how to fix a hot impulse coaster

Ha ! I'm SFGAm right now (Posting from a wireless palm). As usual, V2 is down. It's overheated yet again. What are they doing about it ? They have a window fan zip-tied to a ladder pointed at one of the LIMs. This is too funny. :)

You'd think that Intamin would have a heat sink and water cooling on this thing.

(Edited to correct spelling & punctuation, since I originally posted in a hurry from my PalmPhone) *** This post was edited by Joe Carroll on 7/12/2001. ***

How come V2 is always over-heating? SUE never Over-heats!

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Ride Count -22 on X-Flight - 35 on Villain - 37 on SUE - 41 on BKF - 15 on others coasters! Equal 150 Coaster rides at SFWoA!

Also visit SFWoA.com A place for all your SFWoA needs!

that is to funny :)

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7/20/01 im sprinting 4 DejaVu

They could have real water cannons, aim at the LIMs and if you hit them, you win a free trip onto Sky Whirl ;). Hey Cheap And Easy, Escpecially for Six Flags. TOGO_Fan

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If Every Coaster Was Rough, I'd Be In Heaven...

I was just reading your signature togo fan. Are you crazy????

Cant! they cant even run it in the rain because eletric and water dont mix

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7/20/01 im sprinting 4 DejaVu @ sfgam

*** This post was edited by rollercoaster kid on 7/11/2001. ***

Well, I believe California Screamin' uses LIM's and they use water to cool them. But they might turn them off first. Please don't quote me on this. TOGO_Fan

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If Every Coaster Was Rough, I'd Be In Heaven...

I have ridden S:UE in pouring rain.

SFMW'S V2 always has the back spike LIMs turned off because of over-heating. But I don't think they shut down the entire ride.

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Shut up when I'm talking to you!"- Linkin Park

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rollercoaster kid said:
"Cant! they cant even run it in the rain because eletric and water dont mix"

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Yes you can operate them. It's called a waterproof shell. No one would be dumb enough to design an electric motor for outdoor use if it was not weatherproof.

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Cyclops. 1900 feet of CCI goodness.

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TrBiggar said:
"

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rollercoaster kid said:
"Cant! they cant even run it in the rain because eletric and water dont mix"

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Yes you can operate them. It's called a waterproof shell. No one would be dumb enough to design an electric motor for outdoor use if it was not weatherproof.

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Cyclops. 1900 feet of CCI goodness."

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Thank You TrBiggar, My idea would work after all. TOGO_Fan

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If Every Coaster Was Rough, I'd Be In Heaven...

How come V2 at SFGAm over-heats and V2 at SFMW doesn't?

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SFGAm Trip - July 13-17, 2001

SFMW's back spike LIMs over-heat, but I haven't heard of the whole ride. Plus it's hotter in Gurnee I think.

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Shut up when I'm talking to you!"- Linkin Park

That's true. Illinois has been having some days where it's been feeling like it's in the 90° range.
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"We are no longer the knights who say Ni! We are now the knights who say eckyeckyeckyeckypakungloopoingengzourjin." "Ni"

It wasn't that hot today, and I was there a few weeks ago when it was much hotter. I'm not sure why it is overheating. I got to ride it finally, at the end of the night. You could feel the heat from the LIMs when you would board the train. When you would stop on the straight spike, you could smell the ozone or ionaztion or whatever...that "electric" smell. I don't remember this from any other time riding it. I hope they get this thing running smoothly soon. Today had the worst problems I've seen it have in the 4 times I've been there since it opened.

By the way - I have pictures of them trying to cool the LIM with the fan attached to the ladder thingy :) Unfortunately, it's on a friends camera, and it's not digital. It might be a while before I have copies to post, but I'll be sure to provide a link once they're up.

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TOGO_Fan said:
"They could have real water cannons, aim at the LIMs and if you hit them, you win a free trip onto Sky Whirl ;). Hey Cheap And Easy, Escpecially for Six Flags. TOGO_Fan

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If Every Coaster Was Rough, I'd Be In Heaven..."

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They don't have the Sky Whirl anymore, unless you can catch a ride on it in the employee parking lot

No wonder you like TOGO.

MFRULES, Its a gimmick, people will pay the water cannons and Six Flags will just tell them it's broken down, even though the ride is gone. TOGO_Fan

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If Every Coaster Was Rough, I'd Be In Heaven...

Damn, and I was hoping for an impulse in Houston where it's USUALLY over 90 degrees.

if the LIMs are designed properly, they won't overheat. LIMs can be water cooled, but the water is fed through the coils in tubes that are sealed. Or, transformer oil can be fed directly into the windings if the coils are designed for it. Neither of these is something that can be retrofitted easily or cheaply.

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Jim Fisher said:

"if the LIMs are designed properly, they won't overheat. LIMs can be water cooled, but the water is fed through the coils in tubes that are sealed. Or, transformer oil can be fed directly into the windings if the coils are designed for it. Neither of these is something that can be retrofitted easily or cheaply."

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While waiting in line after it broke down yesterday,
I thought of a way that I felt could easily be retrofitted to help cool V2.

If you look at the LIMs, they are bolted to the track with what appear to be steel brackets (painted yellow). The brackets wrap around the side of the LIM, and curve a little around the bottom, and have have slanted reinforcements along the side as well (like 1/2 of an upside down an "A").

I say replace the steel brackets with aluminum brackets, with the slanted reinforcements being replaced with several fins of the same type - a big ol' heat sink if you will. Then, to make it more efficient, have a channel (pipe) running through the heat sink, with water pumping through it to help dissipate the heat. They can pump water from the lake below, and use a chiller/heat exchanger to remove the heat from the water if necessary (probably not since they have such a large source of water right below the ride). This is simple technology (heatsink/water cooling). And upon studying at the brackets that hold the LIMs for almost a 1/2 hour, it doesn't look like it would be that hard to retrofit.

Six Flags - if you are reading this, and use my technique, I want season passes and parking passes for life. Intamin - if you are reading, and use my technique, build an Impulse at Big Cheif's @ Wisconsin Dells & we'll call it even. ;)

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Current favorite coasters:
Wooden: 1) Beast 2) Raven 3) Son of Beast 4) The Boss 5) The Legend
Steel: 1) Raging Bull 2) Millennium Force 3) V2 4) Mr. Freeze 5) Gemini or B:TR (tied)

*** This post was edited by Joe Carroll on 7/12/2001. ***