FJA Kart Wanted

[Clemens Burger]

I am casually looking for an FJA kart. The closer to Indianapolis, the better. Please drop me a message at burgerc@iquest.net if you have any leads.

Thanks,


Clemens

[Brian Garfield]

Trade a championship JA kart for a championship B Mod car?

Seriously though, there is still a chance we'll be getting rid of Julian's chassis (sans motor, that's already gone and most Soloists are getting away from the KT100 and going to the Briggs World Formula). We are waiting on some things before we make a decision.

Brian

[Clemens Burger]

Brian,

That deal would have to involve some serious cash.

I'd prefer a complete package and something closer to Indiana. Unless a great package comes along, I'll monitor things for a while. I am in no hurry. Let me know how things develop on your end.


Clemens

[Clemens Burger]

Ok, I had few offers. They all have good aspects.

The common denominator is the KT100. After doing a little research, I definitely prefer the WF engine, but might go for a KT100 if I don't find a decent package with the WF engine. I guess buying a bare chassis or a package with a different engine could is an option, but I'd rather not do that to limit the time I have to invest.

This brings me to another topic, the chassis. There are too many choices. I suppose that I would get an "adult" chassis for a still growing, 120 lbs, 5'4", 14-year old boy. Are there different sizes available? How do I know it is a full-size chassis (if there is such a thing)? What manufacturer? I was told by one (obviously somewhat opinionated) guy to stick with an American chassis since all imports are supposedly junk. Another pointed me towards European. Apparently, there are 2-stroke and 4-stroke chassis, should I go with a chassis only or try a conversion. Apparently, tubing diameter also matters (one very reputable karter told me to go no larger than 28 mm, if I understood him correctly).

Competitiveness is not my #1 priority here. I am trying to keep it simple while giving a young man the opportunity to get some driving experience and to have some fun.


Clemens

[Scott Boito]

Definitely go with a full-size chassis. And find a kart shop nearby to see what chassis they sell and support to make it really easy for you. They may also have some used chassis sitting around that they can maintain for you, so that would be nice. Some big names: Birel, Top Kart, Haase, CRG, Arrow. With a kid that "big" a 28 or 30 mm chassis would be good.

2-stroke versus 4-stroke chassis is entirely up to you. If you want a WF, try to get a 4-stroke chassis. If you want to go with a KT100 for the next few years, stick with a regular 2-stroke chassis. The main difference is where the seat stay is on the motor side which can make a big difference in getting the motor positioned correctly. Again, your "local" shop can really help with that.
_________________
KM #68 - Haase/Honda kart
BetterOffRacing
Member of the SCCA KAC

[Brian Garfield]

Just using our chassis as an example to cover several questions:

The Arrow AX-9 4S is a European chassis that was designed specifically for 4 stroke motors by changing some of the rear of the chassis (seat strut, angles) to more easily fit the large size of a 4 Stroke motor.

That said, many chassis can be made to work in different scenarios. We bought Julian's because it was winning championships in a KT100 class, so it seems it was good for both.

As for the size tubing? Just knowing how to tune the chassis makes a big difference. Julian's Arrow is a 30/32...so "needing" a 28mm is not correct. Carson's Kosmic was a 30mm and worked great and he never really knew how to tune. What you need is a driver that knows what they want and how to get it.

There are other chassis, even though not made for a 4 Stroke, work perfectly with them, both American and European. There are also some 2 stroke chassis that are annoying to adapt to a 4 Stroke.

Whatever you decide, be careful that you don't buy an offset chassis (for ovals) or an old piece of crap. The newer the better in most cases, and ideally not beat up on too hard, such as the bottom scraped very deep.

You will see many more chassis setup for KT100's because that is what most of the country runs (one of the problems I have with this migration toward the BWF). Occasionally, you'll see one with a BWF and it will likely be worth the wait.

Mounting a motor to one is not too time consuming and, if nothing else, will familiarize you with what you're going to be dealing with. Trying not to make a sale too strongly, I will say this: if we decide to get rid of the Arrow, you or anyone else would want it for sure. For the same reason you would want to buy from any experience driver running in the same discipline, they can tell you exactly how to tune for each situation and it will save you a lot of guess work when the driver isn't up to speed yet.

