Classic Refuse Trucks DENNIS

Various Dennis Refuse Trucks Since the 1950s

1953: (Left) Derby-type side loader with double cab, (Right) Chelsea-type 7-cubic yard side loader

1953: (Left) Moving floor refuse collector, (Right) Barrier loader

1953: General-purpose tipper bodies on forward and normal control type chassis

THE VULTURE

    The Dennis Vulture was the creation of Tom Tillson, who came over to Dennis from White & Poppe. He is perhaps better known for his subsequent work for Dennis rival Shelvoke & Drewry (SD) later in the decade. Its first known showing was at Edinburgh in mid-1953, and was reportedly designed to fulfill the role of the "Ideal" refuse collection vehicle proposed at the International Conference on Public Cleansing.

    The 18-yard body was available with or without a compaction blade, and was a front-loading, rear tipping type. The narrow hopper was located beside the one-man cab, keeping the crew in sight of the driver at all times. Refuse was transferred from hopper to body by tipping, or in the case of the compression model, an Ochsner-type intermittent packing panel. Space for the crew to ride was at the rear of the body, incorporated into the end gate. Mechanically, the Vulture was most unusual with a horizontal version of the Perkins P6 diesel mounted underfloor.

    As the illustration at right shows, the single panel compressor plate (highlighted in red) was located at the front of the vehicle, and was identical to that of the rear-loading Paxit II models. The upper drawing shows the packer panel in both its retracted (idle) and extended (compressing) positions. The lower drawing shows the removable front panel which allowed access for service and to periodically remove any refuse that had fallen behind the packer panel. Discharge of the load was by gravity dump.

    Despite the tremendous engineering effort, the Vulture never caught on as Dennis had undoubtedly hoped. At least two municipalities, Surbiton and Stoke-on-Trent are known to have used the Vulture. Tom Tillson eventually left for SD, while Dennis had great success with the improved Paxit III continuous loaders during the next two decades.

The Dennis Tippax

Dennis introduced the Tippax fore-and-aft tipper in 1958, with a 20-cubic yard steel body and forward-control Dennis Pax chassis. Dennis petrol or Perkins diesel engines were available in front of a 4-speed transmission. The body is based on the DeGraaf design, which had originated in the Netherlands. In Britain, it would compete against similar models from SD, Glover Webb & Liversidge and Yewco. Dennis ceased building the Tippax in 1965.

These were relatively un-complicated machines, and were primarily used for emptying the large circular Palladin bins so commonly used throughout England. The main drawback with this type was the overhead clearance needed to perform the forward tipping operation. They were ideally suited for handling very dense refuse, since there was no mechanical compaction plate. The Tippax could also double as a hand-loaded residential collection truck, with the entire rear tailgate panel lifted out of the way.

TIPPAX IN OPERATION: FORE-AND-AFT TIPPING

Round "Palladin" type bins of 1-3/4 cubic-yard capacity are attached to a lifting mechanism at the tailgate. Alternately, the entire rear panel of the tailgate could be lifted clear for hand loading of refuse.

Circular bin is lifted until it just enters the corresponding round opening in the tailgate. A rubber seal helps to contain dust during the process. Refuse falls into the trough formed by the lower tailgate and body.

Body is then rolled on its forward axis to a vertical position by a pair of telescopic cylinders. This empties the attached bin, as well as any refuse accumulated in the trough.

The repeated forward tipping of the body effects a mild "gravity packing", as incoming refuse is dropped against the load already in the body

Unloading is conventional; body (with forward tipping gear) is raised by an underbody hoist, and spills out of the opened tailgate.

Click here to see a Tippax video on YouTube.com

1958 Dennis Horla diesel tractor with a 26-cubic yard compaction trailer built for Liverpool.
Dennis modified the Taskers semi-trailer with a Paxit-type mechanism at the front of the unit.

As late as 1962, Dennis was still producing barrier loaders, a vestige of the pre-war era

Dennis was, of course, always a truck builder. Here we see a forward-control Dennis Pax V (circa 1965) equipped with a Telehoist skip loader body

REFERENCES:

The Commercial Motor, August 26, 1955, page 66: A Refuse Collecting Vehicle (Vulture)

The Commercial Motor, June 20, 1958, page 56: Growing Interest in Dustless Loading (trailer)

The Commercial Motor, November 14, 1958, page 4: New Refuse Collector in Dennis Range (Tippax)

SELECTED PATENTS

Patent #	Description	Inventor	Assignee	Date
GB732023A	Refuse collecting vehicles	Tillson	Dennis Bros. Ltd.	August 26, 1953
US2706058A	Bulk material collecting cart	De Graaf	NETAM	March 29, 1952

8/14/22