The Six Flags Magic Mountain (SFMM) Discussion Thread

[XYZ]

This thread is amazing

 

Fixed.

[Aceattack52]

All we do know is that the chain broke, they ordered a new one which takes time as you can't just go to Home Depot and purchase a 4D coaster lift chain.

But isn't the chain for X2 the same as any other list chain?

[IronWolfman]

^You still can't purchase a normal lift chain at home depot.

[Mechanic]

Maybe I should open a Coaster Depot.

[Will Nolte]

For those that are stating that YOLO is "broken down" because it is "stuck in the tunnel" (I really haven't seen any confirmation of this for one...), the tunnel is a stop point part of the safety features on the ride. It stopped running on the Midnight Riders thing as well and the lead mechanic explained to me that if the train going though the tunnel doesn't hit the trip points just right when going through, the whole ride automatically shuts down as a safety precaution. This makes it so they whole system has to reset and that takes time. The train doesn't just "get stuck" in the tunnel.

 

I think it might be something else if the ride isn't running.

 

That being said, I haven't heard much about the ride doing roll backs since the midnight riders event (When I rode it rolled back right before my train was to come around, followed by my train rolling back). I heard of a few times since then that had to do with it over heating, but it sounds like they might have solved it.

[GigaG]

All we do know is that the chain broke, they ordered a new one which takes time as you can't just go to Home Depot and purchase a 4D coaster lift chain.

But isn't the chain for X2 the same as any other list chain?

 

Every type of coaster is probably designed to latch onto its own lift a different way, not to mention the length of the chain has to be spot-on. For example, most B&Ms (with the exception of Hydra, Nemesis Inferno, and I believe Griffon) have to travel at the same speed to engage the lift (notice the drive tires before the lift), most Arrows have to run onto the lift faster than the lift is going (on Arrows that exit the station onto the lift directly and don't have drive tires like most Arrows, the lift runs really slow at first to let the train on - think Flight Deck/Bat at KI), and others like some Eurofighters (I think at least DDD does this) have to come to a full stop and wait for it to catch like a continuously looping cable lift - which is yet another different system used for lifts.

 

As for rolling back on YOLO, I saw it roll back down the loop into the station during tests. Each launch was progressively faster, so they were probably testing the right launch speed.

[cal1br3tto]

Every time I go to the park, I think of how lush and beautiful the park used to be. It felt like a very green and lush park full of coasters at one point, but now it's basically a junkyard carnival with a handful of descent coasters. Even then, their other rides like X2, Scream, and Viper have gotten so rough and unnoticed by park management, that they are unridable. It's sad that the park has a high potential of being beautiful coaster park with the hilly and foresty environment surrounding it.

I do really enjoy the setting and surroundings of the park, as California is probably my favorite part of the country scenery-wise. If only they'd bring the landscaping and upkeep of the park itself back up to par. And everything else.

[Randomman295]

I have two questions for the regular visitors of this thread.

 

1. Is LLDoD really the first drop ride to achieve terminal velocity only through free fall? I heard a rumor about it and wanted to know if any of you could confirm.

 

2. What are your experiences with Jet Stream? The only time I ever went on it was when the water must have been low, because the ride was rolling instead of floating the entire time. Is this how it's supposed to work?

[Woodie Warrior]

Is SFMM the worst park in the chain at this point? I mean, no other park seems to have as many negative reviews.

[SFMMGeek27]

On Saturday, I talked to the YOLO ops at the entrance and they said that the ride was closed due to rain on Thursday and then on Friday it got stuck in the tunnel and had been stuck since. Apparently they were having trouble getting the LSMs in the tunnel to fire with enough power to get the train over the top hat after many tries. It kept rolling back.

 

Also, on Saturday, I noticed that one of the 3 X2 trains is no longer on the storage track like it was when I looked in September. So maybe they are rehabbing a bit.....

[gerstlaueringvar]

Is SFMM the worst park in the chain at this point? I mean, no other park seems to have as many negative reviews.

Nope, I believe it is Six Flags America

Maybe Six Flags Over Texas in the past year could also win this award

[cal1br3tto]

^SFMM and SFOT: two parks that have gone way down in my opinions this year. Yes, I once really liked SFMM.

 

I think I'd still say La Ronde is the worst.

[XYZ]

1. Is LLDoD really the first drop ride to achieve terminal velocity only through free fall? I heard a rumor about it and wanted to know if any of you could confirm.

 

Lex Luthor drops at about 85 miles per hour which is nowhere near terminal velocity.

[cooksta77]

On Saturday, I talked to the YOLO ops at the entrance and they said that the ride was closed due to rain on Thursday and then on Friday it got stuck in the tunnel and had been stuck since. Apparently they were having trouble getting the LSMs in the tunnel to fire with enough power to get the train over the top hat after many tries. It kept rolling back.

Is this the death of the backwards launch for YOLO some of us predicted way back when?

[simaticable]

On Saturday, I talked to the YOLO ops at the entrance and they said that the ride was closed due to rain on Thursday and then on Friday it got stuck in the tunnel and had been stuck since. Apparently they were having trouble getting the LSMs in the tunnel to fire with enough power to get the train over the top hat after many tries. It kept rolling back.

Is this the death of the backwards launch for YOLO some of us predicted way back when?

I'm honestly surprised it didn't die a week after the ride opened.

[JeromyL]

After seeing how even more run-down the park has been looking

I don't know where you got the first part of that since in that area the park has only improved lately, maybe a steady improvement over the past year or two in fact. I totally think they could get way better, but let's not say they're getting worse when they're not.

seeing how slow and inconsistent they have been regarding their ride closures

We already know X2 has been down while they replace the lift chain. So since on one off day YOLOcoaster and Ninja are down they're so inconsistent? Even with X2 down indefinitely, on any given day it is very likely almost every other coaster is open.

