takara Tomy and fisher-price versions of track
For my engineering projects I had in mind, Thomas Tank Engine track was something I thought I could get cheap overseas. While I was in Thailand I noticed that track could be purchased separately. However I could not find the Fisher Price version there. (I didn't know there was another manufacturer making Thomas Tank Engine sets). Takara Tomy is a Japanese toy company that has been making the blue track for over 50 years. It has changed very little since. I bought about 6m of this blue track, mainly straight sections and brought them back to N.Z. I didn't buy any trains because I already had some here. However, I didn't realise that the Fisher-Price Trains (NZ versions) didn't run on the blue rails very well. The wheels have large teeth on them for engaging the grey Fisher-Price tracks. Secondly the gearbox covers of the engines drag and catch on the blue joining sections of the tracks.