Old Pond publishing days

Special Transport DVD advance information

Special Transport, Gertjan Houtman. DVD, approx 70 minutes. ISBN 978-1-908397-09-6. Now available from Old Pond at £16.95 inc VAT.

Among the Dutch transport companies there are several with a world-wide reputation for moving heavy and outsized loads. This programme features the work of three of them.

We see the Sarens group transporting the largest sections of a newly built cutter-suction dredger as well as a port container crane.

Mammoet’s skill with SPMTs is demonstrated when they move three heavy Smit transformers over water, road and use 2-stack work to cross a railway. We also see them place two viaducts, one of which is over a hundred metres long.

Saan’s special load is a Hercules plane being taken from its museum to painting facilities in Lelystad. This involved lifts to ‘hop’ over roads.

Finally there are some trailer transports, one with a houseboat and one with a steel vessel for a refinery.

Gertjan Houtman is a Dutch journalist and film-maker who specialises in heavy transport. His company is called Videoprofessionals.

The Classic Tractor Review new DVD advance information

The Classic Tractor Review, Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam (Tractor Barn). DVD, approx 100 minutes. ISBN 978-1-908397-07-2. Now in stock at Old Pond at £16.95 inc. VAT.

Just what is so special about classic tractors? To provide an answer Stephen and Jonathan show us a wide range of machines built from the 1960s to the 1990s at work on farms. Among the great names here are Ford, Massey, County, John Deere, Case IH and David Brown.

Special features include a farmer’s hay harvest using classic tractors from the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. There is also a tour of the 2010 National Ploughing Championships where many classics were in action.

Classic tractors belong to the golden years when manufacturers competed keenly to keep pace with advances in agricultural equipment and machinery. At the same time, tractors became more stylish and comfortable – a pleasure to work with. Although technical sophistication increased it was still at a level where owners felt able to resolve problems themselves rather than relying on a specialist. The rewards for the producers of successful models came in their buoyant sales to farmers at home and overseas.

A final test of whether these are true classics is whether they have stood the test of time. So many of the tractors in this programme have, and in the process gained an iconic status.

The models shown are: Massey Ferguson 35 • Massey Ferguson 135 • Ford 4000 (6X) • Ford 4600 (7A1) • Ford 4600  (7A2) • Marshall 804  • John Deere 6400  • David Brown 990 Implematic • David Brown 780 Selectamatic  • Ford Force 5000 (6Y) • Ford 6600 (7A2) • International Harvester 956XL • County Super Four • County 1184TW • County 974 • Roadless Ploughmaster 75 • Roadless 118 • Massey Ferguson 3630 • Ford 8630 • New Holland TS115 • New Holland 7840 (late example) • Ford 7610 II (AP) • John Deere 4020 • Case 1594 • Case IH 1594 • Leyland 384 • Same Jaguar 100 Export • Lamborghini Formula 135 • Ford 7810 II • Massey Ferguson 390 • Massey Ferguson 8130 • Many different classics from the 2010 National Ploughing Championships • Ford 5030 • Ford 7840 SLE • Massey Ferguson 362 • Case IH 1056XL • John Deere 2450 • John Deere 4850 • John Deere 7810.

More programmes by the Tractor Barn duo Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam can be found here.

Looking at Logging DVD by Pete Connock and Martin Phippard advance information

Looking at Logging Part 1, Pete Connock & Martin Phippard (CP Productions). DVD, approx 90 minutes. ISBN 978-1-906853-97-6. Now in stock at Old Pond at £16.95 inc VAT.

Logging transport has a special place in the world of trucking. The vehicles are large, powerful and have to withstand heavy work day in, day out. They often operate in demanding terrain on narrow mountainous roads in rain or ice. The skills of the truckers are matched by those of the timber handlers working in cramped locations with specialised machinery.

This is the first of a pair of programmes in which Pete Connock and Martin Phippard offer an inside view of logging transport around the world. They look briefly at the history of timber extraction before taking us to Finland where a Sisu demonstrator is hauling timber close to the Arctic Circle in the depths of winter.

On Vancouver Island, Canada they show us Kenworths operated by Western Forest Products. In the southern hemisphere they have filmed truck combinations coping with the rugged terrain of Tasmania. On New Zealand’s north island they show the power of Rod Dahm’s Pacifics .

Finally, they take a look at Dai Wood’s logging operation in Wales where he uses the first Volvo FMX tractor unit sold in the UK.

For over fifteen years Pete Connock and Martin Phippard have been making trucking programmes for enthusiasts. These popular films are well researched and fully narrated. More of their programmes are shown in the Trucking DVDs from CP section of the Old pond website.

Part 2 of Looking at Logging has now been released. The two parts are available together as a money-saving set on the offers page of the Old Pond website.

