Fires of Prometheus

THE UBIQUITOUS TIPPER WAGON


Robert Hudson is perhaps best known for its tipper wagons, or V-skips or U-skips. There are more than 12 examples in the museum collection (the actual number is unclear because several consist of just a chassis or body). Apart from two wagons that have been restored, they are all in poor condition, and there are several duplicates. These were the wagons that were the basic vehicles for moving materials from surface sites such as quarries, gravel pits, sewage works and construction sites, as well as shallow drift mines. They have even featured in a James Bond movie. An early patent (1875) led to the development of the "Rugga" skip waggon.

A scale drawing of a Hudson tipper wagon
Specification drawing of Hudson V-skip "Rugga" wagon.

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A restored Hudson tipper wagon
Hudson V-skip wagon outside Leeds Industrial Museum.

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Last updated 22nd November 2019

Early Husdon tipper wagon
Hudson "tip wagon" from 1904 catalogue

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Double tipper wagons
Double tipper wagons at Armley Mills

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Tipper wagons on a construction site
Hudson wagons on a London construction site, early twentieth century.

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