Robron Rocket Roadster Restoration - AUGUST 1ST 2026

[opsman64]

Welcome! Nice project!

Thanks!

 

[opsman64]

Here is a twist referring back to an earlier comment ... the front spindle is approximately an inch above the frame and the rear assuming 1X1 boxed would be an inch under equalling a 2" difference front to rear with same size tire / wheel is that normal with karts? I looked closely to the rear and it has definitely has been sanded. It 'could' have been where a 1X1 was mounted.

 

[Hellion]

There seems to be a typical high rear/low front stance on many classic go karts of this type but it is not wildly exaggerated. There also seems to be in some karts larger rims in the rear, smaller in the front, but again not drastically. Something like 4” rims in the front and 5” in the rear for example with tire sizes to match...

It’s not impossible that the previous owner flipped the spindles to make it sit lower. On purpose, or a mistake, it happens when things are disassembled and put back together incorrectly by a neophyte. Avail yourself of all the photos that the internet can provide to prove or disprove the way this kart should look.

On another note, I clicked on a link for Robron Inc that was posted on DIYGK many years ago and the link “works” and the page loads but quickly, in a nanosecond, it diverts to a page saying “click here to prove you’re not a robot” and it asks for permission to keep you updated. Suffice to say, the answer should be heck NO. I smashed the screen shot button to get the below image. Anyway, I wonder if Robron is still around....



Found this elsewhere: Robron - Robert Stanton robroninc@marlboroelectric.net 1-800-624-7383 (7am to 4pm). Email address is different that the one on the screen. FYI.

 

[opsman64]

Tecumseh 5hp. I know the tank would need to be changed but other than that period correct for a Robron Rocket?

 

[Hellion]

Tecumseh 5hp. I know the tank would need to be changed but other than that period correct for a Robron Rocket?

@JimD Maybe JimD knows?

I bet it might be a Briggs....

 

[Hellion]

I’m not doing the research so maybe you already read-up, but there’s a post here that said Rob Stanton had passed away, about 2023. Good on him for even forming Robron, buying the parts, tooling and plans from Mr. Rupp, and right after the fun kart and minibike industry was in a decline as I recall.

RobRon Rocket Roadster

Hello- I’m new to this forum. I have a RobRon Rocket Roadster that I am selling for a friend. I know nothing about how to price it. It is from the 80s and has been ridden every year except last year due to a pending divorce. Any idea on how to price this? Any help is appreciated. Kart is...

www.diygokarts.com

Good views of the warning decals and floor pan decal in that thread.

EDIT: I see in post #1 that you can tell the boundaries of the original floor pan decal or where it used to be. Take those measurements and I bet with the help of a.i., you can recreate that decal. Member Deuce @Deuce has some expertise in this area from a recent Ken-Bar restoration thread.

 

[opsman64]

I did research Mr. Stanton. I'm in North Carolina so if I can connect, I'm not far away. I am actually really excited to find the pieces to recreate a recreated Rupp A-Bone.

 

[JimD]

Yes, Bob died in 2023. He and his wife, Wanda, love to dance and drive around in his old convertible. He was quite a character and he attended many of vintage karting gatherings. His wife was the mayor of the town they lived in in SC. As for engine all his brochure that I have listed Briggs and Stratton which was the engine of choice up to 1999. Then Briggs announced they were no longer going to sell engine to the fun kart manufacturers. That is when Tecumseh came into the picture and their engine were sh-t. From idle to full throttle it was almost instant. And the idle was much higher than a Briggs. Briggs was around 1,600 to 1,700 and Tecumseh was 2,100. So all the clutch people after 2,000 had to put in stronger springs so you wouldn't have run away go karts when you started them.

The Rocket Roadster used a 3 hp. Briggs, 5" knobby, dead axle, band drum brake, and best of all a Max-Torque clutch so you know it had to be a great kart. The mark-up on the brochure was done by Bob when he gave me that in 1989. Wish I was smart enough to figure out how to get the picture on direct without having to open it up in a separate hit but Hellion will correct it I am sure. (DONE ~Hellion)

 

[Hellion]

Mr. Jim: They’re PDF so that’s the way websites handle them, as a separate download. Anyway, I have them and the download works and is safe (it’s DIYGK after all).

By that time Tecumseh was using their OHV engines, I guess? That’s the type everyone seems to hate but they love the L-head side valve (flathead) engines.

