The Roote's TS3 was a brilliant engine as long as you kept it revving
I had one in the 70's a Commer Maxiload 16 tonner drove it for about 18 months. It was secondhand from Borden Chemicals down Hampshire way (Borden). I can even nearly remember the reg;
YCR 821J?
At the time the small general haulage co; I worked for ran about 10 rigids (Dennis's) and a couple of artic's (Foden S80's) one day this Commer ran into the yard with our livery on it and I just went into the office and asked if I could have it. Nobody else wanted it but I loved it
Gotta say the first time it 'de-coked' itself I crapped myself
I was carrying cable drum's form BICC at Leigh down to London and as I was on the unlit stretch of the M6 North of Hilton Park Service's I saw sparks flying everywhere behind me and I thought the chains holding the 2 x 5ton cable drums had broken & hit the tarmac. By the time I'd crept onto the HS and checked everything was OK I remembered what somebody had said to me about this 'de-coking' thing.
It was a great motor and with a double passenger seat it was easy to kip in and I really loved it and it sounded like a lorry
.
If I had beeen looking to be an OD I'm sure that would have been a great start up motor
never had any trouble with it apart from a broken drivers seat.