24 replies to this topic

[JayketheKid]

I have lucked out to where i have the inspiration to build, have an idea of what to build, and have the time to build all happening at the same time. This is actually an idea that i've had since day one of being on this site. You may remember me talking about starting an X2 recreation after i finished my first coaster, Angel Falls. Well, up until now i did not have the time, space, inspiration, and enough pieces to complete a project of this scale. Well, after a few purchases on Ebay, i have decided to attempt this project. I also wanted to start this project so i could post it here. Seeing that activity in this thread has been *very* minimal, i just want to get this out there just in case this site goes belly up. But anyway's lets starting talking about the ride itself.

 

To start with, the trains i have designed to include as many details as possible, but still not be too heavy to kill speed. I made sure part of the custom gondolas per car were connected so each part rotates in the exact same direction and rate which will hopefully eliminate chaotic motion and prevent vibrations that could slow the car down. As of now, i removed all weights i had in the train to begin with. I'm not exactly sure whether the gondolas will be heavy enough to act as weights or not. I will just have to test to find out.

 

The structure itself will be pretty weird for this coaster. The lift is a long lattice bridge. That was necessary to achieve a 35° lift angle. The crests of the lift and the crest of the drop are supported pretty normally with box supports. But the drop was a challenge even though its a long straightaway. I had to create a really janky looking structure to achieve the 88.5 degree drop X2 has in real life. Don't know why they didn't make it vertical, but Im trying to be as realistic as possible. I plan to support the first raven turn to the start of the fan turnaround in box supports. But the fan turn, fly to lie, second raven turn, and fly to lie into the brakes will be tubes. The second raven turn might end up being box supports if the train still has a decent amount of speed by then. 

 

I know this is going to be a very difficult project, but im ready for a challenge. Speed conservation is key, so i plan on making supports as beefy as possible. This means that running out of needed parts is very likely. In fact, its almost guaranteed. So, ill likely have some delays because i need to order parts. But im also trying to be part conservative. I plan on using as many cross-ties as possible in high force sections, but in low force sections, they'll be spaced out a bit. 

 

But overall, im very excited to start this project. Hopefully there will be a passersby or two who will comment on my progress. Here are the pictures. Let me know what you think!

 

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 recreation by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Edited by JayketheKid, 23 April 2020 - 10:24 AM.

[SCM]

Wow. That's tall. That's almost as tall as Ningen was. This is really sexy so far! Good job, and I love the colors. Also: 

 

"Don't know why they didn't make it vertical, but Im trying to be as realistic as possible." A vertical drop would result in the train slamming with the pullout. This is because of the gap between the running wheels, upstop wheels, and guide wheels. It's not much of a gap, but because you're dealing with such a heavy object filled with people... it's definitely going to hurt. This is why drops aren't truly vertical. Not even dive machines. Those liars... 

(Final video: Codename X?) 

 

Edit: I just realized that the drop's structure looks awkward. I understand you spaced it away from the drop since that's more accurate, but those flimsy TTS connections won't be doing much supporting, especially not the very top one where the two brown ladder connectors have the grey rods going through them. Attach some Y connectors to keep it from sliding up and down. Also, I think it would be better if you made the TTS connections into a triangular shape instead of a square shape like you currently have. That's what's on the real ride, anyway. 

 

Edited by SCM, 11 December 2018 - 05:16 PM.

[CoasterWarriorUnlessSleeping]

Very cool recreation!!! I really can appreciate the accuracy on the lift angle, nice touch. Pre-drop looks great too. It sounds like SCM has some pretty darn good ideas about strengthening the drop. I look forward to watching this:)

[Ghostbuster]

that looks very well executed so far. I'm interested to see how the speed on the train will be with these extensions. 

[sonicriders789]

I’m very excited for this. Looks amazing so far.

[JayketheKid]

Wow. That's tall. That's almost as tall as Ningen was. This is really sexy so far! Good job, and I love the colors. Also: 

 

"Don't know why they didn't make it vertical, but Im trying to be as realistic as possible." A vertical drop would result in the train slamming with the pullout. This is because of the gap between the running wheels, upstop wheels, and guide wheels. It's not much of a gap, but because you're dealing with such a heavy object filled with people... it's definitely going to hurt. This is why drops aren't truly vertical. Not even dive machines. Those liars... 

(Final video: Codename X?) 

 

Edit: I just realized that the drop's structure looks awkward. I understand you spaced it away from the drop since that's more accurate, but those flimsy TTS connections won't be doing much supporting, especially not the very top one where the two brown ladder connectors have the grey rods going through them. Attach some Y connectors to keep it from sliding up and down. Also, I think it would be better if you made the TTS connections into a triangular shape instead of a square shape like you currently have. That's what's on the real ride, anyway. 

Yes, its very tall! Its my tallest coaster so far. Since I've added onto the drop, while the supports look janky, they're perfectly sound. I can pull on that track section and it doesnt budge. Since it's vertical too, it won't be as stressed by the train as the top or bottom of the drop. 

