Purchasing a Roller coaster

urumqi said:
... Little A-Merrick-A seems more organized, less ad hoc, and is close to Madison and Milwaukee.

I don't know if I'd call Little A-Merrick-A organized; even the train ride seems to meander a randomly laid out path, populated with random animals (zebras, ostriches...). My impression was that the GM would buy a ride, then wonder where to put it in his park.

That said, thanks for the heads up on Cedar Valley Wild Frontier Park. I was born and raised in Michigan and still enjoy all the state has to offer, even after being a Chicagoan for the past twenty years. I'll work in a visit on my next trip to "Pure Michigan".

If John Ivers can build his own looping roller coaster in his back yard, I see no reason that MeetGeorgeJetson could build one as well.

I agree with what most people have said, that a small to medium sized wood coaster is probably going to get you the best bang for your buck. Wood coasters typically have a lower initial cost, but have a higher maintenance cost over the years. For a quality wood coaster, I would look at GCI or Gravity Group. I don't know what, exactly, you are looking for in a roller coaster, but Quassy amusement park has a Gravity Group coaster named Wooden Warrior that might be a good size for what you are looking at.

Before buying my own roller coaster, I would travel around a little bit, and make sure I had ridden many of the best rated wood coasters to get an idea of what I want in the ride. Specifically, I would look at what each designer has done to help with the decision.

@0g

That's an incredible idea. With having children now it's kinda hard to travel a lot but I wouldn't mind making a few trips to some theme parks.

Honestly I wouldn't mind having Thunder Run replicated only take out that horrible bank right before the camera

If you have Thunder Run available to you to visit so close to home, why would you want to build a replica of it in your backyard?

I don't find Kentucky Kingdom enjoyable

Well, this is just me....

But if I had tens of millions of dollars at my disposal, I'd buy a season pass to a park I don't like (in my case, Six Flags Great America) so that I could go, ride the ride(s) I like (in my case, Raging Bull, Viper and Whizzer) and leave. And spend all that money elsewhere.

I would buy a vacation home close to a place I really enjoy, and secure a means of transportation to get me there on a regular basis.

I'd buy out parks on days my haters were planning on being there.

Just kidding. I don't have haters.

I'd get an island in Hawaii and f the damn rides.

My vacation plans always involve roller coasters. Visiting my parents on the holidays involve tormenting them by watching MSNBC. :-)

Tekwardo said:

I don't have haters.

Are you new here?

After researching and getting prices.. I'm leaning towards the company I've been in contact with that's based in China.

At first they wanted me to send a down payment of 20%.. Obviously I didn't feel comfortable doing that so I asked if they would pay for a flight to meet with them in person ...The accepted my offer... Still nothing is set in stone just yet

With a price of 2m with shipping and installation that's not too bad.

GCI said they would get back with me.. I've decided to not only build a coaster but a log flume too.

I'll continue to post uodateds

http://imgur.com/a/HHj6W

"Yes, dear" ???!??

Lol hahaha

I'm thinking they really want this sale!!

All I can say is get the Google Translate App, and a whole lot of insurance.

MeetGeorgeJetson said:

...I'm leaning towards the company I've been in contact with that's based in China.

Good luck with that.

RCMAC said:

"Yes, dear" ???!??

I import a lot of small electronic parts from China. The use of "Dear" has become quite the common thing. They will also ask about plans on holidays or even ask who you are voting for during elections. We primarily use Skype and the problem I have always had is that within a few months its someone new with the same company with the same personality, word use, etc that is communicating with me. I assume the contact is a made up persona and the there is someone else behind the screen name with a less flattering name or visual appeal for us Westerners. They give me good deals and meet my quality standards and they keep my business though.

Real interested to see how this turns out. When it comes to safety China scares me. Of course with a private build I wonder if they would still have to meet certain safety standards in the US? Some of these other backyard coasters were completely fabricated and installed by the owner so I would believe the requirements would be lax to non existent for them. Since this is a professional organization wishing to do business in the US I would think there would be a specific code they would have to be on par with.

Still, China, I've seen enough of those horror videos of some of their knockoffs or poorly ran rides.

You should really reconsider the Chinese knockoff arrow looper. They're notorious for being terrible.

Yes, please. Otherwise we're going to have to cancel our date.

I already booked my flight.