Manco Magnum Express needs work, I need advice.

hoodedthefox

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Hey folks,

Picked up my first go kart, a Manco Magnum Express 606B-07, last week and am in need of some sage advice and direction.

The guy I bought it from had done a small amount of work, mostly to get it moving. It seems he rode it hard, it developed some issues, after which he put it up for sale. It's quite obvious the owner or owners before him had done some work to it. The kart has a 420cc swapped onto it, all four shocks have been replaced with Fox coil over springs, the engine has the exhaust replaced with a performance header, beyond that I do not know.

So here is where my issues begin.

First off, the Kart has almost zero functional braking power. Between the brake pedal return spring being gone and the pads being worn the brakes don't do much. I am certain the original Carlisle mechanical disc brake will need to be upgraded to a hydraulic brake in the future.

20220814_153639.jpg

So my first question is, is that Carlisle break worth repairing or replacing for a quick immediate solution? Will that brake actually stop and hold up to the 420cc? The repair kits and OEM replacements are both under 40 bucks, toss in 25 more and I can get a slotted rotor. I imagine I will work towards a 3 brake hydraulic set in the future, but that will require modifying the front end to accept brakes and doing some back end work.

Next up, the throttle response off the line is pretty bad, and by that I mean it bogs for a bit then clears up. In my examinations I "think" it is a governor/governor spring issue. Can anyone confirm that this could be the governor spring being worn out?
20220814_153827.jpg
The previous owner had the throttle return spring attached to the carb causing it to stay WOT, I moved it over to the throttle arm where I believe it should be, but it is not fixed in place as that bracket seems to be missing

MY final point is to it's steering. Frankly, it's bad. Not sure what sort of solutions would be best for this. I have not attempted to adjust the suspension, but considered that it could improve ride quality and steering. Currently the front has 145/70-6 and the rear has 18x9.5-8. Would a larger front tire assist in steering at all?

Things I need to/want to do, include.

New seat, seat belts (go power sports seems to have that covered)
Hydraulic brakes (best source? new or used?)
I have wiring to do to replumb in a battery and the electric start +lights
Eventually probably some engine upgrades


Any and all advice you guys have is appreciated. I am mechanically inclined but have not had as much exposure as I would like. I have friends with wiring and welding knowledge and I have been watching lots of Youtube (Cars and Cameras, Redbeards) to learn what I can.

Biggest priority right now is brakes. The terrain is too steep around here to not have brakes. Below are a few more pictures for reference.


Stock carb???
20220814_153816.jpg

Is this a 40 series? Belt seems to lead me to believe it is.
20220814_155116.jpg
 

Karttekk

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To get the brakes working, refer to the attached image I created . You need to loosen the jam nut then turn the stud inward to push the brake pad closer to the rotor until there's slight drag. Tighten the jam nut. You do a have a 40 series torque converter it looks like. The spring on the throttle butterfly goes in a hole next to the rod that's in one hole. I think you'll need to put the rod in the open hole and the spring where the rod is.
 

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Karttekk

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I believe the driven pulley, (the one with the yellow spring in it) should mount inboard. It needs flipped the other way.
 

hoodedthefox

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To get the brakes working, refer to the attached image I created . You need to loosen the jam nut then turn the stud inward to push the brake pad closer to the rotor until there's slight drag. Tighten the jam nut. You do a have a 40 series torque converter it looks like. The spring on the throttle butterfly goes in a hole next to the rod that's in one hole. I think you'll need to put the rod in the open hole and the spring where the rod is.
That nut can be locked down and it will not grab. I know it needs at least new pads if not a rebuild, however the question remains if it will be sufficient to stop the Kart.

As for the driven pulley, I don't think there is room to flip it due to alignment.

I will have to check over the springs again. It was rigged like that before but the throttle was stuck open.
 

Karttekk

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Did you wind in the stud so the pad would be closer to the rotor? Loosen the jam nut back a few turns so the stud can be threaded deeper. If the stud is at the end of it's travel you'll need new pads. Disc brakes on a kart work better that drum brakes. I can't say how effective your current setup is.

A Series 40 torque converter driven should be run inboard. It will run like that but it will wear the belt prematurely.

