Thoughts on clutch and shifter engagement.

[FR Ray]

I really like the idea of having gears in my new build, I can run a smaller engine, use less fuel, less weight, better resistance to dust and mud, and hopefully still have decent pull at low and medium speeds. Which brings me to the 125cc quad engines, Lifan and others, anything with three gears or more and reverse. It seems most quads going for cheap around here have manual clutch transmissions. I'm not so keen for three pedals in my kart, I like the idea of just two, one for each foot. So I've been dreaming up ways to actuate the clutch when shifting. Here's a crumby Paint drawing of what I've come up with so far:



I'm sad to say I've never actually rode a quad before, with or without manual transmission. So I'm not really sure of parameters like engagement points, resistance etc. Based on what you know, is this a plausible idea? If I play around with the pivot points, lever mechanisms, and spring controlled resistance, could I make this work? Thanks so much for your input!!

 

[Snaker]

I think your plan would be doable.
Seems to me that the clutch lever would be better used if positioned in front of the shifter so fingers grab it and squeeze, similar to a motorcycle setup
Matter o fact, you could cut off a chunk of junkyard cycle handlebar and use it as the shifter and hand clutch.

If your grabbing a powertrain out of a ATV, many of them use some version of a clutch less manual transmission.
I had a Suzuki like that, a motorcycle style toe shifter and no clutch lever.
Honda did some sort of handlebar shifter and could be switched between that or full auto.

 

[madprofessor]

Oh, just go for it! Put paddle shifters behind the steering wheel for a real fun challenge. Ignore the shift pattern, and just make it your own.

 

[Denny]

The clutch lever on the end of the shifter is the best idea.

 

[redflash]

I have to vote with denny here, Did that on a previous kart.

 

[Willie1]

The (racing) shifter karts I've seen have the clutch worked by a looped lever under the steering wheel - pulling up on it with the left hand sets the clutch. Mind you - these clutches had fairly stiff apply springs, so it might have been hard to use them with
a typical hand lever.

That said - the lever on the shifter handle would work, too.

 

[FR Ray]

I think your plan would be doable.

Hey, thanks for the feedback! My main purpose in putting the clutch lever behind the shifter is so my hand naturally engages the clutch before moving the shifter, so there can be no chance of crunching a shift. Yes I'd love a semi-auto or auto engine, there's some really nice ones around here but sadly they are often 5x the price of cheap and cheerful manual units.

 

[FR Ray]

The (racing) shifter karts I've seen...

Cool, thanks for the idea and picture. That would free up feet for pedals, and left hand for shifter. Hmm...