Track Taping and Taps
Several years ago I'd built a four-lane oval a friend routed for me.  I had two rolls of 1/4" copper tape left over that I wanted to put towards the new track.  I purchased four more rolls based on my calculations accounting for lap length and the pit lanes.  I'd thought about buying or making a knock-off of Luf's taping tool, but ended up doing it by hand.  Why?  Because I  like doing things the hard way.  It took me about 3 hours to lay the first lane including wiring the jumpers across the cross-overs, but by the last lane I had it down to an hour.  I have one almost-hairpin that was difficult do nicely, but by taking my time it turned out good.  I use an dead 9-volt battery to burnish the tape to the track - how's that for recycling?

In order to hook up the wiring, I simply drilled countersunk holes into the track where the tape was going to go for each lane, inserted a brass flat-headed screw and then taped over that.  This allowed me to use a spade connector and a nut on the bottom to connect each wire.   I used an X-Acto blade to puncture a few minor holes for connectivity and then burnished this too.

Taps for Wiring (click to enlarge)

Track Power
At first, I'd planned on powering the track with both AC & DC power.  I'd experimented with the AC on my old track and liked the control it gave me.  So, following the guidance on the AC2Car.org website I purchased a Lionel #1033 90 Watt, transformer.  I also planned to use my Pyramid adjustable power supply just in case someone didn't like the AC power.  When I completed taping the first lane, I was anxious to try it out, so I  used my Pyramid DC power supply and didn't hook up any brakes.  While I had a great time, some of the cars were almost unmanageable on the front side, particularly the near-hairpin.  Still great fun, but out of control.  I began to wonder if I'd made a mistake with the design - I was sure I was going to begin hating the front section after awhile.  I pulled out the Lionel, cobbled up the wiring and....wow!  I was completely amazed - those AC2Car guys know what the heck they're talking about!   On the wood track it totally sells itself.  The cars are so much more manageable.  The speed is still there, but it accelerates different than with DC.  You can hang the tail and get wheel-spin, but you're not going to be shooting all over the place wildly.  The other bonus is that since I can take the corners more realistically due to the power control, I can really get it around the track faster now than when it was DC. 

As this is an AC Powered track, I needed to use a diode as directed by the AC2Car.org website. The one they recommend and that I purchased at a local Radio Shack is the 1N4004.  I soldered this inline as directed on the AC2Car website and then covered it with heat/shrink wrap.

To finish off the driver's stations, I used an electrical box cover and drilled it for two screws.  I painted the washers and the bolts the appropriate colors needed.  I then  purchased some really nice holders for each controller from http://www.slotcarcorner.com/ These aluminum holders really do a nice job keeping the controllers off the ground and look sharp!  At $10.99 each, they are a steal!  In addition, their service was extremely fast - I had these two days after ordering!

Diodes and Driver's Stations (click to enlarge)