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  • Dark Ride/Amusement Ride Question

    Can anyone direct me to a company that handles new or used dark rides? I see the pro in having one for timing but what are the cons? I would assume maintenance for one.

    I am considering purchasing one in the next year. We are in the middle of negotiating a purchase on another building and thinking about putting this in the upper level.

    Any input would be appreciated. I saw the post about the used one for sale and it prompted me to look into these further. Just looking for some direction.

  • #2
    Confusing URL, I know, but try out http://usedrides.com. Type dark ride in the search window.
    http://www.piratesofemerson.com

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    • #3
      Dark Ride

      Spookhaven,
      I am the owner of the dark ride for sale. I can answer alot of questions you might have.
      I was in your shoes back in 2000. Looking for new or used dark rides. Been there, done that.
      If you have a million dollars, you can buy a new one of decent size.
      Usedrides.com has a few but are generally small and last about 1 minute or two (carnie dark rides). Plus most are trailer mounted. If you try to convert trailer rides to a perm building ride, you face impossible inspections from inspectors because of altering a ride system.
      Trying to find a good sized dark ride with everything complete will be hard to find unless an amusement park is selling it.
      I have a complete dark ride system that can be housed in a very large building (10,000 to 20,000 sq feet). You can almost call it a plug-n-play system because all you do is lay down the track, connect it to power and let er run. Of course there is a little more to it but it's pretty basic.
      I've searched for years, even after having my ride system and they are few and far between and some can be very costly.
      As for the con of maintenance, that's not the case with mine. If the ride is inspected and maintained (lubed and cleaned) on a regular basis, there is hardly any maintenance problems at all. That makes things easier and dependable.
      Get with me if you have questions.
      I've had mine open and running 9 months out of the year (spring, summer, fall/winter) since October 2004.
      Good luck on your venture....
      Tom
      Creator of the Dungeon
      WWW.BRICKTOWNAMUSEMENT.COM

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      • #4
        Thanks guys.

        Tom: I appreciate your post. Your ride has got my wheels turning. I may give you a call next week to discuss this further if you don't mind. I am very interested in your ride but need to see how it might work for us. I am looking to put the ride in the upper part of the building as a separate attraction. Since I have no idea how these work, I was thinking about breaking it up to connect my upstairs and downstairs. It's going to need a lot of thought on my end. I need to do some additional research.

        Again, I appreciate your input and willingness to give us information.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by spookhaven View Post
          Thanks guys.

          Tom: I appreciate your post. Your ride has got my wheels turning. I may give you a call next week to discuss this further if you don't mind. I am very interested in your ride but need to see how it might work for us. I am looking to put the ride in the upper part of the building as a separate attraction. Since I have no idea how these work, I was thinking about breaking it up to connect my upstairs and downstairs. It's going to need a lot of thought on my end. I need to do some additional research.

          Again, I appreciate your input and willingness to give us information.
          No problem Spook,
          I'll PM you my number and when you get a chance, let's visit. Tell me what you want to acheive and hopefully I can provide some answers.
          I've been working in conjunction with another haunt directly above me for the past 7 seasons (which is a walk thru haunt). Each haunt complimented each other because both were different with different themes. We made it a two team horror thing so to speak. A walk thru and ride thru at one location.... Not many folks can brag about that and it gives the best of both worlds all in one location.
          Hope to talk to you soon.....
          Tom
          Creator of the Dungeon
          WWW.BRICKTOWNAMUSEMENT.COM

          Comment


          • #6
            upper level ?

            what about the weight and moving of all of this heavy equipment to a upper location? True, I don't know the extent of your building, but just the thought of all of that weight and the move to the upper area just made me think. fill us in on your building if you can. Are you in a mall? -or- it is just a large 2 level building? what kind? etc........ hopefully some of the pros here (not me, for sure) can help you and enlighten you.... I love dark ride stuff, that's the only reason I took a look here. Whatever you decide, good luck with it !!!

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            • #7
              Originally posted by chuck weber View Post
              what about the weight and moving of all of this heavy equipment to a upper location? True, I don't know the extent of your building, but just the thought of all of that weight and the move to the upper area just made me think. fill us in on your building if you can. Are you in a mall? -or- it is just a large 2 level building? what kind? etc........ hopefully some of the pros here (not me, for sure) can help you and enlighten you.... I love dark ride stuff, that's the only reason I took a look here. Whatever you decide, good luck with it !!!
              Good question Chuck,
              Back in 2003 I was set up in a shopping mall (Crossroads Mall) on the upper level. Because of the uneven ground layout around the mall, it was ground level where we brought everything in but we did have stores under us. Not sure how the flooring was constructed but sure it is concrete, metal and such.
              Where the ride is now, we are on the ground (lower) level with 3 stories above us. So the flooring is concrete. In the building we are currently in we have a maintenance elevator that we had to use to bring everything in from the ground level outside down one floor. We're in a basement type deal where the front entrance is ground level, if that makes sense.
              Overall, the ride system can be moved manually, with a dolly, pallet jack, forklift or elevator depending on the location.

              Hope all this made sense. LOL

              The track can be easily lagged to wood or concrete floors. The cars have a decent wide footprint especially with the track because the front wheels are on the track so a good sturdy wooden floor would be fine I would think. As for weight, the track can be broke down in sections and each section can be carried by hand by one person. The cars weigh around 500lbs each and can be tilted back and pushed to the desired location (or a palletjack/forklift) then set on the track. The transformers can be moved with a 2 wheel dolly. Once the cars are on the same ground level as the track, they can be manually pulled on or put on the track with a small shop/automotive jack, which I am providing along with lots of other maintenance stuff.

              I hope that answered any questions and hope I didn't confuse anyone.
              Thank you,
              Tom
              Creator of the Dungeon
              WWW.BRICKTOWNAMUSEMENT.COM

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              • #8
                Saw your photos

                Your dark ride is awesome!!!!!!

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