BrandonR

Are the lift supports removed where it appears to dive under the lift in place of the helix? I forgot to look there.

Okay, here are some pictures from today: The next-to-last bunny hop. Through the structure you can see the right rail for the turn into the midcourse has been completed, but even that seems to be a bit off so it appears some more work will have to be done for that track piece... Ledgers in the old helix area look interesting... Looks like maybe it will do a diving turn under the lift instead of a double-helix? More pictures are here, as always...

I suppose I can go get some more pics tomorrow, if y'all really want me to.

Well I do think the difference is whether or not theme parks get Keith to do the rendering or if some yokel in marketing is an amateur in NoLimits, which of course, it appears they went with the latter. Either way, I kind of like not having an accurate rendering. Makes me wonder if they could have any additional surprises up their sleeves...

Renderings from theme parks have never meant squat. Case in point, here's the rendering Six Flags released for Mr. Freeze: So it's definitely not the first time they've gotten over banked turns completely wrong...

And honestly, I don't know why anyone's upset that the double helix is leaving. That was by far the slowest and most boring part of the old Giant. Not as slow and boring as Rattler's helix of course, but still, I for one won't miss it when I look at what's being gained. And let's not forget that without a double helix the flying carpet could actually be even faster since the helix bled off a decent amount of the train's speed...

But can you really chalk up Arrow and Morgan rides' roughness to the wheel bogies, or just poor engineering in terms of the track profile (crappy transitions, not heartlined, etc.)? I know on most Arrow rides if you look at the wheels there's typically a pretty big gap between the side and upstop wheels and the track due to poor tolerances (even to the point of them still spinning after the train stops in the station), which of course translates to a rough ride. B&M and other modern coaster manufacturers use spring-loaded wheels to stay in contact with the track at all times, in addition to using sophisticated software and analysis to heartline their tracks. I think if properly engineered, wheel bogies on the inside don't necessarily translate to a rougher ride. Of course Rocky Mountain seems to have a lot of experience in building coasters and none in designing them so it's still somewhat of a gamble I suppose.

Back when I operated Titan we had an ongoing issues of the wheels melting, especially in the summer. Looking back it was probably closer to delamination of the polyurethane or whatever material they were made of, but it was a pretty big problem. You could always tell when one of the wheels was messing up because the train would sound several times louder, like a jet fighter flying overhead, when it went through the first helix. I want to say we had the wheel misters installed then but I'm not sure. I think they eventually found a better wheel material that could better handle 85 mph speeds and 110+-degree weather.

And you're thinking it's going to corrode any more than a typical steel coaster because...? The track is painted (rust protection there). And the ledgers appear to be galvanized or have some kind of anti-corrosion coating (rust protection there).

I think it'd be cool if the helix started out like the old double helix but by the time it made two rotations it was at ground level. A downward spiral with ever-increasing speed would be fun right before the magic carpet.

. And like most rides, it feels a lot faster and crazier on the ride than in a video, especially since it was near/enclosed within all the other supports.

But at the same time they've added two new bunny hills/double-ups that should provide plenty of airtime where none certainly didn't exist before.

Well not even the final brake run has brakes placed that I know of, yet. It's still a bit early. Judging by the looks of the ride, I doubt they'd add a flat piece of track that wasn't necessary to hold a midcourse brake. And for capacity's sake, let's hope they plan on running three trains!

It's a midcourse. I took more construction pictures today (September 11) and there is definitely a flat piece of track where the old midcourse was. Oh, and this next picture should put some peoples' worry to rest about the overbanked track not being sturdy enough. Well, maybe not completely. It still looks a bit scary, but hey, maybe that'll just add to the thrill. More construction pictures from today are here: http://www.guidetosfot.com/features/giantreinvented/

Yeah, I hate sounding like a broken record. I'm positive some smart engineers know more about this track system than some coaster enthusiasts examining pictures online and have verified it will work.

Yeah, people forget how heavy multiple layers of wood and steel overlay plates weigh, versus the hollow steel box-sections of this track system. They weigh about the same, according to some press release I read a while back, which is the whole reason this project is possible.

Not to keep beating a dead horse, but here's a recent picture of the lift hill: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=7041800&id=65853440990&ref=fbx_album Which appears to lack the bolted connection plates. You can see where it's discolored where it looks like they welded and grinded the track to make it a smooth connection.

But doesn't it make more sense that they're just bolting things together until they can weld the track together? They wouldn't weld the track together to adjust it. I dunno, it just seems strange to have a relatively narrow path for the guide wheels to run throughout without traversing over bolts. I suppose it all depends on the train though.

Well I am a mechanical engineer. Does that count?

I could be wrong but it appeared the bolts and plates were just temporary and that I saw them going back and welding pieces of the track together and buffing them down to a smooth surface. Not sure they're doing that everywhere but I would find it a bit odd if they left the bolts in place as the train tolerances would have to be spot-on to prevent some catastrophic wheel problems.

Well I wouldn't say one would have to "hover constantly" about the Texas Giant renovation to know the sheer basics that they're converting it to a steel-track system. This whole project was announced in March 2009 and has been a significant source of discussion since, but maybe you just haven't been keeping up with big news in the coaster world...?

Here's a cool picture from the Rocky Mountain Construction site: There's more here: http://rockymtnconstruction.com/ It also looks like they've come out with another concept called a "Topper Track" that just replaces a few layers of the wood to reduce maintenance. Much less involved than the Giant's renovation and likely cheaper.

Uhh, what rock/cave have you been living under/in? Seriously, what would be the point of retrofitting the entire ride with a steel track system and then putting wood on them?

Why yes, they have calculated it out, and it turns out the new track system weighs roughly the same as the numerous layers of wood and steel rails track system of traditional wood coasters. And during the drop you don't really have that many positive Gs (until the bottom) so why would it need to have a significant amount of supports?

I think it's also interesting how when the original press release came out it stated banked turns up to 95 degrees, and now the signs state up to 112. Perhaps reinforcing the idea that they really are making it up as they go.