Very cool recreation!!! I really can appreciate the accuracy on the lift angle, nice touch. Pre-drop looks great too. It sounds like SCM has some pretty darn good ideas about strengthening the drop. I look forward to watching this:)

 

Thank you! I look forward to building it as well!

that looks very well executed so far. I'm interested to see how the speed on the train will be with these extensions. 

 

Thanks. So far, they don't seem to have too much of an effect.

I’m very excited for this. Looks amazing so far.

Thank you!

 

So I'm back with a new update... a lot later than i wished. But, the pullout of the drop is completed and so is the raven turn that follows it. I do not want to talk about how many times i redid this element. I don't usually build with boxes, so shaping is something I'm fighting as I'm learning this supporting method. I know what i have isn't perfect, but i think its perfectly acceptable as its smooth, shaped decently, and supported well. I cant really tell, but it may look a little wide to me. But i really don't want to redo this element, so I'm good with what i have. I lubricated the trains and added some steel plates to the bottom of the middle two cars. So far, it flies through the raven turn. I don't think speed loss is going to be a huge issue until i change to tubes later on in the ride. Also, i finalized the chain mechanisms. I was struggling with the chain breaking almost every other test. But with a new gear setup and a tension mechanism, I've got it to operate smoothly and reliably. This coaster is massive, so im running out of peices left and right. So far, i have spent about 75% of my birthday and christmas money on knex. Im lucky that this project timed out with the holidays. I probably wouldn't have the funds to do it if i built it in the summer! I don't have much else to say about what I've done. Today is the last day of my Christmas break. I was hoping to have up to the fan turn built by now. But hey, its a quality over quantity situation. Here are some photos. Let me know what you think!

Knex X2 Recreation (Update 2) by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 Recreation (Update 2) by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 Recreation (Update 2) by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Knex X2 Recreation (Update 2) by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

[SCM]

Yeah there's definitely some straight spots throughout that raven turn. Are you sure that having gray rods and purple tubing on the inside of the track is really necessary? You do have a really beefy structure. Also, it is possible you could be losing some speed on the top of the raven turn. I've learned from building Toxic that gray rods will significantly slow down the train after being bent a certain point. Also, the shaping of the raven turn could probably fixed with some more TTS connections. Hold on...

Red: Let's say that each spot on the green connector where you can attach a rod is, from left to right, 1, 2, 3, 4. Right now, 1 is a space that is off to the side, 2 is attached to the granite rod, 3 is a space, and 4 is attached to the TTS connection. Re-attach the green connector so that 3 is attached to the granite rod and 4 is attached to the TTS connection. 

Orange: Change that brown connector to a granite connector. 

Do this, and it will get rid of that straight spot.  

Edited by SCM, 07 January 2019 - 08:41 PM.

[Muzz135]

This looks very very nice! Really smooth but I agree there are a couple tiny straight spots but nothing hand shaping shouldn’t fix. I feel you might be a tad overkill on the cross ties, especially if you’re running short on pieces (though you could have plenty crossties for all I know and if so keep it up )

[CrayCray for coasters]

Wow. That's tall. That's almost as tall as Ningen was. This is really sexy so far! Good job, and I love the colors. Also: 

 

"Don't know why they didn't make it vertical, but Im trying to be as realistic as possible." A vertical drop would result in the train slamming with the pullout. This is because of the gap between the running wheels, upstop wheels, and guide wheels. It's not much of a gap, but because you're dealing with such a heavy object filled with people... it's definitely going to hurt. This is why drops aren't truly vertical. Not even dive machines. Those liars... 

(Final video: Codename X?) 

 

Edit: I just realized that the drop's structure looks awkward. I understand you spaced it away from the drop since that's more accurate, but those flimsy TTS connections won't be doing much supporting, especially not the very top one where the two brown ladder connectors have the grey rods going through them. Attach some Y connectors to keep it from sliding up and down. Also, I think it would be better if you made the TTS connections into a triangular shape instead of a square shape like you currently have. That's what's on the real ride, anyway. 

 

they are truley vertical but the ones that are have spring loaded upstops to keep pressure on the running wheels

[JayketheKid]

So... heh... It's been a while huh?

 

Well, I don't know how to say this in any other way... It's done!

 

Well, kinda.

 

I'm not gonna lie, to finish this coaster i had to absolutely use up my entire stockpile of peices. The good news is that the majority layout was finished 100% spot on. Bad news is that I had to make some modifications and "budget cuts" to complete this. I do not have the peices to build the transfer, station building, catwalks or any other details like that. I also had to do the final brake run differently than it is on X2. It's significantly shorter and does not travel underneath the lift like it does on the real ride. This allowed me to make a straight shot from the brake run to the pre-lift turn. But that used up ALL of my left over peices. I had enough to make some brakes, but they do not open or close. They're just placed in the right spots to slow the train down to a reasonable speed before the pre-lift so the train doesn't go too high up on the lift before engaging and snapping my chain.

 

But overall, I am happy with the end result. It may not be perfect, but I'm okay with that. Sure, the shaping isn't the best and some elements are scaled perfectly, but it runs relaibly and looks like X2. That's frankly all I care about anyways. Enough chatting. On to the pics:

 

IMG_3435 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Overview of the build

IMG_3486 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Lift motor setup. An additional device to keep tension on the train is also located at the top of the lift.

