dreman
New member
Hi all, I'm a new guy here. I just started getting the idea to put a cart together when I saw a Chinese kart frame on Craigslist for $130. I didn't buy it, but it got me to thinking..I could build one of these pretty cheap! I'm not working right now, so money is tight, but I though it could be a good project for me and my son. Anyway, by the time I went back to look at it again, it was gone, so I started searching again. In a heavy downpour, I picked up a very used kart frame with roll cage. The guy threw in all the extra tires and old chains and parts he still had lying around. I got it home and tore it down, and found several things I thought were odd. One, the roll cage was clamped on! Two, I though it was a one wheel drive since it had a wheel hub with two flanges on it, until I found out the rear axle was slotted, and went through a tube in the frame, supported with bushings! Also, none of the wheels fit either flange! Two of the wheels were large mud tires, and the others were various 6" tires and rims. The two mud tires turned out to be 3 hole Chinese ATV 16" tall 7" rim front tires!
This is getting long, so I'll shorten it as much as possible. Here is what I did:
1. disassemble everything.
2. throw the old moldy seat padding out and replace with new plywood, foam, and vinyl.
3. picked up a predator engine from Harbor Freight.
4. laid out the two bolt patterns from the twin flanges and the Chinese rims and printed out a drilling pattern. I drilled both wheels for one of the patterns each, and cut the twin flange in half. Those are my rear hubs and wheels.
5. I looked online and found a gearing calculator for go karts. I figured that a 10 tooth clutch with a 60 tooth sprocket should work with the 16" tires.
6. I picked up a clutch, sprocket, 420 chain, and brake band online.
7. I used a bicycle brake cable to tie the accelerator pedal to the engine. Old mower parts provided the return spring and bracket.
8. The original brake band mount was cut short, so I had to use my Harbor Freight wire feed welder to attach a new bolt to hold the band.
9. Since I couldn't use the original location for the band mount, I had to fabricate an extension for the brake rod.
10. After reading the forum for a bit, I know you all will love this...I popped two new $4 front tires from Harbor freight on the front axles. I greased them up good and they fit perfectly!
11. I had to grind new slots for the engine mount, but it works.
12. I had to space the rear wheel from the sprocket to keep the chain out of the tire.
When all this was done, I filled the engine with oil and gas and it fired on the first pull! Stuck a bike helmet on my head, aired up the tires, and headed off down the street. I went around the block two or three times, and then one of the front wheels took off on it's own! I found out the hub ripped right out of the wheel flange. I dragged it home and dug out an old one that was exactly the same size off of an old wagon. That one lasted to the end of the street! So far I've gone through 4 of them, all on the same side. The other one seems fine!
Just a few observations..
1. Y'all ever hear of ackerman steering? This one was set up with "reverse" ackerman, guaranteed to wear your front tires out in record time! I'll have to fix that.
2. Harbor freight wheels are crap, but they fit. The only kart wheels I could find that had a narrow enough hub are Azusalite plastic wheels. I'll have to pick up a couple of those.
3. This thing is a scary fast blast! I had to turn the engine down before I let my son on it!
This is getting long, so I'll shorten it as much as possible. Here is what I did:
1. disassemble everything.
2. throw the old moldy seat padding out and replace with new plywood, foam, and vinyl.
3. picked up a predator engine from Harbor Freight.
4. laid out the two bolt patterns from the twin flanges and the Chinese rims and printed out a drilling pattern. I drilled both wheels for one of the patterns each, and cut the twin flange in half. Those are my rear hubs and wheels.
5. I looked online and found a gearing calculator for go karts. I figured that a 10 tooth clutch with a 60 tooth sprocket should work with the 16" tires.
6. I picked up a clutch, sprocket, 420 chain, and brake band online.
7. I used a bicycle brake cable to tie the accelerator pedal to the engine. Old mower parts provided the return spring and bracket.
8. The original brake band mount was cut short, so I had to use my Harbor Freight wire feed welder to attach a new bolt to hold the band.
9. Since I couldn't use the original location for the band mount, I had to fabricate an extension for the brake rod.
10. After reading the forum for a bit, I know you all will love this...I popped two new $4 front tires from Harbor freight on the front axles. I greased them up good and they fit perfectly!
11. I had to grind new slots for the engine mount, but it works.
12. I had to space the rear wheel from the sprocket to keep the chain out of the tire.
When all this was done, I filled the engine with oil and gas and it fired on the first pull! Stuck a bike helmet on my head, aired up the tires, and headed off down the street. I went around the block two or three times, and then one of the front wheels took off on it's own! I found out the hub ripped right out of the wheel flange. I dragged it home and dug out an old one that was exactly the same size off of an old wagon. That one lasted to the end of the street! So far I've gone through 4 of them, all on the same side. The other one seems fine!
Just a few observations..
1. Y'all ever hear of ackerman steering? This one was set up with "reverse" ackerman, guaranteed to wear your front tires out in record time! I'll have to fix that.
2. Harbor freight wheels are crap, but they fit. The only kart wheels I could find that had a narrow enough hub are Azusalite plastic wheels. I'll have to pick up a couple of those.
3. This thing is a scary fast blast! I had to turn the engine down before I let my son on it!
