[Daniel White]

The red line, although coming off the hairpin on the left, the driver should swing left to set up for the right-hander.

[Daniel White]

Depends on the track.

If the club adjusts weights, that will impact which motor is optimum.

I had a Rotax for a few years–the carb was a nightmare. So was the clutch before they introduced the new one. There is no denying the success of the program over the years, however.

In Georgia, the X30 seems to be the one to have now IMO.

Just don’t get a PRD unless the club has a large spec PRD class.

[Daniel White]

Hey Dan, if you think THAT website / shop is bad, you ought to check out the Birel site ha ha.

[Daniel White]

My pain is not only in my hands, but most acutely in my shoulders. Ever since I’ve been karting, my shoulders have been in constant pain. If I have to raise my arms I must do it gingerly or else my upper arm will just fall out of its shoulder socket. No kidding.

I’ve considered taking caster out of the kart, as well as reducing the ackerman, to make driving less of an effort. As I understand it, increasing both of these make the steering heavy. But I like the way my kart handles, so I’ve just resigned myself to suffering.

Does anyone else have shoulder pain?

As for my hands, I make a conscious effort to relax them on the straights.

My forearms get quite a workout, and toward the end of the day will begin to cramp up during a race. Need to pound water all day and eat bananas.

[Daniel White]

130mm for the front, 210mm for the rear.

The hubs bolts are spaced different for a CRG than other karts (with a “k”), so if you have OEM hubs (and you probably do) you MUST get CRG wheels.

[Daniel White]

Forgot to add: at a certain weight having a 3-disk becomes the preferred choice, though I’m not sure what the weight is.

[Daniel White]

I used the 2-disk Horstman for the can class and, later, for the Y-Pipe. I was completely inept when it came to adjustments–all I did was service it between track days. Needless to say, it eventually became unpredictable to feel when the clutch would engage, and in my ignorance I thought it was the fault of the clutch, that it worked for the can but was less effective for the Pipe.

One day the drum broke, and to me this confirmed that the Y-pipe was just too much for the 2-disk to handle (I was wrong). So I borrowed a fellow racer’s 3-disk dry clutch (a Patriot). It worked much better than my 2-disk and was more robust, so I arranged a trade (after replacing the broken drum with a new one). I’ve been satisfied since.

But I’ve since been told that the 2-disk is just fine for the Y-pipe. In fact, I’m the only one at my club who uses a 3-disk.

[Daniel White]

I was in the same boat you are in a few years ago. From 2008-2010 I had a 2005 Sodikart (built for D1 tires but they had just switched to the D2) and was anywhere from .6 to a full second off the pace on a 23-second track. I was miserable. I bought the kart-engine with a fresh rebuild, top and bottom. Didn’t have a weather station so I either asked my competitors what jet / pin setting to use, or simply guessed. No one else ran that chassis. Always had used tires (I frankly don’t think that made a lick of difference to my lap times, as most of the time my competitors were on used tires as well). I did have the chassis on a scale so I was sure it was straight. I had my competitors drive my kart as well, but they weren’t any quicker.

In 2010 I bought a new Arrow AX-9 (another kart built for the D1 tire) and things improved, but only slightly. Got to within .3-.5 of the quick guys.

Finally, Rotax died at my track so I switched to Yamaha–and was immediately on the pace. So what was the deal with the Sodikart-Rotax? As with most things, it was probably a confluence of factors. I will list them in order of their significance:

1) I needed a driver coach at that stage of my karting. I perhaps still need one.
2) The chassis had not been tested effectively. Sure, I practiced and tested occasionally, but had little idea of how to make progress. Now I have a Tonykart, and to this day I usually have settings close to factory, and change very little during the day (mainly tire pressures).
3) I did not use any resources to tune the carburetor. Just cleaned it and guessed on jetting.

[Daniel White]

Thanks for all the comments, fellas.

[Daniel White]

If I could choose a place to live based on karting options, it would be southern California.

If it was east of the Mississippi, it would be the Midwest (it seems to be the heart of the karting industry) or central Florida (winter karting mecca).

[Daniel White]

You lost me. Isn’t “insert arc” and “turn in” the same thing?

I’m just an average club racer, so take this with a grain of salt, but generally one should, if the kart is set up well:

1) threshold brake until you reach the point you want to turn in. It takes a while to be consistent, to not brake too late so that you end up understeering–pushing–through the apex, or braking too soon, therefore having to coast up to the turn-in point. You don’t want to start the turn-in too soon, which could result in a whole host of problems.

2) turn in enough so that you lift the inside rear tire, not so much that you oversteer or bind up the kart, and not so little that the tire drops back down too soon, thereby bogging the motor and / or inducing understeer.

3) roll onto the throttle, not so soon or so hard that the rear end breaks away (oversteer) on exit. This can be confusing because rolling onto the throttle too soon or too hard could also cause the rear of the kart to drop too soon, bogging the motor and / or inducing understeer rather than oversteer. Of course, rolling onto the throttle too little or too late simply costs you time down the next straight.

