Viper Off Road Build

[gjpgonzo]

In a word- yes. That was what Tony was referring to. It will have less twist than the earlier design.

Much better.

TY all for your help. Now another question "Does it matter where I weld the pivot arm" (up high or low) I understand the angle but not the where on the spindle.

 

[exenos]

Somewhat. Normally you would want it in a position that keeps the tie rod moving in the same arc as the a-arms to prevent bump steer. In your case though because you are using a pitman arm instead of a rack I'd just put it so that the tie rods are level when you are siting in it.

Just as a note, you may find that the arms on the spindle in your drawing are too long

 

[gjpgonzo]

Somewhat. Normally you would want it in a position that keeps the tie rod moving in the same arc as the a-arms to prevent bump steer. In your case though because you are using a pitman arm instead of a rack I'd just put it so that the tie rods are level when you are siting in it.

Just as a note, you may find that the arms on the spindle in your drawing are too long

I plan on extending the frame...see the red section in the picture, so the rods should not be a problem where hey end up. Also what is the general rule for the lenghth of these arms, remember they have to be long enough to reach past the A-Arm bracket.....correct

Oh and I am moving the front tires forward just a little bit.

The NEW Front end...everything look good to go?

 

[gjpgonzo]

Engine

Can someone suggest a good source for engines?

 

[exenos]

Harbor freight for a clone or find a Chinese dirt bike or quad on craigslist to steal the engine from.

 

[gjpgonzo]

Harbor freight for a clone or find a Chinese dirt bike or quad on craigslist to steal the engine from.

I have looked at the HF engines, and I have one very dumb question, how do you work the throttle on an engine that has the turtle < ----- > jack rabbit controls?

 

[mysteryboy28]

HF motors have a very convenient throttle hookup. Just slide the cable sleeve into the little stop clamp, then feed the wire into the pivot nut, tighten, and you're done (my terminology may not be correct, but its all easy to see and self explanitory once you see it). You'll also want to loosen the nut that holds the turtle/rabbit arm, so it pivots freely. Throw on an extra strategically placed throttle return spring for better throttle release.

 

[OzFab]

...as seen in the pic below...

The nut to loosen is indicated by the red arrow

 

[gjpgonzo]

...as seen in the pic below...

The nut to loosen is indicated by the red arrow

GREAT!!!!!!!!! What about the choke??

Also any shaft sizing problems with the HF motors....fitting a clutch or torque converter?

 

[mysteryboy28]

I tried tapping into the choke lever with a push/pull wire and lever, with limited success. I was able to get about 40% movement of the choke. Id be curious to see other peoples ideas on that one.

As for shaft size; its not the size that matters, but how you use it. Lol.

 

[OzFab]

What about the choke??

What about it?

Also any shaft sizing problems with the HF motors....fitting a clutch or torque converter?

IIRC, they're a bit shorter than other makes...

 

[gjpgonzo]

What about it?

Any suggestions on how to remotely operate the choke?

IIRC, they're a bit shorter than other makes...

Will we run into problems whith a shorter shaft?

 

[mysteryboy28]

nope. just slap that puppy on there, and if the shaft doesn't extend the full length of the inside of the clutch, the bolt holding it on will suffice. often times people will use a fancy heavy duty washer that has a lip that extends into the clutch an 1/8" (give or take) to assist with balancing and peace of mind (lol), but a couple of appropriately sized large washers will do just fine. just try to use washers with the same size hole as the bolt, to minimize unbalanced vibration from an uncentered washer.

 

[gjpgonzo]

nope. just slap that puppy on there, and if the shaft doesn't extend the full length of the inside of the clutch, the bolt holding it on will suffice. often times people will use a fancy heavy duty washer that has a lip that extends into the clutch an 1/8" (give or take) to assist with balancing and peace of mind (lol), but a couple of appropriately sized large washers will do just fine. just try to use washers with the same size hole as the bolt, to minimize unbalanced vibration from an uncentered washer.

Maybe I not totally understanding this, but if the shaft doesn’t extend all of the way …how does the bolt hold it on?

 

[OzFab]

By using a longer bolt...

 

[gjpgonzo]

By using a longer bolt...

Can't be the solution....that's to easy

 

[rmm727]

Do you need one of these?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/400276987993?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

 

[gjpgonzo]

Arms

If it EVER warms up I may be able to get more work done but here is what I have so far.

The Arms are nearly complete: Some added custom touches to the original instructions are...I tapped the inside of the arms so that they have a nice tight fit and i don't have to rely on a welded nut on the end, I only need one nut now to lock the rod in place. I also drilled a 3/4" hole in the spindle and welded both sides, the original plans were to just weld the arms to the face of the spindle, but I thought going thru the piece was much stronger and I trust it's strength a bit more now.
The added "extension" to the sides of the arms was done to accept 90 degree pieces welded to the spacers (pic Arm6-1) and the arms to help with any twisting that wants’ to happen.

Also instead of using bolts I got ½” solid steel rod and threaded about an inch of both ends and am using crown nuts and cotter pins. My thought was that there would be threads inside the spacers twisting and turning wearing out the insides. Plus it was fun threading the rod.

 

[OzFab]

So, if I understand correctly, you do intend to fit a brace on each of the arms?

 

[gjpgonzo]

So, if I understand correctly, you do intend to fit a brace on each of the arms?

Yes, actually it was warm enough to get some more work done last night here the pictures.


Question though , what should the range of up and down motion of the a-arms be, I really don’t have much of a down motion, up seems ok, but not great, looks as though the rods get bound up buy the spindle / nut.


ALSO: Does anyone outhere have a better solution then just welding a bolt to the spindle for the tire. This seems like such a weak way of doing it.