10,000,000,000 questions

[TheFauxFox]

Hello all.

I have a buncha questions and thought I would make this thread. If anyone else runs into these issues, they will have a thread to gaze upon

1) Seat belts. The ones on my Yerf have holes in them, aren't tightening, are tangled. Anyone have suggested replacements?

2) Which is better to do first, reinforce A-Arms on the spiderbox, or get even ones with new spindles.

3) Any ideas to make an engine quieter (bolt on Howhit mufflers?)

4) If I have a battery hooked up to the engine that is used to start it, will the stator charge the battery while the motor is running? And what is the different between a stator and an alternator?

5) My breaks are weirdly weak, and I don't like it plenty of brake fluid, no leaks or broken lines, and the pads are practically RUBBING against the disk?

6) How is the "rack and pinion mod" done? I think it goes something like carving an extra few teeth into the steering rack?

7) Has anyone used a small solar panel to charge an accessory battery onboard? I am considering doing this, and letting one battery ONLY start the motor, and have the other battery charged by 1) A solar panel. Or 2) An occasional wall charger. Along with letting the other battery run lights, and a possible small radio.

8) Is it true that once you do the reinforcements on the a-arms from BD, that you cannot use the stock ball joints? I plan on upgrading in the long run, but I CERTAINLY won't have $100 left AFTER I drop about $130 on spindles and a-arms...

9) Has anyone put a rear-view mirror on a spiderbox? I tried with this one (http://goo.gl/XGTYIE) and it doesn't seem to work out....The roll bar placement is set far back, so I can't use it as a center mirror, and a side mirror is even harder because it doesn't have an "arm" to extend from the kart with!!!

10) If I go to put blaster shocks on the rear, can I compensate for the extra lift in the rear with big(ish) tires in the front?

The person that answers all of these questions FIRST gets a cookie!

ANY help is appreciated. You don't need to answer all of the questions

[TheFauxFox]

Anyone?

[351mustanger]

1. I have not used but heard others suggest seatbelts from Summit or Jegs. They make them for jr. dragsters.

5. Have you tried bleeding your brakes? I have not done this on a buggy but would imagine you do it like a car. Starting with the wheel furthest from the master cylinder.

[TheFauxFox]

Thnx. I'll try that out tomorrow. But now, my engine is having issues (after the repair shop "rebuilt the carb". It rolls forwards at idle and after it has been running for a while, when I go to idle it begins to LURCH THE FREAKING CART. I soooo do not like how it is panning out. Thats a separate thread in the 150cc engine section.

Edit: LOL. Engine problem fixed! It was a simple tweak of the idle screw. Silly me

[toomanytoys2]

1) Seat belts. The ones on my Yerf have holes in them, aren't tightening, are tangled. Anyone have suggested replacements?

Just about anything is better than the stock Yerf belts, it all depends on your wallet. Here are a couple of examples.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-JDM-4-P...71f38c&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-4-Point-Ra...e8fcc0&vxp=mtr

3) Any ideas to make an engine quieter (bolt on Howhit mufflers?)

You could adapt a stock motorcycle muffler, an example would be from a Yamaha TTR125.

4) If I have a battery hooked up to the engine that is used to start it, will the stator charge the battery while the motor is running? And what is the different between a stator and an alternator?

The electrical system will charge the battery. In essence, the stator is just one part of an alternator. The stator is just a set of wire coils that are bolted to the case. You also have the rotor that contains permanent magnets. As the magnets pass by the coils of wire, they induce an expanding and collapsing magnetic field onto the coils. This produces a voltage and a flow of AC current. On a GY6 this current is then converted to DC by the external rectifier/ voltage regulator.

5) My breaks are weirdly weak, and I don't like it plenty of brake fluid, no leaks or broken lines, and the pads are practically RUBBING against the disk?

Most likely cause is by air in the lines. These buggies have such a small master cylinder, it can be a real PITA to bleed the brakes

7) Has anyone used a small solar panel to charge an accessory battery onboard? I am considering doing this, and letting one battery ONLY start the motor, and have the other battery charged by 1) A solar panel. Or 2) An occasional wall charger. Along with letting the other battery run lights, and a possible small radio.

Not really cost effective. Just buy a good quality battery and let it run everything. When not in use, use a good trickle charger or put it on a small battery charger at regular intervals.

10) If I go to put blaster shocks on the rear, can I compensate for the extra lift in the rear with big(ish) tires in the front?

Larger tires are always a good idea, especially on the Yerf. The small diameter of the front tires tend to fall into holes rather than riding over them. Just larger wheels and tires alone can greatly increase the ride comfort. Of course if you go bigger on the back, you will need to look at gearing changes

Didn’t answer them all, so I guess I don’t get the cookie .

[Miamieddie]

I believe he ^ earned his cookie anyways.

[TheFauxFox]

Listen, that cookie has been sitting in my pocket for DAYS. Take it!

Thanks for the help! I really appreciate it

[jwilson645]

I put some 5 point racing harnesses in ours. Look on ebay for used 2" belts. You can get the out of date ones pretty cheap usually and the date isn't going to matter on these buggies.

[toomanytoys2]

Originally Posted by jwilson645

I put some 5 point racing harnesses in ours. Look on ebay for used 2" belts. You can get the out of date ones pretty cheap usually and the date isn't going to matter on these buggies.

