DL Space Mountain Station Brakes

[djrappa]

Okay so I was at Disneyland the last 2 days and finally got to ride Space Mountain (my first visit was about a month after it closed for the re-build).

 

One thing I noticed was these strange brakes in the station... There are the regular friction brakes but behind them are these strange looking pneumatic 'claw' type things that clearly extend out when the train goes over them and then you see them retract when it dispatches.

 

What are they for and how do they work? Are they something new for Vekoma?

[DATman]

^Just a note, Vekoma didn't build it.

[SLUSHIE]

^Just a note, Vekoma did build it. The coaster itself anyway, not the building or any of the other structures.

[ebl]

Those same brakes were on the old Space Mountain, which Vekoma did build. I find it strange, however, that the new Space Mountain didn't go with some kind of magnetic braking system like so many other rides have.

 

Eric

[Pelydr]

I dont know, but I had a lot of fun on the ride.

[Angry_Gumball]

Hold on..I need to get this straight. Is Space Mountain (old and new) by Vekoma? RCDB says that Disney was the designer but has no mention of Vekoma. I'm assuming that RCDB means that Disney designed the concept of Spacie but the track was done by Vekoma.

[Token Yankee Guy]

I am having trouble picturing these brakes. Is there a picture of them somewhere?

[SLUSHIE]

RCDB says that Disney was the designer but has no mention of Vekoma.

 

Disney likes to claim things as their own.

[Angry_Gumball]

Ah...this makes sense now.

This roller coaster is absent from Vekoma's reference lists, nor will Vekoma acknowledge they had any involvement with this ride. The ride is however clearly a product (less theming) of Vekoma. It is suspected that Disney does not allow its vendors to use them as references.

--Found on Rock 'n' Roller Coaster's page

[UberBeavis]

Space Mountain at Disneyland is NOT a Vekoma product; not before, not after the rebuild...

 

Anybody care to make a wager?

[arrowfanman]

The original Disneyland Space Mountain was built in-house, by Disney.

 

 

 

The retracking was made by AMEC Design Structures.

 

http://www.amecds.com/about/people/

 

I posted a link to the "People" page, because if you look at the top banner, on the left side, above the word "craftmanship", you can see the blueprints to Space Mountain. And if you click on other various links, you can see pictures (in the banners) of them welding the track together and stuff.

[coaster1]

Hmm the track was supplied by AMEC Dynamic Structures who got their track design and layout from .... shocker .. VEKOMA ... funny how the track looks similar to the newer Vekoma track out there like on Everest.

[arrowfanman]

The layout is the original layout that Disney created. That track design is AMEC's, not Vekomas. If you look at other links, you will find that this track is nearly identical to the Robocoaster track ( http://www.amecds.com/about/new/ ... in the banner, again), another design of AMEC.

[coaster1]

Vekoma is the consulting company on Robocoaster track, hence the similar track by AMEC who Vekoma worked with on the Robocoaster track.

[djrappa]

Geeze this turned into a bloody mine's bigger than yours thread already!

Sorry if I spoke out of turn, I know Vekoma worked on much of Disney's stuff so some how I must have just got it in my head that they did this...

 

Does anyone care to actualy answer the question asked regarding the brakes?

 

BTW

Sorrry Elissa, you missed Chip and Dale at Breakfast yesterday, I did think of you when they came by

[robbalvey]

^ From what I understand the "claw" thing you are talking about pushes the train into the next block. When you see it retract is when it's getting in position for it's next victim.

 

I don't know about the new track if it was by Vekoma or not. I have heard conflicting stories. I do know that the OLD track was NOT built by Vekoma.

 

I do know that Disney has done a LOT of work with them recently, so it wouldn't suprise me if they were in the mix at some point. Perhaps I'll ask them myself the next time I attend IAAPA.

 

--Robb

[JP]

From what I understand the "claw" thing you are talking about pushes the train into the next block. When you see it retract is when it's getting in position for it's next victim

'

 

This is true, it works essentially the same way a kicker tire you see on B&M coasters and many others. Note that when they did the rebuild of the ride, they only rebuilt the portions of the track the train takes at speed, meaning all the lift hills and most of the station track (except for the new transfer table) are STILL ORIGINAL. All the track the train coasts on is new.

 

 

 

I don't know about the new track if it was by Vekoma or not. I have heard conflicting stories. I do know that the OLD track was NOT built by Vekoma.

 

I do know that Disney has done a LOT of work with them recently, so it wouldn't suprise me if they were in the mix at some point. Perhaps I'll ask them myself the next time I attend IAAPA.

 

Vekoma did NOT do any fabrication of the track in the Anaheim ride. That track was built by AMEC Dynamic Structures. I met these folks at IAAPA last year, and they had a robocoaster mockup with a track structure which was exactly the same as the Anaheim Space Mountain track. Also, if you look at part of their website, in one of the banners is a pic of Space Mountain under construction, see link http://www.amecds.com/experience/. When I asked them about this, they did not say no, but they also said that they were not permitted to talk about it. Vekoma may have done some work on the Hong Kong Space Mountain. This makes sense as Vekoma does have some manufacturing abilities in China (they can build columns and support structure there - track is still made in Europe).

[djrappa]

Cool, figured it was going to be something like that...

 

Interesting to hear the station track and all that is original... does thing include the rear transfer track (as you enter the station at the end of the ride) and all the brakes and stuff? It all obviously got some love if it is as all looks nice and new and shiny

 

Thanks for the info

[Angry_Gumball]

Does anyone have a picture of "The Claw"?

[Blazen_AZN]

Those same brakes were on the old Space Mountain, which Vekoma did build. I find it strange, however, that the new Space Mountain didn't go with some kind of magnetic braking system like so many other rides have.

 

Eric

 

maybe DLR is trying to get the record for most rollercoaster crashes in theme park history! (who DOES that belong to anyway?)

 

 

my theory

 

Vekoma did not build the first one (according to robb), and the rebuilt version uses the same blueprints as the original. AMEC used those original blueprints to develop the track for this ride.

 

If Vekoma didn't make the first one, they wern't ever involved. As I don't see where they would come into play in the rebuild.

 

(they didn't design or build the first one, and the second was already designed and we know who made that track)

 

 

where would vekoma come in?

it doesn't look like they do

[ebl]

Well, OK, I'm just making an assumption based on what I've been told about a hundred-eleventy-twelve times. But if Vekoma in fact did not have anything to do with Space Mountain, I'll accept it.

 

Eric

[JP]

There is a great article posted at Mouse Planet about the design of Space Mountain in Anaheim. Here's the link http://www.mouseplanet.com/mark/mg051026bw.htm

 

Bill Watkins, an imagineer who worked on the ride, clearly states that it was Disney who designed and built the ride system (He also says they did the same for Big Thunder).

 

Interesting to hear the station track and all that is original... does thing include the rear transfer track (as you enter the station at the end of the ride) and all the brakes and stuff? It all obviously got some love if it is as all looks nice and new and shiny

 

The rear transfer track is still original, only the one that moves the train over to the handicap loading area is new - as is evidenced by the different track style of that piece. All the original parts were refurbished and repainted, but it's the same guts that have been there for nearly thirty years. Keep in mind that these portions of the track don't undergo the stresses of the rest of the ride, so why pay to replace it if it doesn't need to be done.