Author of the route Wycome Railway and Joint Line, Peter Goodearl, takes us on a tour of Oxford engine shed and the surrounding area. Version 2 of this wonderful route is nearing completion. Enjoy your tour around 81F!
Oxford shed was given the code 81F by British Railways. It was situated just north of Oxford's WR station.
A new coaling facility was added as part of the Wartime improvements, though it was still a completely manual process, shoveling coal into little wagons to tip into the tender. Quite a variety of motive power could be seen at this shed due to the inter-regional services that came through Oxford. Although former GWR engines were naturally dominant, there would often be both LMS and Southern engines using the facilities here at Oxford.
Goods sidings north of the station were relaid during the War to hold coaching stock when the new yards were brought into use at Hinksey.
In these scenes outside the shed, a Pannier, a Large Prairie and a GWR diesel railcar can be seen.
The large building on the left in the picture above, represents the Lifting, or 'Top' shop. It incorporated the site water tank as well.
The sheds were rickety wooden structures dating back to the earliest years of the line. The one on the left was built by the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway, the Old Worse and Worse, and the GWR added theirs along side. They defied several plans to replace them. A fire broke out once but, 'unfortunately', the brigade turned up in time.
Below are some further scenes from the shed and yard area:
Looking across the coal storage lines
A BR Standard 9F is waiting to load with coal
A Collett 0-4-4 tank is next in line for coal
An LMS 8F heads north past 81F with a train of empty mineral wagons
The queue for coal gets longer. A simulated strike perhaps!
Oxford was a hive of activity, with many lines serving the city. Not only was there the GW north-south mainline, but there was the Thame branch from Princes Risborough, the Fairford Branch and the LMS route from Cambridge. Did you know that Oxford had two stations?
Looking south at the northern end of the yard with the LMS lines from Cambridge, Bletchley and Bicester on the left.
Passing tower of St.Barnabas. The trucks are on an exchange siding between the LMS and GWR.
Rewley Road, the LMS station, was situated adjacent to the GWR station. Both lines crossed a channel which connected the end of the Oxford canal, from the Midlands, to the River Thames for onward journey to London. The LMS line was at a lower level and crossed a swing bridge. This bridge still survives, but left open to allow river traffic to pass. Apparently, a gong sounded in the station when a train crossed the bridge.
Approaching the station shed. Compounds were rare visitors. Hopefully they knew how to drive them.
Upon arrival at Oxford Rewley Road, a station pilot would attach to the rear and pull the train out, releasing the train engine to visit the small LMS shed. The station closed in 1951 and passenger workings transferred to the WR station. The LMS engine shed also closed. The goods depot continued to function as did a petrol terminal and coal wharfs. The train shed is now at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre.
The building in the foreground was originally a stables for the company's horses. Apart from delivering around town they were also used for shunting wagons.
On the LMS, all trains heading north and east were traveling in the 'up' direction, whereas, on the Great Western, heading south, towards London, was 'up'. I wonder if terminology like that got confusing at a place like Oxford where two railway company's served the area? For example, a train approaching Oxford from Cambridge, approaching from the north, was travelling down. That makes sense. However, a GWR service approaching from the north, say from Banbury, was travelling up. We now move to the northern end of the carriage yard again with Walton Well bridge in the distance. During the War links were added between the GWR and LMS lines and an ARP signal box built. (This section was run from the editor so the signals have not initiated).
Entering the northern end of the station. A gantry replaced these signals in 1959
Crossing the Botley road. A level crossing on the right provided an alternative to the low bridge.
As part of our Progress Report Day, we present a report on the various updates in development. Some of these updates are free, whilst others will be released as brand new products. We'll make it clear with each product whether they are free or not.
SDJR 7F Enhancement Pack Version 2
It has been in development for some time, but thanks to the work of Chris Barnes and the advice of our testers, the new version will be released very shortly with a new, simpler installer, improved scripting, tweaked sounds and particles. This update will be free to all owners of the pack. If you purchased this pack before September 2013, and you haven't done so yet, please Contact Us for a download link from the current shop, and then the update will come to you automatically upon release.
