F1/Indy Inspired Kart

[The_Machine]

This is not my first build, and so it is not a hasty build just to hit the dirt or roads as quickly as possible, but it does't mean I will take forever with it. It will be F1/Indy inspired; Very light, high performance, and somewhat over-engineered.

It will feature

1. Double Wishbone/A-Arm front and rear suspension
2. Pushrod Suspension
3. Universal Joint Axles
4. Rack and Pinion Steering
5. 5 Speed Twin 250cc Honda Engine
6. Electric Start
7. Fan Cooling and Oil Cooler

No plans for front brakes, as they are expensive. Plus, if you can't be stopped, what good are brakes?

Here's what I have so far:

 

[fowler]

loks good
good luck
keep it up
just out of intrest how long is it cause it sounds similar thing to what im building but mine is quite long

 

[The_Machine]

5 foot 5 inches or 1.65 meter wheelbase. 1/2 length of F1 coincidentally.

Tonight I was staring at the rear end wondering if I could fit the jackshaft, brake, sprocket, all in that area and still keep it short, said F it and welded the rear on. Might skip on a jackshaft and just use a really big sprocket and use it for the brake disc also. Sometimes to ensure that what you are building is gonna be what you originally envisioned, you have to just weld stuff down and then work around it, even if it means a lot of headache when it comes to space. I looked up f1 wheelbase specs and realized it was exactly half. Will probably have half the wheel track/width too.

 

[modelengineer]

Rack and pinion steering will not be as good as bellcrank in this application IMO. It will be too many turns lock to lock. If the kart ends up weighing 250kg+ then it would be worth it, but otherwise I can't see the point.

Plus, if you can't be stopped, what good are brakes?

Not sure I follow this. Front brakes are always a good idea. There is a reason all 250cc superkarts have front brakes.

Looks like you're off to a good start on the project.

 

[The_Machine]

you can adjust the leverage the rack has on the spindles by lengthening or shortening the steering arms on the spindle. Probably gonna just make long steering arms and drill holes all along it, then pick which one has the most road feel. Will have steering stops to keep the rack from putting wheels beyond full lock

yeah, they are a good idea, but they are very expensive. Can always upgrade in the future.

I have most all of the parts already, too.

 

[modelengineer]

you can adjust the leverage the rack has on the spindles by lengthening or shortening the steering arms on the spindle. Probably gonna just make long steering arms and drill holes all along it, then pick which one has the most road feel. Will have steering stops to keep the rack from putting wheels beyond full lock

That's a good idea, but I think that you will end up with such little travel required that a rack and pinion is just extra weight and complexity.
I'm interested to see how this goes because I have a rack and pinion on mine and it's great, but then mine weighs over 200kg's so it's pretty essential.

 

[fowler]

u could use my type of steering

http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/showthread.php?t=8113&highlight=buggy

 

[r97]

fowler thats a pretty cool idea! and the machine make shure your frame doesent flex from its length and having the engine inbetween the axles, looks good so far, goood luck

 

[The_Machine]

It will be will triangulated, much like the ariel atom in fowler's avatar.

Holy **** 300 KG without the riders? I had a heavy buggy and could steer with 1 finger at even slow speeds with this same rack I will use.

Rack and pinion is what I will use. It'll work out in the end

 

[r97]

just making shure it would suck to have your kart bend till it hits the ground lol

 

[The_Machine]

that would become apparent the moment it sat on wheels. rainbow rider

 

[The_Machine]

Here's some new photos. I'm gonna get some more square and round tubing, finish up the frame by running tubing from the front suspension uprights to the taller uprights in the rear so as to create an aesthetic slope, and then begin on the suspension. The rear won't have a jackshaft, despite the jackshaft that's laying in the rear

 

[The_Machine]

https://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?item=1-3271&catname= what do you guys think of these tires? I could go high performance but for 200 bucks a set it's worth skimping

 

[kazkepox]

it may sounds tough, but a racing set is the way to go.

 

[The_Machine]

Getting racing tires and rims would cost well over 800 bucks. I might just start off cheap and when I can afford high offset rims and tires I'll redesign the suspension. No point in just getting tires either, because if the point is to get the most performance possible, i'd be losing it through the lack of a better designed roll and instant centers possible through high offset rims. And you can't just get rims either, because they don't make low profile tires that aren't racing quality

 

[redsox985]

Check your local CL, there are some good finds on there.

 

[Kenny_McCormic]

Get some 14s off a civic Si or somehting along those lines, you could probably get a junkyard set for $100-$200.

 

[The_Machine]

the tire diameter would be 24.19 inches.. a bit tall. I'd like to use a 20 inch tire diameter but I can settle with 18

 

[redsox985]

Golf carts. I have found entire sets on rims, 18x8.5x8, for under $40. I also stumbled upon a solid rubber set for $100. Good bye flats.

 

[The_Machine]

the last link i posted was golf cart tires