That makes perfect sense. The critical condition that I couldn't come up with was that N2=0. And your solution, being independent of mass or dimension, also makes sense. The work looks solid. Thanks a lot!
Hi
(see attached picture for problem)
"Three identical smooth rollers are positioned in a groove as shown. Knowing that each roller (with radius 2.5 ft) weighs 500 lb, determine the minimum angle \alpha required to make the pile not collapse (all surfaces are assumed frictionless)."
I...