1960/61 Rupp Kart?

[Hellion]

I was ready to send this across the country to get restored...but y'all are right

Why ruin a good thing? Send it off and let's see what happens. Restored means a return to original condition and that's big bucks but would be worth it as a Dad tribute. Would love to see it looking like the ad I posted. I think the single engine kart has a Clinton 400 but the dual engines are West Bends most likely.

 

[JimD]

There is restoring to look nice and drive it around and there is restoring that it is so nice you don't want to start it ever again and just hang it on the wall. Is it going to be a surprise for your Dad or is it going to be a Father/ son project? Do you think Dad wants to drive it once again and get out on the track and is he healthy enough to do it? I see guys a the vintage meets today that can get in the kart and drive it once again but then getting out of it is an ordeal and they say "that was my last ride". Hard to ask Dad if it is going to be a surprise but if not then chat with him and see what he wants to do. You have most of the pieces needed and you live in the area where you can find the ones that are missing. There are plenty of Rupp karts there in Ohio and I know a lot of guys that would give you a hand if asked.

 

[thenetters21]

A big wire wheel on a bench grinder ( I realize you might not have one ) will make all those parts you have in that pan look a whole lot better. Shiny, removes a lot of the stains and discoloration. You won't want to paint them.

Thanks to Facebook Marketplace, I'll soon have one. Good suggestion.

 

[thenetters21]

Why ruin a good thing? Send it off and let's see what happens. Restored means a return to original condition and that's big bucks but would be worth it as a Dad tribute. Would love to see it looking like the ad I posted. I think the single engine kart has a Clinton 400 but the dual engines are West Bends most likely.

I talked to my Dad a lot about it today...said I thought it was a '59 and cost around $150...he corrected me and said it was around $300...that it had a single West Bend 600 series engine (I think that's what he said was on it) - funny you mention Clinton as he said a friend bought a different kart and it had a Clinton engine and wasn't nearly as fast as his kart, and another friend who had a similar Rupp/Westbend. I think the engine I bought is an 800 series West Bend. My dad also said that when he and his buddy were 16, they put his kart in the trunk of his mom's Dodge convertible, and strapped his friend's kart to the top (on a canvas convertible) and took both up the Dart track in Mansfield, which wasn't too far away...I think that's pretty cool. Also talked about being 14 years old and trying to drive it in the local parade, overheated, bailed, and then took it on busy public roads I don't let my 17 year old drive on, taking it 45mph to another friends' house. He said the red seat is the original one, which makes sense based on the pictures in the ad - I thought it was aftermarket b/c all the later ones have those padded sides and that's mainly what I've seen on Bring a Trailer.

I'll get it looking like it did in the ad...and we'll use it.

 

[thenetters21]

There is restoring to look nice and drive it around and there is restoring that it is so nice you don't want to start it ever again and just hang it on the wall. Is it going to be a surprise for your Dad or is it going to be a Father/ son project? Do you think Dad wants to drive it once again and get out on the track and is he healthy enough to do it? I see guys a the vintage meets today that can get in the kart and drive it once again but then getting out of it is an ordeal and they say "that was my last ride". Hard to ask Dad if it is going to be a surprise but if not then chat with him and see what he wants to do. You have most of the pieces needed and you live in the area where you can find the ones that are missing. There are plenty of Rupp karts there in Ohio and I know a lot of guys that would give you a hand if asked.

restoring it to look nice. He's collected cars and restored a couple to the point where he didn't drive them, then they sat and, basically, needed mechanically restored after sitting for 20 years looking nice, but not being run. I will run this. He also got a pair of early mens and women's 1920s/1930s aluminum bikes...and those needed restored. I found a place in Wisconson that restored them, and, after getting the quote (wow), I was still in, and said we'd be looking forward to getting them restored to ride around on Saturdays...and was immediately told, oh no, you can't ride them...the aluminum is too brittle, they'll crack. It's just to look at. Yeah, that was the end of that, they're still unrestored in the garage, I like to use my toys.

My Dad will probably cruise around a parking lot in it, but he wouldn't race it (my son, daughter, and I all would). He plays tennis a couple times a week, so he could drive it...but I don't think he'd want to race. I used to drive at the track, and he DID NOT like going on hot laps.

Thanks for all the posts...looking forward to getting the project advanced a bit.