To the OP: So a Briggs 3hp flathead it is. Common as dirt. Not a very magnificent engine when you think about it but you’d be surprised how many of that displacement (8 cubic inches!) were in use on nearly all basic or base model and intermediate model karts and minibikes. Minibikes perhaps more so but you have to remember that they were devised by adult men to get around the pit areas at the race track (late 1950s or 1960s), so 3hp was plenty. Then you see 1 and 2 hp engines in some of those old brochures, like whut!? Didn’t know they made engines that small, but I digress.

I am actually really excited to find the pieces to recreate a recreated Rupp A-Bone.

Did you find a treasure trove of parts? Is the Stanton family still “running the business”?

 

[Hellion]

So I believe I understand. The left rear wheel (sitting in the seat) would have a brake drum and chain sprocket mounted directly to the wheel.

Yes. If you look at it this way, the wheel/sprocket/brake drum assembly is like a minibike drive on that side of the kart. Azusa should supply the parts needed to do this.

 

[opsman64]

Yes, Bob died in 2023. He and his wife, Wanda, love to dance and drive around in his old convertible. He was quite a character and he attended many of vintage karting gatherings. His wife was the mayor of the town they lived in in SC. As for engine all his brochure that I have listed Briggs and Stratton which was the engine of choice up to 1999. Then Briggs announced they were no longer going to sell engine to the fun kart manufacturers. That is when Tecumseh came into the picture and their engine were sh-t. From idle to full throttle it was almost instant. And the idle was much higher than a Briggs. Briggs was around 1,600 to 1,700 and Tecumseh was 2,100. So all the clutch people after 2,000 had to put in stronger springs so you wouldn't have run away go karts when you started them.

The Rocket Roadster used a 3 hp. Briggs, 5" knobby, dead axle, band drum brake, and best of all a Max-Torque clutch so you know it had to be a great kart. The mark-up on the brochure was done by Bob when he gave me that in 1989. Wish I was smart enough to figure out how to get the picture on direct without having to open it up in a separate hit but Hellion will correct it I am sure.

Interesting. The Rocket in the PDF has a loop where mine only has a single bar to support that steering shaft? I have pics of three other Rockets all only have the single bar.

 

[opsman64]

Mr. Jim: They’re PDF so that’s the way websites handle them, as a separate download. Anyway, I have them and the download works and is safe (it’s DIYGK after all).

By that time Tecumseh was using their OHV engines, I guess? That’s the type everyone seems to hate but they love the L-head side valve (flathead) engines.

To the OP: So a Briggs 3hp flathead it is. Common as dirt. Not a very magnificent engine when you think about it but you’d be surprised how many of that displacement (8 cubic inches!) were in use on nearly all basic or base model and intermediate model karts and minibikes. Minibikes perhaps more so but you have to remember that they were devised by adult men to get around the pit areas at the race track (late 1950s or 1960s), so 3hp was plenty. Then you see 1 and 2 hp engines in some of those old brochures, like whut!? Didn’t know they made engines that small, but I digress.



Did you find a treasure trove of parts? Is the Stanton family still “running the business”?

I haven't been able to contact via phone or email. The business (building) seems to still exists so ill have to make a day trip and talk to locals to see if I can find out.

 

[opsman64]

Interesting. The Rocket in the PDF has a loop where mine only has a single bar to support that steering shaft? I have pics of three other Rockets all only have the single bar.

Does the PDF show a live axel on the Rocket and dead axel on the two seat kart ... opposite what the spec sheet shows?

 

[JimD]

Bob Stanton made early fun karts before he acquired the tooling from Rupp. Once he got the tooling he made improvements on his own style karts getting away from weak points which a single support for the steering column is one of them. Hard man handling the kart around turns weakens the single shaft weld and they crack or break right at the weld to the cross frame support. Now you are using twice as much steel but you stop getting customer returns.

 

[Denny]

I haven't been able to contact via phone or email. The business (building) seems to still exists so ill have to make a day trip and talk to locals to see if I can find out.

Have you tried a séance?

 

[Hellion]

Have you tried a séance?

Get back in your hole!

Does the PDF show a live axel on the Rocket and dead axel on the two seat kart ... opposite what the spec sheet shows?

Added the PDF images to JimD’s post #28. Either that is a typo and it was crossed out (was a live axle, now a dead axle) or it was a radical change in production. I am inclined to believe the latter.

Seems like Robron is defunct but the sign is still up [click to embiggen] and someone cuts the grass...



If you pan left on street view, looks like there’s a sick ’49 Merc in the weeds.