For Christmas this year I plan to dig out some old American Flyer trains I received from my grandparents and set them up under the tree instead of my usual G gauge trains. My equipment is stored at my father-in-law’s house and I won’t get it until Thanksgiving, but I wanted to get a jump start now. I plan to put a basic loop with a passing siding under the tree (American Flyer display layout #177, see link below), and cut some 1/2" plywood to the general profile of the layout to go under it.
I will cut the plywood, round/sand the edges, seal it with primer and paint it with oil paint. I want to have this ready for when I bring home the trains in November, requiring me to just screw the track in place and play. The two ends will be mounted permenantly on 2x4 pieces of plywood with the outer edges of the loop cut in a curve to match and the inner portions of the loop straight (imagine cutting a circle in half and spreading them apart) with the two additional pieces connecting it together to form a loop.
I can get a rough idea based on the plan where to cut the lines, but to be more precise I am looking for some information including: (1) American Flyer curve track’s radius, (2) length of regular straight pieces, and (3) footprint of their typical switches. Are there free online templates available to help me lay out the track centerlines on the plywood?
Thanks.
http://www.americanflyerdisplays.org/factory_displays/factory_displays_home.htm