 

[thenetters21]

I'd like to see more photos of this:

View attachment 158892

Rarely get to see one in the wild like this. Most we see have already been shot, killed and stuffed by the taxidermist. Show us the rear or business end and the welds and stuff. This thing is potentially 66 years old...

 

[thenetters21]

So I didn't have a bench grinder...but my Dad randomly had one in his garage that he picked up at a garage sale last year and never used...because he would never use a bench grinder... I bought a wire wheel and you were so right...took off all the age from the bolts and they look great! I'm keeping the grinder.

Dropped the frame off to get sand-blasted and painted (white) and they said to give them a month.

So...next step...any suggestions on where to get new tires? And what to do with the brake pads? I'm thinking there's still some pad on them, maybe just sand them a bit/get them resurfaced? I'd love to get new pads, just don't know what to do or how the brakes even go back together.

Hopefully start putting it back together in February and then I'll have a lot of questions on how to do it, and what I'm missing/what parts need replaced/fixed.

Fun winter project.

 

[Hellion]

What are the tire sizes on it now (or the ones from the initial #1 photo)? The rear rims look like they handle a large tire but with a comparatively low profile or section width.

Got photos of the original tires with the info on the sidewalls? Cheng Shin (Taiwan) is in the business of vintage kart tires.

Don't know about the brakes. In some photos [from the vintage ads] it appears to have a band brake or an automotive style drum brake with inner shoes.

The rims are probably split rims that take tubes. If the tires are otherwise in good shape [check for cracking and dry rot], just make sure the inner tubes are copacetic.

 

[thenetters21]

Slowly coming together. Not sure where all the bolts/nuts go, or how the pedals attach to the brakes, or how the brakes work, but will slowly figure it out! Original seat fabric, and, so far, everything except the tires and new paint are original from my Dad's kart. Hopefully the photo uploaded.

 

[Hellion]

Dropped the frame off to get sand-blasted and painted (white) and they said to give them a month.

Wow looks really nice. Tell us some more details, what kind of paint, what shop did it (free publicity), did the painter sandblast it too? etc.

It definitely is a project and involves research as to what hardware goes where. I’m still baffled about the brakes. You seem to be handling the refurb with little issue though. Is a Rupp owner(s) assisting you?

 

[thenetters21]

Wow looks really nice. Tell us some more details, what kind of paint, what shop did it (free publicity), did the painter sandblast it too? etc.

It definitely is a project and involves research as to what hardware goes where. I’m still baffled about the brakes. You seem to be handling the refurb with little issue though. Is a Rupp owner(s) assisting you?

Thanks for the support! Took it to a body shot my mechanic uses, but they really didn't want to do it...and referred me down the street to a powder coat shop, who painted it as close to the original color as my Dad could remember (he was the one who painted it black as a kid). The shop sandblasted it...and overall, it came out pretty good...not perfect. They powder-coated the wheels too, and those came out amazing! Bought new tubes and tires, and now just looking at a similar 1959 cart sold awhile ago on Bring-a-trailer as guidance for how to reassemble it...so mad I didn't take pictures of it 5 years ago when it was taken apart. For the BaT sale, they chromed pretty much everything in their build, so it's a bit hard to see some of the detail, but I'm getting closer. Would love if there was a Rupp person in Ohio I could reach out to, but so far just doing it based on the online pictures. Looking forward to mounting the West Bend engine...it's been sitting on a shelf for nearly 10 years since I bought it.

 

[Dominic Salvato]

The next step is called a A-Bone and is much more advanced.

 

[JimD]

There is over 50 guys there in Ohio that are members of the VKA (Vintage Karting Association) with a web site with the same name. They could tell you where every nut and bolt go. Just about to go down to a race by the VKA in Barnesville, GA on April 9, 10, &11. There are several gatherings in OH, one over in Camden and the other where your kart would be appreciated is in FREMONT, OH which only allows rear engine karts--no sidewinders. Mickey Rupp had attended an event a few years back in New Castle, IN and talked all about his company back in the day. But he has since moved on to the BIG RACE TRACK IN THE SKY. There are replacement pucks for the brakes . If you are putting a West Bend on there and it has a step crank (WB 820) I can help you out with a clutch.

 

[Hellion]

The next step is called a A-Bone and is much more advanced.

If you can help thenetters21 with reassembling his Dart Kart (I believe he has all original hardware, nuts and bolts) please do, I would love to see your input. Otherwise, sharing your own photos of a slightly different kart is a mild hijack with a little dash of vanity.