B&M Magnetic brakes

[Absimilliard]

Goliath at La Ronde got magnetic brakes too and they're pretty forceful... but still smooth.

 

Regarding Silver Star, it would not be an Europa Park coaster if it does not slam into the brakes!

[Cerberus]

There's no rubber on the wheels, and being parked for extended periods doesn't cause flat spots. It's just the B&M shuffle -- similar to the Intamin shuffle.

 

Yes there is: http://www.mouseplanet.com/kkrock/figure2-4.jpg

And yes, leaving a train in place for months will cause the track-touching part of the wheel to distort slightly.

 

Then running on those wheels would cause a tiny bump each time it rotated. Spin those wheels at high RPM when the coaster is travelling fast and those unnoticeable bumps will quickly become a Constant vibration.

 

Whether or not this is what causes the problem the plagues some of the BaM sitdown coasters I don't know, but it does happen.

 

 

Question about the magnetic brakes-

Am I right in thinking they were first put to use on Intamin Ride Trade freefall rides?

[kaliboiryda510]

^I believe so. I remember reading a story about it when i was trying to find out info about Drop Zone @ PGA when it was announced. But the story mentioned about how it was the first of its kind, fail safe braking system.

[haux]

There's no rubber on the wheels, and being parked for extended periods doesn't cause flat spots. It's just the B&M shuffle -- similar to the Intamin shuffle.

 

Yes there is: http://www.mouseplanet.com/kkrock/figure2-4.jpg

And yes, leaving a train in place for months will cause the track-touching part of the wheel to distort slightly.

 

Then running on those wheels would cause a tiny bump each time it rotated. Spin those wheels at high RPM when the coaster is travelling fast and those unnoticeable bumps will quickly become a Constant vibration.

 

Whether or not this is what causes the problem the plagues some of the BaM sitdown coasters I don't know, but it does happen.

I thought polyurethane was more plastic than rubber. The wheel lining certainly doesn't have the give that rubber does.

 

Also, what do you mean by "leaving a train in place for months"? Coasters are always moving. They're stopped in the station and the transfer tables for a few hours during the night, but they're taken apart during the offseason. Unless you meant all that time sitting adds up to months. If that were the case, why would that do more harm than constantly moving?

[Dailey Enterprizes]

For some reason the Mag brakes on B&M's make me feel sick. I think they slow you down too fast.

 

I think it's the same for all magnetic braking. The Jackrabbit and Phantom's Revenge both use magnetic braking and I got to be honest and say that I miss the old sleds for the Jackrabbit and the brake fins for the Phantom because they do brake way too hard for comfort.

Without the newer brakes, the train would slam into the back of the train in the station.

 

Uh, if you are referring to the Phantom's Revenge then I think you misunderstood. I meant the "new" Dyno braking that replaced all of the original brake fins. I know the purpose of the trim brakes on the last two bunny hops before the station were placed to keep the train from entering the station and allowing two train operation, but the Dyno braking was added just last season and it hurts like a bitch.

[PKI Jizzman]

Mantis's breaks hit ya pretty hard in the final break run...with those big restraints...it's a big owch

[Cerberus]

[i thought polyurethane was more plastic than rubber. The wheel lining certainly doesn't have the give that rubber does.

 

Also, what do you mean by "leaving a train in place for months"? Coasters are always moving. They're stopped in the station and the transfer tables for a few hours during the night, but they're taken apart during the offseason. Unless you meant all that time sitting adds up to months. If that were the case, why would that do more harm than constantly moving?

 

The type of polyurethane used on coasters is an elastic type. But it doesn't matter- plastic, rubber, polymer (if you want to be so specific) will all deform with their share of a coaster vehicles weight resting on the same four square inches.

 

Many coaster trains are left sitting around for weeks, if not months. Most parks that run one-train operation (when the other trains aren't out of action for a legit maintenance reason) leave the second train on a transfer track. Other parks might have a spare train, again spending most of its time in one place.

 

It would do considerably more harm than if it were running. The whole point I'm making is that it gets worn in a single place, causing an inconsistency in the wheel surface. Trains running normally will wear down their rubbers equally, because the whole surface of the wheel is being used to the same extent.

[BeemerBoy]

I can't believe someone considers the Hulk to be rough

You know Joe, this is one of those instances where enthusiasts can be just a bit too critical, IMHO. I'll admit that when I rode Hulk again back in October, there was a noticable "slight shake" to it that wasn't there in the past. But regardless, it wasn't rough by any means.

 

For a park that operates 365 days a year, sees 5 million+ visitors, and a coaster that never takes a day off, I'd say it's still in great shape and deserves some slack from the "B&M shake" talk. I'm probably asking way too much though.

 

As far as the talk of mag breaks, they've never bothered me in any instance. I guess whenever I reach the end of any coaster, I instinctively brace for what *could* be a sudden stop. That way, I'm prepared for the worst.

 

 

Scott "a B&M, or Intamin shake is what Vekoma would call silky smooth" B.

[Eric_Smith]

With the opening of Diamondback, I was wondering how forceful its LIM's are. Anybody who has ridden it (I know it opened about 8 hours ago) how do you feel about them.

