Top Thrill Dragster 2022 Status

The break fin motion was definitely controlled by pneumatic air cylinders. Now Intamin or CP could have installed a lubricator to the air supply which is the “L” in what’s referred to as an FRL. If that was installed in the air supply system, then there could have been a chance you would see an oil substance around the cylinders. However that oil substance would be a lubricator and not hydraulic fluid. All that being said, the drips and cloud of vapor was probably all from a water system cooling the cable. I always noticed this more significantly at the end of the launch when the cables path changed direction around pulleys down towards the hydraulic launch system building.

^Break /= Brake. I also share Brandon's reaction regarding the idea of the moisture coming from TTD being Hydraulic oil. However, knowing the clientele that frequented TTD in its heyday, there's something to be said about somehow integrating a scented body spray into the cable cooling mechanism and letting TTD naturally deodorize the enthusiasts. The ultimate Axe bomb.

I think in the case of TDD you actually do mean break :)

Well that's embarrassing especially that break / brake has been brought up many times on this thread already, my bad on that. Spelling and grammar has always been my Achilles heel.

I can't believe we never updated that TTD article; remember it was written while the ride was under heavy construction. It's quite obvious that the actuators for the brake fins ar--I mean--were pneumatic cylinders. I'm looking for a good photo, but I think instead of being spring loaded I think they are double-ended, where air pushes the cylinder in both directions, and with the valves closed the rod stays where it is set. I could easily be mistaken about that, but I don't have a good photo showing whether there are air hoses connected to both ends of the cylinder or not.

There was no hydraulic equipment outside the motor house, other than the lap bar cylinders on the train.

As noted, the water was just that. The launch sled has no wheels on it, and instead slides on a lubricated plastic surface in the guide channel. Running water was used to provide additional lubrication and cooling for the sled during the launch. I wonder if being constantly wet had any impact on the service life of the drive ropes.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

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Only if it results in an erection lasting more than four hours.

Lets try and keep it family friendly

Oh no he didn’t

RMC still trolling. A video on their TikTok about finding a T Rex. And then ending it with #RMCit. Which sounds like they might be using T Rex track on some existing ride.

Maybe TTD. Seems like a long shot though.

Heres a YouTube clip of the large pulley in the rear of the launch while in use. Its an up close shot. It shows that after each launch cycle the cable is sprayed with water to cool it.

The brakes are clearly pneumatic, I believe someone else up above said it perfect. The standard position for the brake fins is up, with sorings holding them in that state. For launch air is pumped into a cylinders pushing them down. Air is released after the launch to pop the brakes up, you can hear that in the video too.

The rope is NOT sprayed with water to cool it. Water is flooded into the guide channel and the ropes actually carry that water. More water sprays off of the haul ropes going over the sheaves at the top of the launch because those ropes are literally dragging the water out of the guide channel and throwing it off as they go over the sheaves. The return rope lays in the water after each launch and soaks in a certain quantity of it. The wettest part come launch time is the part that lays in the guide channel when the launch is finished and then comes back slowly over the large sheave for the return to the motor house. When that goes over the sheave at the end of the launch, it throws that water off as it rounds the bend at 175 feet per second. The water isn't to cool the pulley or the ropes, it's to lubricate the launch sled as it slides down the middle of the track.

Anybody got a good shot of the brake fin cylinders that shows whether there is an air hose attached at the bottom of the cylinder?

--Dave Althoff, Jr.

RideMan:

...I think instead of being spring loaded I think they are double-ended, where air pushes the cylinder in both directions, and with the valves closed the rod stays where it is set.

I suppose that could work, since the pneumatic system is a closed loop, so even in the event of electrical power loss the air pressure would still be present and therefore the fins would extend. But it doesn't seem truly failsafe, since there's a nonzero chance the pneumatic system could fail in a way that would result in loss of pressure.

Here's the best picture I could find, which still doesn't give a clear enough look...

You know, for those of us that are not as knowledgeable as you folks posting here, I must say that I find the complexity of all this truly amazing. My routine is usually getting in line and expecting the thing to operate in a swift and safe manner. All the different parts, sensors, fins, plates, pulleys, ropes, hydraulic's, water lubrication, computers, gizmo's, etc.... is astounding.

For a ride that to many people just appears simply to launch & come back down it is no wonder that there is the potential for so much down time for issues here or there. Thank you posters for all the insight to the mechanics of it.

FYI, in case you're not already aware, Dave's got some great technical writeups on various rides and systems:

The Physics of MaXair

And of course the Ask Rideman series.

Cedar Pointer:

Lets try and keep it family friendly

I don't know if you know how families are made, but that's pretty much as friendly as it gets.

And I don't find sexuality to be obscene. If you do, I dunno, maybe see your therapist, but don't tell me how to run the site.

RideMan:

It's quite obvious that the actuators for the brake fins ar--I mean--were pneumatic cylinders.

What gave it away, the loud sound of moving air when they switched position? 😀

THis is just a snapshot from Google street view showing an air line going into the top of the actuator.

Top Thrill Dragster was often criticized for its short ride and one trick pony attributes. I understand that hours worth of line waiting for a 17 second experience did leave a lot to be desired. However, I was always most impressed with that insanely quick 0-110+MPH launch! No production car in the world could match its acceleration. Would be twice that of a Tesla Model S Plaid. Probably not even the quickest production motorcycle could match it. It was THAT experience for me that I always enjoyed the most. although it would seem, not many others cared.

^The hours-long waits for it tend to disagree. Anyone can have opinions about the ride, but its popularity is/was undeniable.

Long waits are not necessarily an indicator of popularity, since long waits can also be attributed to poor capacity. I've spend a relatively long time queuing for Woodstock Express, and I don't think anyone would suggest that ride is among the park's most popular.

Ridership may be a better metric, and I don't recall TTD ever ranking in the top 5 in ridership numbers when those numbers were still being shared.