Bird automotive kart find

[jw102870]

Hello all, I'm Jeff from NE Ohio.
Just pulled this out of the woods....
Tag says bird automotive 4675

Has a destroyed 3hp briggs but the shell doesn't fit over it so I'm not sure what motor is supposed to be on it. The shell lays on top of the motor and won't go down far enough to bolt to the frame. Is there some sort of standoff/offsets that are supposed to mount to the frame to reposition the shell?

Anyone with any info on these karts I'd really appreciate it if you could get in touch with me.
I've pulled everything off and was going to start by blasting the frame but I tried dry fitting the motor and it just doesn't fit...

The shell was just laying on top of it and not bolted on when I found it.

Does anyone have pics of a frame from this kart?
Does mine look correct?

I've got a 212 predator but it takes up more space than the motor that was on it...

 

[Denny]

Welcome! The body will give you clues on how it was attached. It should have been bolted to the side bars. Which look like they are bent upwards?

 

[jw102870]

It does attach to the side bars. It's also supposed to attach to the rear bar. However, when it's attached to the side bars the back of the shell is about an inch away from the back bar. Not a big deal, I can either fashion some standoffs or take up the gap with a 1 x 2 or something like that.
If I attach the shell, I have to take the air cleaner off the engine. Additionally, to fill the gas tank I'll have to take the shell off because the fill hole is inside the shell... ?
It's difficult to get a picture that shows how far back the gas fill is.
My assumption is that the engine currently on the kart is not the original and that the original had the gas tank and carb/air cleaner setup located somewhere else?

 

[Hellion]

It will help if you mount the wheels and tires, front and rear, to achieve the proper stance.

Here’s a modified one (wrong engine) but the stance is about right (larger tires in the rear) for a mini funny car dragster:

No Reserve: Dodge Daytona Funny Car-Style Go-Kart

Bid for the chance to own a No Reserve: Dodge Daytona Funny Car-Style Go-Kart at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #126,329.

bringatrailer.com

And another, different, but similar:

No Reserve: Bird Engineering Mini Challenger Go-Kart

Bid for the chance to own a No Reserve: Bird Engineering Mini Challenger Go-Kart at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #104,823.

bringatrailer.com

 

[Hellion]

However, when it's attached to the side bars the back of the shell is about an inch away from the back bar.

Looks about right to me. Looks like a nice restoration project, not too many of these still around with an intact body.

 

[Hellion]

Has a destroyed 3hp briggs

These were all usually 3-4hp and being a promotional kart, not a serious go kart meant to be particularly fast, rugged or able to withstand daily abuse from youngsters.

Engine looks like it might be the original engine and judging by the lack of wear on the clutch and axle sprockets, the kart saw very little use. How do you know the engine is destroyed?

 

[jw102870]

These were all usually 3-4hp and being a promotional kart, not a serious go kart meant to be particularly fast, rugged or able to withstand daily abuse from youngsters.

Engine looks like it might be the original engine and judging by the lack of wear on the clutch and axle sprockets, the kart saw very little use. How do you know the engine is destroyed?

The engine may not be totally destroyed. It's siezed and my fingers went thru part of the bottom when I pulled it off the frame. Could have just been the recoil? cover though.

I grabbed a 212 predator when they went on sale. Not with the intent of higher performance, just something new that would work as a drop in. Looks like I'll need to relocate everything on the top of the engine tho.

The dodge Daytona funny car looks to be exactly what I've got minus the engine. That one has a piece of a 2x4 or something on the back of the frame to overcome the gap between the frame and the mounting holes on the shell. So that would solve that mystery.

The reason I believe I don't have the stock engine is because when the shell is fastened to the frame on the sides, the back of the shell won't clear the engine. It's laying on top of the engine and still needs to go down about 3/4-1" to line up with the bolt holes. It's almost like the top of the engine needs to come off and get relocated towards the 'passenger' side behind the seat...? Would the stock engine have been modified and had the carb/fuel tank/exhaust all moved to the side of the engine opposite the shaft?

 

[Hellion]

Did you slide the engine all the way forward? It might clear the body better BUT sliding the engine is the (primitive) way to adjust chain tension on all karts (easier than sliding the axle) so that’s not a perfect solution.

