The Class 33s

CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT

1960 saw the first BRCW Ltd Type 3s, later TOPS Class 33, enter service on the Southern Region. The 98 locomotives were ordered as part of the Kent coast modernisation scheme. The final 12 locos had bodies 7 inches less wide than the rest of the class to allow them to work through the narrow tunnels between Tunbridge Wells and Hastings. For many years they were the mainstay of the Southern Region’s locomotive fleet and were widely used across the south and west of England and beyond.

This new book, the first detailed history of the class for 30 years, tells the story of these popular and successful locomotives from inception, through their design and operations to withdrawal from service. It draws on original source material from a number of archives and sheds new light on many aspects of these locomotives over their 60 years of service. The story is illustrated throughout with many photographs, almost all of which are published for the first time. Each photograph is accompanied by a detailed caption drawing the reader to particular points of interest such as technical equipment or detail differences.

This is a welcome reappraisal of a long lived and respected class which will be of interest to modern traction enthusiasts and those modelling the post steam era on BR.