[Mike Clark]

I have not really talked about the amount of involvement or any of how they select drivers.

F4 is pretty new here. 1st year was last year.

My dealings with Joe have been very straight forward. I am somewhat new to karting and consider myself a rookie. Most of my dealings with Jay have been observing him dealing with others near me.

I am sure if you contact them they will tell you how things work.

[Mike Clark]

This may be an option for you:

Front Page

They have and F4 program and are into X30’s as well. They have a close association with: http://ogdenusa.com/   as that is Jays dad.

I have met Jay and know guys that deal with MDD. I mainly deal with one of Jay employees Joe Hidalgo and I am happy with experience. I can say Jay does have a range of experience from karts on up to Indy Cars. Matter of fact Jay is slated to run in this years Indy 500. Jay is running the kart racing program here in NewOrleans @ Nola Motorsports Park. I do feel that it is safe to say many of us feel lucky to have Jay and Joe here as an asset.

NOLA Motorsports

 

[Mike Clark]

I have had tires pop the beads very easily. I always clean the wheel and use a mounting lube. Getting enough air (flow) at once helps. I have a 10 gallon tank and it last a good while if things go right on mounting. For just topping off tires it last forever. If I find a leak I fix it.

The beginning of the year I had a pair of rear wheels that made popping the beads a task from hell. Almost nothing seemed like it helped. Just getting the tires on the wheel was really bad.

[Mike Clark]

Gary,

What pill system / chassis do you use?

I would like to get the Extreme chassis sorted out but there are times I think don’t get too invested in it. It has an LO206 to provide a cheap way to get a lot of seat time. I don’t here a lot of good things about it but it is what it is in terms of it is what I have. It does have a 50mm rear axle which is debatable as to whether they work or not with a LO206. I am making progress on the handling front, it just takes time. There are no slow people in the class, so big improvements in lap times still leave a gap to bridge.  Everyone else showing up is dialed in and have been at it some time. I look at it as a great way to learn kart setup and handling. The 206 is just great for this type of thing.

[Mike Clark]

Ok, so most people are just using a ‘setting’, got it.

Thanks for the help.

[Mike Clark]

Gary, Thank you for taking the time in answering.

It is a used Extreme (Righetti Rodolfi) and currently has this type of adjuster:

http://www.accelerationkarting.com/spindlepill.aspx

One problem is if the keeping the alignment while tightening the king pin as these pill want to rotate with the bolt. So far it take 2 or 3 guys to accomplish. I have gotten better at it but it is still a fight. I have used borrowed Sniper V2’s and I am currently waiting for Sniper V2’s to arrive.

I would like to go to this Sniper system:

http://www.accelerationkarting.com/snipercastercamberadjuster.aspx

I was planning on seeing if the spindle yokes would have room for the Sniper or some other pill system that is more convenient. I just didn’t want to remove a spindle until I can put it back into  adjustment. I am told the Sniper adjusters will spoil you.

The 2 tools I know of are an angle indicator to measure off of a spindle directly with the frame rails level or this:

Longacre Caster/Camber Gauge – Kart Adapter

[Mike Clark]

Do you not measure caster? Since it is all relative how do you move the caster + or – 2 degrees relative to where it is at now? Do you just eyeball it say good enough?

What I am asking is how do you measure caster? What tool do you use?

I am trying to get my kart sorted out and need to keep track of front end settings. I see the number as something to use in documentation.  Right now I have no idea of how much caster is dialed in. I really hate the adjusters that are on it now.

 

[Mike Clark]

Does this help?

https://cometkartsales.com/Noonan-Foot-Box-Relocator-with-Carbon-Fiber-Heel-Riser-SKU18372.html

http://nkrpedals.com/PEDAL_RISERS.html

http://alfa-img.com/show/go-kart-throttle-setup.html

[Mike Clark]

[quote quote=77627]The engines built today are exactly the same as the very first ones produced. That’s the entire point of the LO206 program… [/quote]
That is what is nice about it. It is a great thing in that respect. It does not force you to upgrade. A real pain when you just bought in and then a mfgr drops a new upgrade right after you just shelled out money on an initial investment.

I find the LO206 pretty hassle free overall in terms of the overall package. For fun and entry level it is an obvious choice.

[Mike Clark]

I would also add that practical concerns should be a consideration, such as “Are new face shields readily available?”. I would price the face shield ahead of time. Check some things like operating “the controls” with gloves on.

[Mike Clark]

I will echo the others:

As a new driver you won’t be able to tell much and probably wouldn’t know why you felt what you did. A bigger decision is whether to buy new or used. If you can get some support then new from the local kart shop may be the biggest factor. I wouldn’t expect too much support from an individual on a used kart.

A cheap way to get some hands on is to help others at races and test/practice sessions. Just work it out ahead of time. That will help you decide on some things like what kart stand to by. I can tell you being solo in the pits has it’s challenges.

Renting a kart may be an option. It can be a bit overwhelming at first. The LO206 is a nice staring point. Do not mistake that for being easy. Some aspects of it are easier, but it just make the other stuff more critical.

Yesterday a new guy showed up looking to get into karting. He told me this is the first thing he is ever doing that and not jumping in head first. Sounds like a smart approach

By all means keep asking questions. I you can avoid any pitfalls it does help enjoy the sport better. I am pretty new to karting myself.

[Mike Clark]

Lighter is faster.

Very basic concept:

Weight does increase traction. Weight does increase centrifugal force. The traction force gain is less that the centrifugal force gain.

This is why Aero plays so much importance in car classes that allow it. Traction goes up without weight going up as quickly.

