During the mid-1980s, in a drive for greater efficiency, British Rail required another heavy freight locomotive, some of the earlier Type 5 freight locomotives being outdated and no longer regarded as suitable for heavy freight duties. The new Class 60 locomotive was to be constructed using lessons learned from the Classes 56 and 58. Six organisations were invited to tender but only three did so. The contract was awarded to Brush Electrical Machines (today, Brush Traction, part of the Wabtec Rail Group) for a powerful 60mph Type 5 Co-Co design, which resulted in an order being placed for one hundred Class 60 diesel-electric locomotives. Using original research from the National Archives, British Rail Class 60 Locomotives is a high illustrated guide that explores the commissioning of the Class 60s and their construction, testing and running. It undertakes an in-depth technical appraisal of the class and details names, liveries, modifications and preservation and includes the 'Super 60' refurbishment programme and acquisition of ten Class 60s for Colas Rail UK, bringing the timeline to the present day. Of interest to all diesel loco enthusiasts and railway modellers, thie book is lavishly illustrated with 280 colour and black & white photographs, many previously unpublished.

After the Second World War, the drive for the modernisation of Britain's railways ushered in a new breed of locomotive: the Diesel. Diesel-powered trains had been around for some time, but faced with a coal crisis and the Clean Air Act in the 1950s, it was seen as a part of the solution for British Rail. This beautifully illustrated book, written by an expert on rail history, charts the rise and decline of Britain's diesel-powered locomotives. It covers a period of great change and experimentation, where the iconic steam engines that had dominated for a century were replaced by a series of modern diesels including the ill-fated 'Westerns' and the more successful 'Deltics'.

The first of the English Electric Type 1 design, what we now know as the Class 20s, appeared in June 1957. With their distinctive 'chopper' engine sound, these single-cabbed locomotives soon gained a reputation for rugged reliability brought about by their simplicity and use of tried and tested components. British Rail Class 20 Locomotives looks back at the operations of these fine locomotives since 1957, covering their varied workings and duties, regional use and railtour operations. The book also covers the technical aspects and specifications of the locomotives, including liveries and detailing. This book will be of great interest to all railway and diesel loco enthusiasts. Fully illustrated with 195 colour photographs.

John Walford and Paul Harrison present the complete story of the powerful and successful Class 9Fs. Enthusiasts will find this book a delight as the engines were allocated to more than 60 depots and worked nationwide. Full details of each engine's construction, allocation and use, modification and disposal and a chapter on the 9 preserved engines is included .

This informative, illustrated guide to the British Railways locomotive series covers its full production lifespan, from 1962–1965. In the early 1960s, the Bo-Bo diesel-electric locomotive known as The Clayton was conceived as the new standard for British Railways, superseding other Type 1 classes. While the early classes suffered from poor driver visibility, the Claytons were highly successful and popular with operating crews. However, the largely untested high-speed, flat Paxman engines proved to be highly problematic. As a result, the Claytons were eventually withdrawn from BR service by December 1971. Anthony Sayer draws on considerable amounts of archive material to tell the full story of these ‘Standard Type 1’ locomotives and the issues surrounding their rise and fall. Further sources provide insights into the effort and money expended on the Claytons in a desperate attempt to improve their reliability. Supported by over 280 photographs and diagrams, dramatic new insights into this troubled class have been assembled for both historians and modelers alike.

Kenny Barclay documents the diesel locomotives and DMUs in the closing decades of the British Rail era.