Help ID This Old Kart..

[XMG50]

Hi, new member here.. Just bought a Go kart today! Does anyone know the original manufacture?

I plan on bringing this old kart back to life with my son. He's 4 now and has outgrown his power wheels Jeep. Instead of building a 24v power wheel I thought what's the next best thing.. That brings me here..

I know the body has been chopped and modded. It has a tractor steering wheel and broken welds in several places. I plan on taking this down to the frame and building it back up with my son.

I have a lot of research ahead of me. If anyone can answer the questions below as well, I would appreciate it.

What size tires were stock on this Go kart? I'd like to get a set of on road off road tires. Maybe in the stock size if possible.

What size rear axle would you run on this kart? It has a 37 inch axle right now. The axle has worn pretty bad so I'm going to weld a new one on.

Thanks for any and all help fellas.

Matt

 

[chancer]

Some dude in his back yard made that. You can do anything you want to it there is nothing stock. Rather than answer the 400 questions you will need to know. Let me get you started here. http://www.diygokarts.com/kart-plans/kart-plans-main.html
and here http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/showthread.php?t=29062
also Kartfab.com
Not trying to be sarcastic. You have a great start to tear down and rebuild with Junior. Just study these a little and keep asking questions here as you go.

 

[XMG50]

Haha! Awesome! I wasn't sure. The frame looks decent. Everything else..not so much.

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. Looks like I have a lot of reading to do. I appreciate it.

Didn't take it as you being sarcastic at all. I totally understand and appreciate you taking the time to reply.

Yes, we're both excited about our new "race car". I'll play catch up in the above links and ask questions as they come up.

Thanks again,

Matt

 

[chancer]

You will see if you keep searching around this site and the web. You have a good set of bones there but certain things are just strange. Like the engine mount, and those Harbor freight wheels and tires, people try them a lot on go karts but they just never hold up.
I almost forgot Welcome

 

[XMG50]

Yes, the engine mount in the photo was added to the small 1/4 thick plate that most have? I think the kid I got it from was trying to run a 9hp on it. I took that funky mount off which I think was a set of closet door runners.. Craziest thing.

I'll take some pictures tomorrow of the 1/4 plate below that contraption. He said he put the HF wheels on just to make it easier to move around. Those were the first things to come off. They worked good enough for me to push the boy up and down the road and that's about all. We worked a bit on it tonight and will tomorrow after work.

I appreciate the welcome. Thanks for having me

Matt

 

[landuse]

I am not too convinced that it is homemade. I think it might be factory made. It has a lot of similarities with some yerf dog models out there. I would probably go for tyres not more than 15"

 

[firemanjim]

That's a factory kart chassis, that some dumb @** screwed up and welded a bunch of crap on it. I've seen these chassis before, but drawing a blank right now...
Get rid of the harbor freight tires and wheels. Your kids life depends on it. I know that sounds scary, but those wheels will not hold up to go kart use. I don't wanna see Jr get hurt.....by a $5 wheel
No more that a 13" tall tire..... For that kart, 13" is just about perfect....

 

[XMG50]

You will see if you keep searching around this site and the web. You have a good set of bones there but certain things are just strange. Like the engine mount, and those Harbor freight wheels and tires, people try them a lot on go karts but they just never hold up.
I almost forgot Welcome

Chancer, I snapped a quick photo of the stock engine mount. It looks similar to other karts I've seen like this one. That other piece they had mounted was to accommodate a larger engine is my assumption..

I am not too convinced that it is homemade. I think it might be factory made. It has a lot of similarities with some yerf dog models out there. I would probably go for tyres not more than 15"

landuse, the frame and frame welds look good. When I first saw it I thought it was a factory frame with a bunch of crap added on. 15" SOUNDS GOOD. I'll keep it under that. Thanks for the reply.

That's a factory kart chassis, that some dumb @** screwed up and welded a bunch of crap on it. I've seen these chassis before, but drawing a blank right now...
Get rid of the harbor freight tires and wheels. Your kids life depends on it. I know that sounds scary, but those wheels will not hold up to go kart use. I don't wanna see Jr get hurt.....by a $5 wheel
No more that a 13" tall tire..... For that kart, 13" is just about perfect....

Yes, the frame looks factory. It looks like they tried to repair each problem one at a time and just patched it together. Now it's just a bunch of work for the guy that wants to do it right.

I took the wheels off right away. The guy I bought it from had those wheels on to make it easier to move the kart around.

I'm looking for some new wheels and tires. Trying to figure out the size I want/need. Any pointers on where I can get a $5 wheel for these spindles?

Thanks,

Matt

 

[chancer]

I swear it looks like somebody welded a stop sign post down the center of that frame.
That engine mount now looks normal.
I wish I could find $5 wheels, They just cost more than that. 20bucks a wheel and 20bucks a tire. at best. I have had luck with
6" front riding mower wheels. just have to put in 5/8 bearings. Oh yeah your kart is not live axle so you can use at least 3 bearing wheels maybe 4. Best price is gonna be your best luck locally used somewhere lucky. or new Easily 49 for some wheels.
Check these for all parts and wheels:
http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1180

 

[firemanjim]

No no, I meant I don't want to see Jr get hurt BY a $5 wheel..... A brand new $5 wheel will earn you trouble down the road.... Look on eBay for good deals on wheels. www.gopowersports.com gives us a 10% discount .

