The Wooden Go Kart – Is It All Washed Out Or Is It The King Of Metal Tubes? Make that homemade kart this week

In the history of go-karts, the first go-karts were wooden go-karts. Originally made from the basic carriage design, it was simple but effective.

With the cost of materials skyrocketing and funds plummeting, “real” karts are becoming increasingly difficult to come by or craft, especially if you don’t have more than $100.

Using good construction practices (ie, joining methods, strength of materials, etc.) a relatively inexpensive go kart can be made that has a steering wheel and brakes.

The key to making a wooden kart is:

– layout of the conduction line,

– break system

– direction design.

Transmission line layout

The driveline must be able to not “tear” or pull out of the go kart frame and the steering system must be stable and reliable, yet simple to keep costs down.

On the wooden go-karts I build, I try to keep the weight down so things don’t get too heavy. If you’re not careful, you can make a wooden go-kart that weighs even more than a similarly sized steel frame go-kart.

Break system

One of the biggest challenges for wooden karts is the braking system. Due to the forces that need to be generated to develop the braking forces, some thought needs to be given to how the axles and brake system are mounted to the frame.

Direction system

Wooden go kart usually has a very simple “carriage style” or “wagon style” steering system which, if not designed correctly, can become very unstable on several fronts: steering stability and risk of tipping . The steering system can be designed stably according to the design you choose.

So the trick is again:

– How am I going to mount all these things on the go kart?

– What size boards do I need?

– Where does my strength come from?

– Where can I add strength?

– Do I need steel?

– If so, how much and where?

As with all karts, they are dangerous because they move, so design for stability, safety, and functionality is key. For example, the center of gravity still needs to be considered, as well as the turning characteristics that the go kart will exhibit.

The bottom line is that Wood Go Karts will become more and more popular and it is a really profitable route (when designed correctly) if you have limited funds.