[Manning]

FYI, the 90 degree 9" radius corners aren't really 90 degrees. Don't use more than one in a corner cause there will be gaps. The 45 degree 9" corners are better. I was trying to save money and use the 90's..... Now I want to replace several 90 degree corners in my track because of the gaps. Hindsight is 20/20 or better.....


My opinions......

One section of 'wiggles' is probably enough........

Spend some money on the 18" curves, they are very cool. Yes, they are really expensive compared to regular Tomy track.

I had some 12" and 15" corners with tight slots. Mainly with x-trac's and the guide flag.

The 6" corners are 'fiddly'. They take some work to make smooth with all cars.


Definitely set the track up and run on it before commiting to a layout. I changed some stuff based on running it...... Glad I did........

 

[Manning]

When you say ‘don’t use more then one in a corner’, do you mean not to use two 90’s to form a 180 degree turn, or something else? .

Yes, don't make a 180 degree turn with 2 90 degree 9" corners. It will be ugly..... Just fair warning. I was trying to be frugal also, and the worst joints are the 90 degree 9" corners. Now I want to replace all of my 90 degree corners now that my track is done..... Hindsight is 20/20...

. Is the gap you are referring to a gap that is created between the inside and outside track pieces, or somewhere else? Based on something I read at Greg Braun’s site, I was thinking I would try and maintain the 1/8” gap between inside/outside tracks for the complete layout.
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I have no idea where this 1/8" gap is supposed to be. Make the track lanes and joints as tight as possible. Try not to leave gaps anywhere. Although that is pretty much impossible. You will end up with gaps in a few places.

Here's another tip, think somebody else mentioned it earlier, but it's worth repeating. The 15" straights....aren't perfectly straight. If you take two of them and place them side by side, they will fit tightly together if placed side by side like AB, but if you put them together like BA, you will see a gap in the center.. Hope that made sense. Go try it and you'll see. Just something to be aware of..............

 

[Manning]

The latest layout looks fun to me....... :thumbsup:

Just for fun, here's a link to a thread with some pics of my track. I need to add some newer pics with the drivers stations.
http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=110030&highlight=mudtown