Power Classification | 4F reclassified 4MT in 1948 |
Introduced | 1947 – 1952 |
Designer | Ivatt |
Company | LMS |
Weight – Loco | 59t 2cwt |
Tender | 40t 6cwt |
Driving Wheels | 5ft 3ins |
Boiler Pressure | 225psi superheated |
Cylinders | Outside – 17.5in x 28in |
Tractive Effort | 24,170lbf |
Valve Gear | Walschaert (piston valves) |
These engines were designed by Ivatt in 1947 and although originally classed as 4F they were essential mixed traffic engines. Only the first three came out as LMS locomotives in December 1947, the other 158 being built after the formation of BR.
The engines had three cylinders, motion and pipe-work well exposed and they were fitted with extremely high running plates. Together with the double chimneys originally fitted, these features made the engines just about the ugliest ever to appear on the LMS.
The double chimneys did nothing to help the engines’ steaming capacity. After much testing the engines were fitted with single blast-pipes and single chimneys which more than doubled the steam production of the boilers. The later engines were built new with single blast-pipes and chimneys.
Riddles’ BR standard 76000 class was based closely on this design.
![]() ![]() |
Ivatt LMS Design
Riddle BR Standard 76000 class |
Interestingly the 43000 class outlasted the 76000 class as the last of the Standard engines was withdrawn in 1967 and six of the 43000 class remained in service until withdrawn during 1968. These six were the last 2-6-0 locomotives working on BR.
43000-43049 were originally fitted with double chimneys but later rebuilt as single chimney engines.
43027 was used for experiments with single chimneys including a stove-pipe chimney fitted from 1950 to 1955.
Construction was divided between different locations, 75 were completed at Horwich Works, 50 at Doncaster Works and 37 at Darlington Works. The class was also sometimes called mucky ducks or doodle-bugs and Flying Pigs. The latter is now commonly used to identify the preserved example of the class 43106.
In BR days they were used extensively across the system, being prevalent on the London Midland region. They were based in Eastern Region territory in the north east of England as well as further south in the midlands and East Anglia. A small number of the last batch built at Doncaster were employed in Scotland but these had moved south by 1963.They were also used for a short period on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, but were quickly transferred elsewhere, never to return, because of poor steaming on the line’s long and steep gradients – this was before modifications were made to the design which improved steaming notably.
Number in Service.
Built | Withdrawals | No. in Service | ||
BR Numbers | Quantity | |||
1947 | 43000-2 |
3 |
3 |
|
1948 | 43003-22 |
20 |
23 |
|
1949 | 43023-49 |
27 |
50 |
|
1950 | 43050-96 |
47 |
97 |
|
1951 | 43097-135 & 43137-55 |
58 |
155 |
|
1952 | 43136 & 43156-61 |
7 |
162 |
|
1953-62 |
162 |
|||
1963 |
6 |
156 |
||
1964 |
15 |
141 |
||
1965 |
42 |
99 |
||
1966 |
34 |
65 |
||
1967 |
59 |
6 |
||
1968 |
6 |
0 |
- 43000-49 and 43112-36 were built at Horwich
- 43050-69, 43107-11 and 43137-61 were built at Doncaster
- 43070-106 were built at Darlington
Allocation of locomotives in service as at 1st of January.
1954 |
1958 | 1962 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 |
1968 |
|
London Midland Region |
49 |
47 | 54 | 54 | 59 | 55 | 37 |
6 |
Eastern Region |
62 |
58 | 56 | 56 | 40 | |||
North Eastern Region |
41 |
47 | 43 | 46 | 42 | 44 | 28 | |
Scottish Region |
10 |
10 | 9 | |||||
162 |
162 | 162 | 156 | 141 | 99 | 65 |
6 |
Although there are no allocations shown above to the Southern Region 43011 spent two years whilst at Bath Green Park as part of the Southern Region stock. This followed the transfer of Bath Green park depot from the London Midland Region to the Southern Region in January 1950.
