opinion on clutches?

[duser32shane]

Hello. Im new to the go kart world !! Is it worth spending 180 on a clutch or is say a 50-75 $ clutch good enough?. Whats the major differences and all that. Thanks guys

 

[chancer]

Really depends on the Karts weight and gear ratio. I just put a generic $20 clutch on my Azuza yard Kart 6:1 gear ratio and 12" tall tires no problems. I figured for 20 bucks if it don't work no loss. But it works.
Now if you have 13+hp and 20" rear wheels you will smoke clutches all day and should upgrade to a torque converter. Give us some more info on your Kart and guys that are smarter than me will get you good answers?

 

[duser32shane]

The kart is a homemade one. Built for racing on some small local tracks. Just for fun. But bragging rights are always great. The engine is a yellow 6.5 clone with billet flywheel, rod, bsp3 cam and 26lb springs.i have no way of telling but supposibly it suppose to turn close to 7000 rpm. Rear tires are 11 inches tall. Its a live axle kart. 60 tooth sprocket, and curently a 15 tooth clutch. Seems really doggy of the line. But goes once its goin. Iwould guess the kart weights maybe 120 lbs. Kinda heavy i no. I would like it to be a little more snappy of the line and wondered if a smaller tooth more expensive clutch was worththr money. I d8nt have alot of room for a bigger sprocket. But could maybe fit a 72 or something. Input is much appreciated. Thanks

 

[chancer]

If you are buying a clutch anyway I would go with a 12 tooth to bring your ratio to 5:1. This will help your off the line speed and not kill your top speed.
Check out the speed Calculator:
http://www.diygokarts.com/speed-calculator.html
You can also search around this site there are some good articles in the FAQ page about gear ratios.