07-30-2011, 11:24 PM
How about if the block of GERN contained a magnet which was attracted to the inactive electromagnets components then when the electromagnet was energised the same way as the GERN magnet it would repell the block causing it to fall.
I noted there were several crawler cranes in the real pit, so how about making a model one motorised and capable of lifting several blocks on to railcars as a sort of skills tester? My son and I used a small clamshell bucket crane on a HO scale module loading from a bin into a hopper car at a train show and he picked up the skills straight away and he's six. I might add that such activities are captivating not only to the operator but the spectators as well.
Also you could make a gravel truck work its way up and down the pit using a system similar to the Faller Bus system so the truck follows a wire hidden in the quarry roadway? The Faller bus is self propelled by a small battery and electric motor and the front wheels swivel by means of a trailing magnet on the steering arms.
I guess it just depends upon how crazy you want to get and your desired skill level in relation to minature vehicle movements.
Mark
I noted there were several crawler cranes in the real pit, so how about making a model one motorised and capable of lifting several blocks on to railcars as a sort of skills tester? My son and I used a small clamshell bucket crane on a HO scale module loading from a bin into a hopper car at a train show and he picked up the skills straight away and he's six. I might add that such activities are captivating not only to the operator but the spectators as well.
Also you could make a gravel truck work its way up and down the pit using a system similar to the Faller Bus system so the truck follows a wire hidden in the quarry roadway? The Faller bus is self propelled by a small battery and electric motor and the front wheels swivel by means of a trailing magnet on the steering arms.
I guess it just depends upon how crazy you want to get and your desired skill level in relation to minature vehicle movements.
Mark
Fake It till you Make It, then Fake It some More