# Firearms and Shooting > Projects and Home Builds >  Go-cart "for the kids"

## kimjon

Cheap and cheerful project for my kids. Making it as a roller, but with room to bolt on the motor once they get the idea of driving and stopping the roller.

Frame

Mock up to see how it looks


As a kid I made a trolley, it had no brakes and was made from wood and old lawnmower wheels...let's just say H&S wasn't high priority for parents back in the 70's... but I survived. I wish to give my kids similar, but slightly safer opportunities, so this one has pneumatic wheels and brakes!

Mini quad axle, modified to accept a huge disc brake caliper I already had.






Will hopefully get some more free time this weekend get a bit more done. 

Kj

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## Maca49

One of those would have been the bees knees when I was a boy!

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## kimjon

> One of those would have been the bees knees when I was a boy!


As parents I think we tend to try give our kids the things we didn't have. For my dad, he wanted me to get a university education (regardless of if I wanted to our not), so I studied mechanical engineering...and then became a goat hunter :-)

My kids...well I want them to have a real go-cart. Hmmm maybe I need to raise my expectations a little?

Kj

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## 7mmsaum

> As parents I think we tend to try give our kids the things we didn't have. For my dad, he wanted me to get a university education (regardless of if I wanted to our not), so I studied mechanical engineering...and then became a goat hunter :-)
> 
> My kids...well I want them to have a real go-cart. Hmmm maybe I need to raise my expectations a little?
> 
> Kj


What a great dad !!!

Tell them after this one is done they can help you with your one, mention it will be a bit bigger so you can drive them around in it, paint it blue

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## madjon_

:Grin: Heavy leads on that welder :Cool:

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## Gibo

Cool  :Cool: 
I had a gocart when i was a mite. Pe 80? Centrifugal three speed with no brakes......so many memories and less lawn to mow as a result  :Grin:

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## matto1234

Make up some sort of bar to stop it rolling, in my experience someone will roll it sooner or later!

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## gadgetman

Great project kimjon. Many a good honest stubbed toe was had pushing a wooden cart around in the 70's.

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## MassiveAttack

I always wanted a nice AR so now that I have one (cheers for selling it to me kimjon) it's time to build one for the kids.

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## GWH

Good stuff Kimjon! I always wanted a gokart as a kid too, never got one..... so when i was finally old enough to pay for one myself......i got one! 



A gokart on 'P'

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## kimjon

> Make up some sort of bar to stop it rolling, in my experience someone will roll it sooner or later!


Good advice. Will give it some thought

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## kimjon

More parts arrived today. Some steel

And some cool pedals, long length of braided line and a brake reservoir. All trademe cheapies...


It's going to be all stations go at night when normal people sleep :-)

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## P38

> Good stuff Kimjon! I always wanted a gokart as a kid too, never got one..... so when i was finally old enough to pay for one myself......i got one! 
> 
> Attachment 40907
> 
> A gokart on 'P'


 @GWH

Nice wheels  :Thumbsup: 

How do you get on getting that wagon up to the Makahu Rd car park? 

Suppose you could also strap your deer on the tail at the rear?  :Wink: 

Cheers
Pete

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## GWH

> @GWH
> 
> Nice wheels 
> 
> How do you get on getting that wagon up to the Makahu Rd car park? 
> 
> Suppose you could also strap your deer on the tail at the rear? 
> 
> Cheers
> Pete


Yeah it'd be a struggle (it was hard enough getting in and out of some driveways) got a shitty old Vitara for that ;-) Although I have had a couple of deer in the S4 wagon tho (much to the wife's disgust)




Looking forward to seeing the finished gokart Kim, ive always been keen to build one for the kids too, might have to upgrade my crappy little mig before that tho, it struggles on anything more than panel steel.

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## veitnamcam

Argo sheild will give you a bit more grunt on that mig if you are only running co2

Sent from my SM-G800Y using Tapatalk

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## kimjon

I've got a mig too, but it's only single phase about 180amp. It does okay...but the arc does it better. All things considered the welds it's making aren't terrible for a hobby arc welder.


Kj

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## GWH

Looks alright to me, but im no engineer ;-)

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## kimjon

Is far from perfect, I should have looped back to avoid the hollow spot at the end of the run...but it's fine for what it is.

My mate has a tig that I use (far too much), now that way of welding is the king of pretty welds.



Kj

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## kimjon

Got a little bit more done today:



That rear end, is becoming literally a pain in the rear end...but it's falling into place and will be awesome to have disc brakes.
Kj

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## kimjon

And the front end, done this morning:







And then I thought Fuck this...time to get outside and do something...



So I rang my brother and we went for a quick bow hunt for koi carp. My daughter enjoys the clubbing part, strange for such a girly girl...but she's happy to get blood and guts on her.

Might have another day off tomorrow, then look at finishing next weekend.

Kj

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## kimjon

It's like an addiction...snuck in a cheeky hour this morning. Seat mounted, swapped steering around to clear master cylinder on hydraulic brakes.