The throttle will go wide open when the engine is off. The governor will control engine speed once the engine starts. Put the springs on correctly, there's no reason it shouldn't run right afterward.
 

panchothedog

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I have a Manco kart, Intruder, close to yours but a little different. Same brake.
It leaves a lot to be desired. Put on the small pre-bled unit from Go Power Sports. I put one on a different kart and it works great. You don't need brakes on the front, a good one on the back is enough.
 

Karttekk

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If you're near a Harbor Freight store, go in & check out how the springs are set up on their display engines. Take a picture for reference.

The steering on those karts isn't ideal. Too many links and arms causing play and slop. Not a whole lot you can do there. Make sure the tie rod ends aren't seized, the tire pressures are correct and nothing is bent.
 

hoodedthefox

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Ok, will return springs to the way they were and see if it works. On first crank it was stuck open, but I have since adjusted the idle down and will recheck.

I have a Manco kart, Intruder, close to yours but a little different. Same brake.
It leaves a lot to be desired. Put on the small pre-bled unit from Go Power Sports. I put one on a different kart and it works great. You don't need brakes on the front, a good one on the back is enough.

I definitely want to use a hydraulic brake, did you have to do anything for mounting? I will probably want front brakes, as I live in the mountains and the trails I have built are steep at times.

I was thinking of fabricating a rack and pinion using one of the kits from Go power sports.
 

panchothedog

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When I installed the hydrolic brake from GPS it was on a kart that already had a hydrolic system, so the caliper fit. You will have to fabricate a mount for it. Probably just a plate with two holes spaced to line up with the bolts in the caliper and then adjust the rotor to line up. I used the existing rotor, no problems.
 

hoodedthefox

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When I installed the hydrolic brake from GPS it was on a kart that already had a hydrolic system, so the caliper fit. You will have to fabricate a mount for it. Probably just a plate with two holes spaced to line up with the bolts in the caliper and then adjust the rotor to line up. I used the existing rotor, no problems.
It's a hex axle, so that is good to know. I have already ordered a replacement rotor and brake. I want to see how hard that mechanical brake can hold before upgrading.
 

panchothedog

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Hey Fox. On my Manco I kept the mechanical brake. Let me share how I got a little more stopping power out of it. On the bottom of the caliper where the rod
connects I built a little extention tab ( about 2" ) that I bolted to the stock lever
to gain some leverage on pulling power. Also mine has a one piece rod that runs from the brake pedal to the caliper. Towards the back the rod is not straight and has a couple of slight bends in it to line up with the caliper. I was pretty sure that they were stretching ( opening up ) when a lot of force was applied to the pedal. I had a piece of strap metal ( 1/2" x1/ 8" x 8 or 9" ) welded
crossing the bends so they could not open up. Not real pretty but being under the kart and back by the engine and wheel they are not very visible. All in all,
it took the brake from downright scary to what I consider acceptable. A good
noticeable improvement. I had the scrap steel laying around and the weld was
only 10 or 15 bucks. Worth the time and trouble to me.
 

hoodedthefox

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Hey Fox. On my Manco I kept the mechanical brake. Let me share how I got a little more stopping power out of it. On the bottom of the caliper where the rod
connects I built a little extention tab ( about 2" ) that I bolted to the stock lever
to gain some leverage on pulling power. Also mine has a one piece rod that runs from the brake pedal to the caliper. Towards the back the rod is not straight and has a couple of slight bends in it to line up with the caliper. I was pretty sure that they were stretching ( opening up ) when a lot of force was applied to the pedal. I had a piece of strap metal ( 1/2" x1/ 8" x 8 or 9" ) welded
crossing the bends so they could not open up. Not real pretty but being under the kart and back by the engine and wheel they are not very visible. All in all,
it took the brake from downright scary to what I consider acceptable. A good
noticeable improvement. I had the scrap steel laying around and the weld was
only 10 or 15 bucks. Worth the time and trouble to me.
I had a similar idea to increase the force lever. When I get the new brake I will check the throw on the pedal and try to adjust to increase the force. The rod on mine has some play in it to work with.
 
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