[William Weiler]

I have one. I am super happy with it. I can load my Kart on and off the trailer and never have to lift it. When I practice in Stockton, I am usually the only one there, so I would be stuck without it. Also, I am a Master and older, so I don’t want to waste energy lifting.

It’s surprising how small the motor is, but I guess if you gear down enough, it works.

It’s uses a lot of parts and different aluminum stock everywhere. Even if you simplify the design, it might still be a lot of work.

[William Weiler]

I checked online for medium pads. Even on the TonyKart site it is weird, with similarly identical entries for pads with identical part numbers. Does anyone have a part number for a medium pad? No where do I even see the words “hard” , “Medium” or “Soft”.

[William Weiler]

I ran a 53t/16t at Atwater, seemed to work well.

[William Weiler]

George,

I just read your post, although I will have to study it. I don’t have idle issues anymore, I don’t know why. Also, I checked my valves and my exhaust valve was tighter than my smallest gauge, which is 0.001. I set it to 0.002. This is the first time I checked it. Not sure why it was so tight.

 

 

[William Weiler]

When I raced at Dixon, I saw the rubber cover on the throttle cable at the top of the carb was cracked pretty bad, so I taped it up with electrical tape. Do you think air could enter the carb at this spot? That might explain the weird idling problems. I will see if it happens again with the rubber cover taped up.

[William Weiler]

I have a flame fire clutch with a bully conversion. The clutch seems okay. I can check the runout on my axle. Both the Kart and engine are used. I didn’t assume they are in 100% guaranteed shape.

[William Weiler]

I took the clutch apart and serviced it beforehand, but not for this reason. I found the snap ring was sketchy, and I replaced the needle bearing. I wiped the drum clean. One concerning things was, as I rotate the wheels (sprocket) the chain tension varies about 1/4″ deflection, likely a not very true sprocket (but it’s brand new). I find the tightest spot and adjust it there.

[William Weiler]

I bought an impact wrench and took off the clutch bell. Research on the Internet showed is a Bully conversion, so I was able to order the Bully gears. Ironically, the gearing was okay at 14t/57t for practicing at Blue Max in Davis, but still too low for Atwater. I got a 15t/57t, still too low, so I am trying a 16t next week.

[William Weiler]

I’m kind of skeptical of the idea the LO206 is so unique in the world only 1 oil is possible. I do think learning enough about oils to know what you can substitute is going to be an undertaking. My builder and local Kart retailer didn’t give me Amsoil. They gave me a Lucas 4T oil. I think that is how it is. A little knowledge and you will wreck your engine, but an someone who is an expert and understands it, can substitute the correct oil safely.

[William Weiler]

I put RTV all over the seal and after 88 laps there was no leak. Maybe that is fixed for now. A new engine is definitely in my future, but this one is still making okay power. I will probably run it until people start out accelerating me.

 

[William Weiler]

Freddy – thanks for the invite. It’s difficult to get down to SoCal from Morgan Hill because of weekend responsibilities, but when I have both Sat and Sun free I will definitely come. Getting there and getting back in one day would stretch me really thin.

 

[William Weiler]

I am 5’9″ and 193lbs. I had to add 20lbs at Fresno to make 394lbs. I run a 2016 TonyKart 401s.

I think I got the gist of gearing. There is a general rule of gearing, to hit the rev limiter at the end of the straight, but the final decider is lap time. Copying what faster guys do is a good guideline, and helps you discover things, but gearing is ultimately personal for what makes you faster.

You guys answered my question about what range or gears/sprockets are good for customizing gearing for most tracks. I won’t buy the whole range at the outset, but a few more around the median. It will be fun to experiment.

I felt somewhat upset I maybe started at a low gearing, but every time I asked my builder why he did something, I find the decision he made was well thought out.

[William Weiler]

My builder said he put 14/58 on my Kart but this is not what racers run. The spec Max-Torque SS clutch comes with 17t and people here run 15t and 16t. Maybe he made a mistake. I will count the teeth when I get home.

[William Weiler]

I found something called Tear-aid for repairing Nylon (my suit is Cordura). This seat though is a mystery. My builder put a XL Tillet in but it is too large, but it presses against my rib vest in places. The hips are way too big and the seat seemed comfortable at first, but now it feels uncomfortable. I could buy seat pads and see if that fixes it, or I could buy the smaller L seat and try that.

[William Weiler]

I agree I need seat time before adjustments. The Kart is neutral, so it is fine. But I don’t think this is a good base to start from. The Kart often slides on all 4 tires. Shouldn’t it be a medium flex, then adjusting more or less. Why is it zero flex, where I can only go for more?

 

[William Weiler]

I bought the engine used and the builder was clear he did the minimal of confirming, he started it and ran to for a while, and changed the oil. He didn’t guarantee it. I think for what I paid, this was fair. He recommended high temp RTV to seal it. Yeah the yellow caps were tight and it was dry all around them when I checked for leaks after cleaning it with electric spray. The only place wet with oil was the near the bottom surrounding the gasket.

 

[William Weiler]

Freddy – I did what you said and it leaked. I inspected with a magnifier for cracks but didn’t see any. It is a significant enough leak I can’t ignore it. I can clean it, remove the oxide, and use metal epoxy to seal it. That may work.

[William Weiler]

I ended up making a top mount out of 3/4″ aluminum. I can’t seem to attach a photo.

[William Weiler]

I was able to get some cooler hose at Autozone. It is heavier than fuel line. They have a STP/Briggs display, and I also got a fuel filter.

[William Weiler]

The Briggs “16 common mistakes” says use no more than 3/4″ offset. I measured the offset my builder used, it is 1 3/4″. Because it was offset so far, only the 2 most left bolts holes would let a bolt through. Doubly screwed, offset 1″ too far  and only 2 bolts of the 6 bolt holes used. No wonder it slipped. The inexpensive choice is to get a 3/4″ plate and drill it. I will go to Gorilla Metals or REM tomorrow.

[William Weiler]

I think this isn’t a common problem because, besides having a lot of offset because I am using a Tony Kart, I have an XL Tillet seat which pushes the motor even more to the right off the Kart. I’ve read online and even the Briggs document -“16 things not to do”. It says too much offset is bad. One solution is just to buy a 1/2″ plate of aluminum and cut it and drill it and use it as a custom top plate.

 

[William Weiler]

I checked the whole Kart over before I drove it. The chain slack and alignment were good. The engine rotated on the back bolt. The engine clearly slipped to an angle and the front nut had dug through the plate aluminum as the engine pivoted. Also, the clutch nut was in contact with the seat. When I separated the plates there was significant oil between them, that probably contributed to them slipping. Just cranking the nuts again though, I feel, won’t fix it.

[William Weiler]

TJ – your link is to an accessory. I see the tire changer though and it looks good.

[William Weiler]

I went to buy a tire Pryr look-alike and I had to choose the one for 5″ or 6″ wheels. To find out, I checked my builder’s sheet and I have KG Aluminum 170mm and 140mm wheels. I went to look this up and a website says there is no company called KG. The wheels I see on Kart retail websites don’t come in those widths either. Kind of makes me feel a little concerned I can’t replace a wheel if it gets damaged.

[William Weiler]

Looks like the Pryr kit is $170. I kind of wanted to slow down the money flying out of my wallet, but I don’t want to be cheap and suffer (been there). Is it really worth it? Are there options?

 

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