modified kid's buggy into adult size with build photo's
 

When you get stuff for basically free I have to make it into something to have fun on :biglaugh: Here's another contraption I turned into a "FUN MACHINE" for the family & friends.I took this in on a trade for my labor along with a really small kid's kart for my grandson. Those of you that know me thru this site know I love a challenge. First off I'll warn anyone wanting to make a conversion of this type- The Chinese are in such a hurry with their low-cost product QUALITY isn't to be expected! Could not believe how crooked the chassis was, trying to modify this was a challenge-that said it was a fun build. Got this on 5-6-2020 and worked on it off & on till now. Of course it has my powerplant of choice '86 Honda TRX200SX purchased off e-bay ($300.).The video pretty well explains what I did-Replaced the rusted out bottom frame work, I stretched it 8",raised the rollcage 5",stretched/beefed up the swingarm for the TRX200Sx engine.I made some aluminum adapters for the front wheels from 3 bolt to 4. I was given a racing kart that was in good shape so I robbed the 1-1/4"axle & components, added 2 new 4" on 4" hubs from BMI($68.), a new 39tooth sprocket from Speedway motors ($52.). I bought a like new used John Deere Gator shift cable off E-bay ($30.) and a stock reverse cable for the TRX200 ($21.). A free bucket seat from Craig's list, the new wheels & tires,brake master from a GXSR foot brake & Harley shocks also came from a purchase off Craig's list ($150.) other than consumables (approx.$30.)(total $651.) :biggthumpup: I have another CHEAP TOY! I'm sure I'll have to buy something else in the future.I have some more free 3/16" diamond plate aluminum sheets for a body/fenders/skidpan/ect.... Enjoy the vid's- hope it explains most of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLM5bUlhAp4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG6mw2e_dVo&t=7s

Got it wired- well enough for the engine to run and charge the battery. Still have brake light,head lights and the neutral/reverse indicator lights to do. I'm still trying to figure out what type of fenders and body panels-I had to spend another $9. for a choke cable, total is now up to $660. As always it's a work in progress. My wonderful wife gives it a :biggthumpup:: https://youtu.be/bHFts7eBwbU

That's one Heck of a Cool mower/weedwacker She's riding ! 😜:cheers: :drive:

Thanx "oldkid" she does what she can to help out!!!

Figured I'd show the project- this what I started with:

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After looking at the over all kart I decided to stretch it since I needed to remove all the rusted out bottom steel.

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The rest of the kart looked structurally sound and intact.

I picked the simplest version of stretching it and calculated how much length I was going to need for anyone I know to drive it. (I have a 7' friend) So I had him wedge into it and I measured!
I needed at least 6"+, so I went with 8".
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Then rebuilding the swingarm to hold a Honda TRX200SX engine.My powerplant of choice- Reliable,reliable,reliable also it has electric start,pull start,light weight (89lbs) chain drive for simplicity of getting power to the wheels,air cooled and a 5 speed semi-auto transmission with reverse (no belt slippage or clutching).

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I picked up a "free" racing go kart that was in pieces but mostly complete and in good shape.I knew the axle(1-1/4"),sprocket holder,brake hub and bearings would save me a chunk of money! Cut the bearing holders off and welded them to the swingarm.

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Next item was getting the wheel size larger. Since I already made a great deal on a set of wheels and tires this was the perfect project to use them. The kart came with front disk brakes (parts incomplete, previous owner lost most of the parts) and a 3 bolt metric pattern. My new wheels & tires were 4 bolt pattern (front's are metric-rear's are 4"x 4), searched the internet for an adapter for the front's but no luck! So--- I found a chunk of 1/2" thick aluminum angle from a server tower and went to making adapters. The rear hubs are very common and easy to order

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The 3 bolt pattern just missed the 4 bolt pattern enough for me to tap the bolts- they actually came out pretty nice and spins pretty true for not going to a machine shop. I just used a hole saw & drill press,it took about 3 hrs. I couldn't have went shopping that quick! Mounted the front wheels to verify clearances and got lucky- the 1/2" adapter was all I needed for the 19" x 7" x 8" wheels/tires.

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Welded up wider shock tabs & put on the Harley shocks. Now I have a rolling chassis

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I put in a bucket seat I had

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2 days later a single vinyl bucket seat on Craig's list was being given away! Of course I went an got it- it's a passenger seat but who cares- I added brackets to the steering support for steering wheel adjustments in case one's belly is too large to fit.

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After cutting/re-aligning/re-welding many pieces of the front end I cut the terribly crooked front support/headlight/manufactures plaque frame work and made it a simple stub nose for good view of the ground, easy for cladding material to it if I want to put a body panel there. I have some LED headlights that will eventually go in when I get further along. I had to move the gas pedal over from the center (it was a kid's 2 seater) to the far right. Someone with large feet wouldn't be able to throttle as the rack-n-pinion unit was in the way.

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I used the original rear fenders for the front wheels. I had to cut the support off the King pin and made a taller support for the larger diameter tires

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I'm sure in the future the original front shocks will get up-graded as they don't cushion much!