When and how you roll onto the throttle varies with the charactersitics of the track as well as the characteristics of your motor. Usually, it’s started before the apex, and power comes on as you unwind the wheel, which drops the rear.

Frankly, unwinding the steering wheel and rolling onto the throttle are aspects that overlap, and to me should be considered together, not as separate activities.

Of course, one also needs to consider the turn AFTER as well, because you may need to give up some speed in one corner in order to make the most of the entire lap.

I think one can be moderately successful doing just this, but some drivers are adamant that applying brakes while turning–trail braking–is preferable in some corners, so there is even more room for debate.

I wish this sport was simple but it’s not.

[Daniel White]

2-3 race days is worrisome.

I bought my used kart (Oct 2012) with lightly used YLCs and I used them for an additional 7 race / practice days. They were still giving good lap times (front row starts) when I decided to change them. It was our club’s big annual night race and I was looking for an edge–there was no real need to change them because my lap times had been the same.

When I switched to that new set (June 2013) I wasn’t any quicker. I set my personal best on that same set in October–6-7 races / practices later, and was within a tenth of my best on a cool December practice day. I used them for a practice day in February (at another track). In fact, that set is still on my kart, and I plan to practice with them in a couple of weeks.

My experience suggests that the tire is durable. I keep them in a climate controlled environment when I get home and deflate them when not in use–that’s it.

[Daniel White]

Contact Rick Sweeting at Raceway Motorsports. He is in Stockbridge (south of Atlanta) and knows the KT-100 quite well. His shop # is 678-860-0835

[Daniel White]

I used a portable air tank (Craftsman) for 3-4 years before it broke. Now I use a bicycle pump. Works great.

[Daniel White]

[quote quote=24824]Daniel, I’m wondering where you’re getting this 165 number?
I posted almost the same question in general discussion and the number I was given was 200lbs to be a good start.
My chassis is crg 32/32 with 25mm spindles and I’ll end up running a plastic rear bumper, but I can’t see it adding up to 35lbs, even if you’re using old style bodywork.[/quote]

 

I have to admit that even though I’ve had my karts scaled and balanced. I can’t recall the weight of an empty kart, and am just using some rudimentary math.

My first kart was a Sodi-Rotax, and the tubes were all 32mm and the stub axles were 25mm. I weighed 185 with gear. To come across the scales at 365, which is Rotax Sr weight, I had to add 5 lbs of lead to the kart, plus I usually ran with about a gallon of fuel (8 lbs). 365-185-5-8= 167, which is 159 without fuel.

Now I’m in Tonykart-Yamaha, and the minimum weight is 360. I have to add 15 lbs lead to my 187 (I’ve gained a bit of weight), and run with a half-gallon of fuel (about 4 lbs). 360-187-15-4=154. I concluded that a Tonykart with a Yamaha (spec pipe) weighs about 150 without fuel.

Perhaps I’m a bit off in my calculation, but it seems pretty close.

[Daniel White]

They are hosting a series this season. Oddly enough,you can find information on our club’s site, georgiasprintkartking.net

 

[Daniel White]

You have two primary options:

Chris Wehrheim: a top-ranked driver who has been a team driver for several manufacturers, most recently Topkart. He does a great deal of driver coaching (and tuning) from what I understand. Does many of the big national races and has even been sent to Europe to compete.

Jim Hanson: not sure how much karting he’s doing these days, but he’s a beast.

[Daniel White]

You’ll probably have to melt the loctite with a torch to get the starter nut off.

[Daniel White]

I have used 3 different brakes.

The Itaka system on Sodikarts–very good.

Arrow on my BMax–also very good

OTK on my Tonykart–not as good as the other two, but I drove a friend’s Tonykart and his were much better, so I have to assume his brake cable set-up/ the newness of his pads / bleeding made the difference, so I’m trying a few things.

I hear than Ven 05 are the best OEM brakes, but that Kelgate makes a terrific aftermarket system.

[Daniel White]

What about third bearing? Tight or zip tied?

[Daniel White]

Have never had engine work done by them (I live in the southeast) but have occasionally ordered stuff from them. I would order more often, but Comet’s shipping is so quick (albeit expensive), and inventory so extensive, that I seldom have to call Acceleration. During the holidays they offer free shipping and other promotions, which is a great deal.

All this to say I really like Acceleration, and if I lived on the left side I would certainly give them more of my business.

[Daniel White]

I race with Wehrheim, and my best lap with the pipe is over a second better than with the can–on a dink .25 mile track.

It might be better to consider our fastest, most consistent driver– Jim Hanson. He’s the<span style=”line-height: 1.5em;”> lap record holder with the can (24.4) and pipe (23.7).</span>

 

[Daniel White]

A kart with a Rotax motor is about 165-ish, sans fuel. Masters minimum is 405, and that’s what you should aim for if you are over 30 years old. Keep in mind that your safety gear will add about 10# to your overall weight, and each gallon of fuel is an additional 8#.

At your current weight you should be close to the class minimum.

[Daniel White]

Clutch changeover is $500 or a bit more. Air box and correct bracket is around $70.

 

[Daniel White]

I’ll take the Pro Kartlift and pick it up.

[Author]

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