• Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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    9 months ago

    Sure, most girls aren’t likely to respond in a positive way, if you say something like: “hey, if you ride my dick in that thing, are you on top? Or are you technically to the side?”

    Most girls are gonna be like “eew, no. Just no.”

    But the thing is…a few girls who hear that shit will respond with something like “LET’S FIND OUT!”

    They are the real ones. You don’t just want to hang out with them for sex. You want to hang out with them, in general.

  • geekworking@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    The electric requirements would stop you from putting it in your backyard.

    The motor is 3 Phase around 150A. Residential areas are generally not wired to be able to offer 3P power to customers. You would likely need to rent some commercial space to be able to get the electric hookup.

    • derphurr@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      If you didn’t run the lights, it’s only 33kW motor, less in newer Starships

      Assuming you had 208V 3ph, that’s under 100A. Much less if you are in commercial area with 240V 3ph

      If you don’t plan to spin 48 people, you could replace motor with a 120V single phase motor 5hp and remove a lot of weight from the ride (cut holes in every other fiberglass panel)

      A decently small generator (relative to a full trailer carnival ride)… could power this. There are many tow behind 50kVA diesel generators. (Another $8k)

      BTW the reason these UFO/gravs are for sale is because they are all rotting, the fiberglass panels that hold it together are like paper now and too expensive to repair.

    • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      I mean a residential area home isn’t gonna have room anywhere for the thing in the first place.

      which is why I had mine installed out back behind the stables, that we me and the livestock can all enjoy it.

    • Confound4082@lemmy.ml
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      9 months ago

      Power company asked if I wanted a three phase meter when I was checking power requirements for wiring my shop up.

      I just needed a different meter.

      • blujan@sopuli.xyz
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        9 months ago

        Usually it’s the meter and the cabling that needs changing, like an extra phase needs to be introduced but it should be available at street level if any commercial place is around.

        Your shop might have had the cables already and just needed the meter change.

    • IndiBrony@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Good thing my house backs up to a funfair! Place in garden, unplug the nearest fair ride… et voilà! New income stream for me!

    • theangryseal@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Ooooh. I could hook this up outside my uncle’s store.

      I hear him talking about his setup all the time when something goes wrong and I regularly hear “it’s 3 phase”.

    • ArxCyberwolf@lemmy.ca
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      9 months ago

      Three phase motors are the bane of every siren enthusiasts’ existence for this reason. Anything with a motor over 5 hp is likely three phase.

      • noobnarski@feddit.de
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        9 months ago

        Nowadays VFDs have gotten cheap enough that you can just use one of them to create 3 phases.

        Or you just have 3 phase power at home (laughs in Germany).

        (I actually dont right now, but my house is one of the last ones not to, and its all already prepared for it)

        • ArxCyberwolf@lemmy.ca
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          9 months ago

          VFDs are definitely the way to go, that’s what most enthusiasts used. When we did SirenCon over at Camp Tesumas in Wisconsin, we had a giant generator that we had to use to run the bigger sirens, especially the Cyclone 125 which has a 50 horsepower motor. It nearly killed the generator!

          • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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            9 months ago

            SirenCon

            jesus I saw people in the 2023 vid w/o hearing protection - like… neat event, but do you have minimal hearing protection at all?

            you can’t control idiots but… perhaps… you could make them stand at a safe distance?

            not personal criticism just damn… got my hearing loss in the army, it’s not fun.

            • ArxCyberwolf@lemmy.ca
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              9 months ago

              Some of them seem to think they’re immune to hearing damage, which bewilders me. Smart enthusiasts have proper hearing protection.

        • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          Or you just have 3 phase power at home (laughs in Germany).

          aside from running carney rides, and maybe a shed with a gigantic cnc or end mill - what are the reasons for pushing 3p to the domicile level? I have no doubt there must be, DE knows engineering so…

        • Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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          9 months ago

          Seriously. If this guy thinks his neighbors would be cool with his COLLECTION of sirens that operate on three-phase power, he’s got a wad of expanded polyethylene foam where his brain ought to reside.

