the bunk.
“A Super-Liner is a Super-Liner regardless of what it is, the biggest intricate thing for the Bicentennials is the sleeper,” he says.
“They were unique to them, they were 48’, they were high rise, they had the full-length walk-in door. They were the only factory tted 48’ sleeper that Mack ever o ered in that Super-Liner.
“The bunk itself was a standard Mack 36’ sleeper that was blown out to 48’ and had 11’ in the roof.”
Now for all Jon’s attempts to be 100 per cent brochure perfect, unfortunately legal reasons trump a childhood memory of skipping a parmy for a seat in a truck.
“For copyright reasons I had to get Joe Bradley to make a 50’ version instead of 48’. He put 11’ in the roof but I had to get the at name plate bit and the bit up the top where the boomerang aerial goes done by my breglasser,” he says.
It was a 12-month project just getting the bunk done alone, then you had all the time spent on everything else, like setting the chassis up, overhauling the engine and di s and even adding the chrome tapper covers that were pretty unique back in 1988.
Jon’s drive to be 100 per cent brochure perfect, or at least within two inches, meant it would take time. I mean, you can’t exactly pop down to Carpet Court for a roll of crushed green velour interior carpet, can you? For the record, that was another
challenge, but they did nd some in Belgium of all places.
Some things came a little easier than others. Brisbane’s Seats R Us somehow managed to have a couple of the original KAB seats they’d restored, while items like the ‘hounds tooth door entry handle’ became the bane of Mick McCormack’s (one of Jon’s fabricators) existence as he had to handmake perfect replicas of a now non-existent part.
“By the time we had it nished for the Casino Truck Show last year, it was nut and bolt perfect,” Jon admits.
“We built it so it can be used, the best feeling was hooking a double up to take it down to Casino and then we hooked a triple up to take it to Alice Springs as well.”
That trip was even more emotional as his son James took the opportunity to replicate his father’s actions and pull his rst triple across the Barkley.
There are plenty of people that Jon wants to credit for assisting with this momentous build.
There’s probably too many to remember, but special shout outs go to the likes of Gary Rose, his head of the refurb team, Mick McCormack, driver Dave and Jon’s son James, who pushed pretty hard to keep this project rolling.
Huge appreciation to Glenn and Richard Graeme who own Bicentennial No.1, Ludwig Leichhardt. They had their truck accosted
by Jon on several occasions to measure up templates and cross check references.
Big shout out to PJs for the painting of the truck and a special thank you to the Britannica of Bicentennials himself, Ernie Hastas, who kept Jon on task for ensuring the little details like lines and colours were also 100 per cent accurate.
There is no doubt countless others involved in this project that deserve a shout out, they have all played a part in bringing memories and history back to life and they all get to share in the massive smile that Jon sports as he enters the vicinity of his replica Ned Kelly. But I think Jon summed up his appreciation and motivation the best.
“What I do, and how I do it these days, is to freeze those amazing moments and memories of my life through the trucks I build and bring back. Most importantly, let others hear and understand those moments and live a little of that glory with me,” he says.
Personally, I am torn, seeing as I hear Emerald Springs Roadhouse has closed. I still kind of hold it against Jon for missing out on a chicken parmy that day. But then, as I photograph this amazing replica, knowing it’s not just a re ection of history but also a re ection of the truck that fanned the ames of Jon’s trucking passion, I reckon I can let the parmy go.
50’ or 48’, you can’t really tell. What the side view does show is just how cool the Bicentennials are. Big bonnet, big tanks, big bunk. Big Truck
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Family-owned Adaptali Group has been appointed as an authorised JCB dealer across several major Australian cities
JCB’s deputy chairman George Bamford has heralded the beginning of a new chapter for the British equipment manufacturer in Australia with the appointment of a new dealer and a major new investment in customer service support.
George, son of JCB Chairman Anthony Bamford, spoke at a signing ceremony celebrating the appointment of Adaptali Group as an authorised JCB dealer across various major Australian metropolitan territories, including Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.
As part of the agreement, Adaptali Group will provide comprehensive customer care across its territories, delivering customer service support, technical expertise as well as equipment sales for customers
operating in various demanding industry sectors, where machine uptime and productivity are crucial to their individual businesses.
The contract signing coincides with news that JCB is making a signi cant investment in its service and spare parts operations in Australia, including extensive new warehousing capabilities, supported by a strategic logistics partnership with DHL Supply Chain.
“This is the beginning of a bold new chapter for JCB in Australia,” Bamford says.
“At the end of last year, we set out plans to set up a new national Australian headquarters and to appoint a new network of independent dealers.
“We’re investing heavily for the future and are delighted to have
Adaptali Group on board as a JCB dealer partner.
“Customers in these major metropolitan Australian territories can expect outstanding customer service from Adaptali Group and JCB, backed up by our strategic logistics partnership with DHL Supply Chain.
“This new dealer development combines JCB’s world-renowned machinery range and service portfolio with Adaptali ’s service-driven operating model, customer reach, nationwide scale and Australian market coverage.
“Together, our two family businesses will accelerate JCB’s growth in Australia across a variety of industries and sectors, including construction, infrastructure, agriculture, industrial and waste and recycling.”
JCB deputy chairman George Bamford (left) and Adaptalift group chairman Peter Whi en. Image: JCB
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