Of course, you must have the release signed by the patient before you
release the records to another doctor.  Rules is rules

Yes.  Be prepared to pay a "reasonable fee" for that service.

They may or may not just give them to you if you walk in there
unannounced.

My advice would be to call them and state you need copies of them and
ask them how long/much it would cost.

At our office, if another *doctor* requests the info, I will usually
do it for no charge -- provided we are talking about something less
than 5 pages.  Or if a patient/doctor wants just her last exam sheet,
I will typically do it for free.

If the patient has a large chart and wants the whole thing, I charge
-- I don't recall what the fee is, but it is something like $2.00 a
page.  If there are colored pages/photos, imaging results, then it is
more.

You are entitled to your medical records -- just be prepared to give
sufficient time and be prepared to pay for it.  You are not
necessarily entitled to everything in your chart, absent a subpoena or
court order.  For example, there may be notes in your chart (e.g.,
"patient is a pain in the a.s") that are not part of your exam
findings that you would not be normally entitled to.

Would it be reasonable to request all my RGP contact fitting
information from my previous doc, including topographies?  I'd like to
just walk in there and get them, but I'm not sure if they'll give me
trouble.

I wonder the same about general medical records actually.  Can I walk
into the hospital and just say "give me my file"?

--