My gokart (rebuild in process) and deck :)

[justinmcdevitt]

here's my first post :) with a short story

Well I bought a frame this summer (wanted to build a kart for a few years now)
and lets just say the welds weren't the best (the sad part is I have a welding degree and knew they would not hold up but I drove it any way)
to make a long story short, I kinda lost control of the kart when the steering wheel welds gave way also removing my kill switch, lucky for me my deck was there to stop me (see pictures below)

so I have decided to rebuild the go kart basically from the ground up, I'll post some pictures when I get a chance to take some (I am by no means documenting the build)

My rebuild is basically to scrap the hole kart and start over, I am shorting the wheel base, and stiffing the frame, and not to mention putting proper welds on it. :)

anywho here's the old kart and the wonderful breakaway deck.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400183.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400182.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400181.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400180.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400179.jpg
and my fav
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e33/justinmcdevitt/gokart/SA400178.jpg

[chevy6]

thats more like a small car the a go kart lol

[carolinasled]

give us some specs. i know those are golfcart wheels and tires but is that a 6.5 honda clone and are you running a tav2 or clutch? How is the take off?

The reason is i have a front and rear of a clubcar golf cart body and was thinking of building a golf/kart next year.

[2or3wheels]

That is a long kart, the welds on something that long would need to be good to hold up.

[kibble]

Oh man that thing got tore up!

[justinmcdevitt]

thats more like a small car the a go kart lol
go big or go home right :)
and I found this guy on the side of the road for $100 (save the engine bought that)
I figure it will work in the snow (and least I hope, and I also plan on getting this guy out on to the lake when it is frozen to do some stupid driving :) and yes I know how it feels to go through the ice, poor quad)

give us some specs. i know those are golfcart wheels and tires but is that a 6.5 honda clone and are you running a tav2 or clutch? How is the take off? The reason is i have a front and rear of a clubcar golf cart body and was thinking of building a golf/kart next year.

from the best of my knowledge they are from a golfcart as well as the steering spendles and I think the rear axle.
I do belive that is the honda clone, its the harbor freight special, I have a clutch on there (as of lasrt running I had the joy of starting the enging with one hand and holding the kart so it wouldn't drive away then running and jumping in (I might just fix that problem :) or not, makes it interesting to start))

I'll be posting pictures when I get a chance of some of the progress

That is a long kart, the welds on something that long would need to be good to hold up.

yah so far I have found 1 good weld on it, and that was in one of the bars that go straight up in to the air

I have shortened the kart by about 10 inches and I am about 95% sure my welds will hold up better than the last guys did (considering I have a degree in welding, well 2 classes shy)

plus what better way to test my welds than with my own well being right

Oh man that thing got tore up!

you should see the other guy, wait it was a deck and you can see it
ya I don't think the zip ties helped hold it to geather

[2or3wheels]

lol drive untill she brakes

[justinmcdevitt]

lol drive untill she brakes


thats my theory, or was it drive her with out brakes.... hum, who needs brakes when I have a deck

[kibble]

Ha ha! I wish that held true for real cars too. I have to replace my rotors and pads, I'm getting a squeeeeeeeeak, squeeeeeeeeeeeeeak when I brake. It's really annoying. Plus my rotors are looking kinda warped.

You keep that up though and you won't have a deck anymore! :D

[2or3wheels]

ot youll be a primum member at the lumber yard.

[justinmcdevitt]

or I'll be a master carpenter

[kibble]

May I start calling you Jesus? LOL

[2or3wheels]

haha thats funny

[justinmcdevitt]

May I start calling you Jesus? LOL

well then I better raise this thing from the dead

and now for some crappy pictures of the progress (it has actually changed a little bit since I took these)

http://photos-d.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v142/194/52/500110668/n500110668_242407_7787.jpg
http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v142/194/52/500110668/n500110668_242405_7321.jpg
http://photos-c.ak.facebook.com/photos-ak-sf2p/v142/194/52/500110668/n500110668_242406_7551.jpg

[2or3wheels]

hey at least you got a welder. is that a 120V wirefeed that runs on electricty only? Does it work good for what your using it for?

[justinmcdevitt]

hey at least you got a welder. is that a 120V wirefeed that runs on electricty only? Does it work good for what your using it for?

why yes it is, it is the $99 walmart special, well I picked it up about 3 years ago to weld the front end on my car

I had planed on just using it to tack everything togeather and take it into school and weld it up, but I decided to deal with using just flux core
alot more cleaning but I am to lazy to put it in my truck and take it to the welding lab

I have more pictures to post as soon as I pull them off my phone

the current status of the build is I have the steering shaft inplace just need to weld the linkage to shaft (ran out of wire)
I also have the engine mounting plate in place (and welded to a point of over kill :))
I also have the jackshaft mounts inplace
I hope to get to work on it tomorrow, but my skills are needed with my colleges race car team (why oh why did I take the head machenist job)

oh well I'll get those pictures up asap

[justinmcdevitt]

asap he says
...
yep I loaded em on my computer and still havent posted them

though I did go buy a new seat today

anyone think that a 2000 neon seat is over kill?
it was only $20 and it is so much nicer than the lawn mower seats :)
getting so close to having it running, no to stop changing junk on it so it can be finished

[2or3wheels]

If i ever get a welding, im hoping to use a seat out of a van, built in suspension. What do you race and where?

[justinmcdevitt]

ok well I'm being lazy so here is a link to some of the gokart pictures
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4150&l=232a3&id=500110668

and as to the racing, I am a memeber of my college's SEA race team, I play the macheinist
as to where we race um right now in hope and dream land

as to where I race, well :) lets say I like the interstate

as to the seat
I decided on the neon seat after 2 hours of wondering the junk yard because it was the best form fitting for the price ($25) plus it is sporty :)

[Sam91]

All the best for your race.I hope that your team will win the race.

[justinmcdevitt]

All the best for your race.I hope that your team will win the race.

I hope we will make it to the race :(

most teams have a frame built by now and are doing the tweaks to it, not us we are laying out the frame right now

oh well, not my fault (I'm the replacement machinist)

[2or3wheels]

nice, you never said what your racing, as for the karts, you should get a snowmobile motor and clutch set up, neck snaping power with scary speed im lovin it.

[justinmcdevitt]

nice, you never said what your racing, as for the karts, you should get a snowmobile motor and clutch set up, neck snaping power with scary speed im lovin it.

http://www.monroeccc.edu/formulasae/Home.htm
is the website, and if you look I am not mentioned on the site (cause I am cheap and don't want to spend the $10 to "officially" join) :)

oh well. we have a 600 cc (I think) engine from a CBR
and no real frame yet

I want a snowmobile motor on my kart, but that may end up being an added part in the next few years (I'm starting to rack up the cost on this thing) and I want it drivable by the time the lake freezes over (because I am insane)