steambc

I know, Josh, space is everything. Your idea of restoring a kiddie hand crank car is awesome. I've seen them on TV but never had access to one as a child. There's no feeling in the world like taking something that has given you and others pleasure so many years ago, rescuing it from the junk pile, and restoring it to like-new and functioning condition. I liken it to being given an opportunity and a responsibility to preserve a piece of Americana, no matter what the size of the item. I hope you get to fulfill your dream of procuring and restoring one of those cars.

That seems to be the hallmark of Mangel's rides. Simple, basic and tons of fun. I think of the Tickler that he invented as I write this, and boy would I love to construct a new one of those. It would be entirely do-able as it is gravity-propelled. Mangels fully understood the insane fun of riding around in a simple wood & steel tub on casters. I have often daydreamed about taking my Whip car to the top of a modest hill and riding down, but I'm not crazy enough to do that...yet! I will have to settle on keeping it in my living room. As an side, the Whip car just happens to be amazingly comfortable to sit in for extended periods. There's just something about the construction that makes it extraordinarily comfortable, hence its suitability as a living room chair.

Why thank you, Interpreter, I genuinely appreciate the warm welcome. I really want to do William F. Mangels proud in this project, and keep it as original as I possibly can. There is such a thing as over-restoring, and I want to avoid that and maintain the car's character while preserving it for future generations. Thanks so much for your wishes for my recovery and for your appreciation of the project.

To Interpreter, Oldiesmann and Thunderbeast: It's a shame that most of the Whips have been drastically slowed down. I can tell you that there is one park that runs it full-bore, and that is Playland Park in Rye, NY. The speed of that Whip ride is simply amazing. If there are two people in the car, the car will go way up on two wheels before the cable shoe settles for the straightaway. Not only that, but each car actually whips out and returns twice on each of the rounded ends. I've been spoiled and imagine that if I rode a slower one I'd be somewhat disappointed, but it's impossible to not have fun on any Whip ride, fast, slow, or in-between. There is something so insanely fun about being thrashed around in a tub on casters, isn't there?

Hi Guys, Last night during a Google search I happened across this thread, and I was excited to read about some guy who's restoring a Mangels Whip car, and lo and behold, I discovered that this fellow is actually me! Yes, I'm the guy who's chronicling my restoration over on the Coney Island message boards. Unfortunately they had a spam infestation over there and deleted my Chronicle Part I, but Part II is alive and well. Hopefully I won't be breaking any rules here by providing a link: http://community.coneyisland.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1340381227 If you read it and get to the end you will see that I had back surgery 2 weeks ago and will have to suspend my activity on the project for another few weeks, but once I'm fully recovered I'll be shooting the exterior with paint, followed by final assembly and upholstery that will be as close to original as possible. I look forward to getting to know some of you here and getting to learn more about King's Island Amusement Park. Having grown up right next door to Rye Playland in Rye, NY, I have a great love of old amusement parks and love to soak up as much information as I can. If you have any questions about the restoration, I'll be happy to oblige. Steam