Trax 65 Torque Converter upgrade?

[frank r]

Hello, I am brand new to the forum and go-karts in general, so I hoping that someone can get me pointed in the right direction.

We recently bought our son a used Black Widow to run around our wooded, hilly property. Everything is going great and he loves it. Now, I am looking for a cheap kart to ride around with him. A friend has a Baja Trax 65 (appears bone stock) sitting in his barn that runs well and I could get at a great price. The problem is, this kart uses a clutch and between my weight and the hills it would be regularly climbing I imagine it will be eating clutches on a regular basis.

Can anyone tell me how involved a job it would be to convert the Trax 65 to a torque converter setup? My major concern with this is the location of the driven sprocket – it is very close to the rear tire. At first look I don’t see how I could fit a TC in there. For background, I am mechanically inclined, but I am in no way, shape or form a fabricator.

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Smerft85]

If you can post pictures of the trax kart we can get you headed in the right direction.

 

[frank r]

Thanks, I'll grab some pics when I get home this evening.

 

[frank r]

Here are a few shots of the set up:

 

[Brianator]

I don't think you'll have the room for a CVT unless you shift the motor over which by the looks of it means you'll need to relocate the motor mount.... generally the driver clutch itself is out past the end of the crankshaft by a little over an inch once it's been properly spaced for the driven and it's a slightly larger diameter than that CC by the looks of it. Looks doable but is going to take some time and patience and yes, some fabrication skills.

With a larger rear sprocket and a heavy duty clutch you may be fine although you'll lose some top speed, I'm sure others here will have more info on clutches than I but man does that chain look cockeyed! If that's not trick photography it should be top priority to align it before doing much riding!

 

[frank r]

I don't think you'll have the room for a CVT unless you shift the motor over which by the looks of it means you'll need to relocate the motor mount.... generally the driver clutch itself is out past the end of the crankshaft by a little over an inch once it's been properly spaced for the driven and it's a slightly larger diameter than that CC by the looks of it. Looks doable but is going to take some time and patience and yes, some fabrication skills.

With a larger rear sprocket and a heavy duty clutch you may be fine although you'll lose some top speed, I'm sure others here will have more info on clutches than I but man does that chain look cockeyed! If that's not trick photography it should be top priority to align it before doing much riding!

Thank you - I appreciate your input.

How large of a driven sprocket do you recommend? I am not sure of the current size. Are these sprockets generally weld-on?

For clarity, I am every bit of 260lbs and the terrain it'd be used on is quite steep. I'm not interested in going fast at the top end, just something that will reliably haul my big butt up the hills.

 

[Smerft85]

Looks like you have #40 chain on it, with those tires I believe the largest compatible sprocket is a 60 tooth, but I'll measure my 68 tooth and see, guaranteed very little ground clearance if it will even fit. A 68 may require a spacer plate of some sort to keep the clutch higher than the sprocket, but would add torque for sure.