I moved the stick shifter to the passenger side & welded another connection tab for the shifter cable. Most shifter cables (Morse type) start @ about $60. for one's that are short enough for this size buggy, While I was shopping I came across an E-bay ad for a John Deere Gator cable- I sent the seller a question about the length and it would work. The cables were take-off's from new parted out Gator's, I bought all 3 that he had for $30.each-so I got 3 heavy duty cables for the price of one!!!

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I had to come up with an ignition panel of some type & I wanted to relocate it from the steering wheel area. Don't know what the little aluminum box came off of but it was small and easy to add the key switch (china made ATV ignition) and the neutral/reverse indicator lights (lights came from a bass boat) mounted near the stick shift for easy viewing.

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I still have lot's of items to fabricate to make it functional, one very important item is a chain tensioner. Most Honda TRX200SX engines get damage at the sprocket/stator housing because the 4 wheeler didn't have any type of tensioner and when these 4 wheelers get thrashed for years with no attention to the chain it ends up rubbing a groove into the aluminum case or a hole into the engine. Untill I fabricate a tensioner I added a block of LLDPE plastic (used for load bearing contact) to protect the housing from damage.

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I read thru many posts about individuals wanting to put this type engine into a kart/buggy and getting hung up with the need for a jack-shaft. I've been putting this engine in my toys since 2011 and never needed to add a jack-shaft to make it work-I understand the use of a jack-shaft but I wouldn't want to add the expense/engineering/maintenance that goes with one unless there wasn't any other viable option.More to come!

Just an update: I finally got fenders on it so I wasn't getting pelted with mud! I took it out on the road with another friend on his 420 Honda rancher 4 wheeler to see how fast it would go- It wasn't even a race as mine left him behind. The GPS showed an average of 48 mph with 3 runs. The road wasn't flat (slight slope)- going down hill it showed I got up to 54 mph, so I'm going to say top speed is right @ 50 mph but 48 mph is still awesome for a 200cc engine :biggrin:. That's a lot faster than I expected-this buggy is extremely LIGHT. I had to adjust the toe in to make it stable @ those speeds, I WON'T be trying to go that fast on a dirt road!!
I should be posting more pic's tomorrow & possibly a video of my 7' (280lbs) friend driving it.

It's official :cheers: The family has a new FUN MACHINE to play on.I took it out this morning for a trip thru the trails and it didn't break!
Here's some pic's of the nerfbar/rear fenders (totally a bolt-on accessory)

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I added a mud barrier behind the seat- This was an exhaust stack cover off a semi. It works perfect! lot's of free flowing air with mud protection

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Got the seat belt in-

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This is naked pic's before I start putting a body/panels on it
Hopefully I'll be able to get a video today if it doesn't rain us out.

Had my first failure- Had guests come over to help me clear trails and have some fun on their 4-wheelers. I let one of the men that's 6'-6" (about 180 lbs.)tall try out the kart. Since I was going out to clear trails I had the passenger seat of the Spiderbox full of tools, he took the modified kid's kart for him to ride with the other's on 4-wheelers. It got quite a work-out!!! He ended up getting hung up in a ditch because it has such a short wheelbase and it's only about 7" off the ground, while trying to get it out he sheared the keyway on the sprocket holder from boiling the tires on the hard clay.
This failure is not something I thought would have happened but anything's possible on these toys. Towed it home and we continued playing/working till 4pm. Didn't take much to fix though as I just cut a new keyway into the sprocket holder with a file, smoothed off the damage to the axle keyway and she's good-to-go again. Here's some pic's of the damage and the repair.
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I'm still trying to get a video to show how well it functions. Everybody that drives it loves how easy it is to do donuts!

Update: I've had to fix the sprocket holder 3 times and finally found the problem. My daughter jumped a pretty good size mound back when she first drove it and I didn't see the damage. I took it for a drive & the damage only showed itself when in operation. She broke a shock & cracked the swingarm. It may be hard to see (pic's #1-2) but there's 2 cracks causing the swing arm to flex during drifting/donuts.
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596599848
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596599848
I decided to find a way to keep the heavy weights(+175 lbs) out of the kart, I'd down size the motor. So I put a TRX 125 in it- here's the new stronger swing arm & motor installed.Motor is the original GY6 design in most karts now- but it has a tranny!not a CVT.
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596600287
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596600287
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596600445
https://www.buggymasters.com/forum/a...1&d=1596600445

Waiting on some wheel adapters to put the bigger tires/wheels back on it as I used the original axle due to the damage to the other one. It still has good speed and torque but not as radical as with the 200cc motor. The biggest difference with the motors is the 125cc has a #420 chain vs. the #520 on the 200cc motor. I only had a few choices with the sprockets and went with a 44t, the factory had a 50t. It seems to perform well with this gearing but the bigger tires may change that. It doesn't have anywhere near the top speed- maybe about 35mph now, that's still a good speed for our trails and it still climbs well. Here's a quick vid. of the 1st run with the TRX125 (a wire came disconnected) motor:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hShxalyTMY