It's time to upgrade to more power. The thing is, I don't know what I should do. I was thinking of building my own with in between a 25-and 30 horsepower engine. I have 2 karts right now, both have 6hp with torque converters. One has full suspension the other none. I was thinking that maybe I could use the parts from one of the 2, I don't know which one though, except for the engine, frame, and torque converter to build my own. I've already got shocks and hubs too. It seems like it would be cheaper than buy something like a Talon or Blade plus it would be a fun project. What do you fellows recommend? What kind of tools would I need besides a welder and pipe bender?

you should get a pre-made frame so you dont need that stuff. but the thing with that is you are restricted. if i were to build my own kart i would put this in it 750cc kohler http://www.kohlerengines.com/onlinecata ... nID=147160
and a nice suspension setup that thing weighs 120lbs.

Yea, I was looking at that before. The frame seems like the easiest part to me. I've already got a welder although I'd need to buy a pipe bender. What other tools would I need?

Grinder good saw with the angles already in it like this one:

http://www.homedepot.com/

A metal blade, angle measure ment device of some kind some metal clamps and maybe a big table vice.

Link edited by TalonMan. (It was messing the thread up as far as spacing)

Unless you are going to get pipe from say home depot you're going to need a tubing bender not a pipe bender. Those are a lot more expensive. Here is a decent one that people seem to like http://www.vansantent.com/model_3_bender.htm or if you get the black pipe from Home Depot you can probably just use the 100 dollar Habor Freight one if you're careful.

You're going to need something to notch the ends out unless you're going to draw it and grind each pipe.

Other than that sourcing parts that will work are going to be a challenge. Check out some of the links on here to others building similar things, it's not as cheap as you might think.

Also, you'd probably be better off going with a used motorcycle engine than buying a new industrial one, more power and cheaper all together. Watch ebay for 600cc street bike motors or call around local junk yards and find something in the 450-500cc range, a lot of bikes made have those motors.

Building your own buggy is a great deal of fun and like 02RedWS6TA said it is more expensive than you think. I would go ahead and buy the harbor freight pipe bender it will bend schedule 10 pipe as well. That is a bit lighter than the schedule 40 from the local home stores. Use 1.25 schedule 10 .085 wall. This is plenty strong for a buggy. You can also buy a tubing notcher from harbor freight or just use your bench top grinder and hand held to make the notches in the pipe. If you make your own frame use all round pipe/tube it is stronger than square tubing and can be made to bend and form into a nice looking buggy. I would stay away from any large displacement industrial engine becasue they are very heavy for the power you will get out of it not to mention you will need an industrial clutch setup either a 40 series, 500 series, 94c duster or 108 all of this is very expensive. You can buy a street bike engine and get the engine with trans and not be any heavier than an industrial engine with out the clutch. I have built several offroad buggies and the average cost is about 2500.00 to 4500.00 to build it. So hopes of makeing it cheaper than a manufactured on will be a near impossibility if you want it to be nice. Building your own will take you anywhere from 3 weeks to over a year to complete. My first buggy took about 6 months and that was a very simple buggy. Now they go fast about 1 month or less. I would reccomend that you go with a good set of plans for your first build like badland buggy, desert karts or the edge I have them all and I think they are great for getting specifics regarding suspension geometry. Go ahead and buy a few plans and some tools that you may not have. Buy some pipe from home depot or your local steel yard (sch 10) and screw a few peices up you will find that it is a whole lot of fun. I have found it is a great father and son project.

Randy

I don't really know the cost of tubing so I don't know if this would be better to get since it's already made and seems like a good price and would make things go a little faster.. I guess I'd just have to make a rear swing arm? http://www.buggynews.com/viewtopic.php?t=2191

I'll be making a list of all the parts I believe that I will need. Is a live axel ok to use?

The frame that you linked to looks great. I would say it is a great deal for the money. It does look like you will need to make your suspension components though. You will need:

bushings for the suspension
rack and pinion
steering shaft with u-joints and wheel
miscellenous nuts, bolts and washers
seat with padding and hardware
gas pedal
brake pedal
clutch pedal if you use a motorcycle engine
cable for the accelerator
rear axle
rear axle hangers
rear axle carriers
rear axle bearings
rear axle sprocket hub and sprocket
rear axle brake hub
rear axle brake rotor
rear brake cylinder
banjo bolts and brake lines
miscellenous metal for the swing arm in the rear
miscellenous metal for the front suspension
front spindles
shocks for the front and rear
front brake rotor
front brake cylinder
banjo bolts and brake lines
rear wheel hubs
front wheel hubs
front wheels and tires
rear wheels and tires
engine
chain
electrical system
and don't forget the metal for the roll cage that is not on the frame

I am sure that I for got an item or two but that is about it. Now add in a few weeks of labor and you should have a nice little buggy. I would also concider looking into getting a complete buggy used and modify that as it will have almost all of the items you would need to make the new one.

Randy

Oh yeah I would recomend that you use a live axle for your first build. It will hold up to the big engine.

Randy

How should I go about doing this? Should I but the tools and try different things with them then start buying parts or should I buy the tools and parts around the same time and start right off?