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I'm planning a small, simple garden railway with the potential to later expand into something larger. The idea is to start with a simple oval that will be expanded by adding switches later. In order to minimize re-digging trenches and ripping up track, I'd like to first make sure that I can easily swap switches in later (at least four) without having to reconfigure the track too much.  Because the plan is for the new track to be the new mainline, I'd like to be able to replace curved track instead of straight track (so that the mainline is as straight as possible).That could probably be clearer, but hopefully you get the idea.  I'm planning to use AristoCraft brass track, with no flex track to start out with, and I'm not planning any curves less than 8' dia.I had an HO layout in my parents' basement many, many years ago, but I've forgotten anything I once may have known as a kid about track design.  So I have a couple of probably very basic questions I hope someone here can help me with.  Since switches and crossings are so expensive, it'd be helpful to get these planned out other than by trial and error.1. Using only pre-sold track segments, is there a simple set of track I can lay now so that only a few pieces of track need to be replaced when I want to put in a 10' dia. or #6 switch?  Looking at the AristaCraft web site, it doesn't look like you can just swap a 10' switch's curved leg for a 10' curve section.  Am I reading this wrong?  If not, is there an easy fix that won't look or operate strangely? (i.e., just shove a 6" straight in somewhere?  or a custom-cut piece of track?)2. In one section of the layout, I'd eventually like to have two parallel tracks a few inches apart and have a switch branch off from one track across the other track.  (Designing things this way will make it much, much easier to expand the layout later).  If this is confusing, imagine two parallel tracks connected with back-to-back switches, then replace one switch with a crossing (a switch would create a feedback loop).  My questions are:  a. Can I make this work with preformed track sections--say, a 10' switch, a six-inch straight, and a 30 deg. crossing?  (In other words, is the curved section of a switch a full 30 degree curve?)  b. How close can or should I make these parallel tracks?  They'll be straight and parallel at this point, and the space is tight, so the closer the better.3. I understand that anything more than 2 or 3 degrees will look bad.  But I may eventually (in a later expansion project) add a "hidden" section of track going from one part of my property to another (it'll be accessible, but not visible from any convenient viewing location, not landscaped, etc.)  It'd be convenient to have a steeper grade here to get the track over some obstacles at the other end.  What's the practical limit for grade in terms of train operation, regardless of aesthetic considerations?  How long will a train need to be before I notice an effect?Thanks for any help you can give, and let me know if anything isn't clear.
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