The rolling stock used on the Isle of Man Railway today is entirely original. Although the number of serviceable carriages dropped from an original total of 75 to as low as 14, this total is once again increasing due to recent rebuilds. The 3 ft (914 mm) gauge railway has been provided with a variety of stock from different manufacturers over its time. Types of coaches were categorized according to a lettering system: the original four-wheeled coaches were designated as A, B, C, and D types, and so on. The F prefix encompassed all bogie vehicles, including conversions from the A-D series. Letters G-M denoted goods stock, while N referred to ex-Manx Northern Railway six-wheel carriages.
Four-Wheelers (1873–1874)
Four-wheeled carriages were supplied for the opening of the line to Peel in 1873. These were close-coupled in pairs from the late 1880s. Each class of carriage had a different internal layout. "A" class carriages were long, while the remainder were shorter.
Class "A" consisted of twelve first-class carriages – eleven three-compartment carriages and one saloon. The "B" class consisted of 24 three-compartment third-class carriages, open above the seat backs. The "C" class (14 built) had two third-class compartments and a brake compartment – one coach was later converted to a saloon. The "D" class consisted of a pair of composites arranged 3/1/3, with the first-class compartment being wider at the expense of the third-class passengers.
All these were later converted into bogie carriages by mounting pairs of bodies on bogie underframes supplied by the Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon Co. They became known as the "pairs" coaches and were later renumbered into the F.50-F.75 series. Today, only C.1 survives in its original form, albeit only for display purposes.
Key:PairedPreserved
No.YearBuilderConfigurationSeatsStatusPairedA.1 – A.61873Metropolitan Carriage & WagonGuard / 3rd / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1909–1926A.7 – A.111874Metropolitan Carriage & WagonGuard / 3rd / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1911–1922A.121873Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon1st Saloon20Ducal Saloon With C.91926B.1 – B.101873Metropolitan Carriage & WagonGuard / 3rd / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1909–1922B.11 – B.221874Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon3rd / 3rd / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1911–1925C.11873Metropolitan Carriage & WagonGuard / 2nd / 2nd20Peel Station Displayed1910C.91873Metropolitan Carriage & WagonFirst Saloon18Ducal Saloon With A.121926C.2 – C.71873Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon1st / 1st / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1910–1925C.8 – C.141874Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon1st / 1st / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1909–1926D.1 – D.21873Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon3rd / 3rd / 3rd20See "Pairs" F.50-F.75 Below1909–1926
"Small F" Carriages (1876–1896)
The initial batch of carriages was supplied by Brown Marshalls and became known as the "Small Fs" due to their smaller size compared to later vehicles. These carriages were 35 feet long and 9'6" from rail to roof. All had wooden frames concealed by the lower panelling of the carriage bodies. At various periods, a broad black stripe at the bottom of the lower panels indicated where the frames would normally show. This feature was reinstated in 2013.
Coaches listed with "Guard" in the layout had a handbrake fitted in a locking housing in one of the end compartments. In addition to the handbrake, a lookout window was cut in the end of the carriage. This allowed a brakeman to ride in this compartment and provide additional braking on heavier trains before the days of continuous vacuum brakes. F.19 and F.20 were the first two "half luggage vans" delivered to the railway, with half of the carriage occupied by three third-class compartments and the other half by a luggage compartment complete with guard's look-out duckets.
Key:StoredScrappedRestoredUndergoing Restoration
№YearBuilderLayoutTypeNo.SeatsCurrent StatusScrapDateF.11876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.21876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.31876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Sold, Welsh Highland Railway 1975198?F.41876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.51876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.61876Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd / 3rd40Owned I.o.M.S.R.S.A. Restoration Ongoing~F.71881Ashbury CarriageGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.81881Ashbury CarriageGuard / 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Withdrawn 1965, Destroyed Controlled Fire1970F.91881Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd / 3rd48Rebuilt 1987–1992~F.101881Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd48Undergoing Rebuild 2021-2025~F.111881Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd48Rebuilt 2020-2024~F.121881Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd48To Derby Castle1982F.131894Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd 3rd48Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.141894Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed, (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.151894Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd / Guard40Rebuilt 2019-2021~F.161894Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.171894Brown Marshall3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.181894Brown MarshallGuard / 3rd 3rd / 3rd / 3rd / 3rd40Roof Replaced 1989–1990~F.191894Brown MarshallLuggage / 3rd / 3rd / 3rd24Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.201896Metro CammellLuggage / 3rd / 3rd / 3rd24Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.211896Metro CammellGuard / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Stored Port Erin Partially Restored~F.221896Metro Cammell3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.231896Metro Cammell3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Frames Scrapped 20111983F.241896Metro Cammell3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40Destroyed (Controlled Fire) St. John's1976F.251896Metro Cammell3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / Guard40Withdrawn 1998; Stored Port Erin~F.261896Metro CammellGuard / 3rd 3rd / 3rd 3rd / 3rd40In Traffic~
The Empress Vans (1897)
Two identical vehicles were supplied to the railway in 1897 and became known as the Empress Vans to acknowledge the fact that the year of delivery was Queen Victoria's jubilee year. These vans are the same length as the passenger vehicles but are entirely closed with no windows. They have guard's lookout duckets attached. They were purchased for the railway's Luggage In Advance service on the South Line, whereby passengers' luggage was transported to its destination ahead of them and was already at their hotels on arrival, usually in Port Erin or Port St. Mary.
