We’ve built a reputation for all-out adventures here at ROADBOSS, as we uncover the grit of the long haul, the dust of the outback, and the hustle ingrained in every conceivable corner of the transport industry.
Sometimes, though, we’re forced to stop chasing the horizon and look at where the tracks began.
This journey is one that the Clark brothers, fourth-generation custodians of TJ Clark & Sons, have already been on. It’s a century-long trek through the beating heart of Sydney: a story of draught horses, yellow iron and a 1976 Autocar that found its way home.
There is a specific, high-pitched frequency that lives in the soul of a die-hard Caterpillar fan, and it’s not the whoosh of the turbocharger. It’s the unmistakable timing gear whine, I’m told by Stew Read, a long-time employee at TJ Clark & Sons.
“It’s a Cat 3406B, fully mechanical engine, and they have this distinctive noise…it’s the way they’re timed,” he tells me, eager to emphasise his deep-seated love of the yellow brand the moment we meet.
As I stand in the TJ Clark & Sons yard in Holroyd, Sydney, that distinctive sound bounces off the shed walls. Before me sits a 1976 Autocar DC 9364F called “Billy”, in a livery that can only be described as perfection – old-school TJ Clark & Sons signwriting, against a vibrant, freshly-painted yellow cabin.
For brothers Mick and Tom Clark (the fourth), this isn’t just an old truck that’s been freshened up. It’s a 20-tonne tribute to their late father, Billy Clark, and a physical manifestation of a family transport legacy that predates trucks altogether.
To understand why a 50-year-old truck carries so much weight, we’ll have to take you back to 1895. Long before the countless highways around the country were paved with bitumen and two years before the first-ever Autocar rolled off the factory line, Thomas Joseph Clark was working the wharves of Sydney with draught horses and timber carts.
Read the full story in the Autumn issue of ROADBOSS Magazine, out April. Check out the website for details on how to subscribe.
