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Samurai


Phill

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Was Samurai not already in quite a bad way when it got to Mondial from Chessington after it had been run on its top speed for 8 years, which is why at thorpe it runs slower to try preserve it abit more?

Id like to see a "new" Samurai if I'm honest, it suits the park / area and is a popular ride, I'm not sure what else could go in that space either to be fair!

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It has run like a dog for far too long, these days it wouldn't be out of place going back to Chessington, it is like a kids ride. If it can't be bought up to a decent standard it must be time to send it to the great theme park in the sky. There is no point referbing it to run it like it has been pretty much the whole time it has been at Thorpe.

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Have they ever taken the arms of like that mid season or ever? Hope they are just fixing it because I love samurai because all the madness even though this year it has been a very mild experience, last time I went it did 2 to the left 2 to the right and that was it it would be good see like it was when it was first in Thorpe park. Would be terrible for the park if they lost Slammer and Samurai within the space of 1 or 2 years :(

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Have they ever taken the arms of like that mid season or ever? Hope they are just fixing it because I love samurai because all the madness even though this year it has been a very mild experience, last time I went it did 2 to the left 2 to the right and that was it it would be good see like it was when it was first in Thorpe park. Would be terrible for the park if they lost Slammer and Samurai within the space of 1 or 2 years :(

Samurai actually went down for a long time during the summer holidays of the 2010 season and had what looked like some major work done to it.

If you click on the following link you can see a picture of it in a very unusual position: http://forum.maniahu..._180#entry97652

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I think either it will be a complete refurbishment so new parts etc (maybe going back to Mondial again) or they could buy a new fairground version and install that with the better settings etc and manual.

Samurai is the fairground version. Bring in one fresh from a funfair and it will run into the same problems. The machinery just isn't up to being in operation constantly.

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This is why fairground designed rides at theme parks aren't the best idea...

Chessie ran it as it would at a fair, but that buggered it up in the long run as Thorpe are finding out (and probably as a result of karma for nabbing Chessie's best ride)...

Do Mondial make park versions of it? I dunno, but this is a good indicator as to why fair rides are a potentially bad investment for parks (that and the throughput issues, as Blackpool discovered with Spin Doctor)...

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The ride is literally in pieces, with work being done throughout the day.

Posted Image

The sign.

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The current state of Samurai. Basically all taken down.

Am I right in thinking that Samurai doesn't get dismantled fully every closed season? Whatever the issue with this, it is a real shame.

It just goes to show that whilst the park has all this room to expand, the main core of the park has areas which need developing, and there's rides which really don't have long left...

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People seem convinced they need a new top scan. But why would the park invest in something that will run into exactly the same problems. This isn't like Zodiac where Thorpe bought a thirty year old knackered enterprise and tried to make it work, this is a relatively newer ride which was pushed far beyond what it should have been and now Thorpe have paid the price. Like Slammer, its astounding and worth complimenting to the park for consistently trying to get the two rides working at all costs. But how far will they take it before enough is enough.

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I've never seen them completely dismantle a ride before I mean they never did that to slammer. They arent probably changing the full ride just probably the internal stuff like the integral motors that spin the ride. Fingers Crossed both Samurai and Slammer are relatively incident for the 2013 season. :)

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It all depends on what Thorpe's main intentions are. If they intend to keep Samurai which, going by the sign saying "returning for the 2013 season", they do, then they'll go for the most financially viable option, regardless of the difficulty and ultimate pointlessness of it. Merlin are not known for their future sight.

If they intend to keep Samurai open as an attraction it may be worth buying a new Top-Scan for that purpose only. Even if they run it at the same setting it is now, at least, for them, they'll have the attraction open and if Slammer's anything to go by (though arguably Slammer is more temperamental piece of kit) Thorpe won't want a quick-fix maintenance solution they'll kick themselves about in six months. If buying a new Top-Scan pays off, regardless of the new model will be run in 2013, Thorpe will do just that. If refurbishing the current model is easier/cheaper, then they'll do that.

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I agree with Sidders. There not going to buy a brand new model when all they need is new parts.Slammer should be opening this month , the staff told me they were getting there parts for slammer at the beggining of september then should be open by the end , so it should be open for fright nights.

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I'm unsure if Mondial do park models of the Top Scan or not. Windseeker & a few other rides are available for parks but unsure about Top Scan. Samurai must be a travelling model as if you look under the back of the ride whilst exiting the Saw building/lift area, you can see the central trailer with wheels attached still underneath the ride.

It looks like they're preparing to take it off somewhere now, the main arm looks like it's ready to be pulled away (that's if they're actually removing it from it's spot) in Josh's photo. Let's just hope it comes back strong in 2013..! :D

Lowered down Top Scan below, like how Samurai is now.

Posted Image

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Samurai is one of the best flats at the park and would be such a shame to see go. I hope perhaps this will in a way be a benefit for them that they need to maintain their current ride line up better and hopefully they will do something about Colossus and some of the other existing rides which are just being left to rot as it goes. Hopefully it'll be back in action but obviously not to run on it's highest setting.

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