Wooden or Steel coasters

[Hugh_gazzz]

Just wondering what everyone would prefer a wooden coaster or a steel coaster ?

[Coaster Boy 6]

I missed out on riding any of Wonderland's Wooden Coasters and i have never been overseas. However, I have been on Scenic Railway in Melbourne. It's a cool experience with the brake-men and the good views of the beach. The tunnels are also really cool and suprisingly you get a bit of air time! Although Cyclone will always beat Scenic Railway in roughness, I prefer steel over wood. As i said before i have never been overseas, nor have i rode a proper woody. CoasterBoy6

Edited August 12, 2006 by Coaster Boy 6

[Dylaan]

Depends, I've never been on a woodie so I can't really complain. I'd really like to see a nice B&M hyper, flyer, or floorless. Those Spinning 'XC 3000's or whatever they're called made by Maurer Söhne. Oh and a standup, I think they'd be pretty good, despite the roughness of some. I know they're not a favourite of most people but I've liked the concept of them ever since I first played RCT and that was before I knew they existed!

[dreamworld_rulz]

Steel all the way. Woodies are out of fashion. It's like trying to bring back the mullet.

[tom]

I dont think its a matter of them being 'out a fashion'. Wooden coaster give a different feel to the ride then a steel. They just broaden the spectrum of coaster variety. Its a matter of people liking, or prefering which one. I prefer both. Out of control, rough feeling you get from a wooden is great, and the smooth, inverted elements of a steel are also great. (Not that ALL steel coasters have inversions)

[Spotty]

... and not all steel coasters are smooth...

[Dylaan]

..... but most of us wish they were .....

[tom]

....Most are supposed to be smooth.... Poor maintenance can account for a steel coaster being rough, unless the design of the coaster was supposed to be rough.

[Spotty]

Cough * thunderbolt * Cough

[Dylaan]

No, I think it was just because it was made by Meisho and was old. Sure it helps to maintain it properly but I don't find Cyclone very rough although that is from the front seat and I'd imagine it gets worse the further back you go.

[kiwi]

Visited Ceder Point in Sandusky 10 years ago, when it was claimed to be the Roller Coaster Capital of the World. Not sure if it still is. Out of all the coasters when went on, which was all of them after queing for a couple of days. The only one that we were interested in queing again for was a good old wooden design. You really knew you were on the move. Not like the steel coasters where everything was so smooth and refined.

[Gazza]

Woodies are out of fashion.

I disagree, there have been some pretty major woodies coming out lately, such as El Toro, The Voyage, Balder, Thunderhead, Hades, Thunderbird, Kentucky Rumbler etc.

[Richard]

No, I think it was just because it was made by Meisho and was old.

The fact that it was made by Meisho very much related to the ride's roughness, but its age certainly did not. It was rough from day one. It's been suggested in the past that Meisho even purposely designed the ride to feel like a wooden coaster. I have to say at the end of the day that I prefer wooden coasters. Nothing beats that out-of-control feeling that every well designed wooden coaster has. There's also a special quality to true classics such as the Belmont Park Giant Dipper or Coney Island's Cyclone to be riding something that thrilled riders some 80 years ago.

[joz]

Nothing beats that out-of-control feeling that every well designed wooden coaster has.

Now thats exactly right, but the thing of it is most woodies are either poorly designed or maintained, and as such, said well designed ride is something of a rareity. If either Intamin's wooden coasters or the mostly steel Gravity Group coasters turn out to be more hassle free then older designs, then I'll maybe say Wooden Coasters, but until then I'll say steel all the way.

[Spotty]

Another reason, Meshio was a Sub-Contracter for VEKOMA, If you go onto there site, they advertise the Vekoma SLC, Roller-Skater and the Invertigo. My Theory, Meshio + Vekoma = DEATH

[Dylaan]

Vekoma is alright, sure it's not always smooth, well at least the older models aren't but look at Kumali, FlamingoLand etc. Oh, and I'm not 100% sure, but wasn't Meshio a sub-contractor for S&S during the construction of the 4th Dimension Coaster in Japan? Just wondering....

