Hard to steer

[Charlie1949]

I picked up an older Yerf Dog kart last fall. Live axle; no suspension/springs; everything works; tires need replacing.

The kart is almost impossible to steer while moving; it tracks straight ahead and any hope of changing course requires slowing way down and lots of effort. (I know this has a lot to do with physics.) I replaced tiny steering wheel with larger butterfly and tried overinflating and underinflating tires; no effect. See pic’s of current mechanism.

Will it be enough to just replace current system with an updated system that has the long+short tie rods (better leverage?).
Are the rack-and-pinion replacement sets better (easier to turn)?
Are these Chinese replacement sets decent quality?
Also, I’m guessing new tires are in order…should I consider changing the width or diameter to make steering easier? New to this forum—first post. Thanks.

 

[Whitetrashrocker]

What does the other side of this look like. Where does the steering link attach.
It looks awful close to the kingpin.
Perhaps you could swap hubs and use the hole that you can see in the Pic.

 

[Charlie1949]

I see what you're saying. Yes, the current tie rod mounting hole on the pitman arm is pretty close to the centerpoint of the king pin. Swapping the hubs, or somehow manipulating the position of the pitman, so we could use the longer stem should provide more mechanical advantage. I'm just starting to figure these things out and learning the terminology. I'll see about getting more pic's and do some measuments comparing those bolt hole locatons. Thanks very much.

 

[panchothedog]

The attachment point of the tie rod to the spindle looks way too close to the king pin. No leverage at all. Show us a better picture of that, and while you're at it, look at some pictures of spindles for sale on any of the major kart supply shops. Should be 3 to 4 inches.

 

[Charlie1949]

Excellent. Working on that now….pic’s and new parts. Thanks

 

[Denny]

A little bit of grease or oil will go a long way to help too!

 

[Charlie1949]

Agreed. This is a joint project with my grandson and we’re going through a comprehensive restoration. All moving parts will be cleaned up and lubed. And some replaced or reworked like the steering sector. Thanks

 

[msrfan]

The steering is not the only limiting factor keeping it from turning well. You may consider swapping the live axle with a Peerless differential axle for really good steering and turning. They're available in several axle diameters and offsets.
https://www.zoro.com/peerless-100-series-differential-assembly-34-shaft-axle-150-lbs-output-torque-400lbs-weight-on-diff-794571/i/G001978671/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=surfaces&utm_campaign=shopping feed&utm_content=free google shopping clicks&campaignid=19979164537&productid=G001978671&v=&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwMqvBhCtARIsAIXsZpbzLCmvvdsSeNFjPNb96EvwzYZN-CFYQDCnPxV833UcwI7KTFc5j8MaAoR1EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Charlie1949]

Duly noted. Thank you

 

[Denny]

Duly noted. Thank you

But the peerless axle can’t take large amounts of abuse and will require extra bearings to support it.

 

[Charlie1949]

Got it. I'll start with steering first.

 

[Haqbrothers]

put some WD40 on

 

[panchothedog]

Installing a differential is expensive, overkill, and completely unessassary. Thousands of those go karts are running around with live axles.

 

[ezcome-ezgo]

Maybe he is an heir to the Peerless fortune.

 

[msrfan]

I've never bought a new one but have several builds using them and I agree they could use an extra bearing support. But just being able to push it from the back yard to my driveway is so easy with a diffy. I've had it on this heavy car with a 5 speed Peerless trans for over 13 years with no problem. I find the components at swap meets really cheap.

 

[Denny]

I've never bought a new one but have several builds using them and I agree they could use an extra bearing support. But just being able to push it from the back yard to my driveway is so easy with a diffy. I've had it on this heavy car with a 5 speed Peerless trans for over 13 years with no problem. I find the components at swap meets really cheap. View attachment 146493

That is not a Peerless 100 gokart axle. That is a much heavier unit like from a garden tractor. If he can find one he should use it! But the 100 will not hold up to constant abuse the GoKart will give it.

 

[Denny]

I've never bought a new one but have several builds using them and I agree they could use an extra bearing support. But just being able to push it from the back yard to my driveway is so easy with a diffy. I've had it on this heavy car with a 5 speed Peerless trans for over 13 years with no problem. I find the components at swap meets really cheap. View attachment 146493

You should start a separate thread on that kart with lots of pictures!! That looks very interesting!! I’d be interested to know more about the drive train and the kart in general.

 

[msrfan]

That is not a Peerless 100 gokart axle. That is a much heavier unit like from a garden tractor. If he can find one he should use it! But the 100 will not hold up to constant abuse the GoKart will give it.

 

[msrfan]

I've never bought a new one but have several builds using them and I agree they could use an extra bearing support. But just being able to push it from the back yard to my driveway is so easy with a diffy. I've had it on this heavy car with a 5 speed Peerless trans for over 13 years with no problem. I find the components at swap meets really cheap. View attachment 146493

It looks heavier than a 100 series because I used DOM tubing for spacers between every part of the axle that is only 3/4''. I thought it needed reinforcing because my grandson, who is about 250 lbs. rides it with his daughter in his lap.

 

[Charlie1949]

Okay, thanks for all the info, it's been very helpful. As you can see by the attached photo, there's no advantage in reconnecting the tie rods to a different place on the hub assembly. Given that this geometry has always been in place, the cause of the steering difficulty is still uncertain. So, the plan is to:
-Disassemble and lube everything from the steering shaft out (the shaft has a grease fitting).
-Check tracking and adjust tie rods as necessary.
-Experiment with tire pressure
If the problem remains (and maybe even if it doesn't), I'll go to the next easiest step which is new spindle kits with longer arms. And then changing tire size maybe. Beyond that, later steps could include reworking the canting on the king pin (7 degrees from vertical seems common on better karts), adding the differential, etc.
For now, that's all I need. I may repost again looking for comments regarding the spindle swap-out.