 

Oh, and people talking about how disappointed people might be about YOLOcoaster not being open, do you forget that Disneyland closes down stuff all the time? I would imagine the tourists who paid to fly in from other countries would be pretty disappointed that Indy was down for rehab, Space Mountain was down for rehab, Big Thunder, Matterhorn, etc.

 

Amen Dylan. I agree totally. Folks. I have been going to magic mountain since I was little. Not for the scenery, but totally for the rides. Magic mountain has never disappointed me. Even with x2 down (I've never ridden it. Always down) doesn't discourage me from going. I have a hell of a good time every time I go!!!

 

Besides. It's not like they are doing anything unexpected.

[Jew]

 

2. What are your experiences with Jet Stream? The only time I ever went on it was when the water must have been low, because the ride was rolling instead of floating the entire time. Is this how it's supposed to work?

 

It's always been that way.

[PeoplemoverMatt]

 

Oh, and people talking about how disappointed people might be about YOLOcoaster not being open, do you forget that Disneyland closes down stuff all the time? I would imagine the tourists who paid to fly in from other countries would be pretty disappointed that Indy was down for rehab, Space Mountain was down for rehab, Big Thunder, Matterhorn, etc.

 

Amen Dylan. I agree totally. Folks. I have been going to magic mountain since I was little. Not for the scenery, but totally for the rides. Magic mountain has never disappointed me. Even with x2 down (I've never ridden it. Always down) doesn't discourage me from going. I have a hell of a good time every time I go!!!

 

Besides. It's not like they are doing anything unexpected.

 

 

Yeah? I've lived 5 miles south of SFMM for my entire life. I know how the park used to be better than most. I'm glad you have a good time, but if you've been going since you were little and you say the park hasn't disappointed you by now, you're just flat out not being honest. That park has disappointed everybody at one point or another, including many of the top brass who have worked there over the years. I'm sure the same goes for every other theme park in the world. No park ever goes mistake-free its entire life, but SFMM very rarely seems to realize when it does make mistakes. Subsequently, it rarely, if ever, learns from its mistakes or seems to want to learn from its mistakes.

 

Is it possible to still have fun there? Sure it is. Does Disneyland close rides for refurbs from time to time? Of course it does. But let's not pretend that SFMM and Disneyland close rides for the same reasons, or have anywhere close to the same refurb schedules. SFMM closes rides, or often times has them barely operating on shoestring budgets when they are open. It's better than nothing, sure, but it's a far cry from the level of operations seen at other parks.

[Gnome]

^ maybe he's simply been fortunate enough to not go on a day where you stand in line all day and get on maybe 6 rides total?

[JeromyL]

^ maybe he's simply been fortunate enough to not go on a day where you stand in line all day and get on maybe 6 rides total?

 

I waited for Psyclone on opening weekend for 4 hours. Line snaked almost to viper. I think that was the worse one.

 

Made that mistake one time. Lol. I've always gone on non busy days. Usually in the winter. Maybe it's just that my expectations are low I guess. To be honest. There was a period between 1992-1999. That I didn't go, as I moved across the country...

 

I just go there to ride. Don't care about much else.

[Jew]

^The problem with just going there to ride is that SFMM makes that very difficult with terrible maintenance and operations!

[gerstlaueringvar]

I didn't find Magic Mountain maintain their rides badly except for Apocalypse. But the extremely slow lines made me really angry. It was a Saturday duting summer vacation and Tatsu, Ninja, Batman was running ONE train! Riddler, Scream and X2 took forever to load and unload that riders even complain about waiting at the brake run. Other than that, it was pretty good because all the parks I have been to was Happy Valley parks and Chimelong Parks

 

This summer, however, after I went to Silver Dollar City, Six Flags Fiesta Texas, Six Flags Great America and Cedar Point... I really think SFMM is doing really terrible.

[Aceattack52]

^ maybe he's simply been fortunate enough to not go on a day where you stand in line all day and get on maybe 6 rides total?

 

I waited for Psyclone on opening weekend for 4 hours. Line snaked almost to viper. I think that was the worse one.

 

Made that mistake one time. Lol. I've always gone on non busy days. Usually in the winter. Maybe it's just that my expectations are low I guess. To be honest. There was a period between 1992-1999. That I didn't go, as I moved across the country...

 

I just go there to ride. Don't care about much else.

Was Psyclone really bad from day one? Or was it like a lot of other wooden coasters that deteriorate and become rough over time?

[gerstlaueringvar]

^ maybe he's simply been fortunate enough to not go on a day where you stand in line all day and get on maybe 6 rides total?

 

I waited for Psyclone on opening weekend for 4 hours. Line snaked almost to viper. I think that was the worse one.

 

Made that mistake one time. Lol. I've always gone on non busy days. Usually in the winter. Maybe it's just that my expectations are low I guess. To be honest. There was a period between 1992-1999. That I didn't go, as I moved across the country...

 

I just go there to ride. Don't care about much else.

Was Psyclone really bad from day one? Or was it like a lot of other wooden coasters that deteriorate and become rough over time?

It was damaged on an earthquake after a couple of years and the park couldn't make it back to how it used to be.

[JeromyL]

Was Psyclone really bad from day one? Or was it like a lot of other wooden coasters that deteriorate and become rough over time?

 

When it first opened, Psyclone was very smooth and very fast (no trim brakes on the ride). The trains made this whooshing noise at high speed. Sounded really cool when they navigated the course. When I came back 6 years later. There were brakes all over the place and the ride was very slow. (Friend of my wife used to be a ride engineer there and he said it was all put in after the north ridge quake. But I don't know for sure. )