GWR Hall Enhancement Pack Version 3
Here is an update that has been on the go for many months. It started out as simply adding snifter valve puffs of steam, for when the regulator opens. But now we have a rather a lot being updated. Here's a run down:
6960 Raveningham Hall
As packaged with the West Somerset Railway, we always felt that the livery was too dark for 6960 in it's current form. Will Cook took up the challenge of trying to better represent 6960's current lighter green, which it has carried since returning to steam in 2011. What do you think?
One thing has led to another and 2 brand new Hall packs are in production - more about that next time! Collett Halls by Will Cook Will has kindly updated the textures for his collection of Collett Halls that came with our enhancement pack. Here are some before/after images:
Chris Barnes has also managed to update many elements of his script. Here are the improvements:
Fixed cylinder cocks effect bug on AI and static locos.
Added AI controlled cylinder cock effects that automatically open and close realistically as appropriate.
Reduced alpha channel of main smoke stack to make it look less lumpy.
Upgraded cylinder cock effects that are timed with the wheels.
Corrected the incorrect directionality of the vacuum brake handle on original RSC Hall.
Regulator, firebox lever and large ejector now grab-able in-cab.
Added simple brake operation of auto-ejector when the brake valve is at the far right position.
Added steam chest with realistic delay and jigger/jockey valve deadzone.
Toggle between steam chest with authentic brake operation or simple regulator with auto-ejector.
Improved water in gauge glass sloshing effect.
All the above will be applied to the Falmouth Branch Hall loco. However, we will no longer be supporting the old and long withdrawn HallPack01 Halls. This update is nearly ready and will be made available free to current owners.
Steam Era Carriage Sound Pack Version 2
It has been our desire for a long time to update this pack. However, whilst in the process of working on the carriage sounds for the Peppercorn A2 Pack, we realized that a completely new pack was in order, not just an update. We have learn't, and recorded a lot more since version 1 was released. What's more, there are an awful lot more carriages that we can add our sounds to! PLEASE WATCH THE BELOW PREVIEW VIDEO:
This pack will have to be released as new, meaning a new payware package. However, we feel confident you will all feel it's worth picking up. Version 1 will remain available for those that want it. Here is a full list of the carriages which will have these new sounds applied:
> MT Collett
> MT Hawksworth
> MT LMS Period 3
> MT Bulleid Set
> DT Maunsells
> DT Teak Set(All Liveries)
> N15 Add-on Mark Ones
> WSR Mark Ones
> DT GWR BSet
> Falmouth Branch Mark Ones
> Kuju Mark Ones
> Settle to Carlisle Mark Ones
> Woodhead Mark Ones
> B1 Add-on Mark Ones
> GWR Centenery Coaches
More may well be added before release! If you have specific request, feel free to comment below.
Some Smaller Updates
A much smaller update will be for the Tornado Sound Pack. An AI controlled loco will now have improved cylinder drain cocks code to improve realism.
Another intended update is for the LMS Jubilee Sound Pack as we wish to add improved exhaust loops for higher speed running. The dreaded 'machine-gun' effect was more than I could cope with when driving a 'Jub' the other day!
West Somerset Railway Members Edition is receiving a little bit of attention. Added are some new ambient sounds, and track rumble sounds. Scenery adjustments are being contemplated, but not certain of that yet.
Adjustments are planned to the 8F Collection packages to overcome the issues some have had installing.
The Jacobite Pack will be updated soon with improvements to the carriage sounds and adjustments to the scenarios. New scenarios may be added, but there are limits to what can be done that's new.
That's all for now. We hope to get as much of this cleared ASAP!
The sheds were rickety wooden structures dating back to the earliest years of the line. The one on the left was built by the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway, the Old Worse and Worse, and the GWR added theirs along side. They defied several plans to replace them. A fire broke out once but, 'unfortunately', the brigade turned up in time. 