International Harvester tractors DVD from Tractor Barn advance information

International Harvester Tractors 1906-85, Stephen Richmond and Jonathan Whitlam (Tractor Barn). DVD, approx 75 minutes, ISBN 978-1-908397-08-9. Available now from Old Pond at £16.95 inc VAT.

The long and distinguished story of International harvester tractors started in the United States with the Titan and Mogul. In the early part of this DVD Jonathan and Stephen pay particular attention to the Titan 10-20 and the Mogul 8-16.

Then, with footage from events and ploughing matches, as well as farm work and some stills, the Tractor Barn film-makers show a host of models to give an overview of the complete story of the International Harvester tractor.

They take it through its Doncaster and Bradford days right up to the MX220 and the New Holland based models of the 21st century.This encompasses some great names of wheeled and tracklaying models, including Farmall, the B250, B275 and B450, the TD crawlers and the 74 and 85 series. Jonathan and Stephen show not just the main models and recent influences such as Steyr, and of course Case, but also connections from the past such as Cleveland.

As in all Tractor Barn programmes, the information flows thick and fast, with detailed narration by Stephen and Jonathan to introduce a range of tractors that has been hugely influential in British farming.

Maize silage campaign DVD by Chris Lockwood advance information

The Maize Silage Campaign, Chris Lockwood. DVD, approx 83 minutes. ISBN: 978-1-908397-01-0. Now in stock at Old Pond at £16.95 inc. VAT.

In his twenty-one years of maize harvesting, Suffolk contractor Robert Self has seen all sorts of seasons from the very dry to the impossibly wet. Film-maker Chris Lockwood captured the vagaries of Robert’s final campaign, 2010.

This proved to be a reasonable year but even so the contractor had to deal with a variety of crop conditions, as Chris shows in the programme. He starts with an introduction to Robert Self’s enterprise and his machines. Then he focuses on the clamp, with a JCB Farm Master loader and tractors rolling the clamp. Later in the DVD we see another method for storing silage with a look at an Ag-Bagging machine.

There is some grass work at the beginning of the season and some late maize drilling followed by the harvesting of a tall maize crop on hills close to the river Orwell. In the workshop a continuous programme of maintenance is required, and we take a look at the setting up and sharpening required each day during the season.

We see how Robert opens up a field and works at night foraging and clamping. There are details of road transport with custom-made trailers and a look at the history of John Deere foragers. Robert’s own model is a 500hp JD 7400. The year concludes with the contractor’s last-ever field, a late crop planted as the second crop off the field after a previous cut of grass.

Chris Lockwood filmed the widely acclaimed Combine Harvesters DVDs and more recently The Rubber Track Revolution. He writes for Classic Tractor and other magazines.

Paul Metcalf's revised beekeeping DVD advance information

A New Introduction to Beekeeping, Paul Metcalf. DVD, approx 114 minutes, ISBN 978-1-903366-95-0. Now in stock at Old Pond at £19.95 inc VAT.

Paul Metcalf, a beekeeper for over 60 years, has updated his best selling instructional DVD in this new comprehensive introduction to beekeeping.

As well as clear demonstrations of hive management throughout the summer cycle, there are new sections on choice of hive and equipment, as well as the latest advice on disease control.

Honey-making DVD advance information

Honey: a Beekeeper’s Guide, produced by William Smith of Great Takes Television. DVD, approx 115 minutes, ISBN 978-1-908397-06-5. Now available from Old Pond at £19.95.

A unique DVD for beekeepers, devoted entirely to honey.

Starting with removal of the honey supers from the hive, the DVD describes how to extract honey correctly, different honeys from different nectar sources, production of creamed and clear honey, how to prepare and present honey for show and sale, plus a demonstration on making mead.

The DVD is beautifully narrated by Radio 4's Susan Rae.

Alan Spillett's new book of truck paintings Roadscapes II advance information

Roadscapes II: Landscapes of the Road, Alan Spillett. Hardback book, 160 pages with 180 illus., ISBN 978-1-906853-99-0. Now in stock at Old Pond at £24.95.

Artist Alan Spillett’s paintings of lorries have mostly been commissions from people who wanted a particular vehicle depicted for a personal connection. His scenes range from the days of the horse-drawn carriage to the trucks that thunder up and down our roads today, and are the work of a ‘jobbing painter’, he would have you believe.

Yet these paintings capture much more than just the vehicles and their colourful liveries. They depict life on the road throughout the seasons, capturing to the full the experiences of so many drivers. In each picture, the lorry is the star turn and the background is the stage – often dramatic depictions of exact locations that are the workplace of the lorry driver: the countryside, landscapes of the road, and street scenes as well as the cafés that help to sustain them. An ERF artic loaded with bricks following the old coach road from Fishguard to London, passing near the original line of the road where the mail coach ran a couple of hundred years before, or an AEC MkV 6-wheeler and trailer fleeting past the Ardlui Viaduct at the top end of an autumnal Loch Lomond – these are strongly evocative images.

