Ask the Experts / Several Questions

1. I'm looking for a way to merge track so that the train can pass through the element forwards and backwards. I think this question was answered somewhere already, but I cannot find it.

 

2. I don't know if this just keeps happening to me, but it seems like the option of making pieces of track invisible via 8cars (color scheme method) is broken, since it always crashes when I try to apply it. Crooked House mode is no solution in this case (And whilst we're on it, are there known issues with making merged tracks invisible?).

 

3. Is there any way to build some kind of vertical table lift for Watercoasters?

 Water Coaster4.jpg (484.54KB)
downloads: 19

I know that it would be purely cosmetic (with the elevator platforms being stationary), and I suppose I'd probably just have to use a vertical hacked lift and make it invisible. What I cannot figure out is how to design the curved guidance rails of the  elevator. Vertical impulse coaster track would be an obvious answer, but since the vertical track is not centered on the tile and the sloped steep-to-vertical and vertical to steep pieces only work in one direction the whole thing just looks unshapely and wonky as hell. 

Cena made a working one of these in an H2H entry (Pixar Studios I think it was called). No idea how it's done though.

1.) Do the merge in both directions - build forward to merge with the track in front, then select that track and build backward to merge in the other direction

 

2) Crooked house track does not have entries for every track piece. I know it's missing diagonals, block brakes, and steep to flat, there are probably others. If you switch track type to crooked house and you have those pieces in your layout, it will crash. Corrupt elements can be used instead in that case. I have never had problems with making merged tracks invisible but maybe someone more experienced can confirm.

 

3) I think it's possible, but would require the ugliest, dirtiest hacks. I would just use vertical track hacked to act as a lift. If you wanted the cars to remain level during the lift and/or include the elevator platforms, then I think you'd need a custom DAT and some sprite abuse, I can't think of another way to do it. The supports too I would probably end up either using a custom object or just leaving them vertical and using impulse track.

Thanks for the hints. Still need to figure out how to get 8cars to make track invisible again without the damn thing crashing or not working at all. 

 

I have another issue:

I have a minecoaster that uses two lifthills, the second of of them in a Expedition Everest style (the train enters the lifthill facing forward at the bottom, goes to the top, releases and rolls backwards, and exits via a turn). and a spike, on which the train is supposed to stall and change directions again. I'd probably have to turn the spike in a lifthill as well so the train has enough speed to finish the course, or replace it with a launch track. 

 

Now, here comes the problem: I have no idea how to make this ride work. I tinkered with different operation modes, tried to build some of the track backwards, but none worked, and I fear I might have to scrap the whole design. Anybody of you got an idea how to get this coaster to run as intended? 

 

 

 SCR16.png (490.95KB)
downloads: 34

I tried to illustrate the whole thing. it is a bit messy, I'm not good at paint. 

You can make the train reverse and switch onto a different track with a track merge, but I have no idea how to make a lift work on backward track - are you sure the second switch cannot be made to work without a lift?

I don't think this will work well without shoestringing it.

Is it possible to build a lift on backwards track with a shoestring?

No, but you can simulate it.

You can make the train reverse and switch onto a different track with a track merge, but I have no idea how to make a lift work on backward track - are you sure the second switch cannot be made to work without a lift?

 

The layout in itself and the necessary merges are done. What I forgot to specify is that the picture represents what I am aiming for. 

The problem is that when I set the ride into a regular continous circuit mode it cannot roll back on the EE-Lifthill and if I use other modes the first lifthill doesn't work. The spike is the least of my concerns. 

I would put the lift behind the spike and the merge immediately after it, so that the lift is the last track piece before the switch. Once the last car clears the lift the train will roll backward and switch onto the other track instead of the lift. If you need the train to be pulled some distance from the switch before reversing then this won't work though.