vacoaster

Hello all, I am currently a senior Mechanical Engineering Major and I have a small presentation to deliver on the Manufacturing of Roller Coasters. I chose to focus my presentation on the actual fabrication of track. Does anyone know where I can find information on the manufacturing of both Steel and Wooden track. I have to break this down to the various machining processes used from the Design, to the equipment used (or process), and assembly. Any Help would be great. Finally I am looking for specs in terms of cost analysis and time for production. Again if anyone in the business cares to share any of this information or anyone knows where I can get a hold of such information this would be great. I've tried performing general searches online to no success as unlike simple things (like the manufacturing of pencils or chalk boards), roller coasters do not have information that publicly accessible. I decided to try TPR first before I bothered driving up my phone bill to call the actual manufacturers whom I assume will be reluctant to reveal detailed information. If you do have information but do not want to disclose in such a public forum please PM me.

This is definitely great news as I was just in awe when watching the film and am such transformers fan. In opinion it looks like this could definitely end up being the new technology as outline http://www.vekoma.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=30. At least I am hoping because I think that this concept has plenty of potential as it creates more depth for a variety of experiences especially if immersed in a 3D environment.

yeah those are definitely cars from americana!

It wont take much to pour a new concrete path and modify the rails. It just works very well here at SFGAM. They just modified the queue for some rides by lessening the width of the queue by adding a rail down the middle and created an express point up to an integration point. Other rides like raging bull just created a path from the exit path that connected to the queue before the station and had flash pass carriers go down the exit path only to diverge off to an integration point in the queue. Superman: Ultimate Flight does this as well.

I work at SFGAM... and the way most of our coasters work is that there is a flash pas integration point. So flash pass uses have their own queue and enter the station on the load side where everyone else enters the station. SFA just needs to invest money to just add another pathway. This seems the most fair way to do this. The only individuals who should come up the exit are guest with disabilities or exit passes (if SFA offers those). In reference to ultra twister... I heard it was going to be too costly to reassemble and its now just scrap metal. I don't think thats a good excuse it still would be cheaper to put it up IMO than it would to purchase a brand new coaster. I guess the only question would be over time... would the upkeep of the ride make too costly.

well i mean didn't they spend money on a new train for Voodoo? I am just asking because i thought the accident messed up the trains as well. Just curious.... i believe it would be a good investment to improve the coaster trains.

Well since they are getting the boomerang... i hope that they will get the new lap-bar styled trains. I doubt that they may make this move due the fact that they didn't give Thunderhawk at MI the new restraints. Maybe if the public pushes for it enough they will consider doing so. take a look: this the boomerang at Wiener Prater photos are by Wolfgang Payer / fotoreports.parktours.de (also found on RCDB) I do think that the restraints need some padding if possible.

how did you make that 3d rendering?

Well I work at V2 at SFGAM and there's nothing to worry about. The sounds are perfectly normal for these rides.

Quick Question.... Are the el toro restraints very forgiving?... (i.e. do you have to be a size 30 waist)? Me and friends are planning trip and want to know.

Hey just an update ... I will be working at V2 and Batman: The Ride at SFGAm this summer... name is Dionte. Be sure to say hi!

I dont know if they will go back and touch it up... I mean look at BGE and Griffon... you know that cage looking thing before break run. It looks unfinished and I am still unsure of what exactly it is but nothing has been added or completed from what it looks like to me. If your not gonna put something all together completely for opening day i doubt they'll go back and do more.

I dont think anyone is expecting anything outside of the standard that any park would have for a new ride to enter the park. Especially when its going to be the first thing people see when they arrive to the park. If appearance didn't matter they wouldn't have painted the ride at all and just put it up. What I think people are questioning is whats the point of painting the ride and leaving it not fully painted (i.e. the rails). 2001 x flight was build and was moved and was repainted fully. I do think this is one of the largest rides that has been moved that I've seen but still its not like they couldn't have painted the rails they clearly decided not to and think that its ok to leave the rails with those blobs.

Can anyone tell me what the metal cage looking thing thats surrounding the track of griffon right before the break run is? I though they were gonna try and let a type of ivy or plant group cover it as I thought they would do with the queue area thats hidden from view but thats tucked behind the building. When I compare the visuals of sheikra and griffon... Sheikra has much better themeing. I had always thought BGE was not finished but had just laid back for the first season but from pics it doesnt seem like anything has changed. Can anyone shed some light please?

I dont mind if the rails weren't painted... It's just that in Dominator's case. The painters have done a terrible job as they have paint blobs where the ties meet the track. It looks crappy! I know .... from what we've see with all the other relocated rides (Fire hawk especially since they painted the whole ride and) that they could've done a better job. I really hope that they either remove the paint blobs are just go over the rails with paint perhaps the support color, or the light purple color thats on the train base, or even the just plain orange anything but this paint job that really is starting to look rushed. However to play devils advocate with even myself... this will not stop me from ridding lol! I'll ride it ... but since we're talking about the rails I'm just speaking my opinion.