I could lose a few pounds. The cornering gain would be more significant than the acceleration gain is my speculation. About 10 #’s over 370 weight limit.

[Mike Clark]

Probably calipers “Measured them with calipers”

Spall Chunk prolly ottokorekted

[Mike Clark]

No Clue as to what it could possibly be for. Sounds goofy and obviously didn’t work out for a few people. I wouldn’t do it as I love my gloves, hand, elbow and shoulders. I have never even fist bumped another driver. I took me a good while to trust adjusting the jets on a KT100 while moving. I won’t try to adjust brake balance while moving.

When I raced bicycles I was comfy wiping my tires as a rode but there was a method to doing it. I could even brake with my foot on a tire if needed but both served a purpose and employed a method to not suck your hand between a tire and the frame or forks.

Greg, I have seen some things guys do that are stupid. Speeding on pit row and some other things like going the wrong direction in the pits. Last test day a kart passed within 24″ behind a friend in the paddock. If my friend would have stepped back he could have been badly injured as the kart was traveling too fast.

 

[Mike Clark]

TJ,

As someone who loves burgers, karting and Bob’s Burgers I am needing to see this.

[Mike Clark]

Well that is disappointing as I barely tightened the clamp. Local guy said he thought it was over tightening as well.

Either way I over paid for a new one!

Thanks

[Mike Clark]

Mr. Larry,

I dealt with Mr. Stu on some used goods and was very pleased with my dealing with him.

Sincerely,

Mike

[Mike Clark]

Last one I did I used a piece of unistrut channel. It fit over the strut/brace and allow a lot of leverage and control. Big Crescent wrench for tab adjustment.

I feel like I am horrible at seat mounting, but the unistrut felt right.

Pic of strut type it worked well on.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=extreme+kart+frame&view=detailv2&&id=DBE0CF8F8A546FAFC5CB76FDFD021231E6EE36CF&selectedIndex=19&ccid=3E7kBV12&simid=608014074033343207&thid=OIP.Mdc4ee4055d760a4c74954ee82fe1df18o0&ajaxhist=0

[Mike Clark]

Thanks guys. I didn’t even think about the GPS.

I was under the impression you didn’t want to hit the rev limiter if possible. I took it that you should only hit the rev limiter in a drafting situation. It will probably become apparent when driving the thing.

[Mike Clark]

NOLA Motorsports Park

NOLA Motorsports

http://nolamotor.com/facility-rental-new/

http://kart360.com/features/rotax-pan-am-challenge-preview

It is a nice place to have within 10 minutes from my house. Our garage is about 6 minutes away from the track. I have no desire to travel to another track. There is a restaurant that just re opened.

Karting Center has Robbie Poupart, Damon Cuccia and other staff members that are bringing customer service to the ‘next level’. Nelly, Brian, Dominic, Joe and the rest there are always great to deal with and there are a few no longer there that were great. Jay Howard is there now and he is someone I want to learn from.

The track is highly configurable. I am not sure how it ranks on looks but for me it is a beautiful thing. It’s New Orleans Metro area. Like most places it is the people that make it great. A lot of folks putting out 100% effort to please the customers. Functional Beauty!

[Mike Clark]

Thanks for the replies

15-18 seems to be the consensus

52-64 was the one suggestion I got from a local.

56, 58, 60, 62 and 64 on the rear give me a ratio range of 3.11 -4.26. I did see some discussion of gearing from other tracks in the 3.375 – 4.076 range

I figure 2 tooth jumps 0n the the rears should be all the driver can use at first.

[Mike Clark]

I may not be the best to offer an opinion but here goes mine. A lot of variables and unknowns also.

” I don’t understand how that is not scubbing their speed but bottom line is…its not as they are faster then me….so..yeah…iam confused to say the least lol.”

I would think the harder the tire(Less Grip) the less likely to scrub off speed. Also from what I understand the electrics have a lot of torque. Not that the sliding is best, but they may have mastered the trade-off.

The most curious thing to me is the turn at the bottom of the map. You have a 90* left after you are on the gas. It seems some speed and time is to be gained their. Then next up you have a 135* right. I am thinking you can make gains in how those two corners interact with each other. Then skip ahead to the next right hander, which seem to have the exact line. All three of these corners lines seem to have a tighter radius than needed in a small portion of the turn.

Your last turn and first turns also look as though the braking points could be moved a bit later and to the right edge edge of the track

Just my speculation based on the diagram.

 

[Mike Clark]

I have seen the string method advocated by some on rare occasions. Same for verifying other aspects of the chassis such as squareness.

I think a lot of people love gadgets and trust anything hi tech as being superior.

That said I have no intention of ever again attempting to drive a kart I have not verified the chassis on. I am tired of being the guy with the yellow karting shoes!

I am currently trying to set up our shop to be able to do some chassis checks on a regular a basis.

 

[Mike Clark]

Thanks guys.

I wanted to have at least a concept of how it was handled and the tips and tricks.

The CRG’s we have use bleed screws that I can relate to. We also have 3 others that have the plugs only.  I have a Mityvac capable of bleeding brake but have never used it for brake bleeding.

It is just really the air bubbles rising to the top and having a way to temporarily vent the air, then reseal.

 

[Mike Clark]

[quote quote=79484]Those Sniper adjusters are the bomb, by the way. I’ve got them on my chassis. Totally worth $116 for the pair. Set and forget, and the way they work means everything is locked in and less likely to move around over time. [/quote]
I like the way they isolate the movements or seem to, but have never used them.

Thanks for the reply.

[Author]

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