Clifford
Custom Fabricator
Ok, I'm a new guy to this Forum but not a new guy when it comes to building stuff. For example my Granddaughters Ranch Go Kart/ work truck I built for them off the top of my head a few years ago. As in "No Professional Plans"!
(I hope these pictures are big enough. If not I'll try and find the larger versions later)
I have this Yard Truck made by Brister in Louisiana and like any good side by side it's a Ranch Tool!
It's not 4 wheel drive, but it's all I need at my Ranch to get my work done with.
My two Granddaughters just love to come over and ride in Papa Truck. Heck they will even sit in it and watch the Shop TV like at a drive in. Here's my Brister!
They had so much fun with it but were too small to drive it by themselves. So being a Master Fabricator, I decided to build them one more their size. This is about 2/3 rds scale of the Brister and is powered by a Honda 4 HP 4 stroke engine with a Comet Torque Converter transmission. Initially it was so fast my Brister could not keep up with it so I slowed it down with a jack shaft. Now it runs about 10 mph instead of 45! It has a live axle but I had to remove one of the keys from the right side keyway because they were just too small to steer it with both rear wheels driving it. They don't get stuck very often anyway. And before you ask, it doesn't have suspension in it yet. I just keep the tires aired down.
Side View
Corner View
It's made from 1 1/4" in .85 wall HREW Tubing that I welded it together with my Miller MIG. It is stout and will take a beating.
I decided to build this Ranch Kart tall, rather than a low go kart because of all the barbed wire fences we have around here and low hanging tree limbs. I wanted them inside a real cage! And this is how I protected them.
Another feature is the passengers side footwell is deep so an adult can sit on that side as we teach the girls the right way to drive. You just gotta watch that roll cage on the rough stuff because it is real close to an grown ups head. Ask me how I know! Good thing it is padded well.
I used my JD2 bender to bend the tubing for it. Oh and all tubing joints are fishmouthed. The bed is made of plywood covered in Epoxy paint on the outside and bed liner on the inside. The hood is MCM aluminum. The floorboard is also MCM and the engine cover panel under the seat is stainless steel.
(just had it laying around)
I sewed the seat covers (They picked out the flowered pattern) and I padded the seat myself. The pedals in the floor are made on a bracket that can be adjusted out on the floorboard for the girls as they get taller. The brake and gas feed controls are both cables with enough slack in them to expand without having to rebuild it as the girls grow.
The steering wheel, tires & wheels, pedals and spindles I bought at Northern Tool. And you'll notice it does have real automotive seat belts and heavy padding on the roll cage.
Off they go again!
You should see them take off across the property.
And sometimes they even haul a load of potting soil dirt for Grandmas Garden. I built the rear bed with a drop down tail gate, like a pickup, so it can be lowered when unlatched and if the load is even, the entire bed can be tilted up to be dumped by the bigger girl by herself. Just like my Yard Truck!
It was a fun build and I get a lot of smiles watching them tear across the west 40. They go so much I had to put a GMRS on the dash so I could call them back.
This Summer I'm thinking of building a pair of fat tired Mini Bikes for the two Grandsons for when they get bigger. (3 & 6) Theirs will be worthy of some Grand Adventures in the pastures herding of the cows into the corrals. Something like a 2/3rd scale one wheel drive Rokon!
Heck I've got an old Honda Trials Bike engine I may use to power a third slightly larger one for me one too!
(I hope these pictures are big enough. If not I'll try and find the larger versions later)
I have this Yard Truck made by Brister in Louisiana and like any good side by side it's a Ranch Tool!
It's not 4 wheel drive, but it's all I need at my Ranch to get my work done with.
My two Granddaughters just love to come over and ride in Papa Truck. Heck they will even sit in it and watch the Shop TV like at a drive in. Here's my Brister!
They had so much fun with it but were too small to drive it by themselves. So being a Master Fabricator, I decided to build them one more their size. This is about 2/3 rds scale of the Brister and is powered by a Honda 4 HP 4 stroke engine with a Comet Torque Converter transmission. Initially it was so fast my Brister could not keep up with it so I slowed it down with a jack shaft. Now it runs about 10 mph instead of 45! It has a live axle but I had to remove one of the keys from the right side keyway because they were just too small to steer it with both rear wheels driving it. They don't get stuck very often anyway. And before you ask, it doesn't have suspension in it yet. I just keep the tires aired down.
Side View
Corner View
It's made from 1 1/4" in .85 wall HREW Tubing that I welded it together with my Miller MIG. It is stout and will take a beating.
I decided to build this Ranch Kart tall, rather than a low go kart because of all the barbed wire fences we have around here and low hanging tree limbs. I wanted them inside a real cage! And this is how I protected them.
Another feature is the passengers side footwell is deep so an adult can sit on that side as we teach the girls the right way to drive. You just gotta watch that roll cage on the rough stuff because it is real close to an grown ups head. Ask me how I know! Good thing it is padded well.
I used my JD2 bender to bend the tubing for it. Oh and all tubing joints are fishmouthed. The bed is made of plywood covered in Epoxy paint on the outside and bed liner on the inside. The hood is MCM aluminum. The floorboard is also MCM and the engine cover panel under the seat is stainless steel.
(just had it laying around)
I sewed the seat covers (They picked out the flowered pattern) and I padded the seat myself. The pedals in the floor are made on a bracket that can be adjusted out on the floorboard for the girls as they get taller. The brake and gas feed controls are both cables with enough slack in them to expand without having to rebuild it as the girls grow.
The steering wheel, tires & wheels, pedals and spindles I bought at Northern Tool. And you'll notice it does have real automotive seat belts and heavy padding on the roll cage.
Off they go again!
You should see them take off across the property.
And sometimes they even haul a load of potting soil dirt for Grandmas Garden. I built the rear bed with a drop down tail gate, like a pickup, so it can be lowered when unlatched and if the load is even, the entire bed can be tilted up to be dumped by the bigger girl by herself. Just like my Yard Truck!
It was a fun build and I get a lot of smiles watching them tear across the west 40. They go so much I had to put a GMRS on the dash so I could call them back.
This Summer I'm thinking of building a pair of fat tired Mini Bikes for the two Grandsons for when they get bigger. (3 & 6) Theirs will be worthy of some Grand Adventures in the pastures herding of the cows into the corrals. Something like a 2/3rd scale one wheel drive Rokon!
Heck I've got an old Honda Trials Bike engine I may use to power a third slightly larger one for me one too!
Thanks Tony; I got just as far as seeing it was PB and quit because I knew it was going to take several minutes for the ads to load, and even more than that for any actual pictures came thru.....
That's a cool little contraption they have
Thanks for updating with pic's we can use!!!
Pat 
that will talk to people while standing in line just to keep from getting bored standing in line.