Perfect set up-description

Joe Vancura · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2002 7:25 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

I would like to hear how your kart feels when it is set up perfectly.

Mikko Nassi · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2002 9:21 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

Tell me what it feels like when you find one.

Rick Blood · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2002 9:49 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

Such a thing has never happened.

T.KUTSCHER · Joined: 10 Oct 2001 Posts: 100

With a perfect set up your ribs shouldnt hurt is that right rick blood?

Phillip Schroder · Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2002 6:38 am Post subject: Perfect set up-description

On any given day for any given kart on any given track during any given race your setup is perfect if:

1. You win the race.

Phil Schroder

[ January 31, 2002: Message edited by: Phillip Schroder ]

Ted Pyle · Joined: 08 Sep 2001 Posts: 39

I'm a tuner/dad and not a driver, but another expert (aren't we all) told me that in a karter's first couple of years if the driver said the setup was perfect it simply meant he was not driving hard enough.

I have found that due to different types of turns (radius, apex points, camber, etc) and different track materials (asphalt, concrete, rubber buildup), that there is no perfect setup. It is usually a compromise. Determine which turn is the important one and try to get it to handle there the best.
Somtimes this can be the turn leading onto the straightaway.

Bob Chiras · Joined: 30 Jul 2001 Posts: 198

As a crew chief the answer is: the front will stick well enough that the driver is not aware of a push.

The rear is just a touch loose under hard acceleration but sticks well enough for effective braking.

Depending upon entry the driver can drift all four wheels or just the rear and then only slightly.

If we are running a shifter the setup has to be just right so that it rockets off of the corner without spinning the rear tires.

If a clutch kart the clutch engagement has to be at just before the peak torque of the motor.

When the kart comes back in after a run and the air pressure has only risen one pound or less in the tires and the tire temperature is only 30 degrees above track temperature you have just had the near perfect ride assuming that you also set the fast lap time for the track.

Patrick Hubbell · Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2002 9:21 am Post subject: Perfect set up-description

quote:
Originally posted by Joe Vancura:
I would like to hear how your kart feels when it is set up perfectly.

It feels effortless to drive and you can drive it anywhere on the track. Oh, and you are the fastest on the track, first one to the scales and an ear to ear grin.

Kevin Callahan · Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2002 5:56 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

I gotta jump in here with Richard Petty's hilarious description of stock car handling...

Tight is when I smack the wall front end first--and loose is when I smack it back end first.

Joe Vancura · Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2002 7:08 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

OK ,I'll give you guys the fact that the perfect set up is impossible or is one that you win with.What I was looking for was a different perspective than my own.I will agree that it is never totally correct because of the variety of corners and cornering speeds throughout the lap.I see the really talented drivers karts look exactly the same every week, all year long.I can hit good set ups with regularity but I seem to luck into the really good ones.My "perfect" set up feels 50% easier to drive than one that has just missed.It is almost effortless to put anywhere on the track.It is not bound in the corners but it does not feel loose.The front end goes exactly where it is pointed. The work required to drive a bad chassis is unbelievable.I have heard the fastest set up was one that was just barely loose and had the very slightest of a push,letting the chassis be free.Are the national quality drivers that much smoother that they can drive a much,much looser kart than the club racer?My experience is 4yrs 100cc+ 1yr 125shifter.Any factory guys want to comment?I'm here to learn and I am all ears.

John Valerio · Joined: 24 Jul 2001 Posts: 650

quote:
Originally posted by Patrick Hubbell:

It feels effortless to drive and you can drive it anywhere on the track. Oh, and you are the fastest on the track, first one to the scales and an ear to ear grin.

I'm with Pat in this one,

As far as the grin from "Ear to Ear".
I could put the kart anywhere I wanted to......pass at will and Win!!! Except only done this once......came close more times then I wanted too.
The best part is the tech conversations you have with second place

John Learmonth · Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2002 2:12 am Post subject: Perfect set up-description

When its as good as I've ever gotten it, the kart feels 'light', you don't have to struggle, the tyres 'come on' quickly and don't go 'off', and the kart does a lot of the work for you (it almost steers itself). At the end of the race you have plenty of energy left for a big smile

The 'pros' are just in the kart so much they can hit the set up more often than the rest of us, but they do get it wrong too, then they look like this;

[ February 01, 2002: Message edited by: John Learmonth ]

Dan Schultz · Posted: Sat Feb 02, 2002 5:21 pm Post subject: Perfect set up-description

I believe Patrick said it best because I have never seen a driver complaign about a poor handling kart after a win and I have yet to hear a driver at the back of the field talking about how "good" the kart was.

That being said, the best setup for for you, might be quite different than the best setup for me. Personally, I like a kart to be well balanced with lots of grip with a very sharp corner turn in to the extent my kart is pointy. Many here will say I need to loosen my kart up to free it up, but when I have tried that, I have lost time. My style seems to likes lots of grip but it requires smoothness through the corners to carry the speed. Basically, the perfect setup is whatever is fastest for you.

[ February 02, 2002: Message edited by: Dan Schultz ]

Bill D Talley · Joined: 08 Oct 2001 Posts: 314

A perfect kart.

Easy to turn...no arm pump.

Rear is stuck, just enough. Enough to give confidence and good traction.

Kart is smooth, handles transitions well, predictable, feels free and un-bound.

Brakes are balanced

When all this is done; Engine can be tuned fat on the bottom for huge torque, and lean on top for max revs and acceleration down the straight.

There are always compromises but sometimes a driver gets out of the kart seat, looks at you and says, "That thing is dialed!" that's when it's perfect. Learning to have that confidence in your driver's opinions is very important. There are only three factors to meet. Happy Driver, Happy tires, Happy Lap times. You'll stand on the podium.

Doug Welch · Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2002 6:03 am Post subject: Perfect set up-description

I think the best desciption was from my older boy after testing a factory team kart. On his second lap he was .7 faster than he had been all day on his own kart. He had a huge grin on his face when he came and said, "The kart is perfect, I can drive it anywhere on the track."

Later he told me that the Motor wasn't as strong as his, but it handled so much better.

Doug