Daimler / Lanchester

I remember a story that my grandmother told me that employees at Siddeley Deasy, (later Armstrong Siddeley), had to ask the Foreman/Superintendent for a tally or token to go and use the toilet, which would be returned when the person had finished, so that the Individual was basically timed! This may have been common practice at other large factories at the time. It might also have been used to open the cubicle door if wallets etc. had to be left in a locker during working hours. Could this be one of those?

Just a quick question. I believe my father was an apprentice at Daimler in the 1930s in the machine shop and wondered if there was an apprentice group or any registers that were available to confirm this, please?

1932 Lanchester 15/18, TV5728 - Gaydon, 1 Jun 2014

A 1913 Daimler CD, Eaton body, Crosville 7, FM703 - anybody know if this was Coventry-built?

The Crosville Motor Co was in Chester. I would think the chassis was Daimler and the body made by Crosville.

Crosville were the operators. The body was by Eaton.

Daimler chassis at that date were made at the Coventry factory, although I believe some were built in conjunction with AEC of Walthamstow. The CC model was introduced in 1912, launched at the Royal Agricultural Show in Doncaster, the prototype was a double-decker registered DU6552. The model was powered by a 4 cylinder sleeve valve engine rated at 40 h.p. Typical cost would be £825. Many Daimler buses at this time were delivered pre-registered with DU numbers, and Crosville did operate DU2007 from 1913 to 1927 named the Flying Fox. Source: Crosville bus fleet

My father joined the Daimler as an office-boy on leaving school in 1914. In 1917 he was called up and fought in France during the last year of the Great War. On being demobbed he returned to the Daimler and was rewarded with an ash-tray! Soon after he was made redundant.

Not sure that this is relevant so mods do with it as you will. As he is a co-founder of the Daimler company I submitted this video. There is a lot of interesting information included. Frederick Simms

This is identical to those issued to me (and probably many more when I began my apprenticeship working at Coventry Gauge and Tool. The disc, I think I was issued with six ? was stamped with your clock card number. When requiring use of any tools from the tool counter the disc was hung (hence the hole) next to the shelf position from where the tool was kept. If any other worker came asking for the same tool the storeman could trace its whereabouts by the disc number. The disc would be returned on return of the tool.

I just wonder if among this gathering is a grand old boy who did a little part time work for me in my small workshop after he retired from Daimler He was a French Polisher of the wood trim and always spoke with pride on being congratulated on the quality of his work. I can vouch for his pride and quality of his work. A very upright gentleman and who wouldn't be with a name like Baden Powell !! He lived at the Walsgrave Road end of Dane Road.

Sometime around 1973 I recall seeing an old taxi which had obviously been restored. It was on a driveway somewhere in either Kingfield Rd or Widdrington Rd. The taxi had gleaming black coachwork, just like glass. I asked the old chap who was working on who had sprayed that wonderful paint job. A bit indignantly he told me that it was not sprayed but put on by his own fair hand with a brush. He also showed me his white Ford Anglia 105E which had a similar paint finish, again painted by him with a brush. I was most impressed. He told me that he and his son had restored the 1940's or early 50's taxi from a wreck and that they were fortunate to get lots of bits, including brand new bumpers from Roach's Scrapyard, then in Red Lane. The clincher to the story was that this proud man had recently retired from 'The Daimler' as he put it, where he was employed as a coach painter. It was at a time when the last buses were being turned out by Daimler. This chap was very proud of his skills, and proud to have worked for the Daimler. I think he may have lived in Old Church Rd, just opposite the British Celanese gates because that is where I saw the Ford Anglia parked on a few occasions, the Kingfield Rd address being that of his son. It may or may not be a coincidence that the bus garage in Sandy Lane was the last one in the West Midlands Passenger Transport era to repaint their buses using a brush rather than a spray gun. Maybe they were able to recruit suitably trained coach painters from the nearby Daimler factory?