My 11 year old keeps asking for a go cart, I bought this one at auction, and I am wondering if this can be used by kids, with proper supervision of course. It seems to benidely done, with the motor behind the driver, roll cage etc.
But I do not know much about go carts.
i
I bought my son one just like this when he was 8. Must have been OK, he's 30 now.
After the first test run, he wanted to make it go faster. We worked together in the shop many nights upgrading that old cart. He was making parts on my bridgeport for it at 10 or 11. This worked too, he's now a master CNC machinist in the prototype shop of a large industrial company.
karl
This is great to know, and I very well am aware that your Kid is really great, I hope that mine will also turn out good.
i
It's good that it has the front facing roll bars. A youngster was killed in Aus. when he ran a kart under the back of a parked vehicle. It was a supervised activity on some grass & the kid just lost control or couldn't control it.
Yes, I thought that the roll cage is evidence of attention paid to safety.
i
Set Rules: Child must have parent in supervision before driving. Lock it to a pole if you have to.
Child must wear protective clothing - at a bare minimum a helmet with a face shield or goggles, long sleeve shirt and pants, gloves and sturdy shoes. After they have a big hunk of gravel bounce off the goggles a few times that would have taken an eye out, they won't need to be reminded.
Safety: Child must wear seatbelt and shoulder harness at all times.
Safety: For very young kids (under 10) you can buy or make a Kill Switch - a garage door style clicker and receiver on the cart that kills the ignition. They use them on Monster Trucks...
Or just rig a string to a pull-the-pin type Kill Switch from a Jet-Ski, and walk behind them with a retracting dog leash attached to the string. They take off, just pull.
There is usually a throttle limit screw on the engine throttle cable linkage to govern back the top speeds. And take it for a spin yourself every so often - a smart kid will find it and s-l-o-w-l-y back it off and think you didn't notice the change.
YOU are in charge of backing the limit screw off slowly as the kid gains competence and confidence.
And realize that kids over about 14 are going to outgrow this cart FAST. And you can't go that fast without suspension, so expect to be buying them a "Big Boy" Quad or ATV in the near future, then this one gets handed down to the next generation. Or they get an old Honda Odyssey or Pilot as a Project to fix up.
A 1A-10BC Extinguisher on board wouldn't be a bad idea, and a very good habit to teach them while they are young.
(Amerex B417 in a double-strap 817S "Aircraft Bracket" on the floor, tucked in front of the seat under their knees - a cheap Kidde /will/ /not/ take the pounding.)
You don't want to be out running around in a dirt field and something catches fire (the grass or the cart engine) - and they're sitting there going "Now what do I do...?" By the time you go back for help from Dad, it's too late - you have to stop the fire as fast as you can while it's small.
When you set up a Gasoline Burn Pan or pile of busted pallets behind your shop and do fire extinguisher training, bring the kids along too
- Show them, then light it again and let them do it themselves. Approach from upwind, pull pin, squeeze and slow sweep. Do this right as the old tags expire on a few, then let the Extinguisher Company do the annual refills on them.
Heroes are born, but Dead Heroes are the ones who leap in without thinking first - Have some safety training, and always stop and think long enough to make a plan on what you will do and how you will get OUT AGAIN before you go running into a burning building.
-->--
Looks like a well enough made cart.
All you need to do is put plenty of slack in the cable leading to the throttle. He mashes down on it and it only will go as fast as you want him to go.
Gunner
-- "Confronting Liberals with the facts of reality is very much akin to clubbing baby seals. It gets boring after a while, but because Liberals are so stupid it is easy work." Steven M. Barry
Depends on the kid. My kids have a pair of 6.5 HP Mancos. Other than the usual dumb stuff kids do they were fine. They are both on the road in real go carts now. 205hp/345hp. Look out. LOL.
Most of those I have seen had roll cages made of very soft steel. You might take a look at that. But get it, they are a hoot.
PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.