airport
New member
Is anyone still running Turbonique rocket engine or engines on karts?
Gary
Gary
Little rocket engine kart
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KartFab
Active member
Looks nuts! How can anyone get traction with those?
http://www.hotrod.com/how-to/engine/hrdp-0403-turbonique/
http://youtu.be/0ZNc8ZOIkbQ
http://www.hotrod.com/how-to/engine/hrdp-0403-turbonique/
http://youtu.be/0ZNc8ZOIkbQ
IDk, all turboniques I've seen are "show pieces" mainly..
that is if you talk about those round satellite thingies..
I think I remember a video froma few years back with "said kart" fully restored and testdriven..
other than that I highly doubt it.
Those Soccer balls of death are not exactly cheap to find or easy to repair ..
and frankly, they're far from failsafe..
nitromethane is nothing you would want to sit on, and since those bombs had a designflaw (which is the reason they're called bombs!)
when you ran them hot, killed them and restarted them within a few moments.. they literally exploded...
So yeah, no...
There are jet karts however, and even turbojets made by torbonique mounted to karts.
(think drag axles)
But vintage T-16s... None that I know of.
'sid
that is if you talk about those round satellite thingies..
I think I remember a video froma few years back with "said kart" fully restored and testdriven..
other than that I highly doubt it.
Those Soccer balls of death are not exactly cheap to find or easy to repair ..
and frankly, they're far from failsafe..
nitromethane is nothing you would want to sit on, and since those bombs had a designflaw (which is the reason they're called bombs!)
when you ran them hot, killed them and restarted them within a few moments.. they literally exploded...
So yeah, no...
There are jet karts however, and even turbojets made by torbonique mounted to karts.
(think drag axles)
But vintage T-16s... None that I know of.
'sid
machinist@large
Active member
It also doesn't help that many of the variations required a proprietary fuel mix that no one who doesn't want to get sued into oblivion will supply, even if they had the recipe......
Denny
Canned Monster
Not to mention Turbonique has been out of the business since 1969. Do some research.
Denny
Denny
Ean Gdaniec
New member
Odd, my grandpa said that the traction on these were fine, and went our of business because they were so successful-they needed little maintenance, and ran for a long time. He was talking about turbine.
they went out of business since Gene Middlebrooks (founder and owner) went to jail for killing people with his engines.
And after that, noone really wanted one anymore
'sid
KartFab
Active member
looks like some had an axle connection, while others were just powered by the thrust of the exhaust itself.
Its too bad that they exploded because they look really cool.
Ean Gdaniec
New member
Hmm. I see. Well it would be great to see thrust engines (turbine) nowadays since we have 60 years advanced tech.
airport
New member
I had read everything about them, but due to the funds back in the 60's, and then onto other other life adventures, I missed the boat.
About 15 or so years ago due to some neighbors and golf cart racing, I started the search for one or two. I talked to an man that had one in the 60 & 70's, at an Akron OH. go kart shop, that sold his to another person in the Akron area about 10 years prior. the trail went cold then.
I installed an 750 Honda matic in my club car golf kart. With the gearing on grass it would do 70 MPH, on the road a little over 80. After a year I sold it before it killed someone.
About 15 or so years ago due to some neighbors and golf cart racing, I started the search for one or two. I talked to an man that had one in the 60 & 70's, at an Akron OH. go kart shop, that sold his to another person in the Akron area about 10 years prior. the trail went cold then.
I installed an 750 Honda matic in my club car golf kart. With the gearing on grass it would do 70 MPH, on the road a little over 80. After a year I sold it before it killed someone.
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