IMG_3457 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Top of the lift.

IMG_3492 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Close-up on the train. It's now a 7 car train but I removed the outside seats as the rotational force required to start and stop the train when banking killed a lot of speed. But now, that is not an issue

IMG_3476 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

The two Raven Turns.

IMG_3482 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Exit of the first Raven Turn.

IMG_3477 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

IMG_3455 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Both the camelback and Fly-to-Lie elements.

IMG_3464 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Artsy shot of the camelback support structure

IMG_3451 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Fan Turn

IMG_3471 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

IMG_3456 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

IMG_3475 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Fly-to-Lie

IMG_3483 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

Entry into the last Raven Turn.

IMG_3484 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

IMG_3478 by jaykemenges1, on Flickr

And into the brakes.

 

So thats where I'm at now. I do hope to have the final video up by next weekend. Hopefully that will give me time to deconstruct this project and work on another one before i move to Branson, Missouri. Unfortunately, I won't have the space to build there. But luckily (well, more unlucky) I wont be moving until the COVID-19 outbreak is over and parks start opening up because i am seeking employment at Silver Dollar City. But that's a whole different thing!

 

[Chaos]

This is spectacular! I was thinking about this model the other day, hoping it would get completed. Can't wait for the video.

 

And also, good luck at Silver Dollar City! I hope to make it out there sometime this year.

[CrayCray for coasters]

Are you going to make the system with the rack and pinion

[JayketheKid]

Are you going to make the system with the rack and pinion

Not even going to attempt that. That would require custom 3d printed trains and permanent modifications to all of my cross ties to add the 4th rails. That's just an extreme amount of work to do even though it may not work. The free rotation works just fine anyways. Oddly enough, they rotate similarly to the real ride despite being uncontrolled. The only part where they dont really behave normally is on the drop and final raven turn.

[CrayCray for coasters]

Not even going to attempt that. That would require custom 3d printed trains and permanent modifications to all of my cross ties to add the 4th rails. That's just an extreme amount of work to do even though it may not work. The free rotation works just fine anyways. Oddly enough, they rotate similarly to the real ride despite being uncontrolled. The only part where they dont really behave normally is on the drop and final raven turn.

i might try making dinoconda with just 4th rails that attach to the flexis/gray rods might do some prototyping later

[JohnnyR24]

Great job, this looks amazing! Look forward to the video!

[RCT2123]

Wow, this is incredible.  What an absolute unit.  Looking forward to the video!


Also, good luck with Silver Dollar City!  What an awesome place to work at and have as your home park.  I haven't been there yet, but everyone says it's great.  Hoping to make it out there after this Coronavirus stuff blows over.  Let's hope we can get back to parks sometime this year.

[Muzz135]

Came across this beast on Instagram about a week ago and was wondering when you’d post it here. Absolutely awesome build and from the short clips I’ve seen it runs amazingly. Really hit the nail on the head with this one, hats off to you!

Edited by Muzz135, 16 April 2020 - 06:10 PM.

[megabuster9000]

This is looking really great

[JayketheKid]

This is spectacular! I was thinking about this model the other day, hoping it would get completed. Can't wait for the video.

 

And also, good luck at Silver Dollar City! I hope to make it out there sometime this year.

I was struggling to find the inspiration to complete it. Fortunately, getting to experience the ride in the flesh was the last push i needed to get this finished! And thanks! I'm hoping that Silver Dollar City opens sooner rather than later with it being quite some distance from any major outbreak area. But who knows anymore. If you do end up heading to SDC, be sure to message me beforehand!

 

Great job, this looks amazing! Look forward to the video!

Thank you thank you!

 

Wow, this is incredible.  What an absolute unit.  Looking forward to the video!


Also, good luck with Silver Dollar City!  What an awesome place to work at and have as your home park.  I haven't been there yet, but everyone says it's great.  Hoping to make it out there after this Coronavirus stuff blows over.  Let's hope we can get back to parks sometime this year.

It is certainly quite a large build! It completely eclipses all of my other projects. Thanks as well. I've been visiting that park for so long, so it will be nice to finally not have to drive 5 hrs for it! It's my personal favorite park out of the ones I've experienced, so i hope you get to experience it as well.

 

Came across this beast on Instagram about a week ago and was wondering when you’d post it here. Absolutely awesome build and from the short clips I’ve seen it runs amazingly. Really hit the nail on the head with this one, hats off to you!

I appreciate the kind words!

 

This is looking really great

Thanks a ton!

 

So the time has arrived! The final video is out for your viewing pleasures.

 

 

I am also planning on doing a basic "off-ride" style of video without a ton of editing or music, but that could be some time till its out too.

[FrIeDeGgS]

This came out amazingly well! Nice job on recreating what I've heard to be a legendary coaster. I definitely know the feeling of being almost done with a coaster but just not having any motivation left to even touch it, so props to you for pulling through and completing it.