I'll make up a bumper for the front to protect the brakes and steering arms.

Steering shaft next on the list.

Kj

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## kimjon

A wee bit more progress. Hours of work have gone into it, but it's all the fiddly stuff that takes time to figure out, then make.

Brakes:

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## veitnamcam

Yep people just dont realise how long it takes to make stuff especially in the average garage.

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## kokako

It looks like you need a bit help with your steering arms, you want the thing to turn not push!

 

If you design it like this you will have the correct amount of "toe out on turns"

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## kimjon

> Yep people just dont realise how long it takes to make stuff especially in the average garage.


Yeah, even I grossly underestimated the amount of time this would take.

Front axles made and welded on now:


But I'm still enjoying the project.

Kj

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## kimjon

Playing with the steering, think I've got it figured out?

Used long arms that will give about the right turning radius on each wheel, plus miss the brake master cylinder etc...


Will tidy this up tomorrow and fit steering wheel.

Kj

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## kimjon

On the home straight...

Steering:

I modified a boss kit from my old Commodore that was spare, striped out the guts of it and machined it to fit


Then lathed up some bushes to act as plain bearings for the steering shaft.





Bottom support tacked in place. Second support made, but I need my test pilot (whose currently asleep) to sit in the seat so I can set the position of the steering wheel.

Kj

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## kimjon

Steering now fully sorted, tacked in place and working great! Will do final welds when ready to paint, as is locked in place by welds.


Note the last piece of the puzzle, is the rear wheels. I'm using wheels off a hand trolley. You get two wheels for $28 and an axle for parts. Only issue is the rear wheels need to be solid mounted to the rear axle. So my plan is to machine up some little spacers to replace the existing bearings.

So off to the lathe again...




Just need to hammer out the bearings and weld these bad boys in!

Kj

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## kimjon

Playing with an idea for a roll bar/support for seat. Not sure I'm in love with it, but with a bit more styling and when all painted the same colour it may look less offensive to the eyes :-)


Kj

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## kimjon

Going to roll with the bars :-)

Mocked up to see how it looks, and double checked that the motor would fit in there at a later date, when I put the power train in (and it will fit - score!).



I've got a few bits and bobs to finish, then off to paint next weekend fingers crossed.

Kj

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## JoshC

Cool mate. Dad got his mate to build one for us kids - think I was about 11 when we got it for xmas. It was a bit bigger though. Was on wide quad bike tyres, about 5-6 inches off the ground and 1.8 metres wide. Full roll cage - which was never required. It had a 600cc Suzuki road bike motor in it, 5 speed box, clutch etc. Brakes were average but it'd spin on the spot if you needed to stop in a hurry. He put a Recaro bucket seat and harness in it to strap us in. The thing was good for 140km'h, which was pretty fast on the beach, in bumpy paddocks etc, we rarely got top speed out of it. I eventually blew the motor up, and he replaced it with a xr250 motor which was a bit more tame, and fitted disc brakes that worked. We sold it for $750 when we "out grew" it. Now I wish we never did, to buy something like that now - $1500-2000 easy. Man we had some fun in it, his idea was that it'd get the "hooning" out of our system before we got cars...   :ORLY:   :Grin:

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## GWH

Sweet! I reckon the kids will be stoked with that.

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## GWH

> Cool mate. Dad got his mate to build one for us kids - think I was about 11 when we got it for xmas. It was a bit bigger though. Was on wide quad bike tyres, about 5-6 inches off the ground and 1.8 metres wide. Full roll cage - which was never required. It had a 600cc Suzuki road bike motor in it, 5 speed box, clutch etc. Brakes were average but it'd spin on the spot if you needed to stop in a hurry. He put a Recaro bucket seat and harness in it to strap us in. The thing was good for 140km'h, which was pretty fast on the beach, in bumpy paddocks etc, we rarely got top speed out of it. I eventually blew the motor up, and he replaced it with a xr250 motor which was a bit more tame, and fitted disc brakes that worked. We sold it for $750 when we "out grew" it. Now I wish we never did, to buy something like that now - $1500-2000 easy. Man we had some fun in it, his idea was that it'd get the "hooning" out of our system before we got cars...


Holy shit, now thats my sort of go-kart!!

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## kimjon

Holly shitballs batman - 140kph!!! That's pretty cool though, kids need reckless responsibilities to mature...Bet you grew up fast real fast eh Josh :-)

I brought this one of trademe, got it going, but soon realised it's way to much for the kids, so hence why I'm building a baby version for them to use until they're big enough to drive it.


Rear end is all Kawasaki trike, doesn't do 140kph...but still goes hard for what it is.

