Lift hill shake

[Superdasher]

Sometimes, particularly on rides with a fast part before the lift hill, the train will shake as it catches the lift hill. This seems to be mostly present on rides made by Arrow and Vekoma.

 

It sounds like "clickclickclickclick-CHUNK! *lift hill sounds*" (At "CHUNK" the whole train shakes)

 

If anyone still does not know what I mean by this, Robb's video of the Corkscrew at Nagashima Spaland shows it. Right when the train shakes, Robb says, "Oh yeah! That's the stuff Arrow's made of!"

 

Personally, I hate it when rides do that, as it makes me bang my head... Does anyone know what causes this? I know that it has to do with the train catching and engaging the lift hill...but why is it more noticeable on steel coasters, particularly Arrow? Does it just have to do with bad lift hill design reflected in the manufacturer? Or age, perhaps?

[ACEfanatic02]

The faster section before the lift causes the train to go up the hill and not catch the chain until it slides back down. The lift chain only engages in one direction so that the train can slide off it at the apex of the lifthill.

 

At least, I think that's it...

 

-ACE

[RRollergod]

This is because the train is going faster then the chain. So the chain is speeding past it then, gravty causes it to slow down then 'catch' the chain.

[viking86]

It varies alot. Nemesis Inferno hits the lifthill pretty fast, but the transition is very smooth. Magic Mountain @ Gardaland is a totally different story. You can actually see the cars shake from the ground when they are 'catched' by the chain.

[coasterdude5]

I think it just has to do with how fast the train is going when it meets the lift hill.

[Jeezus Juice]

If you look at the base of the lift chain assembly you'll see the counterweight that keeps tension on the chain. With B&M coasters it's pretty easy to see. The Counerweight absorbs the "ka-chunk" so the rider feels more of a bounce than shake.

 

CCI coasters (and now GG and GCI) have very noticeable bounces going up the lift hill. That is due to the counter weight as well.

 

Most of those steel Arrows are from the 70's before they had really figured it out. That is why it's so noticable.

 

I'll try and find a picture for you.

 

-Don

 

-edit- found one. This is what absorbs the impact of the train meeting the chain. Next time you go to a park, watch the weights as a train engages the lift and you'll see how it works.

The counterweight system on Patriot. Photo by jonnyupsidedown and from rcdb.