Buying this chassis a good or bad deal???

[Andy135]

So I found a seller who offered to sell me his Margay Brava Chassis for $625 and its missing a engine, seat, motor mount, sprockets and chains and whatever else is not in the picture. If there is something else missing please tell me? also is it a good deal?

 

[anderkart]

Depending on what year it is... I'd say it might be a fair price as long as the frame doesn't show any signs of damage/repairs from a wreck, also check the bottom side closely for any frame rails that have worn into a D-shape from scraping against the track.

The only other thing I noticed missing is a tach, but they dont come with brand new karts either.

See if you can find out what year it is.

One possible issue i noticed is that frame has an angled rear crossbar, this might be a problem If you were planning on running a 4-cycle engine simply because it might not have enough room to instal some of the larger diamiter sprockets. Its got its sprocket hub setup for a 2-cycle now, (just inside the RR tire) but If you were going to use a 4-cycle like a briggs or clone you'd need to move the sprocket hub over to the other side of the axle bearing, and you'd want at least 6 to 8 inches of clearance between the center of the axle and that crossbar where my sprocket is located in this pic:

 

[bighead]

For the money you need to complet the project you could be a running kart like that. May be a llittle older kart though.

Post the deals you see on CL in your area. Where do you live.

 

[Andy135]

Is there a example pic you can show me of a D shaped rail??? And I was thinking of putting a Comer 80 on the kart. what would you suggest? And it is a 07

 

[anderkart]

D-shaped just means the bottom of the frame was constantly scraping against the track until its worn the round tubing flat. It usually happens in the front areas and it'll be obvious just by looking. A few scrape marks aren't any big deal, but sometimes its so severe that its wore all the way through the frame...

A comer 80 or any 2-cycle would work fine on that kart.

That's a fair price for an 2007 in good condition. Brand new 2007 Brava models are still available in the $3000 range: http://www.out2win.com/catalog/margaykarts.html
He'll probably take $600 or better yet see if you can get him to throw in a seat that fits you.

 

[Andy135]

Thanx man, and just one question, if im not using the kart for races and stuff like that , what type of 2-cycle engine can you recommend to me, cuz i heard using a comer for like backyard stuff is not good for the engine and it needs to be rebuilt every like 100 hours?

 

[anderkart]

Yeah those comer engines do require quite a bit of maintenance and the parts are very exspencive.
Some Info here: http://www.comer-topkart.it/images/maintenance.pdf

If your not going to race at a track, Id just get a 4-cycle engine like a 6.5 to 13hp Briggs, honda or clone, and probably buy a different kart that has a strait rear crossbar like the pic of my kart I posted above.

Or If you wanted to get that margay/use a 4-cycle, and didnt have enough room to instal a large sprocket, you could always use a motormount with a built in jackshaft,
Like this one: https://id3528.securedata.net/test....roduct_info.php?cPath=103_105&products_id=372
And keep your axle sprocket on the outside of the axle bearing like that margay is setup now. You'd just need to set up the jackshaft up in a "double-end" arrangement like this info shows: https://id3528.securedata.net/test....ger/images/uploads/Burris_Jackshaft_flyer.jpg

 

[Andy135]

Are there any other good 2 cycle engines that requires little care??? So I don't need to buy all this stuff for mounting a 4 cycle.

 

[anderkart]

I've always been into 4-cycle engines so I cant answer that.
But if you ask that seller if his margay has 6-8 inches of sprocket clearance like I'd mentioned above, maybe its got enough room to use a 4-cycle with just a regular motor mount.

 

[Andy135]

Does it depend.on what 4 cycle you get. I was thinking of a Briggs Raptor or the Briggs Animal. I was thinking of the animal because it looks thinner in width.

 

[Andy135]

If you scroll down this link there is a margay that looks exactly like the one I want to buy with a 4 cycle on it. http://www.affordablegokarts.com/PhotoGalleryPg5.php

 

[anderkart]

Your margay pic is most likely a Bravia 4.11 model, that's made for 4-cycle engines. Margay makes different frames depending on if you want to use a 2-cycle or 4-cycle engine. The main difference is just that rear crossbar.

The top pic I've posted is one of their 2-cycle frame models.
The bottom pic is one of their 4-cycle frames, see how its got more clearance for a sprocket?

More model info here: http://margay.com/karts.html

 

[Andy135]

So based on my picture i posted on the thread, what would you say, would it fit a 4 cycle or would it need a custom mount with a jackshaft? whats your best answer without looking at it in person?

 

[anderkart]

Yep I think you'd need a jackshaft to use a 4-cycle.

 

[Andy135]

Ohh gosh... is the link you sent me of the jack shaft the cheapest one out there? and do all of these high powered 2 cycle engine need alot of maintenance???

 

[anderkart]

You could probably save some money bolting one of these between a 4-cycle and motor mount: http://www.bmikarts.com/item/Clutch-Mount-with-Jackshaft-03191-3708

 

[anderkart]

You could just keep shopping for another racekart that has a strait rear crossbar like the kart pic I posted. There's quite a few other brands/models that you could instal any engine you want without needing a jackshaft. Or a component fabricator could mod/replace an angled cross member to achieve more sprocket clearance if needed.