1954 |
1958 | 1962 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 |
1968 |
|
London Midland Region | ||||||||
Bescot |
3 |
2 |
1 |
|||||
Bletchley |
2 |
|||||||
Bristol Barrow Road |
1 |
|||||||
Carnforth | 8 | 5 | 6 | |||||
Carlisle Canal |
2 |
|||||||
Carlisle Kingmoor |
4 |
8 | 7 | 9 |
6 |
|||
Carlisle Upperby |
4 |
1 |
||||||
Crewe South |
7 |
9 | 9 |
3 |
||||
Cricklewood |
5 |
5 |
6 |
|||||
Derby |
4 |
4 |
||||||
Devons Road |
6 |
3 |
||||||
Heaton Mersey |
13 |
13 |
7 |
|||||
Kettering |
3 |
2 |
||||||
Lancaster |
2 |
6 |
||||||
Leeds Holbeck |
3 |
|||||||
Leicester Midland |
2 |
2 |
||||||
Lostock Hall | 4 |
3 |
||||||
Lower Darwen | 5 | |||||||
Nottingham |
3 |
1 |
||||||
Nuneaton |
5 |
7 |
8 |
|||||
Saltley |
5 |
7 | 11 |
3 |
||||
Skipton |
2 |
2 |
||||||
St Albans |
1 |
|||||||
Stoke | 6 | 7 | 7 |
8 |
||||
Stourton |
2 |
|||||||
Sutton Oak |
4 |
|||||||
Tebay |
4 |
3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
2 |
||
Trafford Park | 4 | 2 | ||||||
Watford | 3 |
3 |
||||||
Wellingborough |
1 |
|||||||
Woodford Halse |
2 |
|||||||
Workington |
5 |
8 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 8 |
3 |
49 |
47 | 54 | 54 | 59 | 55 | 37 |
6 |
- The last six in service were all withdrawn from Lostock Hall in 1968 with the last being 43106 in June of that year. Three of these six were only transferred to Lostock Hall from Workington in January 1968 when Workington shed closed and two (43006 and 43008) of these three had been based at Workington since 1948. Three of six withdrawn in 1968 had entered service in 1948, two in 1949 and 43106 in 1951.
- Leeds Holbeck and its sub depots (Stourton, Royston, Normanton, Wakefield, Goole, Sowerby Bridge, Low Moor, Ardseley, Copley Hill) were transferred from the London Midland Region to the North Eastern Region in September 1956. A number of these depots had allocations of 43000 class locomotives.
- Carlisle Kingmoor was part of the Scottish Region until February 1958 when it and Carlisle Canal were transferred to the London Midland Region. Carlisle Canal had become part of the Scottish Region in October 1951.
- Woodford Halse was reallocated to the London Midland Region from the Eastern Region in February 1958.
1954 |
1958 | 1962 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 |
1968 |
|
Eastern Region | ||||||||
Ardsley |
4 |
4 |
||||||
Boston |
8 |
24 |
8 |
|||||
Cambridge |
1 |
3 |
||||||
Canklow |
1 |
1 |
4 |
|||||
Colwick |
6 |
15 |
7 |
|||||
Grantham |
1 |
|||||||
Kings Lynn |
1 |
|||||||
Lincoln |
3 |
5 |
||||||
Melton Constable |
12 |
12 |
||||||
Millhouses |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|||||
Neasden |
9 |
|||||||
New England |
14 |
9 | 12 | 6 |
7 |
|||
Retford |
2 |
|||||||
Sheffield Grimesthorpe |
4 |
|||||||
South Lynn |
15 |
17 |
||||||
Spital Bridge |
1 |
1 |
||||||
Staveley |
2 |
|||||||
Staveley Barrow Hill |
3 |
18 |
18 |
|||||
Woodford Halse |
2 |
|||||||
Yarmouth Beach |
4 |
5 |
||||||
62 |
58 | 56 | 56 | 40 |
- Spital Bridge was transferred to the Eastern Region from the London Midland Region in August 1950.
- Woodford Halse was reallocated to the London Midland Region from the Eastern Region in February 1958.
