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What is this?


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#1 Lift Kid

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Posted 24 December 2008 - 08:23 AM

I've always wondered what this thing is and what it does. It appears to be a counter weight, but for what?

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#2 k2skier

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Posted 24 December 2008 - 08:42 AM

I have always assumed it was to dampen the vibrations of the halo.

#3 aug

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Posted 24 December 2008 - 08:54 AM

We call them lolipops. " tower vibrition dampener"
"Maybe there is no Heaven. Or maybe this is all pure gibberish—a product of the demented imagination of a lazy drunken hillbilly with a heart full of hate who has found a way to live out where the real winds blow—to sleep late, have fun, get wild, drink whisky, and drive fast on empty streets with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested . . . Res ipsa loquitur (it speaks for it self). Let the good times roll." HT

#4 skier691

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Posted 24 December 2008 - 07:42 PM

thats a new one on me!

#5 Lift Kid

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Posted 24 December 2008 - 08:47 PM

Thanks guys! That makes some sense now. Why is this only on 1 tower on the lift though? Why aren't there more of these?

#6 lifdude

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Posted 25 December 2008 - 01:59 AM

yup..Lollipop counterweight to dampen tower harmonic vibration...

#7 TRosenbaum

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Posted 01 January 2009 - 07:48 AM

View PostLift Kid, on Dec 24 2008, 11:47 PM, said:

Why is this only on 1 tower on the lift though? Why aren't there more of these?

Probably a retrofit - added to the one tower in question to address a vibration problem
that was detected after the lift was built and placed into operation. The other towers
did not exhibit vibration problems and thus needed no dampeners.

#8 DonaldMReif

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Posted 07 March 2009 - 02:25 PM

Which lift is this on?
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#9 Lift Kid

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Posted 07 March 2009 - 08:45 PM

View PostDonaldMReif, on Mar 7 2009, 04:25 PM, said:

Which lift is this on?

C-chair. But you can find these on pretty much any Riblet lift.

#10 Peter

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Posted 08 March 2009 - 07:14 AM

View PostLift Kid, on Mar 7 2009, 09:45 PM, said:

C-chair. But you can find these on pretty much any Riblet lift.


Not quite. I've never seen one of these things and I have ridden a lot of Riblet lifts over the years.
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#11 Andoman

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Posted 08 March 2009 - 07:35 AM

can't say I've ever seen one on any of the riblets in michigan, but these are short lifts.

#12 Lift Kid

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Posted 09 March 2009 - 12:29 PM

Well then, I guess they are only on certain Riblets... :blush: But I have seen them in different forms, such as cylindrical shaped weights which seem less noticeable to me. I know A-chair at Breck has these. It could be on just longer lifts too. I mean A-chair and C-chair are fairly long Riblets. It could just be part of the design. In other words, some towers in certain situations may vibrate more than others.

This post has been edited by Lift Kid: 09 March 2009 - 12:29 PM


#13 Snoqualmie guy

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Posted 16 April 2009 - 08:48 PM

Gallery at Snoqualmie has the weight style like lift kid was saying. It's on the second or third tower.
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#14 seilbahnbilder.ch

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Posted 17 April 2009 - 08:43 AM

How do this dampers work?
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#15 aug

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Posted 17 April 2009 - 06:06 PM

View Postseilbahnbilder.ch, on Apr 17 2009, 09:43 AM, said:

How do this dampers work?

think Newtonion physics as in for every action there is a reaction.
Wiki "Tuned mass dampers"

This post has been edited by aug: 17 April 2009 - 06:10 PM

"Maybe there is no Heaven. Or maybe this is all pure gibberish—a product of the demented imagination of a lazy drunken hillbilly with a heart full of hate who has found a way to live out where the real winds blow—to sleep late, have fun, get wild, drink whisky, and drive fast on empty streets with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested . . . Res ipsa loquitur (it speaks for it self). Let the good times roll." HT

#16 brad82

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Posted 19 April 2009 - 12:20 PM

Also check out "Inertia Dampers" :wink:

#17 FSJ

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Posted 20 April 2009 - 07:35 AM

Generally, the dampers were tuned to 2Hz. A 16" sheave running at 500 FPM turns at 2 rev/sec.

In the past, a batch of Riblet sheaves were made with non-concentric bearing bores. These sheaves would wobble and could excite towers with the appropriate natural frequency. Hence the installation of the dampers. The dampers were rarely used on older and newer lifts when better methods of boring the sheaves were used.

#18 CH3skier

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Posted 20 April 2009 - 03:45 PM

Probably similar to the way a harmonic damper works off the crank shaft on an engine?





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