 

EDIT:Grammar

[B-RadG]

Well kinda a bump, but anyhow, on Griffon I know the magnetic brakes are smooth, they slow you down a lot before the normal brakes, but they don't slam, just bring the speed down.

[viking86]

Many coaster trains are left sitting around for weeks, if not months. Most parks that run one-train operation (when the other trains aren't out of action for a legit maintenance reason) leave the second train on a transfer track. Other parks might have a spare train, again spending most of its time in one place.

 

It would do considerably more harm than if it were running. The whole point I'm making is that it gets worn in a single place, causing an inconsistency in the wheel surface. Trains running normally will wear down their rubbers equally, because the whole surface of the wheel is being used to the same extent.

 

I know this was written 2 years ago, but since this topic was brought back up I thought I would just comment this. You can clearly see in this picture that the trains on Nitro doesnt rest on its wheels when its not being used. I havent seen the transfer tracks on other B&M's, but I would imagine its similar. http://rcdb.com/ig1106.htm?picture=3

 

As for magnetic brakes, Im not a huge fan of them. I cant say they bother me that much, but they can make me slightly nasious(sp?) on a hot day if Im a bit dehydrated.

[FeelTheFORCE]

With the opening of Diamondback, I was wondering how forceful its LIM's are. Anybody who has ridden it (I know it opened about 8 hours ago) feels about them.

 

I haven't ridden Diamondback yet, but I know Nitro's are fairly forceful.

[Ccron10]

Many coaster trains are left sitting around for weeks, if not months. Most parks that run one-train operation (when the other trains aren't out of action for a legit maintenance reason) leave the second train on a transfer track. Other parks might have a spare train, again spending most of its time in one place.

 

It would do considerably more harm than if it were running. The whole point I'm making is that it gets worn in a single place, causing an inconsistency in the wheel surface. Trains running normally will wear down their rubbers equally, because the whole surface of the wheel is being used to the same extent.

 

I know this was written 2 years ago, but since this topic was brought back up I thought I would just comment this. You can clearly see in this picture that the trains on Nitro doesnt rest on its wheels when its not being used. I havent seen the transfer tracks on other B&M's, but I would imagine its similar. http://rcdb.com/ig1106.htm?picture=3

 

As for magnetic brakes, Im not a huge fan of them. I cant say they bother me that much, but they can make me slightly nasious(sp?) on a hot day if Im a bit dehydrated.

 

Yes i do believe most of them are similar. Great Bear at hersheypark does have it's trains sit "trackless", but technically they are still sitting on track. Each car frame has 4 casters and when it is stored in the service center, the trains ride on a second (track) that is on the catwalk next to it. In some cases depending on the coaster, there can be removable pieces of track so that during the operating season the cars don't have to constantly be removed.

Here's an example:

Without the track.

 

With the track.

 

As for the polyeurthane wheels, they have to be one of the smoothest things I have ever touched. They feel kind of like rubber and plastic put together (they probably are).

 

I have never ridden a B&M coaster with magnetic brakes, but on Intamins they really slow the cars down smoothly in some cases.

[rawrtotheargh]

You can clearly see in this picture that the trains on Nitro doesnt rest on its wheels when its not being used. I havent seen the transfer tracks on other B&M's, but I would imagine its similar. http://rcdb.com/ig1106.htm?picture=3

 

I know for a fact that Scream! is the same way. I think it just rattles a little because it is getting older. But I have noticed that it is does have a shake now. But its nothing bad at all. Everyone says that Deja Vu is horrible but I love it. You just have to learn how to roll with the punches.

 

As for magnetic brakes. I personally love them. The sound as well as the smoothness.

[mightypotato]

With the opening of Diamondback, I was wondering how forceful its LIM's are. Anybody who has ridden it (I know it opened about 8 hours ago) feels about them.

 

I haven't ridden Diamondback yet, but I know Nitro's are fairly forceful.

 

As are Behemoth's. Its not so much of a jerky stop as it is a quick deceleration. Kind of catches you off guard.

[rawrtotheargh]

^Thats how I look at it. But I think on all coasters I tend to brace myself for a stop. You never know if its going to trip a block and stop super quickly. I think at SFMM tatsu and X are the only ones that I do not brace for. Being that they both have magnetic brakes. haha

[Bolliger&Mabillard]

Xcelerator has one of the hardest magnetic stops I've ever ridden. Whenever I dispatched a train, I would always joke, "Hold on, this things goes from 80-0 just as fast as it goes from 0-80".

[FeelTheFORCE]

Xcelerator has one of the hardest magnetic stops I've ever ridden. Whenever I dispatched a train, I would always joke, "Hold on, this things goes from 80-0 just as fast as it goes from 0-80".

 

Yes, I agree. Probably THE hardest magnetic stop for me, damn. Lol, it's fun in a surprising way though.

[Bolliger&Mabillard]

^Hey...it only has like 50 or 60 ft to stop. But it's at least comfortable, if it were friction brakes...not so much.

[rawrtotheargh]

^ haha that would be ... interesting.

 

I love the sound when xcel hits the brakes.

on a quick side note. do a lot of people black out on xcel on the first overbanked turn? my friend like always blacks out.

 

after that back to brakes.