1954 |
1958 | 1962 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 |
1968 |
|
North Eastern Region | ||||||||
Alston |
2 |
|||||||
Darlington |
4 |
2 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
4 |
||
Goole |
3 |
2 |
2 |
|||||
Heaton |
6 |
|||||||
Hull Dairycoates |
15 |
11 | 7 | 5 |
5 |
|||
Leeds Holbeck |
8 |
5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
1 |
||
Leeds Neville Hill |
2 |
1 | 2 |
1 |
||||
Low Moor | 1 |
2 |
||||||
Manningham | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
5 |
||
Middlesborough |
8 |
7 |
||||||
Normanton | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
5 |
||
North Byth | 1 | 2 |
11 |
|||||
Royston | 4 |
2 |
||||||
Selby |
5 |
6 |
||||||
Sowerby Bridge |
1 |
|||||||
Stourton | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 7 |
1 |
||
Thornaby | 4 |
2 |
||||||
Wakefield |
1 |
4 | 1 | 2 |
1 |
|||
West Hartlepool |
1 |
2 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
2 |
|
York |
4 |
4 | 6 |
5 |
||||
41 |
47 | 43 | 46 | 42 | 44 |
28 |
- Leeds Holbeck and its sub depots (Stourton, Royston, Normanton, Wakefield, Goole, Sowerby Bridge, Low Moor, Ardseley, Copley Hill) were transferred from the London Midland Region to the North Eastern Region in September 1956. A number of these depots had allocations of 43000 class locomotives.
1954 | 1958 | 1962 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 |
1968 |
|
Scottish Region | ||||||||
Bathgate |
1 |
|||||||
Carlisle Canal |
1 |
1 |
||||||
Dawsholm |
3 |
|||||||
Eastfield |
7 |
3 |
||||||
Grangemouth |
1 |
|||||||
Hawick |
1 |
|||||||
Kipps |
3 |
3 |
||||||
Polmadie |
1 |
|||||||
Polmont |
2 |
2 |
||||||
10 |
10 | 9 |
- Carlisle Kingmoor was part of the Scottish Region until February 1958 when it and Carlisle Canal were transferred to the London Midland Region. Carlisle Canal had become part of the Scottish Region in October 1951.
Accidents and Incidents
- On 18 January 1960, locomotive 43048 was hauling the Kettering to Leicester slow local train when it was derailed by an empty wagon train travelling on the up slow line which had come of the rails just north of Kettering. 43048 ended up on its side and the driver and fireman spent some time in hospital as a result of their injuries.
- In September 1964, locomotive 43074 ended up on its side between Keighley and Crossflatts. It was reversing through trap points when it happened. The engine had only been out of Swindon Works for a few weeks at the time and after the accident it was repaired and returned to service. The fireman was thrown through the cabside window but no information on the driver is available.
- On 12 November 1964, locomotive 43072 was working a train of twenty-one empty wagons from Ardsley. The driver lost control and ran into Adolphus St. Goods Yard in Bradford at an estimated speed of 50 mph. Before demolishing the buffers the crew jumped clear and the train crashed through a wall to fall 30ft into Dryden Street below. The 14 year old locomotive was considered beyond economic repair was cut up in the road 4 days later.
- In April 1968, locomotive 43106 was derailed at Colne whilst shunting after working an early morning parcels train. At a pair of points the locomotive and tender took different routes resulting in the derailment of the locomotive.
- On 28 September 2009, the tender of locomotive 43106 became derailed as it approached Hampton Loade station with a passenger train. There were no injuries. The causal factors were that a spring had been replaced on the tender with one which was not of the correct type and the track had become distorted without the track maintenance staff being aware of the problem.
![]() |
43004 at Carlisle-August 1965. It was withdrawn from service at Lostock Hall in September 1967 and scrapped in April 1968. 43004 spent thirteen years based at Workington before moving to Carlisle. |
![]() |
43070 at Wakefield-May 1966.43070 spent all of its working life based on the North Eastern Region until withdrawn in September 1967 whilst based at North Blyth |
![]() |
43044 at Stourton where it was based-May 1966. It was withdrawn from service at Leeds Holbeck in September 1967 and scrapped in April 1968. |
![]() |
43011 & 43073 climb from Whitehaven to Moor Row with a train of empty iron ore wagons-June 1966. Both were based at Workington at the time. 43011 was withdrawn in February 1967 and 43073 in August 1967. I had an early morning bike ride to take this photograph. |
![]() |
43051 at York on the site of what is now the National Railway Museum-July 1966. 43051 spent all of its working life based at North eastern Region depots. It was withdrawn from Manningham in January 1967 and scrapped in April 1967. |
![]() |
43130 next to 42394 in Leeds Holbeck shed-July 1966. 43130 was based at Leeds Holbeck for nearly ten years. It was withdrawn from there in June 1967 and scrapped in February 1968. |
![]() |
43000 on Carlisle Kingmoor shed-July 1966. 43000 was on of the three members of the class built in 1947. It was withdrawn from service whilst based at North Blyth in September 1967 and scrapped in November 1967. |