I waited about 2 hours the year Hypersonic opened and loved it. I never have been to Japan to ride Dodonpa but have watched so many videos of it. I think I would love the launch but the airtime if stapled I would hurt. Question: How much different is this airtime as compared to El Toro as I know people have mentioned being stapled and experiencing extreme airtime on this ride as well. One thing I never really focused on is that the tires on Trust Air 2000 are much larger than those on hypersonic... had they been bigger do you think hypersonic would be smoother. Also one thing that me and one of the former admins of PKDcoaster always felt that the drop was cheated. The original thrust air has a much longer 90 drop where as on hypersonic I recall a foot or so of truly vertical track on the drop. As a joke he used photo shop to draw hypersonic with a drop into an underground hold that popped up into an overbank turn. But anyways... I think the they should come out with another somewhere. Or just revamp it to fix the serious errors.

The pacing seems alright to me. It surely speeds through those corkscrews followed by whats seems amazing air on the bunny hill. The little roar goes silent as it crests over the bunny hill so there definitely air there. How many trains are going to be running at one time. The blocking isn't going to help capacity unless they can have one train in the cycle one in the breaks, one in the part right before the station, one in the station and one right before the lift hill. Basically a trains has to wait till one completes the course to start up the lift from what I see.

Nice pics and thanks for the video report. That is some awesome footage and I can see the pop of air coming off of the brake run. It seems as though they are creating some type of plaza area in the area inside of the loop and stairway to the station. I also assume that the ride will exit into this area seeing as though the gift/photo shop is being build there. Has anyone found out WHAT THEY ARE GOING TO WITH THE RAILS?. They look terrible and what about the top portion of the loop? All in all I'm excited. I love VA, proud to be a Virginian. If it wasn't for Florida we would be the roller coaster haven of the east coaster IMO.

I'll be working at SFGAm this summer. I got an internship with the park at a park operations lead. So I'm hoping to receive further details as to my assignment but I know I'll be covering multiple rides as I'm overseeing an entire section. I leave from here in Boston on the 19th so I'll be starting shortly there after. JUTS FYI, SFGAm is the only six flags park i know that has internships which include housing for a small fee. The rest of the parks i was looking at besides Cedar Fair were not offering housing. I was also offered an internship at BGE but they wanted to place me at the mary go round and the traidwinds (or however you spell it). I declined because I really wanted to work with coasters. Im looking forward to heading to IL, is anyone else going to be working there? Let me know because I've never been out there and its all going to new.

So what about the rails?

To me I just can't see how someone walking in front of me would make want to strike someone. Only think that could ever provoke such thoughts would be if the person who's in the wrong (i.e. line cutting) said something offensive, rude, or downgrading. Especially if employees aren't doing their job to handle the situation it could get infuriating. However, I would have enough respect as an adult to not act such a way in front of my child or anyone else even those of the one who's wrong. Maybe my ability to try and see where the woman who attacked was thinking makes me feel she should spend the next 15 years of her life in prison. At the same time punishment should be served to show that such actions are not tolerable. I just think even a year is a lot (however i haven't research the extend of the injuries or the credibility of the accusations). I see people get their behinds handed to them all the time. Poor woman who got attached she's probably gonna ride on this and milk it for all its worth and wish the worst upon the attacker in a ways to repress the actual guilt of her most likely provoking the issue, thus placing everything on this Alabama woman.

Half of the Norwegian Loop is Done now. Look Fahrenheit 3/26 early morning

Wow... I wonder where the queue is going?

I like the idea of the loop being a different color too especially with the absolutely enormous size of it. The picture posted by pkd804 from the parking lot is my wallpaper because I underestimate the size of that loop. They should try like a color transition gradient similar to the color transition gradient technique used on avatar the ride at Nick universe . That would be cool how the orange transitions to the yellow (or light orange). I think that thing that doesn't work for me is the support color... I think id look better if they were the purple color that would match the trains, but I agree when its all finished it will look great. Anyone have pictures of the newly painted Beserker? Also just throwing this out there of no intention of starting a topic... I'm sad to see HS:XLC gone!!!! I had a similar experience to Will Holder from Coaster Crew if you read his Thrill Holder Blog.... however.. I think that space would be perfect for a Delirium/ Max Air Clone or Perilous Plunge Clone since Diamond Falls was removed!!!

I don't think most people outside of this group will even know about Mystery Mine or if they do find any similarities between the two.... --Robb Agreed, excellent point.