Archive for How To's
May Newsletter Full Article Bonus – Trick Throttle Cable Routing System
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Prospeed Components' Perimeter Throttle Kit should be standard equipment on all karts. It's that good. (Click on picture to enlarge)
Ever look at your kart and wonder why the throttle cable adjustment is so far away from the throttle pedal? Ever think to yourself that as beautifully engineered as your kart is why does the throttle cable look like an after-thought that has never been addressed since the first kart was invented in 1959. Well, luckily for us Roger Hargens of Prospeed Components did and has come up with the best throttle cable routing system I have ever seen. Not only is it beautifully engineered, it is 100% functional in its purpose, completely eliminating the trailing throttle understeer caused by most kart’s current throttle cable set-up. The system is so cool, almost everyone that saw it on my kart at the SKUSA SpringNats last weekend has vowed to get one. Once installed, it looks like a factory part worthy of its place with the rest of your kart’s components…
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FKI April Newsletter Preview: Engine Tuning – How To Read Your Sparkplug
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Given the plethora of kart classes out there and the hundreds (well, maybe not hundreds but it sure seems like it sometimes) of different racing kart engines, you may be wondering how is FKI going to tackle the art of engine tuning. Well, at the end of the day, regardless of the type of motor you run, engine tuning usually boils down to one component – how does your sparkplug look. Your sparkplug reveals many things about your jetting so the more knowledgeable you are about reading a plug, the better you will be at optimizing your jetting. So what are you looking for? Well, with the help of SwedeTech’s owner and founder Reine Pierson, we will show you…
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March FKI Preview: How to Train for Karting – Medicine Ball Workout
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This is harder than it looks and a great exercise for karting!
I think we would all agree that finishing an Ironman, a 2.4 mile swim followed by a 112 mile bike ride capped off with a full marathon distance (26.2 miles), is a heck of a physical and mental achievement. How about finishing 10, not as a professional, but for fun. That’s exactly what fellow karter Steve Ferrario has done. Steve was also a very capable driver with 3 ProKart Challenge victories and numerous podiums to his credit. So, if Steve gives you advice on how to train for karting, you listen. The complete workout outlined in March’s FKI Newsletter is Steve’s and prepares you very well for karting…
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FKI Feburary Newsletter Preview: How To Properly Align Your Kart (Even on a Budget)
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Although it is possible to accurately align your kart with the items above, I highly recommend buying or borrowing an alignment tool for optimum results.
I have a confession to make. For the longest time, I thought aligning your go kart was just a matter of “set the toe and go.” While toe plays a big factor in a kart’s handling equation (see Myth Busters article for more on this subject), “squaring” the front wheels with the rest of the kart by properly centering the steering shaft plays a much bigger role in a karts handling. If you miss this part of the alignment equation, you will be compromising performance at the very least and battling a difference in handling from left to right hand turns at the worst.
Regardless of what alignment tool or method you use, there are some basic procedures and steps that you should be following in order to make sure your kart is aligned properly. If you don’t have an alignment tool, don’t worry, it is possible to align your kart accurately using a few the items pictured to the right. Interestingly enough, the steps you use to align the kart without an alignment tool are the exact same steps you should be following with any alignment tool. I will stress however, that to obtain optimum results I highly suggest you purchase an alignment tool or borrow one from a friend. For those of you interested in purchasing one, I will provide an overview and buyer’s guide at the end of the article to help you…
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January Newsletter Preview: How to Train for Karting – Part 1
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s the New Year, time for resolutions, and after a couple of weeks of really bad eating and most likely the consumption of way too many adult beverages, you promise yourself that this year you will be in better shape. No more just hanging on instead of attacking in the Main. No more declaring the last race “a two Red Bull main” and then seeing what happens (I’ve done this before, the Main went OK but I didn’t sleep for a while). This is the perfect time to start talking about how to train for karting.
It’s funny, when I was racing in Europe you never really heard anything about drivers training until Michael Schumacher burst onto the scene. Obviously his blinding quickness helped bring attention to this subject but mostly everyone seemed amazed that he would be on the podium and not even sweat after an entire F1 race. The next thing you know there are a plethora of articles on how it makes sense to be sure your driver is in shape so he can take advantage of the $2 million the team just spent last month developing a new aero package to gain 3 tenths. What’s the point if the driver’s laptimes are going to fall by 3 tenths midway through the race because he is tired.
I figured I would start this series with the one exercise that, given a choice, I will pick first and focus on when I know I have a race coming up. I have always said that the more I do this exercise, the better I feel in the kart, especially toward the end of a 20 lap Main…
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December FKI Teaser – How To: Mount Go Kart Tires
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Don't skimp on your Bead Breaker Tool - a good one will make the job much easier.
Ahhhhhhh, the black art of changing go kart tires by hand (as opposed to using the nice, expensive kart tire changing machines). Some guys get it and others, even people who are very mechanically inclined, don’t. I will try my best to show you all the tricks in December’s newsletter but keep in mind that it is a bit of an acquired technique, so stick with it if at first you don’t succeed. Let me warn you, if have shoulder or wrist issues, proceed with caution, as changing go kart tires is a bit of a workout, especially with certain rims like Birel and certain tires like Dunlop and Vega.
You will need a bead breaker (and don’t skimp here, a good one is a must as it will save you time and aggravation beyond the price difference). Borrow someone elses’ or ask around to be sure you get a good one. Also, find a piece of old carpet about two feet wide by three feet long to work on, this will save your rims and more importantly, your knees. My last piece of advice would be to complete each step for all the tires before moving on to the next step. This will make the whole process much quicker and minimize mistakes…
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November Newsletter Preview: How to Install a Seat
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Before you read this article and install your seat, be sure to read the Seat Position and You article in the November FKI newsletter to determine how and where to place your seat. While the Seat Position article addresses how to determine where to place your seat if you are starting from scratch (new go kart, new seat), I would advise that if you are replacing an existing seat, before you remove the old seat, take all the measurements listed in the article to give you a starting point for your new seat. Keep in mind any factors that may make you adjust those measurements before you settle on your final seat placement – i.e. you bought the kart from a smaller guy and you’re a bigger guy or you are replacing a factory seat with an aftermarket seat that is a different shape/and or size etc…
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FKI November Teaser: Seat Position & You
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One could argue that for the sake of logical progression, this should have been my third article after Intro to Karting and How To Buy a Kart, especially if you are new to go karting. Since you as a driver make up almost 50% of your go kart’s overall weight, seat position is critical to your kart’s handling as it is the biggest factor in determining your go kart’s weight distribution. Get the weight distribution wrong with improper seat position and you can throw all the set-up changes you want at your go kart and it will not handle the way you want it to.
Aside from the basic weight distribution factors, there are considerations to make regarding seat position if you are a particularly tall or shorter driver or race on a particularly high or low grip track. Changing your seat position could be the change you are looking for to help your go kart come alive and respond to the other changes you have been throwing at it. While I include an article on how to install the seat in the November Newsletter, read this first…
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FKI November Teaser: Tires 101 & Beyond
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Covering your tire's basics ensures optimum performance.
As a non-sprung or non-suspended vehicle, your kart’s tires are an increasingly important factor in the handling equation since there is no suspension to help the tire grip the pavement. I could go on about how a kart tire is therefore a major factor in determining a karts spring rate etc. but my main point is that given their increased importance to your laptime, getting the most from your tires is critical. Consequently, there are some tire basics that you should know to ensure you get the maximum performance from your tires…
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