Their busy careers also saw them in use as an ambulance train in conjunction with the T.T. and Manx Grand Prix races held annually on the island until the closure of the Peel and Ramsey lines in 1968. They were stored outdoors for a number of years and were also used by Campamarina at Castletown Station, fitted with bunk beds from 1979 to 1986. Despite their poor condition, both vans remain on the railway, having last been used in 1992.
The original F.27 was stripped to form the basis of a replica kitchen for the dining train in 2012, with only the underframes surviving today. F.28 remains stored, while the replica (also numbered F.27) is used regularly on the dining services.
Key:ReplicaStored
№BuiltBuilderTypeStatusF.27 (i)1897Metro CammellOpen Luggage VanBody Scrapped 2012; Stored Douglas WorkshopsF.27 (ii)2013Isle of Man RailwayKitchen / Generator / Guards'In trafficF.281897Metro CammellOpen Luggage VanWithdrawn 1992 Stored Douglas Workshops
The Saloons / "Corridors" (1905)
The amalgamation of the Manx Northern Railway into the I.M.R. in 1905 led to an urgent need to buy more carriages so that the Manx Northern's cramped six-wheelers could be removed from front-line service. Like all of the later carriages of the "F" class, the saloons were supplied by the Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon Company (which had absorbed Brown, Marshalls in 1902). The sequence begins with F.29 in 1905. They were the first to be built with wooden bodies on steel underframes and are 37' 0" long and 10'3" from rail to roof.
All survive today; F.35, F.31, and F.32 were converted in 1980 to form the Bar Set. At that time, half the seating was removed from F.35, and a small bar and chemical toilet were fitted, along with gangways to the adjoining coaches. Later, as F.31 was withdrawn for major bodywork attention, F.29 was fitted with a corridor and replaced the former vehicle. The saloons have remained unpopular with locomotive crews as they are heavy yet do not carry as many passengers as the standard compartment stock. Sketches survive which show that some consideration was given to building these carriages as saloons with a large brake-luggage compartment. As of February 2015, all saloons except F.36 are fitted with corridor connections to form a dining train, with F.27 (ii) at the rear providing the kitchen facilities and generator.
Key:Restored / DiningPreserved
№BuilderLayoutCorridorFormer LayoutConvertedNotesF.29Metro CammellDining (Bay)20133rd / 3rd2015Refitted 1990 / As Dining Train 2013F.30Metro CammellDining (6-0)20121st / 3rd2012To Purple Lake livery, March 2025F.31Metro CammellDining (Bay)19813rd / 3rd2012To Purple Lake livery, May 2023F.32Metro CammellDining (2-2)19811st / 3rd2013To Purple Lake, February 2026F.35Metro CammellBar / 1st19811st / 3rd1980Cardinal's Saloon Bar Fitted 1979 / Refit 2014F.36Metro Cammell1st / 3rd~~~Royal Saloon Isle of Man Railway Museum
The Hurst Nelsons (1899)
These were the first two bogie vehicles built for the Manx Northern Railway. They were the first passenger vehicles on steel underframes to enter service on the island's railway network, as well as the first to have electric lighting. They were purchased to act as through coaches to Douglas. Externally, they are not terribly different from the other "Big Fs". Together with the Foxdale Coach, they were allocated numbers in the "F" class upon take-over in 1905. Remaining stock inherited from the Manx Northern Railway was either given the "N" prefix or, in the case of non-passenger stock, a small "r" was added to the title, as explained below. Both vehicles were sold in 1975 to the Peter Rampton and later became part of the Vale of Rheidol Railway Museum Collection but were returned to railway ownership in 2022 and restoration commenced in 2024 with one completed the next year at which point the second vehicle was commenced.
Key:RestoredUndergoing Restoration
M.N.R.I.M.R.YearBuilderConfigurationSeatsWithdrawnNotesNo.15F.371899Hurst NelsonGuard / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd / 3rd401972Restored 2024-2026No.16F.381899Hurst Nelson3rd / 3rd / 1st / 1st / 3rd / 3rd481969Off-Island October 2025
The Foxdale Coach (1887)
Yet another oddity is this carriage originating from the Foxdale Railway. It was built by the Oldbury Railway Carriage and Wagon CoBoyd, J.I.C., The Isle of Man Railway vol 3 (Oakwood Press, 1996) p. 257 in 1886 for the small branch to Foxdale. This is a true survivor of the system and is still in operation today. It is the smallest bogie carriage on the system, being only 30' 0" long, and rides on plate frame bogies.
As constructed, it had four third-class compartments and a small luggage and guard's compartment complete with lookout duckets, which took up a little over a third of the length of the vehicle. One of the compartments was converted into a first-class section, which led to the carriage acquiring the nickname Kitto's Coach after the Captain of the Foxdale Mines, who had a first-class free pass on the Manx Northern.