 

[XMG50]

I swear it looks like somebody welded a stop sign post down the center of that frame.
That engine mount now looks normal.
I wish I could find $5 wheels, They just cost more than that. 20bucks a wheel and 20bucks a tire. at best. I have had luck with
6" front riding mower wheels. just have to put in 5/8 bearings. Oh yeah your kart is not live axle so you can use at least 3 bearing wheels maybe 4. Best price is gonna be your best luck locally used somewhere lucky. or new Easily 49 for some wheels.
Check these for all parts and wheels:
http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/showthread.php?t=1180

Haha! It's a piece of a bed frame.. I guess whatever keeps it going down the road huh. I think they were using it to reinforce the seat. Lot's of patches in the seat area.

Yes, I've been looking at wheels and thought $5 for a set is killer compared to $20 for a wheel and $20 for some rubber.. My spindle bracket is OD 3" and the bolt is 4" long. I don't want to cut the bracket off I'd rather just replace the spindle if possible. Is that an odd ball size spindle? I'd be fine buying a kit that had the bracket and the spindle would just swap over.

No no, I meant I don't want to see Jr get hurt BY a $5 wheel..... A brand new $5 wheel will earn you trouble down the road.... Look on eBay for good deals on wheels. www.gopowersports.com gives us a 10% discount .

Ah, I see! That makes sense. Yes, he's towing the HF wheels around in his trailer that's hooked up to his power wheels. He can play with them but we aren't using them on our "Race Car". LOL I can see where they have already cracked from just pushing him around in it.

I've been scouting eBay like crazy looking for parts. All the different parts houses as well. Thanks for the tip on the 10% off. I appreciate it.

I'm trying to figure out what size wheels to get to fit these spindles. I know I'd like a little rake to it so maybe 13" in the front and 15" in the back? Would that be to much?

I uploaded a couple pictures of the spindles I'm working with. You can see why I want to put a new pair on. I'm hoping I can find a set for $25-35 bucks. Maybe something a little beefier.

Thanks fellas

Matt

 

[chancer]

Spindles. scroll down halfway and more, they get cheaper
http://www.bmikarts.com/Yard-Kart-Spindles_c_268.html
It is not so much which wheels. just need 5/8 bearings in the wheels to fit your spindles.
13 bux:http://www.bmikarts.com/6-x-5-14-Rim-Front_p_1566.html
Fill out your profile. Bmi is in ohio. Maybe another supplier is closer to you. We can help you better that way. and Maybe someone here lives close and can lend a hand

 

[XMG50]

Chancer, You are the man! That's a deal. Sold. I'll take 4. Haha. Thank you for the links that helps a TON!

I understand now that the wheel bearing needs to be 5/8 to go onto the spindle. So 5/8 must be the standard then?

We did a little cutting tonight. Cut off the old seat and the make shift center support. Also cut the steering wheel off. I'm trying to decide if the steering linkage is salvageable at this point or not. I should have some time to mess around in the garage tomorrow after work.

The center of the frame has a pretty good bend in it. Going to try and work the bend out and weld some supports next to it. Maybe tie it in with the seat frame some how. Well see. A lot of bridges to cross before that point.

As soon as I put the kart back on the ground my son wanted to install the tires. He's not to sure about this phase of the build. Lot's of noise and sparklers..

Thanks for all the help so far we both appreciate it.

Matt

Not sure why the pictures are sideways? I did not take them like that.

 

[landuse]

That kart looks a LOT better with all that other stuff removed

 

[XMG50]

Tell me about it. All that crap should have been removed long ago.

 

[chancer]

That frame looks good now, I knew there was some good bones to work with there. So your in Wa. Keep an eye on BMI. I like them but the shipping gets expensive to the west coast, they are in OHIO. (and I am cheap or broke) Recently I have found MFG Supply. also good prices but they ship fast and cheap(er). I also found if I use their search box I can find more parts than just the "go kart" section pops up.http://www.mfgsupply.com/gomini.html
That was why I was asking the profile where are you.

 

[noiseguy]

Looks a lot better with excess removed. I had opposite problem... Stuff missing. I think my problem was easier.

I think you'll be able to salvage those steer rods with some hammering or a big vice.

 

[XMG50]

chancer, thanks man. It does look way better now. My son doesn't think so though. I showed him some pictures of karts on line today and he says "Daddy, we gonna build that"? I just smiled. Pumped to get this thing together and ride with him.

Yes, I checked out BMI and MFG. MFG does have some killer prices on a lot of stuff. I had my mind made up getting everything from BMI but I might have to split the order up. Need to calculate the difference in shipping and tax still. For everything I was going to order shipping was going to be about $40.

I appreciate the tip about the search box. I found a couple things just searching around that weren't on the main page.

noiseguy, thanks, it does look better. I'm thinking I'm going to have to cut the steering shaft off and weld a new one on. If I end up doing that, I'll just replace the rods. I probably will anyway.

If I wanted to salvage the steering shaft, how would I do so? From the bottom of the shaft to the top is 19". I took a few pictures of the shaft to give everyone a look. Any ideas how to save it or is it even worth it?

I've already priced a new steering shaft and steering shaft accessory kit. For the two it would be $36 out the door. Should I just cut the darn thing off and put a new steering shaft on?

Would a 19" steering shaft be long enough for a two seater like this kart? I was thinking 25" with a 12" steering wheel? I'm assuming this one was originally 22"?

Thanks,

Matt