          • ArxCyberwolf@lemmy.ca
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            9 months ago

            You’d be surprised when you’re respectful about it and/or live in the middle of nowhere. We don’t just set them off willy nilly.

            • Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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              9 months ago

              I’ll have to take your word for it. The way I figure it, there’s a neighbor-to-neighbor noise spectrum on which everybody is constantly, even unconsciously evaluating everyone who lives around them.

              On one end of the spectrum is the concept of “I don’t want to be that guy who calls the cops about this fucking noise, but I LITERALLY HAVEN’T BEEN ABLE TO SLEEP FOR THREE DAYS.” I suppose the other end of the spectrum would be something like “all these fellows have been so quiet and considerate that they could give their collectible sirens a couple of good blasts, and I’d be happy for the break in the near-oppressive silence.”

              See, the thing is, everywhere I’ve ever lived, I have been just about a notch and a half below the “I’m going to call the fucking cops” end of the spectrum. Always. The whole time.

              Here’s a non-exhaustive (but certainly exhausting) set of examples, off the top of my head: dogs barking over and over and over, kids screaming, people deciding they just HAVE to mow the lawn at 6:00 AM on a Saturday, people with speaker systems that literally count as earthquake simulation machines, people who think it’s hilarious to illegally modify their muscle cars’ exhaust systems to basically have no muffler, people running their wood jointer machine for so long that I can only imagine they’re operating an illegal, untaxed lumber supply racket, people interminably screaming at their spouses and significant enemies in their driveways and on the sidewalks, etc, on and on.

              It’s just a ceaseless and endlessly varied cacophony of fucking sound, from these rude motherfuckers. If any one of the shitheads who has lived near me over the last 40-something years had ever started collecting sirens, I would have lost my mind in the same arguably constructive way that young Bruce Wayne lost his marbles. There would be some guy called “Decibel Dude” stalking the streets, pouring sugar in leafblower gas tanks, muzzling dogs, removing chains from chainsaws and blades from lawnmowers, and whatever else I could think of to FINALLY MAKE PEOPLE JUST A LITTLE FUCKING QUIETER, FOR FUCK’S SAKE.

              I’m just saying. Your world of “we’re all respectfully quiet, around here” is an utterly alien utopia, from where I’m sitting.

              • ArxCyberwolf@lemmy.ca
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                9 months ago

                It’s illegal for us to set the sirens off willy nilly in most places, as it would cause a panic. Most of us (myself included) wait until the city tests their main sirens to set ours off, or on special occasions like New Years and Fourth of July/Canada Day. We’re very aware of how our hobby affects others and those who don’t learn very quickly when the neighbours get pissed.

                • Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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                  9 months ago

                  Well, it’s legitimately good to hear (pun intended) that y’all are responsible siren owners.

                  Honestly, I didn’t even vaguely suspect that siren collecting was a thing until I had this conversation.

              • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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                9 months ago

                I can only imagine they’re operating an illegal, untaxed lumber supply racket

                my wife is a woodworker. she thought it ‘wasn’t that noisy for the neighbors if the garage door was closed’ lololol

                that and neighborhood kids running around blasting bluetooth speakers at 2 in the fucking morning (like, 10 year olds!) I’m right there with you man, I want a quiet street and the world is conspiring against it.

                And re: the vroom vroom fuckwits - oh my fucking god. About a half mile from my house is a main thoroughfare and some nights the fuckwits all try to see who can dump the most unburned gas out of their turbocharged shitmobiles generating 100+db because at my house it’s still fucking ear-splitting and they’re all the way over there with half a subdivision between.

                meanwhile the world burns more each day, vroom vroom

                • Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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                  9 months ago

                  The vroom vroom motherfuckers are absolutely the worst. Years ago, a feral cat had her kittens on our back porch. I was present to witness the litter of kittens emerging from the nest the mother cat had made, behind an outdoor shelving unit and a garden hose. These little fuckers had NEVER SEEN THE WORLD OUTSIDE THAT SPACE. They were all emerging at once, six little innocent balls of fluff, cuter than anyone could adequately describe. They had made it about ten inches into the outside world when some shithead started blasting his fucking engine, on the road past my fence.