Brian

[Clemens Burger]

I have looked a little into buying a chassis only and a separate WF engine. It looks like I can get a brandnew engine for under $1000. My concerns there are the time required for the installation and the "hidden" costs, such as engine mounts, battery, etc., maybe a different seat. That all adds up.

We'll see. I'll keep monitoring the market and do some more thinking.


Clemens

[Brian Garfield]

Again, a misnomer about the BWF. If you want to buy separate, with battery start, mount, chain, yadda yadda.... count on $1300 and if you do it for less, great.

That said, you could find some good deals on the BWF because retailers in certain areas can't get rid of them, and just ask for a complete package.

So, buying a used complete package will be significantly cheaper. Remember, it's racing, how fast do you want to go

[Clemens Burger]

Ok, I think I have a decent grasp of the two viable engine choices for FJA. However, I am still trying to educate myself on chassis options.

It looks like there are tons of manufacturers out there. The more common ones appear to be the likes of CRG, Tonykart, Margay, Birel, Arrow, Wildkart, Italkart, Intrepid, Alpha and Merlin. Then, the little more exotic ones, like Razor, Bandit, MGM and Iconic Edge. Most of these offer multiple chassis, as far as I understand. My head is already spinning.

Ok, now it gets really confusing. I came across a forum, called 4 Cycle Karting. That sounded great until I checked their chassis page:

http://karting.4cycle.com/forumdisplay.php?s=59d255247dd6b2cb1734c6ff77e46654&f=29

None of them sound familiar. I have no idea what the listed brands are used for. Sprint racing, oval racing, dirt racing, anthing else? Many of the karts advertised in the local and forum classifieds don't even list the chassis manufacturer. I assume that, in those cases, the chassis was not made by one of the mainstream manufacturers.

Any words of wisdom? I am guessing that I should eliminate many of the advertised karts/chassis from my search right away.


Clemens

[Jason Vehige]

I would stick to common sprint stuff.....

CRG = GP, DR Kart, Vanspeed, Maranello
Tony Kart = Kosmic, Esprit
Birel = Monza
Arrow

Most brands have lots of spin offs adding to the head spin

You may find a Coyote Widetrack or Margay esp on 4 cycle forums... Both are decent choices too.... Most other us brands are Oval karts (offset)
_________________
Jason Vehige

08 Gillard Charlotte / SGM sl204
05 Vanspeed Sirio / SGM sl204

[Clemens Burger]

As part of my familiarization, I checked some of the entries at the New Castle Motorsports part in Indiana (owned by Mark Dismore). I saw the following chassis:

- Merlin
- Arrow
- Birel
- Corsa
- TonyKart
- Haase
- TopKart
- PCR
- Corsa
- Margay
- CRG

I also discovered that Comet Kart Sales (owned by Mark Dismore) is not too far from here. Based on their Web site, they carry Arrow, CRG, Comet Eagle (their own chassis), Margay, and Tony. It looks like pretty much all the big names.

There seem to be some trends. I'll probably take some more time to familiarize myself with the options out there.


Clemens

[Brian Garfield]

Ask Mark Dismore about the Arrow AX-9 4S... He might have other good suggestions for a European versatile four stroke chassis.

Brian

[Brian Mason]

Keep posting your findings, this is great info, I hope you don't mind my trolling in on your post!
I too am casually looking into FJA for my son to autocross out of Louisville this next season, he is about the same age and size as yours.
My head is already spinning and I just started looking into this, it's a lot more complicated than finding an E-Stock Miata!

[Joe Ricard]

Another somewhat new comer to the US kart chassis is Razor. No not the scooter company.

We have a few of them running here @ NOLA in the Supersportsman class with Yamaha F200's Nice looking kart.

We have a 30mm Corsa 2 stroke chassis that we finagled a World Formula onto. We will have to run pedal extensions and itty bitty seat all the way up so my 61 pound 13 yr old will be able to drive it. This is not till April. Right now we are quite happy in his Birel Cadet restricted WF in JB. only 45 pounds of lead.
_________________
Arrow AX-8/ Rotax Sr.

[Clemens Burger]