Brand new to this - help please!

[tgaudmx5]

Hi everyone,

First time rebuilding a go-kart. Found one at a local estate sale for $75, my 12 year-old nephew was with me and together we 'convinced' each other that we need this as a project to do together!!

It fired right up, but the frame is a rusty mess and I'm replacing the brakes and wheels/tires. I think the thing just sat in a garage for a long time...needs some TLC but as I said the 5hp Tecumseh runs like a charm.

I have tried and tried to find information about my kart online, but have mostly come up empty. From reading this forum and searching for pictures of similar karts, I think it's a Klipper, but I don't really know.

The first thing we're doing is prepping the frame for paint. I have almost everything removed (and well-documented with photos), but have hit a couple roadblocks.

Here are a few questions that I would really appreciate some help with. I attached some pictures to help with understanding what the heck I'm talking about, again because I have very little mechanical knowledge and am encountering many of these things for the first time.

- The two smaller pictures are of the kart itself. Can someone help me identify it so that I can search for reference materials (and other threads here)?

- Another photo is of the brake band hardware still attached to the frame. Does this bolt/nut come off? I'm to the point where I think it's going to break...I keep turning it but only get a weird screeching noise that I don't like.

- Last, there's a picture of the passenger side of the rear axle. Since I'm trying to completely dismantle the kart so that only the frame is left for painting, I figured I would remove the axle in order to get the sprocket etc. to come off. However, although I removed the big lock nut on the outside of the axle (it came off pretty easy), and then the wheel hub, there is still some other stuff on there that will ostensibly have to come off before the axle will come out. Is that the bearing? How does one get that stuff out of there?

- One more question, but no photo (yet). Can somebody help me out with a link to some wheels/tires that will work for this kart? It has a 4 bolt pattern, but I haven't been able to find anything that helps me identify exactly what size etc. When I got it, the front tires were smaller than the rears...

Thanks a million for any help. I really have researched and read what I can find, but unfortunately most of it is either too technical or doesn't seem to relate to my kart!

Cheers

Tyler

 

[k1cotk]

I'm no expert but is that brake band pin just a bolt with no head and held on the frame by 2 nuts? If so then 2 things I think: 1 it is just that rusted/marred up that it is making the noise coming apart or 2 the outer nut closest to the wheel is bound up by either thread damage or the end of the bolt has expanded (maybe from impact) and you are threading the other nut down the bolt. You can find out which it is by watching which nut is turning.

 

[tgaudmx5]

Thanks!

I'm about to go try that brake band nut again now that it has soaked in PB Blaster for a day.

Any help with my other questions will be appreciated!!

 

[r_chez_08]

If that bolt doesnt come off, cut it off and get a new one.
Correct, those are the bearings. Do they need removing to ge the axle out? If so, and they dont want to move, use some PB blaster and a bearing puller if you have one. If not, get a hammer and hit the frame side of the bearing with a piece of bar between.
Tyres and wheels:
Why do you need new? karts often have larger on the back and smaller on the front.
Do you need new tyres and rims or just tyres?
If just tyres, post the code found on them on here. You may be able to get slightly larger/smaller tyres with the same rim.

 

[fowler]

the skeeching noise is nothing to be worried about it is just rusty

if it is buggered then just keep going till it snaps

was there bolts thought that bearing houseing or is it welded on?

if it is welded on then u may have to grind it off to get the bearing out

 

[tgaudmx5]

Hi guys!

Thanks, this is great. Reminds me of my MANY posts at the Mazda Miata forum, which is noted for its helpful members.

Anyway, I've decided to just leave the axle in place and sand/paint around it. The thing turns really nicely, so it's not like I need to remove it in order to work on it...I was just doing so to free up the frame completely before I paint it.

I was asking about the wheels because, while the tires seem to be ok, the wheels are pretty rusty and beat up. When we drove the kart after first getting it, it exhibited a pretty pronounced shimmy at 75% speed. I'm fairly sure that's due to the out-of-round rims, but not positive.

I suppose I can just remove the tires and tubes, sand/prime/paint the rims, and remount the tires myself, right? We can just look at the shimmy as a good 'you're going too fast' marker!!

As for that &*#(?! brake bolt, I don't know what to think. I will just paint around it, and then if it breaks when I try to install the new band etc., so be it and I'll order another one. Are those bolts some standard size or do I need to know the make/model of my kart?

Which leads me to my next Q...anyone have any guesses at the brand of kart I have?

Will post pics when the painting is done. My nephew has decided on a NY Jets theme =-)

Thanks again!

 

[k1cotk]

That looks like just a standard bolt with the head cut off to me. If it were me I would just cut the thing and try to match it up at the local hardware store with a regular bolt and then cut the head off to match the length the original was. I would also get hardened steel since it is for brakes and it won't bend or snap easily. If you have the brake band you can use it to make sure the fit is right...