The paintings are accompanied by captions describing the context of the pictures. There are also features on aspects of trucking and truckers, photographs and poetry inspired by the life of a trucker, adding up to a fulfilling read. Alan’s images range widely through England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland – with a few from even further afield.

The paintings in Roadscapes II have not been published in book form before, and many have been prepared specially for this new book. Together they continue to reveal Alan’s lasting passion for commercial road transport, as well as the respect for the lorry drivers, hauliers and their families who have been his colleagues, friends and patrons over the years.

Alan Spillett spent the first twenty or so years or his working life in the 1960s, '70s and '80s as a long-distance lorry driver before becoming a full-time painter, portraying the subjects he knows best – lorries and the open road. Over the past 27 years he has painted hundreds of road transport subjects and, with his wife Colleen, has displayed his travelling picture gallery at steam and country shows far and wide.

Alan's first book, Roadscapes, was published in 2005. Visit www.roadscapes.co.uk to see more of Alan’s work.

Ipswich the Changing Face of the Town new book advance information

Ipswich: the changing face of the town, David Kindred. Hardback 280 x 220 mm, 176 pages inc approx 320 photographs. ISBN 978-1-906853-95-2. Now available from Old Pond at £19.95.

Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk, has hosted famous engineering companies and major insurance groups; it is a progressive town which has transformed itself over the past hundred years. Today, new buildings jostle alongside those which have managed to survive for centuries. Where horse-drawn vehicles and trams once thronged the streets, pedestrians, cars and bicycles now compete for space.

To help us appreciate the extent of change David Kindred has selected over three hundred photographs from the 1890s to today. These are arranged by area so, for example, you can see clearly the difference the architectural choices of the 1960s made to St Matthews Street or Carr Street.

Have these changes been for the better? In the 1950s the community around ‘The Mount’ was demolished to make way for the police station, Wolsey Theatre and Civic Centre. The great dock whose quays until quite recently were filled with the clamour of commercial activity is now a marina and the base of our new university.

Progress and change always come at a price. The remarkable collection of fully captioned photographs allows us to discuss whether the benefit has outweighed the cost.

David Kindred has over forty years experience as a professional photographer in Ipswich, having enjoyed a long career with the East Anglian Daily Times and the Evening Star. He has built up the town’s leading archive of photographs. More books by David can be found in the photographic books section of the Old Pond website.

 

 

 

 

The photographs in this blog, all included in David's book, are, from the top: St Matthews Street 1897; Rope Walk 1934; Ipswich from the air 1965 and 1994; the Dock 2009 and 1964.

The Working Horse Manual 2nd edition book advance information

The Working Horse Manual 2nd edition, edited by Diana Zeuner. Paperback, 245 x 189 mm, 256 pages including approx. 260 photographs and line drawings. ISBN: 978-1-906853-42-6. In stock at Old Pond at £24.95.

First published in 1998, The Working Horse Manual has established itself as the bible for heavy horse owners and enthusiasts. This second edition has been heavily revised, the most substantial new material being on working horses in forestry, training horses and transport and the law.

The chapter headings are:

1. The modern draught horse in the UK: Shires, Clydesdale, Suffolk, Percheron, Ardennes, Comtois, lighter working types
2. Choosing and keeping a working horse
3. Veterinary care of the draught horse
4. Farriery for the working horse
5. Training for horsemen
6. Training your horse
7. Harness for the working horse
8. Working draught horses as singles and pairs
9. Ploughing
10. Horse-drawn machinery and equipment
11. Multiple hitches
12. Working horses in forestry
13. Selecting a show horse
14. Preparing and showing heavy horses
15. Plaiting a heavy horse for showing: Clydesdale, Shire, Suffolk, Percheron
16. Road driving
17. Caring for horse-drawn vehicles
18. Transport and the law.
Appendices: horse ploughing rules; heavy horse obstacle driving rules; timber snigging course; rules for heavy horse cross-country relay race and trials; guide notes for judging; addresses; glossary; index.

The manual has been collated and edited by Diana Zeuner, editor of Heavy Horse World, the only magazine in the UK devoted solely to draught horses.

Diana has been able to assemble a remarkable group of authoritative contributors: Carl Boyde, Matthew Bradley, Norma Bradley, Cate Brewster, Tom Brewster, Keith Chivers, Roger Clark, Keith Ellis (Inspector), Stephanie Evans, Mike Flood, Angela Gifford, Edward Hart, Mike Horler, Doug Joiner, Terry Keegan, Rowena McDermott, Geoff Morton, John Peacock, Charlie Pinney, Nick Rayner, Philip Ryder-Davis, Robert Sampson, John Ward, Nigel Westacott, Jane Wordsworth, John Zawadzki.

The book is highly illustrated with photographs and diagrams.

Old Pond also stocks a range of DVDs on the working horse. You will find these at the Horses and oxen section of our website.