Kj

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## veitnamcam

> Cool mate. Dad got his mate to build one for us kids - think I was about 11 when we got it for xmas. It was a bit bigger though. Was on wide quad bike tyres, about 5-6 inches off the ground and 1.8 metres wide. Full roll cage - which was never required. It had a 600cc Suzuki road bike motor in it, 5 speed box, clutch etc. Brakes were average but it'd spin on the spot if you needed to stop in a hurry. He put a Recaro bucket seat and harness in it to strap us in. The thing was good for 140km'h, which was pretty fast on the beach, in bumpy paddocks etc, we rarely got top speed out of it. I eventually blew the motor up, and he replaced it with a xr250 motor which was a bit more tame, and fitted disc brakes that worked. We sold it for $750 when we "out grew" it. Now I wish we never did, to buy something like that now - $1500-2000 easy. Man we had some fun in it, his idea was that it'd get the "hooning" out of our system before we got cars...


Me and a mate built one when we were about 11-12, two seater, mini tires, rack and pinion, 500cc roadbike motor, 80mph.
Watched my mate roll it mid drift down the gravel pit at about 80kph, landed back on its wheels and he managed to stay in it with no seat belts!, would wheelstand on tarseal it was a weapon.
Blew his dads shed up, I was welding up some cracks in the chassie (before we sussed suspension ) and my mate pulled out the carby to stop getting sparks in it :Zomg:  splashed me with fuel and its burning up the line to the just filled ER250 fuel tank on top of the roll bar, I reached up and turned the fuel tap off and we ran outside to find something to put it out with....lucky because shortly after a massive fire ball burst out the 3 vehilcle sized doorways! That was the first time the fireengines were called  :Grin: 
The tank went from 12-13? liters out to 25ish and was sweet with a new secondhand cap and fuel tap!

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## kimjon

WARNING: do not try this at home...but if you do, expect awesome results :Thumbsup: 




That's as hillbilly as it gets...but the old upside down belt sander in a vice trick makes an awesome linisher. Most sanders have a big radius at one end and a smaller radius at the other, just find the sweet spot and use your sanding kung fu... happy days!

Kj

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## ebf

haha, awesome  :Thumbsup: 

really enjoying this thread.

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## homebrew.357

As we get a bit older we have to rethink our bush transport, I think I've got it sorted, my new hunting set up. Homebrew.357.  .

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## kimjon

Welding all done, ready for a final touch up with a grinder here and there...then paint! Yahoo!!!


Kj

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## kimjon

And the grand reveal...




$110 and a truck load of my time, but I've enjoyed the project and it feels great to finally finish it :Thumbsup: 

I hope you got some enjoyment from following the thread...but it's now time for a beer.

Kj

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## 7mmsaum

Thats really neat mate


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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## puku

Man I've enjoyed this thread. 
And know doubt the kids will enjoy it to

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## Pop Shot

That came out mint! Can't wait to see it when it's petrol powered  :Wink:

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## veitnamcam

> That came out mint! Can't wait to see it when it's petrol powered


+1

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## Sideshow

That looks awesome  :Thumbsup:  might need some padding around the steering wheel support arm.
I can see some one slipping forward onto that :O O:  :X X:  :Sick:

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## kimjon

> That looks awesome  might need some padding around the steering wheel support arm.
> I can see some one slipping forward onto that


Yeah; I'll put some padding on just in case. It's angled forward to help add clearance, I popped one of the kids in the seat and slid them forwards and they touched the steering wheel first and not the bar...but for sure, some padding cost nothing to add and its good advice thanks.

Kj

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## kotuku

now KJ that would be ideal for bunny shooting in a paddock-dad shoots em child retriever buggy drives out picks em up :Have A Nice Day: .me -Id be attaching my lawnmower to it and mowing my lawns in a style the man of the house should have! :Thumbsup: 
 mighty bloody job squire hope the kids enjoy it! :Wink:

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## kimjon

I like your style, this thing may end up looking like a JCB though if I get to carried away :-)

Kj

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## kimjon

Te Miro primary school hosted its annual trolley derby. I entered my oldest daughter into the event on the gokart made in this build thread. 

What a fun day, loads of crashes, bumps and scrapes on the kids...but no health and safety Nazis were there to stop the fun and everyone there had a great day! My daughter ended up coming second place in her age division, which was an awesome bonus to end an already fantastic day on.

https://youtu.be/CwZJvaXLcIY

So, more speed required for next year....hmmmm :Grin: 

Kj

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## 223nut

Just read the whole thread, when the petrol power getting added?!

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## kimjon

> Just read the whole thread, when the petrol power getting added?!


I may have overestimated my kids driving ability at the start of the build. 

Based on what I've seen now maybe a couple more years needed for my younger ones :Grin:

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## Shootm

Just read the whole thread. Awesome KJ.

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## gonetropo

PAK "N" SAVE RACER

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## kotuku

> Attachment 60734
> 
> PAK "N" SAVE RACER


now that would be a bloody cracker bunny chaser .perhaps a tad too fast for my old fart reactions when mowing the lawns tnhough.

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## SlimySquirrel

Thats a high quality stack from the poor kid on the right!! 

Cool thread man!

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