Betts has recently taken delivery of a new Kenworth T909.
The prime mover also marks a milestone being the 100th the fleet has purchased from Brown and Hurley.
Based in the Northern Tablelands in Walcha, the Betts family has a proud history having been around since 1923.
The Betts fleet features over 50 trucks with 16 of these – primarily a mix of Kenworth T909 and T659s – dedicated to cattle and sheep.
“From an owner perspective it doesn’t matter too much,” said Chris Betts General Manager.
“But from a driver preference the Kenworth T909 with the straight hood is a popular choice.”
The latest Kenworth T909 to have entered the fleet is fitted with a 50-inch bunk to suit livestock life on the road.
The driver, Mick Wright, is based at Tamworth.
His movements will bring him to the southeast Queensland feedlots, out west to Dubbo and down to Victoria, depending on where the cattle are coming from at the time.
Wright has been with the organisation for nearly a decade.
“He was a casual for many years with his own business in Tamworth doing spray pave for concrete and he would come and help us out as a driver when there was a small window,” said Betts.
“We had him for nine months for most of the year before he decided to take it on full time.”
Being on the lesser end of mass limits in NSW means the spec of truck, rated to 97 tonnes, easily complies with the other states which have volume loading.
The truck is fitted out similarly to many of the other Kenworth T909s they have purchased from Brown and Hurley namely with a Cummins X15 600hp engine, Eaton 22 series transmission, Kenworth Airglide 460, Meritor axles front and rear but also with some distinct aftermarket add-ons.
These include a D’Angelo Ballrace turntable, Showman Paint lines & scrolls, Custom Air in sleeper and Custom Air con, stainless steel from RC Metalcraft, Superchrome rims drive and steer, Kings Bullbar, a Haire Suspension upgrade and DMG lighting and electrical.
There are also commemorative plaques and signage on the dash and seats celebrating the 100th delivery which are referenced in the deck plate and on the exhaust shrouds.
Brown and Hurley even added heritage gauges to the dashboard.
Betts bought their first Kenworth off Brown and Hurley in 1993. It was a K100e cabover prime mover.
The business dates back to Chris’s grandfathers working in logging around the Gloucester and Wingham area.
“My grandfather had bullock teams moving logs,” he told Prime Mover.
“In 1989 we moved from Gloucester to Walcha for the logging industry.”
Chris’s father Peter Betts was one of three brothers who eventually split up the business.
They continued logging up until 1996 and that’s when they began moving general freight.
Betts’ mother Bev, who passed away in 2021, was heavily involved in the business and industry.
“She was the brains of the operation, dad was the brawn,” he said.
The business introduced their first livestock truck in 2010.
Betts opts for B-double crates in its livestock operations. If they need to run singles, however, they will drop the ‘A’ trailer.
To get to the coast and abattoirs at Wingham the combination needs to be broken down to a semi. Conversely, going in the other direction, should they need a roadtrain they can put on another A trailer always having a few on hand.
“We’ve got both sheep and cattle trucks with the sheep trailers being versatile enough to carry cattle,” said Betts.
Byrne Trailers and Arends are their livestock trailer builders.
Vawdrey and Barker Trailers supply the trailers for general freight.
General freight takes the fleet interstate from Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and regional NSW.
They spec B-doubles purposefully for this. Only four of the combinations are semi-trailers.
There are 34 prime movers in the general freight operation.
Another local driver with the company, and a big fan of the Kenworth T909 recently was given a new T659 — also purchased from Ian Roberts at Brown and Hurley Tamworth.
“He was so rapt with the versatility,” said Betts.
“We weren’t too surprised it’s a great truck.
“The T659 gives a bit more vision out of it and with the longer front springs provides a better ride.”
Because of unseasonal late frost and spring rains the business has been ramping up livestock operations to catch up with demand.
“We had what felt like a late winter so we we’re busy up here carting livestock into lots much later than we normally would,” said Betts.
“With the Christmas peak underway for general freight it’s extremely busy at the moment.”
