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hi... first posting...
with a question on Carrera Track.
i used the Tracker 2000 software to come up with a track layout that will fit what the wife will allow.. and i used the 20545 bridge... which i think takes up a length of 3 straight track.
but it looks like Carrera hasn't sold that for some time, and the replacement takes up a length of 4 straight track.. which i don't have room for.

so is there any advantage to use the Carrera bridge as opposed to just using 3 straight track elevated with supports?
is the bridge a gradual grade? seems like if i use 3 straight track i would get a less smooth transition at the joint.

thanks.. eric

I prefer the standard straights. Smoother transitions IMHO.

I Like the bride, it is 2 pieces sloping up and 2 sloping down. You can add short straights in between to get more lift. If you do not have room for 4 straights you can use banked curves like I did for your up slopes.



The layout has an overpass that is level with the table, but a sunken area that the track goes beneath it. You can see the banked curves (R2) at the bottom of the dip, followed by a couple of short straights, and then the downslope to level things up again. Just lay the banked curves flat and you have curved up slope pieces that will shorten that overpass by eliminating the straight up slope pieces.



This area is fun to race through and will get you all out of sorts because your car is doing curves and elevations. Kind of a twisty mess really.

I hope this makes sense. Reading it sounds more confusing than I meant it to be.

proxieken's track is a lot of fun to race on, and he changed the way I look at slot car layouts.

Ken once told me that he was either at a race or watching one on tv and realized that no race course (save perhaps Sebring) is totally flat. The track conforms to the rises and falls of the land. Elevation changes add a new dimension to the momentum that the cars take while circling the course and make the racing a lot more interesting. For this reason, in my mind incorporating the Carrera bridge is a must for any layout that isn't an oval, regardless of whether or not you have a crossover in your design.

And if the cars bottom out on it, get bigger tires! :P

ok, thanks... i'll chew on this a bit...

proxieken: Can you post a link to your track videos?

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6429

I forgot about this video.

I changed it slightly since this, but after looking at the video I think I might like this better. There is very little of the track that is not twisted sideways or going up and down hills. In the video you can see a couple of spots where the transition from hill to banked curve laying flat takes place.

ok, i've tried another layout... with a 5 section diagonal straight that will be elevated...
and yeah, i know i'm getting a lot on a 4x14 table.. but the wife knows how to use a tape measure and a baseball bat.. so this is my max layout.
this is for the grand-daughter and i don't want her vision blocked by the bridge, so everything is flat except for the diagonal bridge in the middle.
i'm wondering if the inner turns on the ends, since they fit right up against the outer turns... that the outer turns will work as an apron for drifting the rear end? are they going to fit as tight as they appear to fit in the layout?

any problems pop out to you guys with this layout?
i think i added an attachment...
Track34.JPG

The 2 curves tucked in next to each other is a neat space saving trick. I looked at your layout and it seems the inside 2 go opposite the outside 2. With no guard rails it is possible to have some head on impacts if the inside de-slots and crosses oncoming traffic. At speed the cars can break if they slam in to each other.

On a previous layout I did the stacked curve method but made sure both were going the same way. Sometimes you would even come off the inside and fall back in on the outside and keep going.

If you can avoid the crashes, the opposite directions would look pretty neat. Your layout is a very efficient use of space and it seems to have a nice variety of curves and straights to make it interactive.

Where the curves go two different directions, couldn't he just cut some thin styrene in about 2" strips and then jam them in between the lanes? It might be a tight fit, and I don't have multiple radii Carrera curves handy or I'd give it a shot. Anyway, that would solve the head-on crashing issue.

proxieken... hmmm good point... i thought having the two inner slots for the same driver would make it less likely for a head-on... but maybe not..
and sticking something between the inner and outer track would prevent using the outer track as a kind of apron.

i think i'll go with this for now... plastic track is expensive, but at least i can change it later if i want.
thanks for the thoughts.