New Monorail

[CV12Pirate]

It's nearing the end of February. Any news on the new Monorail, any updates on late night testing. Does anyone have any information.

AVP, Darkbeer, PanFan?

I looked but couldn't find any old threads.

[Another Dimension]

Screamscape.com reported that the new Monorail train still needs a lot of tweaking, either back in Canada or possibly somewhere locally.

[CV12Pirate]

I was afraid of something like that. Thanks.

[Darkbeer]

Actually, it sounds like it was Disney who made the mistake, and didn't draw up the specifications correctly.

The current date that the new Mark VII is unknown, but will be quite awhile, as once the fix the problems, they still need to do the required DOSH safety testing.

[AVP]

The latest I've heard is that the wheel assembly is faulty, and the train can't make the turns. This is 2nd-hand from a non-Monorail CM, so I don't know the full story.

AVP

[doublewide77]

I asked a monorail cm on Saturday. He said lots of problems and said he would be surprised if even running by summer. I asked if it had been on test runs. He said he was told they had done some midnight/early am runs in the last week but he hadn't seen it run.

On another note, if you have seen the pictures, the new monorail will not have drop down open windows like the current ones (which i enjoy for the better view and picture taking), but will be like some minivan windows, hinged at the top and just open a bit at the bottom. Also I believe seating will be like the trains facing out, rather then in rows.

[danyoung]

There was a very detailed explanation in Al's update this week on micechat.com.

[b52hbuff]

Al posted an update on the monorail situation on his site.

One question, are these totally new monorails, or were they remanufactured? I seem to recall that one of the monrails was seen somewhere being dismantled. I forgot if that was to remanufacture it, or to reverse engineer it.

[b52hbuff]

Originally Posted by Spokker Jones

They are not monorails built from scratch. There is a debate whether or not they should be considered new monorails or refurbished.

I was searching some around MP and this helps my understanding.

This makes the problems even more difficult to understand. The company that built/refurbed/remanufactured these trains really messed up if they couldn't get old trains to still work with the old track.

I remember that Bob Gurr used to have a column on one of the fan sites. I would sure like to hear his take on it.

And one political/social commentary... It really amazes me just how hard it is to 'get things done'. Have we really gotten so much dumber as time progresses? I remember hearing Tony Baxter lament about how long it took to get things done in a commentary track on the latest 'Disney Treasures' DVD.

I'm wondering how long it took to get the original trains up and running??

[b52hbuff]

Originally Posted by Spokker Jones

Apparently the wrong blueprints were used, according to Al Lutz.

Yeah, I read it. But *you have the trains*, so why not get an idea for dimensions from the actual device you're remanufacturing??

I guess this is what confused me, if DLR sent up wrong blueprints w/o an actual working train, I can understand the error. In this case, if they had blueprints *and* train, they should have checked actual dimensions. It's a multi-million dollar piece of equipment, and not something you'd want to make a mistake with.

I'll follow with interest how they fix the situation. If they have to somehow reassemble the load-bearing part of the frame to make the clearance, I hope it doesn't effect longevity. Or hopefully, all that needs adjustment is the ornamental shell...

[Darkbeer]

Originally Posted by b52hbuff

Yeah, I read it. But *you have the trains*, so why not get an idea for dimensions from the actual device you're remanufacturing??

I guess this is what confused me, if DLR sent up wrong blueprints w/o an actual working train, I can understand the error. In this case, if they had blueprints *and* train, they should have checked actual dimensions. It's a multi-million dollar piece of equipment, and not something you'd want to make a mistake with.

I'll follow with interest how they fix the situation. If they have to somehow reassemble the load-bearing part of the frame to make the clearance, I hope it doesn't effect longevity. Or hopefully, all that needs adjustment is the ornamental shell...

Disney had Monorail Orange shipped to Glendale (LA Area) to allow the WDI folks to inspect the Monorail and "Reverse Engineer" the train. WDI (aka Disney) came up with the plans and specifications and then had a bidding to see the company that would do the actual work, which Burke Composite won. They built the Monorail based on the exact specifications that WDI came up with.

They did NOT have a full new train at Burke (aka Canada), as I understand it, a recycling firm got the Monorail first, and removed everything other than the main steel frame, which has no moving parts, and was deemed worthy of being recycled directly to the new Mark VII monorail. EVERYTHING else, including every moving part was rebuilt and replaced. So all Burke got was a large piece of Steel, and that everything else had to be built based on the plan that WDI submitted.

So based on what I know (much of which is third person) it was Disney who submitted the incorrect information, and Burke just followed the directions that they were told to do, as per the plans.

[Toocherie]

Originally Posted by Darkbeer

So based on what I know (much of which is third person) it was Disney who submitted the incorrect information, and Burke just followed the directions that they were told to do, as per the plans.

I'm sure there will be many many lawyers deciphering who did what . . . .

[Schmetterling]

Okay, I may be a little stupid here, but is the monorail acutally running, just not with the new trains, OR is it not running at all waiting for the new trains? Kind of gotten conflicting information. Thanks!

[houseofmouse]

One monorail is running from what my folks said. It is not the new one as it does not run right on the track due to some design flaw.

[Schmetterling]

Okay I was just wondering! DH and I didn't ride it in 2006, because of the Finding Nemo ride. I really wanted him to be able to experience the monorail cuz its a nice ride. Guess we will see what the summer brings! Thank you for answering my question!

[b52hbuff]

Originally Posted by Darkbeer

So based on what I know (much of which is third person) it was Disney who submitted the incorrect information, and Burke just followed the directions that they were told to do, as per the plans.

Thanks for the information. Based on what you said, it sounds like Disney/WDI messed up.