                  The poor little fuckers jumped in unison and squeezed themselves back into the den, in a complete state of panic. They didn’t come out again for another day, at least.

                  So yeah, Mr. Big Masculine High Displacement Fuckoff Engine, out there…was he pulling chicks with that shit? Was he impressing ANYONE, at all, of any species? Nah. What he was doing was scaring the shit out of 14-day-old kittens. Fucking congratulations to his ass.

    • kaboom36@ani.social
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      9 months ago

      Could be done with a large enough rotary phase converter assuming the electronics can tolerate the funky power

      The problem would be feeding it enough power

    • intensely_human@lemm.ee
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      9 months ago

      Within 20 years I bet we’ll have small fusion reactors that just sit onsite and generate all the power you want. If we survive WW3 that is. A toaster-sized generator will be able to run a gravitron no problem.

    • AwkwardLookMonkeyPuppet@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      They did? The dude in the middle just sat there smoking meth every time I was on one of these. I stood up on the wall once, with my whole body perpendicular to the floor. It was awesome!

        • AwkwardLookMonkeyPuppet@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          It’s pretty crazy! The farther from the wall your head is, the more you can feel the spinning forces. It definitely felt like I was in a blender by the time I was standing up.

          • jaybone@lemmy.world
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            9 months ago

            I had exactly this idea. I tried it but could never make it to a full standing position I don’t think. It was more like an awkward crouch.

    • dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de
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      9 months ago

      Haha I did that too if it’s the same machine. It had an open top and you just stick to the side as it spins and hinges 90 degrees. There was a chain but you had clearance to flip yourself.

      • Albbi@lemmy.ca
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        9 months ago

        The Gravitron wasn’t the open top kind with the chain. That was the Round Up, and it would lift up after getting g up to speed and go almost vertical.

        The Gravitron was enclosed and had angled walls. I think the walls were padded and would slide up a bit when the machine was up to speed. Heavier people would have their section slide up sooner than others.

      • derphurr@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        You are taking about a Round Up/Zero Gravity

        And no you never turned yourself upside down in a zerog cage.

  • Underwaterbob@lemm.ee
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    9 months ago

    I was so jealous of the carny who would get up and walk around on the inside wall.

    • Chill Dude 69@lemmynsfw.com
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      9 months ago

      The more I think about it, the more I figure…if you had one at your house, you could become the fucking Rodney Mullen of that thing. Like, forget just being able to stand up and walk around. A few hundred hours of practice, and you could jump rope, juggle, have a whole tea party without spilling anything, sleep in it to see if it gives you superpowers and/or immortality. The possibilities are endless.

    • Bonehead@kbin.social
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      9 months ago

      No, that was the Matterhorn. Who designs a tight circular track and then not only spin people forwards, but stop mid way through and spin them backwards? I think that was the 3rd hardest I’ve ever puked in my life.

      For the uninitiated.

        • Bonehead@kbin.social
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          9 months ago

          OK, well the 2nd hardest I puked was at a cottage with some buddies not long after college. I didn’t have much experience drinking, and I thought it would be a great idea to drink a magnum of red wine on the first night. I was doing good for most of the night, even ate dinner and was having a great time. And then…I didn’t feel so good. And then I really didn’t feel so good. I ran to the railing with a bright red spray, as my buddies laughed their asses off because they thought I sounded like Donald Duck when he’s angry. I thought that was funny and started laughing while puking, which just made me sound more like Donald Duck when he’s angry. They called me Donald for the rest of that week. I’ve had a love/hate relationship with red wine ever since.

