[Kartbuilding] thanks for feed back

[Stephen Burke]

Hi Bruce,

I'm only too happy to email my thoughts and feedback.
I'm here in Ireland. It shows how global the internet is. People email
from all directions about kart queries.

Ah! I didn't realise there was a centifugal clutch built into the motor!
That makes things nice and easy. Did you procure the engine specially or
was it re-purposed from somewhere else such as a water pump or generator?
I'm sure the students liked the idea of dipping the chassis! I was
wondering if one or two of them had to go painting it manually :-)
The chassis does look very well with the zinc finish. It makes a job of it.
Are the pedals a little on the big side?

That is interesting about the three wheeled suzuki motor bike. Was it a
sort of trike? Did it have a single front wheel to steer with? The
method you have adopted with the single rear drive wheel makes things a
little easier, in that you don't need to have a differential (if you had
of used a solid live rear axle).

-steve


On 06/05/2011 02:42, Bruce White wrote:
> Hi Stephen
> Where abouts in the world are you?
> Thanks for the feed back.
>  I have no objections re posting the pics I have hundreds showing the
> students engaged in the project. Its all part of an south Island school
> competition which is getting students engaged in engineering.
> The kart in the pics we finished last year ( it does have a centrifugal
> clutch built into the motor)
> We had the frame zinc dipped
> The concept came from the three wheeled suzuki motor bike, and we tried it
> first by adjusting the wheels on our old kart.  pics to follow later
>
> Thanks again , Bruce
>
>
>  Hi Bruce,
>> Thanks for emailing on the photos. The three wheeled kart looks well put
>> together and nicely finished. To provide inspiration to other
>> kartbuilders around the globe, I've put the photos on the
>> kartbuilding.net gallery at:
>> http://kartbuilding.net/gallery/v/OtherPeoplesKarts/three-wheeled-kart/
>> Let me know if you have any objections.
>>
>> Was painted it with Zinc or Aluminium?
>>
>> Regarding castor and camber angles, I can see from the photos you
>> emailed on, that you have used both the camber and castor angle.
>> There are many different view and opinions on the camber and castor
>> angles for karts.
>> The castor angle will help the kart move forward in a straight line if
>> the steering wheel is let go.
>> The camber angle is typically used in karts with four wheels, with a
>> live rear axle to make steering easier. With a solid live rear axle, a
>> kart has a tendency to go in a straight line even when the front wheels
>> are turned.
>> You can read more at:
>> http://blog.kartbuilding.net/2007/07/12/steering-geometry-and-setup-for-go-karts/
>>
>> As yourselves have a 3 wheeled kart, with a single live rear wheel, in
>> my opinion you may not require a camber angle.
>>
>> I also notice from the photos that ye have gone with a direct chain
>> drive from the engine to the rear axle. I've used this setup before, its
>> quite easy and straight forward. In my case I got someone to push start
>> the kart. I have found however that getting a centrifugal clutch makes
>> things much easier as the kart can be stationary when the engine idles.
>> (
>> http://blog.kartbuilding.net/2007/06/26/using-a-centrifugal-clutch-and-chain-drive/
>> )
>>
>> I hope this info helps.
>> If you take any more photos, please email them on and I can put them up
>> on the kartbuilding website to inspire and give ideas to people.
>>
>> Best of luck with the rest of the build,
>> -steve
>>
>>
>> On 05/05/2011 01:37, Bruce White wrote:
>>> Hi Stephen
>>> I am a teacher at a small school in Twizel New Zealand and my senior
>>> engineering class are building a grass kart. The  difference is it only
>>> has effectively three wheels as we have put the two rear wheels together
>>> on a rear axle which is only 500mm long.
>>>
>>> I would appreciate some help or suggestions on how to set up our front
>>> wheels ie castor and camber angles if in fact any are needed.
>>>
>>> Cheers,  Bruce White
>>
>