4-car Dragster trains?

CobraRoller said:
This is just for the auction, though. I am sure they will be running six trains on opening day. Well, I hope so....
------------------
Im cold......

The auction is on opening day. They will be running six trains that day, just with one car missing on each train.

(edit: clarification)

------------------
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do. :)
*** This post was edited by Junior 4/28/2003 9:31:10 PM ***

The auction is on opening day. They do have Monday through Thursday after opening day to do further test and possibly install the 5th car before the park is open regularly. Which at this time is the best case, in my opinion. Whether this is temporary or not, it does not speak well to the planning capablities of Intamin, which has had several screw ups (Xcelerator, Wicked Twister) in recent memory.

People need to realize that Xcelerator was a brand new type of coaster. Wicked Twister was a new version of a previous coaster design. You will always have some problems associated with new ride designs, and even any new coaster for that matter. Computer design programs can only tell you so much information. It is rather difficult to predict all of the factors that will affect a ride once it is constructed at a park. We need to be happy that Intamin is designing modifications to fix the problems that are occurring with their rides.

(edit: speliing)

------------------
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do. :)

*** This post was edited by Junior 4/28/2003 9:38:30 PM ***

When I saw the News report a few days ago. They said that when the ride first starts up for the day they need to run it a few times before it can make it over. She also stated that under certain conditions, it might not make it over. I suspect it's got something to do with the weather.

Carlo
*** This post was edited by carlo18 4/28/2003 9:49:07 PM ***

Weather is a very good point.

With early morning/late night temperatures getting to some rather cold levels at times, it may just be that CP decided it was easier to remove a car for a while instead of dealing with an increased number of rollbacks.

All just more thoughts on something we really have no idea of...

------------------
James Draeger
-in search of a new signature

i know it kind of doesnt have to do with the 8 trains thing, but i dont know where to post this question where it will be answered:

i've requested brochures and they haven't been sent yet, i'm going there on may 10th. other than that does anyone know where i can get cupons, and how much discount is AAA?

Rumor I had heard was that the trains were just too heavy and that they lost a water dummy during testing. Meaning it flew out the the train. Knowing Intamin engineers sure does help in finding out juicy info.

------------------
SFWoA TL 2003!
*** This post was edited by XFlight 4/28/2003 10:44:40 PM ***

That's very unlikely. How would a dummy fly out of the train if the restraints were locked?

------------------
- "I used to be in the audio/visual club, but I was kicked out because of my views on Vietnam........and I was stealing projectors" - Homer Simpson

Exactly, I didnt make this up, im just saying what I had heard. From very realiable sources that work for the very same company that built the thing.

------------------
SFWoA TL 2003!

I know we are all thinking that a car has been removed. Maybe that isn't even the truth. Maybe they just decided to block off one car in each train for camera purposes? Or, distribute weight on the early morning rides then have all rows open later?

------------------
Chris Tyson
Photographer
www.pkiunlimited.com

XFlight, there are a few problems with what you are saying. All reports of full-power testing have said that only 4 cars were on the train. Second of all, if a dummy flew out they more than likely would have to be doing some major testing so it probably would not open on time. The lauching equipment was supposed to have more power than what was needed. A 5-car train would actually be more likely to go over the top than a 4-car train. All they have to do is get the train up to speed, and inertia will do the rest. It is harder to stop an object the heavier it is, but on the flip side it is also harder to get it to go. The lauching system should not have a problem the way it was talked up earlier. I am sure there is some reason behind this and the trains will have 5 cars on them eventually.

XFlight said:
Rumor I had heard was that the trains were just too heavy and that they lost a water dummy during testing. Meaning it flew out the the train. Knowing Intamin engineers sure does help in finding out juicy info.

How stupid is that? Yeah, heavy trains = tossed water dummies. I totally see the connection. (/sarcasm)

If you know it's stupid, why do you bother repeating it? Or did you just make it up? Did you hear it from the guy who said some girl's scalp got ripped off on Power Tower?

------------------
Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com - Sillynonsense.com
"Pray that your country undergoes recovery!" - KMFDM

My guess is that this has to do with the amount of negative Gs in the last car, after they did the testing of ride dynamics with the instruments. If that is the case, I doubt TTD will ever run with 5 car trains.

That doesn't seem to make too much sense either, as they have pretty precise control over the speed of the launch mechanism.

Hoping this is just a bathtub curve issue (breaking in).

So the ride has been testing with 4 car trains instead of 5ers?

------------------
Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph

I like pete's idea. When you consider the negative g's, a car in the back would experience the most being that it it would be pulled over the top hat with the weight of the train pulling it down....right?.....(not too great with physics, but this is what my intuition tells me). If that is the case, and the g's were too high, simple soloution would be removing a car. This could be were the tossed dummy rumor comes in. Somone tells somone that the g's were too high on a dummy and it turns into "the dummy got thrown from the train"....I dunno, I think that Pete's guess is the one I am going to bank on.

A rumor that I heard was that one car had a broken axle, so a car was removed from each train until it gets replaced. That way the trains all look consistent and all weigh the same for testing purposes.

No matter what the reasoning is, I believe that they will be back to 5 cars eventually.

------------------
Eastcoaster

As far as I'd heard, the train being too heavy and the tossed water dummy were seperate, unrelated incidents. The use of commas would have clarified, as I can see how someone could have misunderstood and thought that the heavy trains were the reason the water dummy was tossed.

Anyhow, Jeff, since not many people here actually work at the park and actually KNOW why the number of cars was reduced, I'd suggest you not call someone's "rumor" stupid. Hell, it may turn out to have been true. After all, if there's one thing working in the amusement business has taught me, it's that if something seems unlikely, it probably either has already happened or will happen in the near future.

BTW, I'd heard the same thing from a friend of mine with ties to the park. Whether or not you believe it is fine by me...I don't care.

Just don't call my post stupid.

------------------
digi

From what I can gather, I don't think the trains have axles to break. I have been known to be wrong on occasion though.

In actuality, the front train of the car experiences more negative g's than the back train of the car on a symmetric hill, but that can also be resolved by removing a car from the train.

------------------
Be polite and ignore the idiots. - rollergator
"It's not a Toomer" - Arnold Schwartzenkoph

I'm surprised that no mentioned that Xcelerator was originaly was supposed to have 6 car trains not the 5 car ones that they are using. The back car was gonna be without seats. But for somereason that never happen and Xcelerator had 5 car trains instead.

Now I am wondering if CP is actually planing on running the ride without even making it to the top as a alternative operation mode. It would be kinda neat to go to CP one day and ride TTD with that type of operation on one day and full operation the next. THe Only downside is that they are only setup to run 2 trains on shuttle operation (I think they have a transfer track station not too sure).

------------------
Chris Knight
Be sure to download my latest NL Wooden Looping Coaster creation Dream Blast. Updated for NL 1.3!

4 cars is just temporary. As I said on GTTP there was a design flaw which, at this time, will only allow a 4 train operation. A new part is being manufactured in Switzerland, but will obviously not arrive in time for opening day.

------------------
tambo