Trim Brakes

by **Dvo** on July 23rd, 2007, 10:25 am

What's the worst case of trim brakes on a roller coaster? The only reason I ask, is because it really sticks a thorn in my side when huge coasters have so much potential, but then they get held back by some stupid brakes. The trims on the top of the camelback on Raging Bull are awful.... and completely unnecessary. However, I think that the worst case of trims is on the Beast at Kings Island. Trims on the first drop, trims before the second drop, then up a hill and into MORE TRIMS! What used to be the best, baddest wooden coaster out there is now just a slowed-down snoozefest.

by **batcave** on July 23rd, 2007, 10:31 am

Beast and Mean Streak trim REALLY bad.

by **rct2wizard360** on July 23rd, 2007, 11:19 am

Mean Streak wouldn't be much better of a coaster without the Trims.

Beast on the other hand, those trims eliminate every possible bit of airtime that coaster could offer.

Screamin' Eagle would be a lot better coaster too if they eliminated the trims.

by **batcave** on July 23rd, 2007, 2:52 pm

They added trims to Screamin Eagle!?! That ride was the best!

by **Dvo** on July 23rd, 2007, 4:25 pm

^Mean Streak is DEFINITELY a much better ride without the trims on the first hill. The two banked hills that follow are terrifying if they let the train run freely. It really feels like you're going to fly right off the track. I love mean streak. One of my favorite woodies.

by **FParker185** on July 23rd, 2007, 4:36 pm

Most rides at Valleyfair! are plagued by ride killing trims, especaily Wild Thing and High Roller.

American Eagle's brakes at SFGAm suck, though this year they've been better. Bull also has all it's trims.

Comet at Hershey park has a nasty trim on it that just about kills the whole ride.

As mentioned Beast is loaded with trims.

I know there are others, but they arent coming to mind.

by **Dvo** on July 23rd, 2007, 4:43 pm

Mantis has trims on the first drop as well. Sometimes they use them, sometimes they don't. I think it's a great ride either way. When they don't use the brakes, the first drop is amazing and the rest of the ride is REALLY intense. When they do use them, however, the first loop is really fun because you go really slow at the top. Either way, Mantis is awesome.

by **rct2wizard360** on July 23rd, 2007, 5:59 pm

Mean Streak needs to be fixed up, new trains, new track, the whole deal. Then it MIGHT be a good coaster without trims.

I really hate how uncomfertable Magnum's brakes are going up the helix.

by **BrianPlencner** on July 23rd, 2007, 9:00 pm

I do agree that Mean Streak has seen better days in terms of the Trims. I know this, as I visited CP for the first time in 1991. I loved mean streak..rode it many times that day (front, middle, and back). My next visit to CP was in 2000, and things were very different. Went back again in 2005 or 2006, and things were not much better.

Eagle has good days, and bad days. There have been a few times that both the trim at the top of helix, and the one going out have been off. However, I will also say that I've had rides were both tims have been on, and its a totally different ride.

It would be interesting to find out why rides like Eagle set the trims differently. I'm guessing it has to do with the weather, time of day, or the size of the crowd.

rct2wizard360, are you talking about Screamin' Eagle at SFSTL? That ride is (hopefully, not was) great, as it did not have any trims between the drop and the station. I really hope they did not modify it, and add trims to it.

--Brian

by **Chitown** on July 23rd, 2007, 10:39 pm

I was just at SFStl a little over a week ago and I don't recall any trims that were noticable on Screamin Eagle.

by **rct2wizard360** on July 23rd, 2007, 11:14 pm

I could have sworn that on the way back after the turn-around, every hill had trims on it.

Maybe I'm thinking of Blue Streak...

by **Sedir** on July 23rd, 2007, 11:59 pm

Dvo wrote:Mantis has trims on the first drop as well. Sometimes they use them, sometimes they don't. I think it's a great ride either way. When they don't use the brakes, the first drop is amazing and the rest of the ride is REALLY intense. When they do use them, however, the first loop is really fun because you go really slow at the top. Either way, Mantis is awesome.

I remember going on Mantis with the trims on the first drop and the rest of the ride still being pretty intense. I still greyed out on one of the inversions (well then again I guess it was a pretty hot day). But still my feet and legs were tingling at the end of the ride.

If AE wasn't trimmed so badly at parts it definitely would give a better ride. This year actually, the trains were racing and for some reason the other train was trimmed as much as usual while ours was only slightly trimmed and man the helix was way more wild and fun we weren't trimmed to badly at the end of the helix either so the returning bunny hills were great as well.

by **[jonrev]** on July 24th, 2007, 12:36 am

Mean Streak was decent but that trim on the first drop must die.

by **Dvo** on July 24th, 2007, 10:46 am

rct2wizard360 wrote:
Maybe I'm thinking of Blue Streak...

Blue Streak doesn't use trims. That thing flies through its course.. Great airtime for a pretty small ride.

by **coastercrazy** on July 24th, 2007, 12:53 pm

It is my understanding that the trim breaks are set by speed sensors going into them. if a train is going slow they wont fire. If a train is going super fast they fire hard. I heard this spicifically in regards to ranging bull, but i assume it is the same or simillar for all rides.

by **Dvo** on July 24th, 2007, 12:54 pm

I've been on raging bull 7 times now and the trims have been used every time. Its pathetic.

by **coastercrazy** on July 24th, 2007, 12:59 pm

^That means that the ride is working right. They should generally fire in a middle capacity allowing for extremes on both ends.

by **Director_Guy** on July 24th, 2007, 1:27 pm

I've always found that the trims on Bull add to the experience. Adds more drama going over that hill.

But thats just me.

by **BP317** on July 24th, 2007, 2:06 pm

completely unnecessary

Unless your the one inspecting the trains/track wear every day or in the office ordering parts, you dont know if trims are completely unnecessary or not.

by **rct2wizard360** on July 24th, 2007, 2:12 pm

^Yes.

Granted, they do make the ride less enjoyable for some of us, but they prevent a lot of stress on other parts of the ride.

by **Dvo** on July 24th, 2007, 2:18 pm

^there are only two well-banked turns between the first trims and the mid-course brake run. I may be wrong, but it seems to me that the structure would be fine without the first trims.

by **batcave** on July 24th, 2007, 3:50 pm

Raging Bull is more enjoyable with the trims...That ride can be Super rough. I'd ride an empty Demon train over an empty Bull train any day.

by **BullInDaBack4Life** on July 24th, 2007, 3:57 pm

batcave wrote:Raging Bull is more enjoyable with the trims...That ride can be Super rough. I'd ride an empty Demon train over an empty Bull train any day.

Apparently you don't know the definition of rough. How in the world is Bull "super rough"? :lol:

by **Suf03sfgam** on July 24th, 2007, 4:24 pm

Eagles trims at the bottom of the barrel have not been turned on more than 2 days this year. Eagle without trims at the top of the barrel and before the little helix the ride is unbearable, not to mention with the trims on it tears the hell out of the track and trains. If the trims weren’t there I wouldn’t expect the ride to last a full day of operation.

by **BP317** on July 24th, 2007, 4:31 pm

BullInDaBack4Life wrote:
batcave wrote:Raging Bull is more enjoyable with the trims...That ride can be Super rough. I'd ride an empty Demon train over an empty Bull train any day.

Apparently you don't know the definition of rough. How in the world is Bull "super rough"?

Those of us that have actually ridden empty Bull trains would agree, it vibrates to hell and can be painful (same with all other B&Ms in the park with empty trains).

Trim Brakes

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