Yeah, but you're an artist and I'm an engineer. If I were working with Unitrack on the floor, I would have the longest, straightest double oval I could have. Besides, I'm gonna guess that photo is capturing a trial set-up of a permanent layout - not something someone in Japan would set up every so often to run trains. The tape was my first (and only) clue.....
UNITRACK is a product made for the Japanese. All the new pieces made in the last decade have been targeted for that market. When I started at Kato all the Kato USA employees were asked to write up a proposal for development of the UNITRACK line. I included: Flextrack (with handmade working samples) Code 55 track system with North American tie spacing NTRAK Curve radii and 1 1/2" track spaced turnouts request for re-engineered lower cost turnouts and #4s that work as well as the #6s That was in 1993. Atlas has a chance to make a market with their new roadbed track system... Charlie Vlk
I wonder if Atlas' venture into the hallowed ground of Kato Unitracks market will spawn a redevelopment of the Kato track to the specs Charlie called for in 1993? Would Kato do such a thing? I'm not prepared to ditch the hundreds of Unitrack sectional track I have for the Atlas Tru-Track primerily because the Atlas product doesn't have the variety yet... and there is no guarantee that it will ever be expanded anywhere near the level of Unitrack. I will admit... that if I were starting from scratch... I'd be more inclined to buy the Atlas Tru-Track and bank on variety growing to become similar to the present day Unitrack offerings. But... If Kato suddenly began to offer Unitrack with American tie spacing and code 55 (done like Peco does) which can be mixed with their current Code 80 Unitrack... I might begin a conversion to the Americanized Unitrack.
Looks interesting. I'm using unitrack myself and I'm stuck on what to do with a 10'2 by 10'9 by 7'3(gotta remember the doorway) area I could use for a model railroad layout. Do you happen to have a track plan for that floor layout?