          The hardest I’ve ever puked though was during my year of hell, when I was going through my Crohn’s diagnosis. I had hit a pretty major flare and my bowels were practically swollen shut. My doctor wanted to do a scope, which meant I had to be cleaned out first. And for that, they give you powerful laxatives. They told me to drink Gatorade with the water to help hydrate me since it blasted all the water through your bowels. What they didn’t tell me was to avoid red Gatorade. So I’ve downed the laxatives mixed into a bottle of water, and I’m sipping on Gatorade on the couch when my stomach starts hurting. My stomach was already hurting, but this is a stretching kind of pain. The laxatives are working, I think. But then I got that feeling at the top of my stomach, and I knew what was about to happen. I ran to the bathroom, got to the door and couldn’t hold back anymore. I projectile puked 6 feet and hit the toilet. An almost perfect red arc, but some got in the bowl. And then…I felt the other end. I barely made it to the puke covered seat and began shitting my brains out while still puking hard into the bathtub. I was crying and sobbing by the end of it while still puking. My bathroom looked like a murder scene. I’m covered in red puke. And I still had 3 more bottles of laxative to get through. I’ll be honest, I contemplated my continuing existence in that moment.

            • Bonehead@kbin.social
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              9 months ago

              I was still trying to find what I liked. Beer was and is disgusting. Hard liquor required mixing to make it taste good, which I wasn’t good at. Coolers aren’t bad, which I drank for the rest of that week. But red wine was tasty. Really tasty. Deceptively tasty. It also contains a lot of tannins, which I found out the hard way later can cause stomach cramps and nausea in some people such as those with Crohn’s that I didn’t know about at the time. So does tea for that matter. It’s all part of the journey. I know what to avoid for the most part now.

  • m12421k@iusearchlinux.fyi
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    9 months ago

    my hometown’s park had one of these. one day it malfunctioned and dropped. I was a kid but for some reason I went to see the aftermath. horrifying. dried blood everywhere…

  • x4740N@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Well if you’re okay with the perpetual maintenance costs which include paying someone who knows how to maintain it if you don’t know how to

  • Tristaniopsis@aussie.zone
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    9 months ago

    Just to be serious for a mo; why the fuck would I want a sports car anyway?

    Showy cars are for smoothbrained insecure chucklefucks. I don’t come from money, and I have very little, but I certainly have no psychological need to attempt to appear like I do. Even if I got a gazillion bucks tomorrow there’s no way in hell I’m going to start purchasing shiny shit to show off with.

      • Tristaniopsis@aussie.zone
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        9 months ago

        I actually have but I felt embarrassed as hell each time.

        I’m not against fine tuning and efficiency. I am against A: “LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!!!” And B: any sort of aggressive driving on public roads.

        If there were such a thing a really ‘nice’ car that was ‘luxurious’ inside etc., but looked like absolutely nothing extraordinary outside, then I might buy one (in the alternative universe where I had lots of money to blow on new cars).

        • セリャスト@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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          9 months ago

          It’s pretty funny because personally I don’t care at all about comfort and very little about looks. I just want something that’s fun to drive. If I had the money, Id get maybe a Subaru BRZ, it’s not too powerful but lightweight. But I live in France so I dont need a car either way

        • AwkwardLookMonkeyPuppet@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          in the alternative universe where I had lots of money

          Well I for one hope that you manage to get lots of money (or enough to be completely comfortable) in this universe.

          • Tristaniopsis@aussie.zone
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            9 months ago

            That’s very kind of you. I’m not starving and have a secure roof so I’m doing better than many others around the world. I am certainly not complaining in regards to that.

            When I have day dreams of winning millions of dollars my first thoughts are typically “how could I help others”.

            I would have to actually play the lottery though, which I’m not inclined to do.

    • mojofrododojo@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      so there’s lot of people - kids who ate lead paint in their childhoods, victims of being dropped on their heads, FAS babies etc., who suffer from cognitive deficits but LOVE the vroom vroom. They love it so much they do illegal shit to their vehicles just so more vroom vroom smoke comes out. They love it more than they love having a livable ecosystem, more than their own children’s futures. And if you try to get the crayons out and explain it to them, it just makes them angry.

      that’s my take on the situation.

    • SuckMyWang@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Sports cars are fast and handle well. I don’t care for the look of them but they do create a ride like feeling.

    • Mango@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Your inferiority complex has blocked you from understanding how stuff can be exciting. Vroom vroom go fast and sound awesome.