Can someone please explain the small stearing wheels

As mentioned a couple of pages back the decline started way back with the ending of Armstrong steering when power from the engine came in. Some times, years ago, you practically had to stand up to pull the wheel round in a confined space fully loaded. The first truck I had with power steering was an Atkinson Highline, a very tall cab, flat floor over the engine wich had a wheel about a foot in diameter. Believe it or not they were advertised for the danger of serious injury climbing down to the ground. It was seen as a good thing. They didn't last long in production but not for that, it had a massive deep windscreen, the bottom of it was at ankle height and in sunny weather you could fry.

Apart from that I met a bloke who had spent his army service driving tank transporters back in the '50s , German Fauns which had no power steering and when turning a corner he had to keep flipping the throttle pedal to make the cab jump and this momentarily lifted the weight off the steering.

Be careful what you wish for.

 

We had something similar in the states it was the GMC Astro.

 

I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours.
The Highline is the one on the right, the other is a rare engine out front model.
The Marque was so well loved that when in later years it was taken over by Seddon and called Seddon Atkinson there was such an outcry at the loss of the Big A and the Knight's head that SedAck restored them and dropped the name Seddon on some models.

 

No wonder I couldn't find a better picture, it was called the Viewline, not the Highline. Really solid mirror brackets too, before that most British trucks just had little sticks which vibrated.

The view inside. Slightly thicker screen posts I notice though.

 

GMC Astro, albeit a fancy one.

 

Loved my Jimmy. Took me a long time to get used to power steering. I would always WAY over-steer...

(Still kinda do when Im tired 30+ years later)

Hated the International Transtar IIs. Kept jamming my fingers into the windshield.

 

And it is rumored a lot of them drove up to 16 hours at a stretch then hand trucked a floor load of dried peaches/sacks of dried beans to the tailgate.

 

When I got my CDL in 1984, my first job (Q Carriers) I got 9 cents a mile and $20 a drop. A "drop" was spending all day (6-8 hours) at Winn Dixie or Food Lion taking it off my pallets and putting it on theirs. If I wanted to get a lumper, I had to pay for it (from my vast wealth). Going home I would have a fabric load going to Chicago with anywhere from 9 to 14 fabric stores that I only had to drag to the back of the box (again $20 a drop) so it kind of made up for it.

I didnt start gaining weight until I came off the road after about 2 years and quit smoking.

 

Its just a style. Just like the 6ft tall shifter lever.
Personally I prefer the wheel to be almost flat.
To each their own.

 

Old rules you could drive 16 hrs in a 24 hour period. And because of that you could find a spot to park at night since someone was always leaving...