There’s a few more Bird go kart funny cars on the web and Bring A Trailer. One or more still had the original Briggs engine and they were in original configuration with the tank-mounted diaphragm carb, air cleaner and exhaust pipe all where they’re supposed to be. The genius of those Briggs flatheads is the perfect compactness or small footprint of the unit….
The frame appears to have the proper angle in the rear...could the body be “bent” or “melted”?

You might potentially have something worth some money or more than you paid.

 

[jw102870]

I had the engine all the way forward. It looks like if I use the predator engine and relocate the air cleaner and exhaust it should free up all the space I need, maybe....
Only one way to find out.
Once I get the engine situated without obstruction I'll move on to blasting the frame and start the cleaning and reassemble everything. The engine fitting issue appears to be the biggest hurdle at this point. Everything else seems to be pretty straightforward. Fingers crossed.
Fortunately the kart was free so it will either work out for me or I'll have an engine to play with/modify and get ready for a mini bike frame

 

[Denny]

The original engine was probably a 3 hp Takasheema. They had remote tanks and would have had all the clearance. Probably used tubular spacers between the frame and body with washers to stop the wear.

 

[Hellion]

It’s okay to say Tecumseh, Denny. They made some great engines in their day. Those 2-stroke ones are catching my eye.
Might as well mangle and trash every engine name there is while you’re at it, Breaks & Scrap’em and so forth.

and my fingers went thru part of the bottom when I pulled it off the frame

The lower part of the blower shroud is an area where moisture can collect naturally or the area can provide a nest for a field mouse, plus all his nesting material, which then rots the sheet metal away. The blower shroud also sucks in air around the recoil starter so naturally there’s bound to be some dirt, grass or dead leaf material in there which will create a moisture trap as well.

Might behoove you to resurrect the Briggs and put it back on the dragster and send it on its merry way for megabucks.

Out of curiosity, what’s the tooth count on the clutch and drive sprocket?

Rato 212’s (Predator manufacturer) are great on minibikes, real wheelie monsters.

 

[Denny]

It’s okay to say Tecumseh, Denny. They made some great engines in their day. Those 2-stroke ones are catching my eye.
Might as well mangle and trash every engine name there is while you’re at it, Breaks & Scrap’em and so forth.



The lower part of the blower shroud is an area where moisture can collect naturally or the area can provide a nest for a field mouse, plus all his nesting material, which then rots the sheet metal away. The blower shroud also sucks in air around the recoil starter so naturally there’s bound to be some dirt, grass or dead leaf material in there which will create a moisture trap as well.

Might behoove you to resurrect the Briggs and put it back on the dragster and send it on its merry way for megabucks.

Out of curiosity, what’s the tooth count on the clutch and drive sprocket?

Rato 212’s (Predator manufacturer) are great on minibikes, real wheelie monsters.

But I don’t know how to spell Teceumpessha.

 

[jw102870]

It’s okay to say Tecumseh, Denny. They made some great engines in their day. Those 2-stroke ones are catching my eye.
Might as well mangle and trash every engine name there is while you’re at it, Breaks & Scrap’em and so forth.



The lower part of the blower shroud is an area where moisture can collect naturally or the area can provide a nest for a field mouse, plus all his nesting material, which then rots the sheet metal away. The blower shroud also sucks in air around the recoil starter so naturally there’s bound to be some dirt, grass or dead leaf material in there which will create a moisture trap as well.

Might behoove you to resurrect the Briggs and put it back on the dragster and send it on its merry way for megabucks.

Out of curiosity, what’s the tooth count on the clutch and drive sprocket?

Rato 212’s (Predator manufacturer) are great on minibikes, real wheelie monsters.

The shell seems to be pretty solid. No signs of deformation. It's glass so it should be dimensionally stable for a few hundred years or so.

The shell mounting holes on the frame fit a 1/4 bolt pretty well and the holes on the shell itself are closer to 3/8. I'm going to search the bins at the hardware store and see if I can come up with a thin wall rubber/urethane grommet to work into the holes to eliminate any wear and give it a slight cushion.

There is an empty plate/bracket welded about 8 inches away from the motor mount. Possibly that was the original home of the fuel tank but the shell would still be sitting on top of the muffler and air cleaner. I'll do some looking at an old Tecumseh and see where the parts were all located.

Clutch 11 tooth, drive 72

I'll probably put the Briggs on a bench this winter and see what's what.

Mostly the kart is an opportunity to ignore the 35753 other projects I need to work on. This one is more fun.