My brother-in-law gave us an old "go kart" yesterday and I need to get it in tip-top shape. I don't see any branding anywhere, but it doesn't quite look home-made. The kart (and I use the term loosely, since I know karting is much larger than just backyard bashing) looks fairly old and well-used. There's a good bit of rust over it, but nothing my grinder, welder, and some paint can't fix. It has a B&S 5.5 OHV on it.
Anyway, it runs fairly well, but it needs some tweaking. For starters, it needs new tires; especially on the drive wheel. It had obviously been overinflated and is worn bald down the middle. All 4 tires are "knobby" tires. Since our yard has a lot of elevation/hills, we need something more along the lines of off-road tires. Are the knobby tires the ones to go with or is there something different/better?
Also, the cent. clutch and brake looks like they need to be replaced in the near future, but for now they are good. The accelerator wire and the spring on the motor also needs to be replaced (I actually broke it tonight in the garage while trying to adjust it, so I'll have to pick one up tomorrow).
My main concern is getting the most of the motor. Like I said, it's an old 5.5hp. I didn't notice any misfiring or sputtering. I haven't pulled the plug yet, but I will do that and tune the carb (plenty of experience in that... I have a boat with an old 70HP that constantly needs carb attentions). I also haven't checked the air filter, but I'm sure that will need a cleaning/replacement. The oil looks good. Oh, the fuel line also has a small leak, but no big deal. I rigged up my phone to it and turned on the GPS and let me son take off. By no means was he running it all-out, but he managed to hit 12MPH. Is this ballpark for the motor or what would be a realistic number that could be seen? Anyway, to the main question: what can I do to bring the engine up to tip-top shape? Would it be beneficial to maybe run some seafoam through it (I do it on our vehicles, the boat, lawnmower, and other equipment)?
Sorry for the semi-long post here. We're excited and love the new play toy!
Anyway, it runs fairly well, but it needs some tweaking. For starters, it needs new tires; especially on the drive wheel. It had obviously been overinflated and is worn bald down the middle. All 4 tires are "knobby" tires. Since our yard has a lot of elevation/hills, we need something more along the lines of off-road tires. Are the knobby tires the ones to go with or is there something different/better?
Also, the cent. clutch and brake looks like they need to be replaced in the near future, but for now they are good. The accelerator wire and the spring on the motor also needs to be replaced (I actually broke it tonight in the garage while trying to adjust it, so I'll have to pick one up tomorrow).
My main concern is getting the most of the motor. Like I said, it's an old 5.5hp. I didn't notice any misfiring or sputtering. I haven't pulled the plug yet, but I will do that and tune the carb (plenty of experience in that... I have a boat with an old 70HP that constantly needs carb attentions). I also haven't checked the air filter, but I'm sure that will need a cleaning/replacement. The oil looks good. Oh, the fuel line also has a small leak, but no big deal. I rigged up my phone to it and turned on the GPS and let me son take off. By no means was he running it all-out, but he managed to hit 12MPH. Is this ballpark for the motor or what would be a realistic number that could be seen? Anyway, to the main question: what can I do to bring the engine up to tip-top shape? Would it be beneficial to maybe run some seafoam through it (I do it on our vehicles, the boat, lawnmower, and other equipment)?
Sorry for the semi-long post here. We're excited and love the new play toy!
