More Gunbarrell goodness

[loose cannon]

Just love this track.

Camel tracks and corrugations, my constant companions...






Got a break from the corrugations here for a while, kinda makes you want to get out and kiss the ground (I didn't, but thanks for asking)

The lack of tyre tracks (after rain) rams home the fact you're on your own out here, didn't see another vehicle in a week of travel.





One of the advantages of travelling slowly is that you have plenty of time to take in the view, nothing spectacular, but the colours in the early morning can be a treat.

[Alan]

Another great set - the colours are beautiful.

What's the science behind corrugation formation?

[loose cannon]

Thanks Alan.

With regard to the science behind corrugation formation I'll simply quote Professor Brian Cox ~ " We don't know".

Hope that helps.

(Cox said the same thing about the formation of the rings of Saturn btw, that guy clearly don't know nuttin' about a whole bunch of stuff! )

There are some contributing factors though, tyre pressures and speed, and you can quote me on that.

To follow are two images to illustrate my point. In the first you can clearly see severe scalloping, sand has been kicked back, for lack of a better term onto the top of the pre-existing corrugation making this track an absolute nightmare.

Took me 3.5 hours to cover just 30kms and I was exhausted by lunchtime.

Second image is taken from behind the long suffering Lux (at the same spot) showing my contribution to the state of the track. The corrugations are still present, it's not like I have flattened them out or anything but I'm of the opinion that if everyone reduced tyre pressures and travelled at an appropriate speed then the corrugations would be more undulating in nature rather than the impossibly harsh and steep monsters they can be.

On some of the tracks the corrugations were six inches high (in the old money) and quite close together. Just impossible to navigate in comfort even in a modern vehicle with suspension superior to my poor old leaf sprung Lux.

So, in summary, I don't know, but I'm in good company.

The really annoying thing is that the corrugations can be easily wiped away with a swipe of the hand, it's not like they are set in stone or anything.

[Alan]

Thanks for that Mick

Sounds like we know more about the sands of Mars than we know about our own deserts.

Here's a myth you might like to bust. Just questioning, but I was always under the impression that one just had to find the right speed to travel over the corrugations and one wouldn't even notice them.

Sitting on 120kpm down that straight road looks quite possible. Probably smooth enough to take a few photos out the window, give Sandy a pat and send a few emails etc

Just thinking about the time you could have saved. Maybe something to consider for your next (shorter) trip.

..........

Just had another idea . If the sand is so soft/swipable, couldn't you devise a sort of angled blade attached to the front of the Lux to just smooth out the road surface in front of you?
The Council may even subsidise your trip. Just seems a waste to go all that way and not improve the road at the same time

(Patent pending)

.......

But, I can see you already questioning the logic of this proposal.
Why should you take your own vehicle on the trip when the Council could just give you their grader - win/winIt's not like you are in a hurry

.........

Hang on, they probably pay someone to keep the tracks open? Am I seeing a Beadell opportunity here

[pembo260]

Love the look of your first pic, the colour and the animal tracks over the car tracks is cool. nice work

[loose cannon]

While it is possible to find a speed to cover corrugations in relative comfort this will only work in the short term, eventually the laws of physics will kick in and the vehicles suspension will self destruct.

The suspension can be beefed up but only so far, the suspension may survive but other components will fail. Roof racks will crack, dashboards fall out, wiring connections loosen, batteries die, cracks appear in chassis welds, cracks in wheel rims around the nuts, shockie mounts fail, etc etc.

Other factors come in to play, the height of the corrugation and the spacing between them. Trucks will form different corrugation patterns to cars for example.

When the corrugations are large and tightly spaced, speed is your enemy and damage will occur sooner rather than later.

I've travelled on corrugated roads at high speeds but generally in company vehicles that are replaced on a regular basis...and I broke a few along the way. Around Broome I occasionaly stick the boot in on the local tracks but the corrugations are not in the same league as the desert ones. I now know exactly what tyre pressures work on the different tracks and I can scoot along at a fair clip.

Many years ago I used to ferry cars for Avis between Dampier and Tom Price and regularly travelled at 160kph in standard sedans, not much traffic on the roads then and I knew the track backwards And I was young and bulletproof.

I also learned that you can hit the speed bumps on the airport entry roads at 80kph and you won't even feel them.

None of the Beadell tracks have had any maintenance since construction and for many, myself included, that's part of the attraction. Also, and this is a major point, on many of those tracks there are rocky outcrops and severe potholes to be negotiated. Hit them at any speed and you get to buy yourself a new car. Countless times I had to walk the Lux over rough sections before roaring back up to 20kph.

I hope they never grade or maintain any of the Beadell tracks, driving them, and surviving them is part of the adventure.

[wacko-ocker]

I watched a doco on SBS about Arabia......you took the wrong type of vehicle......Camel comes to mind.....
they also had corrugations ..with no man made influence.
also 1 does it for me LC

[loose cannon]

Thanks wacko and pembo