[stdragon03]

Woodens coasters for me they produce more up and down airtime and only on wooden coasters you get good lateral Gs.

[PattieBoi]

If a "Inverted Wooden Roller Coaster" was invented...then I might consider choosing Wooden Roller Coasters over Steel....

[Gazza]

I might dip in to this now that I have ridden a "proper" wooden coaster (Ghostrider). While steel coasters are still probably my favourite (B&M inverts and Intamin Accelerators have sort of cemented that) Woodies are an excellent coaster type and come very close to steel in terms of enjoyment. I think steel sort of wins out simply because they are more flexible, whereas with woodies its just sit down gravity fed rides. But woodies just have a totally different feel to them compared to steel coasters that is impossible to describe and now I really want an Australian park to add one to their line up (IMO every park with a good sized lineup should have a woodie in their somewhere) I don't think they are dated as some people have said, its just a different construction and mechanical method which gives them a unique feel.

[nev]

I don't think I've ever had a more wild experience - and djrappa will probably agree with me here - on Thundercoaster at TusenFryd in Norway in the rain, barreling around corners at a ridiculous speed with unbelievable force - to the point where the ride op told us we were completing the track 7 seconds faster than the normal dry run time... Woodies have their place, just as inverts, hypercoasters, accelerators, and floorless coasters do. It's another type of coaster, and I much prefer to compare them to different types of coaster as opposed to simply saying "wood or steel". And for anyone who hasn't ridden a BIG, good overseas woodie like Balder, Ghostrider (even though its gotten rough recently), Thundercoaster, or even the Blackpool coasters, you really don't have the knowledge and experience to comment . Bottom line is a well made woodie can be just as smooth as steel - Balder was smoother than a lot of steel coasters I've been on.

[lg9142]

I think that the 2 types are so different that it's hard to compare them. Comparing the Wonderland woodies and the Scenic Railway with, say, Cyclone is rather hard when the ride syles are so different. I personally prefer Woodens in general though some, like the bush beast push my patience. Australia needs a good wooden!!!!!!

[rob]

Lethal Weapon = Steel = Rough Superman Escape = Steel = Smooth Scenic Railway = Wood = Rough (Not as bad as LW) It's kind of hard to decide which is better since not all steel coasters deliver the same experience, and the same with wood. Any steel coaster could be rough (LW) or smooth (SE). It doesn't just come down to the type of coaster but also the design, maker, how it is maintained etc. But since I've only ever been on one wooden coaster and a few steel coasters, I would have to say that I prefer steel over wood. That could change if I ever go overseas. Also, just out of interest, what kind of coaster (hyper, inverted, sit-down etc.) and what coaster manufacturer (intamin, B&M, vekoma (shivers)) do you prefer??

[DisneyDoll]

There's also a special quality to true classics such as the Belmont Park Giant Dipper or Coney Island's Cyclone to be riding something that thrilled riders some 80 years ago.

[downunder]

I haven't been on that many good woodies, I have Ride of Steel and El Toro neck and neck at 1 and 2, I'd rather ride El Toro than any other steel coaster except Ride of Steel, but El Toro is probably not indicative of the average woodie. Going down the list, the standout woodies I have ridden are Ghostrider and Lightning Racer which are well behind my favourite steel coasters, but I think when a wood coaster is done right like El Toro it can be as good or better than most steel coasters. I will be riding Voyage, Hades, Avalanche and many other more top class conventional woodies next month so I will have more information to base my preference on. Most of the woodies I have ridden so far have been mediocre and or at worst jackhammering spine snappers.

[wondercam]

Woodens coasters for me they produce more up and down airtime and only on wooden coasters you get good lateral Gs.

I agree with you totally!