 

[Doc Sprocket]

Use a grade 5 bolt of the same dimensions. Grade 8 has awesome tensile strength, but might not tolerate shear loads as well as the grade 5. Then again, that's really not a lot of shear load in the grand scheme of things. I do not suggest crappy, ungraded hardware store stuff, as it probably will bend.

 

[tgaudmx5]

Hi guys,

Thanks for those suggestions! We actually are going to do what you suggest...heading off to the store in a minute to get a bolt of the same length and will just cut off the one that's on there.

When I got the new brake band, they included a little pin thing with what looks like a hole for a cotter pin or something to hold the band on once it's slid on the end. I guess we will just fit a little lock nut or something onto the end of the bolt. Will post back once we (hopefully) have a solution.

 

[juvius]

woohoo.. i can finally help... lol...
that is a pathwinder... i just restored one of those myself...

you can see my monkey driving it in my avatar...

the first picture is of the brake band bolt. there is supposed to be a bar from the brake pedal to the brake band which looks like it's missing, unless you already removed it for the pic.

as far as getting that axle off.... i can't tell ya... i unbolted everything undid the hex bolts in the sprocket and collars and the dang thing still would not move... so i just cleaned it off still on the kart and taped it up when i was painting the rest of the car...

for the wheels, they are split rims, so just take them off and clean em up. i painted mine with wheel paint. check your intertubes for leaks and replace if necessary. i don't know a good source for wheels.. i bought mine at the local surplus store.. but tractor supply co would have them or pretty much any place that sell lawn mower parts. the ones i put on were 12 inch turf savers, but my son chewed right through them drifting in the parking lot...

 

[tgaudmx5]

THANK YOU!

That is enormously helpful information. I have searched until my eyes hurt and still could not find the brand of our kart.

As it turns out, we ended up doing the same thing re: axle. We just taped everything off (more or less), and sprayed the crap out of it with like 5 coats of paint + 3 more of clear. The end result is pretty darn good for a rattle can job!!

We went ahead and cut off the brake band bolt with a grinder. For some reason, the two nuts on it would not move in either direction. So we took it off with a grinder, and then I bought a SS 2.5" bolt and some lock nuts to fabricate a replacement. It's not a perfect solution, but we drove the thing all day today and the brake worked really well.

Here are a few 'before' and 'after' shots. I'll post more in the other thread section that deals with projects...

It may not look like it, but the Ronald McGo-Kart (red and yellow / "Before") was a rusty mess. It took a TON of work to get it into shape to be painted.

BEFORE:





AFTER:





Thanks again for all your help, fellow karters. This project has been a blast and my nephew and I have enjoyed it tremendously!!

Cheers

- Tyler

 

[Blazkowiez]

It looks like a Kartco to me. Good job on the paint.

 

[juvius]

It looks like a Kartco to me. Good job on the paint.

when i first got mine, it took a while to find out who made it. luckily (for me) it had a giant path winder sticker on it. Here is who made it and where it was made...

T&D Metal Products
P.O. Box 73
Watseka, IL 60970
(888) 527-7787

here is a link to where they had a recall:
http://www.classaction.org/td-metal-products-pathwinder-go-karts--lawsuit-4319.html

 

[Blazkowiez]

Good deal, not many of these karts made their way down to Houston. Thats pretty cool.

Yeah, I remember that live axle recall deal from years ago, that was rough. Its a good idea to put expanded steel behind the cage to prevent any material from going back their for safety reasons.

Glad you did such a good job.

 

[tgaudmx5]

Juvius - thanks for the recall info. Interesting reading!

Our kart has a metal cover / sheath type thing that covers the rear axle. Following the description of the problem karts in the recall, ours must have been modified or produced after the recall took place I guess. Thank you again for the help!

This may be a long shot, but would you guys at Go Karts of Texas happen to have any wheels in stock for this particular Path Winder? I hit ours with some rust reformer and high gloss black, but I'm pretty sure at least one is so out of round that it makes the whole thing shimmy at speed...

 

[juvius]

i don't have that kart anymore so i can't recall what size they were.. but if Blaz don't have what ya need, i can find out how much they want for them once you give me a size and ship them out to ya... just pay actually price plus actual shipping.... i go there all the time, so it's not a problem.. just let me know what size they are and how many you want....

 

[tgaudmx5]

Thanks, that sounds great!

Just had it back out on the road to test my homemade band brake setup (worked better than I expected), and I really do think all of the bumping and juttering is due to the wheels/tires. I think it probably sat for the last 5 years and the tires, if not wheels and tires, are just out of round.

I'll measure the bolt pattern and wheel sizes tomorrow....

Thanks again, this has been such a great experience and the forum has contributed significantly to that