Build Off Entry: Dirt Devil Quadrunner

[landuse]

I am not too sure if it will make a difference, but the third tab mount in your pic has the hole quite close to the edge of the metal. Do you think this could be a weak point?

 

[brandongeiger2]

I am not too sure if it will make a difference, but the third tab mount in your pic has the hole quite close to the edge of the metal. Do you think this could be a weak point?

Thanks for noticing that i think it should be fine though if not ill just cut another one out. It is 3/16'' plate so its pretty solid though. Needles to say they still need to be rounded out like the second one.

 

[brandongeiger2]

Today went terribly wrong i think i might take a week off well i kind of have to because i need about $50 in parts so yeah.
I did buy a racing harness and will soon buy a bucket seat. But more importantly today our power went out for a few hours so that kept me back in fact it went out as i was welding haha i thought my machine died! I managed to round out my brackets for the shocks and finished the control arms, there was a problem though the top of the right arm bent at the pivot point when i tested out my shocks... i imagined that would happen though considering the lack of rigidity the top arms had. On top of that one the tabs on the right spindle broke off so im going to just start over and i guess use the stock mounting position and just run the kingpin straight through the top heim-spindle-bottom heim. here are some pictures of the damage.

 

[landuse]

Thats a bummer!! One thing I also noticed was that the tabs that you are attaching your shocks to on the bottom are welded on at an angle (or 90* to your tubing). Do you not think that they should be welded so that they are in line with your shocks, or at lease pointed upwards and not at an angle. This would mean that the tab would have an angle in the bottom of it.

Why I mentioned this is because I would think that if the shocks put downward stress on the tabs, they might just tear off your frame at the weld being at an angle that they are at the moment. I hope I am explaining myself well, but here are a few pics to show you what I mean. The pic of the tabs shows the angele that they should be cut to make the tabs sit at least pointing straight up.

Tell me if I am talking rubbish though, cos I am not an expert with this by any means

 

[brandongeiger2]

Yeah i get what you mean but im planning on gusseting those i caught that after i welded them on so i will be making triangular supports thanks

 

[brandongeiger2]

Okay guys two questions::

First of all is it a good idea to just gusset the shock mounts or should i cut them off and re weld them the way landuse said?

Secondly i'm going to start working out the ackerman steering for the kart so i had a question whether rear track width can alter it. I plan on extending my rear axle but i don't know if i should get the ackerman steering out of the way now or when i extend it?

 

[r97]

Just gusseting the mounts would be fine, and slightly better. If you angle the mounts to take force directly when the arms are at full droop, they will be taking the force indirectly at full bump. That would possibly make things worse because the mounts have to handle much more force at full bump. Also, I'm not sure how thick the shock mounts are, but if they are too thin (say 1/8") the shock mounting bolt could easily deform the hole.

Ackerman is not affected by rear track width. You can set ackerman now as long as you do not alter wheelbase, or king pin location. It would be ideal to set your toe before setting ackerman.

Hope that helps!

 

[brandongeiger2]

the mounts are 3/16'' i guess i will gusset them i hope they'll be okay i thought that would be a good thickness. Thanks

 

[r97]

Yes, 3/16" should be okay. If you're worried you could weld a thick washer on the side to add support for the bolt. Did you see the edits I had made to the post above?

 

[brandongeiger2]

yup I've got it thanks a lot for the help!

Now guys it's time for your critic side to come out, does anyone have ideas to improve the spindle i just finished on sketchup im also going to try to include a 3D model for those of you who have the program its a .dae file.

 

[r97]

You can also import the model into the Google 3D warehouse, and then post the link for that up here.

I cannot quite tell, but is the axle bolt just welded to that outer plate? If it is I would cover up the inside of the spindle so it is like a sealed box, instead of something similar to a section of channel steel. Then i would drill through both sides of the spindle, place the axle bolt through it, and weld the bolt in.

I hope that makes sense, I could try making an ms paint picture if it doesn't.

 

[brandongeiger2]

i see what you mean ill try importing the model too ive never done that before... right now im working on a full scale cardboard version minus the axle but people normally just weld a bolt (which is not what i would use) to a section of pipe and call it good to build spindles why would you say it wouldn't work in this situation?

 

[brandongeiger2]

You can view the 3D model HERE

 

[r97]

This is what I'm proposing...

 

[exenos]

Are you planing on drilling through the plate, putting the bolt through and then welding it?
Also, how much power is the engine putting out? Couldn't seem to find out any thing about it.

 

[brandongeiger2]

Thanks r97 i think ill definitely go with those gussets im not sure completely of how i would like my axle yet though.

exenos: i don't know very much about the engine except its a four stroke 125 im sure there are specs somewhere but im probably going to upgrade it someday its very likely not too powerful. Also what i was going to do is cut the axle from the stock spindle than weld it directly onto the spindle but im not sure if thats the best idea.

though i was wondering why the axle is at a roughly 12* angle, can i just weld an axle on at 90* perpendicular to the spindle? It would give me more room to adjust camber and i want it to have around 10* positive camber, if i want to do so with an angles axle i would need to adjust the spindle +22*. So why would it be necessary for the axle to be angled like that?

 

[brandongeiger2]

Hey guys i got my harness today! It's a 5 point pyrotect 3'' so its pretty sturdy and it's got a good amount of weight to it to my surprise. I know some of you guys have experience hooking up harnesses and i know it needs to be mounted a specific way to work properly id appreciate any help with getting it mounted!
thanks

 

[brandongeiger2]

Hello all i just noticed i got my quite overpriced rod ends and other related stuff today i guess ill start putting everything together when i have a chance to go out and buy som more steel.

 

[brandongeiger2]

I ordered a Jeggs poly seat its a g1200 i think and i got the shock mounts tacked into place. Tomorrow im going out to buy some more steel for the upper control arms and for whatever else i may need.
Thanks for looking guys!

 

[brandongeiger2]

Hey guys I'm gonna upload a video today, i will warn you i am a bit awkward on camera though. Anyways I Paid for the seat and haven't received a tracking number along with no reply to my message from two days ago I'm hoping i will actually receive the seat soon. I have almost finished the spindles, i think they look pretty good so far i just need to box the backs up, drill them for heims, and weld the axles in.

I got them pretty symmetrical but maybe a cm or so off in some areas it shouldn't be that bad. They are actually a lot smaller than they look...about 4'' tall and 4'' wide.

I was surprised to see that some of my welds self peeled partially!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPYxA32MrGk&feature=youtu.be