B&M Vs. Other Coaster Companies

Why is it that B&M coasters are really smooth compared to coasters like some Arrow's and Vekomas? I have never really figured it out. I understand the time and wear on the ride, but is it just the fact that B&M's are younger, or do they have something that the others dont.

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You are the passengers on a most uncommon elevator, about to ascend into your very own episode of the Twilight Zone........................One stormy night long ago five people stepped through the doors of an elevator and into a nightmare, that door is op

I think its the wheel asemblies.

well arrow and vekoma use running wheels on the inside of the rails, B&M use them on the outside of the rails and i accutually think they use a different kind of wheel assembly then others.

I know Dave "rideman" Althoff can explain it better so I'll just say B&Ms are smoother due to both the wheel assemply *and* track design/manucturing. I don't think it has anything to do with wheels being on the inside or outside of the rails, but that they are spring loaded.

Rideman...take it away...

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2002 - the year of LoCoSuMo!!

It has more so to do with the transitions of the track. Look at older Arrows sometime. They go from one direction to another in a sudden shift. If you look at B&Ms and Intamins, or any new coasters by a big name company, they are gradual, and streched out. Yes, the wheels do play a part to, but not as much as transitions.

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Webmaster of Travis's Websites of Infinite Boredom!
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I believe that the other thing is that B&M designs their coasters around the rider's heartline while other companies focus on the center of the train (or something like that)

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-Bob
Knott's Berry Farm Cuba ~South Park
"Your proctologist called, he found your head!" ~Jerry "The King" Lawler

uh... I read the TOS and memorize it and I sware vs. topics aren't allowed... therefor this topic should be closed.

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Out of the coasters i've ridden here is what I rank them overall:(ive been to canobie lake and SFNE)
1. S:RoS 2. Yankee Cannonball 3. Riverside Cyclone 4. Canobie
Corkscrew 5. Thunderbolt 6. Galaxy 7. Mind Eraser 8. Dragon coaster 9. poison ivy's tangl

This isn't really a 'Vs.' topic. He just was wondering the difference in B&M's and other companies coasters.

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A Vekoma SLC would do Nebraska wonders! :-)

Two things...

First of all they stretch out the transitions on their rides as someone else already pointed out. That takes care of the worst banging around.

Second, they adopted a trick from Anton Schwarzkopf. By spring-loading the wheel assemblies so that all the guide wheels and upstop wheels are in constant contact with the rail, additional pops and bangs are taken out of the ride. Normally, the guide wheels on a train that tracks well won't touch either rail until the train reaches a curve, then one guide wheel will hit the rail first and you'll get a slight bang at that point. Spring-loading the guide wheel means that there is no sudden moment of contact, and the equivalent to that moment, when the train starts into the curve, has the energy taken up more gradually by the elastic member in the wheel assembly. You'll still get a bit of a jerk, but it is decoupled from the chassis by the pivot spring.

Of course there is a downside to doing it this way, aside from higher wheel friction. If the road wheels and upstop wheels are similarly clamped, the road wheel will never leave the track for classic total airtime...!

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

That about sums it up.

There is on other thing that was missed. B&M's track is not just designed with longer transitions, they are also smarter transitions. If you study the photos very carefully, you will see that the bank and the turn don't start at exactly the same time. The bank actually leads the turn. In fact the track may briefly turn slightly in the reverse direction of the turn. This makes the transition smoother for your head which is where the pain is on bad trasitions.

Are Intamins' wheel assemblies spring loaded also? Cuz the airtime on an intamin is different from that of a B/M

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Sim Simma....who got the keys to ma Beema!!

Dave, what Antuan said......ARE the road and upstops also spring loaded, since that MIGHT explain why the Beemers are a *little* lacking in the INSANE air department....just my opinion...maybe not.

(expecting to pay the price for even suggesting B&M isn't necessarily the Alpha and the Omega)

In its under my impression that Intamin's wheel assemblies particuliar the road and upstop wheels are not spring loaded. the third hill on SROS at SFA, while I rode it, felt as if only one wheel was touching the track during that insane moment of purified airtime. The train even felt as if it jumped the tracked and there was a slight grinding sort of noise on the downslope as if to indicate that the rest of the wheels were touching the rails.

I am pretty positive thats the case on that particuliar Superman, I haven't witnessed or felt anything else like that on the other Intamin hypers like SROS at SFNE or Millie. i hope Dave can verify my theory or at least explain the correct answer to this airtime conundrum:)

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Best Fortune ever!!

I'm fairly certain the Intamin Hypers have a similar spring loaded system. I remember reading how they fine tuned the tension of the assemblies on MF during it's construction.

I had no idea that Anton used spring-loaded wheel assemblies before B&M... interesting!

And one other very important aspect...
MONEY !!

You pay for what you get. B&Ms are extremely expensive.

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"Looks like you've been missing quite a bit of work lately"
"Well, I wouldn't say I've been MISSING it, Bob."

I disagree. The projects where they've released cost figures aren't that different from any of the other manufacturers.

Intamin guide and upstop wheels are indeed spring-loaded.

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Jeff - Webmaster/Admin - CoasterBuzz.com, Sillynonsense.com
"As far as I can tell it doesn't matter who you are. If you can believe, there's something worth fighting for..." - Garbage, "Parade"

Really? I am surprised to hear that. I had always assumed that the B&Ms were significantlly more expensive. They certainly appear that way in every aspect. The quality of the designs, the reliability, the build quality, etc...

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"Looks like you've been missing quite a bit of work lately"
"Well, I wouldn't say I've been MISSING it, Bob."

Spring loaded wheels does not guarantee a smooth ride...

Indiana Jones (DLP) is a Zierer/Pinfari design and track.... with Intamin trains running on it. Since we are talking about Pinfari... rough transitions and spots are sure to come! But, the turns are too sharp for any trains... The trains track perfectly, but its the the track at cause here!