That is very true. If you want to get into a higher end belt cheaper, you can get the ones that have passed their expiration dates. Most racing organizations only allow a belt/ harness to be a certain amount of years old. So you can pick up these "expired" belts at a reduced cost. However, remember that which ever way you go, the restraint system is only as strong as it's weakest part. On these buggies, it is usually the belt mounting points.

I also recommend some form of cushion / padding on the shoulder part of the belts. When you get into a "real" safety belt, they have a tendency to rub on the neck. You can buy them or make them yourself.

[andrew1320]

2) Which is better to do first, reinforce A-Arms on the spiderbox, or get even ones with new spindles.

Honestly I'd just wait til you have the $ to do it all at once.

6) How is the "rack and pinion mod" done? I think it goes something like carving an extra few teeth into the steering rack?

http://www.diygokarts.com/vb/picture...pictureid=1216

8) Is it true that once you do the reinforcements on the a-arms from BD, that you cannot use the stock ball joints? I plan on upgrading in the long run, but I CERTAINLY won't have $100 left AFTER I drop about $130 on spindles and a-arms...

I'm not sure, but as stated earlier, I would just wait til you get the dough to get everything at once.

9) Has anyone put a rear-view mirror on a spiderbox? I tried with this one (http://goo.gl/XGTYIE) and it doesn't seem to work out....The roll bar placement is set far back, so I can't use it as a center mirror, and a side mirror is even harder because it doesn't have an "arm" to extend from the kart with!!!

What I'm going to do is move the bar more forward by drilling new holes in the front. That will give you a perfect mounting spot for a rear view mirror

[TheFauxFox]

andrew, I'm quite interested in the roll-bar mod. I hope you update your thread cuz I'm actively watching!

I'm the kinda guy that likes to do everything at once (saving for a MacBook Pro with a monitor and speakers n other stuff....and that's NOT cheap lol)

But I think I'll do a few incremental upgrades... Like do all the wheel stuff at once. All the front end at once. etc.

[TheFauxFox]

I was riding the spiderbox in my backyard, and apparently it decided to "Break a leg" on a mainly flat terrain I was riding it on freaking grass and this happened.



Looks like I can just jerry rig the other side with a nut and end this for now, but until I get another 70 bucks for new rims, tires, and wheel hubs (my plan), I'm just gonna fix it "redneck style" lol.


Can someone explain to me how the HELL you crack a bolt head down the middle?



Um...since the "Squishy part" is falling apart, does that mean I should get new joints? Or just try to see how long these'll go for?



Anyone know where to get the little rubber things that slide over the rack? These ones have pretty much dry-rotted away...

thnx.

[Masteryota]

Those ball joints have passed into the unsafe area. Ground that buggy before someone gets hurt. As stated above, you have quite a bit of work ahead of you. The answer tot he a-arm reinforcement question, is no. Once you add the plates, you have to run the BD or similar joints. I don't really understand the idea behind selling stock replacement joints, they aren't that much cheaper than the good ones, and will likely fail the same way they all do. The reason everyone puts emphasis on the ball joints, is that they are a safety issue, and there is even a recall on them. Save some dough, buy the equal length a-arms, 3rd gen spindles, and ball joints at the same time. Then look into the rack mods. I think the boots are available through BMI, but their inventory fluctuates. You can snag a whole rack for $65, if memory serves correctly, and it will have the outer tie rods as well, which I'm sure the boots are shredded on as well.

[TheFauxFox]

LOL great observation on the tie rod ends, yota! I forgot to mention those (I planned on typing it and I forgot).

Yeah...the issue is I have to just let this ride like this for a little bit of time cuz I'm using it for a science fair project and I REALLY REALLY REALLY am pushing it by doing my experiment this weekend... LOL. Trying to jerry rig it for a few hours of plain ole asphalt.

Could you do me a favor and just make a list of what you would suggest replacing?
Here are my plans:

new hd joints
a-arm reinforcement
tie rod ends
the little cover thingys for the rack
new wheel hubs + rims + tires
and some other minor cosmetic stuff (seat covers, paint, etc.)

I dont plan on buying even a-arms, spindles, and THEN reinforcing, so I think I'll stick with the unevens like T3Beatz.

[ckau]

Fauxfox inquired about the 5 point belt mounts I was unable to post pics in a pm so I stuck a couple here

[TheFauxFox]

ckau, neat! Looks great! Thanks for the pics, that clears up a lot...

So...here are more pics of the front wheel, I took off the other one, and it stayed in one piece, so I think the little gaskets on the end of the wheel just came off and the wheel just self destructed from there. I should just need some new balls, right? Do I have to have some automotive shop press them in?









^Ignore the item I crossed out. I had to use the arrows from the photobucket editor, so the cross is kinda weird. LOL. The item crossed out has nothing to do with the interior wheel assembly.

[TheFauxFox]

Replaced wheel bearings. works fine now

[TheFauxFox]

Found a local welder offering to weld on the tabs to the end of the a-arms AND drill the new holes for $40 and hour (plus about 40 bucks in parts). He says he would be "shocked" if he couldn't do it in less than 1hr or so...

Should I go for it?