Best Clone Builder

Kartboy

New member
I know this has been debated over and over, but does anyone actually have hard data. In other words, has anyone taken a Dover, Miller, Schu, Welch, and other big name motors and dyno tested them on the same dyno on the same day to get comparable results? I need to buy a couple of motors for this year and would like to go straight to the best.
 
Find the one that will help you the best and give you the best of what they can give you. I'd start calling. To anwser your question, no because there are more than 1 way to skin a cat and everyone's dyno is different. Also its all about tires! Notice you don't see the same motor win every race? I'd call up a few engine builders and talk...PS been happy with my hi-tech
 
Thanks. I understand that dyno's are different, which is why I asked about the same dyno on the same day. I think I know who I am going to buy from, just wanted to know if there was hard data out there. Totally agree about tires, but extra Hp/Tq doesn't hurt.
 
Big buck engines will not win races without the rest of the formula, being tires, setup, driver, etc... The engines don't make as much difference as the tires will, as you can only do so much to the engine without cheating. Some of the engine builders who sell these high dollar engines have everything maxed out and will not pass tech after just a few races due to rocker wear, valves seating, etc. I would suggest buying an engine from a reputable dealer for a decent price and use the money saved to buy tires. If you are paying more than 500-600.00 for a stock clone, race ready, you are spending too much. Better to find speed elsewhere and be a better racer, than try to get an extra 1/4 hp for another 400-500 bucks. I have seen a stock engine with a restrictor plate in it, properly set up, with a great driver win in the stock classes that have no restrictor plates. This is how important it is to find speed other than with a big buck engine. It's your money, but you will find more speed with a good set of tires and the proper setup than you will ever find with a high dollar engine that will wear out quicker or become out of spec after a few races or sometimes right out of the box.
 
I'll say it again and again and again.....the engine is Only about 30% of the equation 98% of the time! I've always found that winning w/ talent is much more rewarding than winning w/ money. jmo
 
i will have a extra large popcorn , extra large root beer , bag of M&M's and a bottle of water please .........................;)

ohh and some napkins
 
I know this has been debated over and over, but does anyone actually have hard data. In other words, has anyone taken a Dover, Miller, Schu, Welch, and other big name motors and dyno tested them on the same dyno on the same day to get comparable results? I need to buy a couple of motors for this year and would like to go straight to the best.
I know I haven't. any one who has is not likely to tell you unless they are selling you there higher horsepower engine. Any big name builder should suffice.
 
I am sure there are plenty who have done that. But do you actually think they will blow their own horn against the big name builders. That would be very unprofessional!!!!
 
I'll say it again and again and again.....the engine is Only about 30% of the equation 98% of the time! I've always found that winning w/ talent is much more rewarding than winning w/ money. jmo

How can you say that? Everyone on here knows that drivers, track conditions, and tires never vary and 0.001 HP is the difference between winning and running mid pack. :) Why else would there be $1200+ clone motors?

Seriously, the guy that won the championship at our track this year runs an old dog of a clone motor that only has the oil changed every now and then. If you ask him what's in it he has no idea. But this guy can drive.........
 
I'll say it again and again and again.....the engine is Only about 30% of the equation 98% of the time! I've always found that winning w/ talent is much more rewarding than winning w/ money. jmo

I don't disagree, but I also think success is a sum of all of the parts. In every level of racing "the edge" is created by paying attention to every last detail. I have been at this awhile myself, and have had a lot of success by paying attention to all the details, including tires, chassis, clutches, bearings, etc. My original question was if anyone had taken big name builders and compared them in a controlled setting. Some of those guys really do match the parts and spend the time tuning to get the best HP/TQ possible. If they do, they should be rewarded with their selling price. If we do everything we can with all the other components, and can get another .10-.5 HP, it could be the edge needed to get to the winners circle on a particular night. It is what it is, and the builders should also want to know how they compare. Like everything else, let the best man win.
 
On an ongoing basis I hear - motor/engine builder doesn't matter; horsepower doesn't matter; 40lbs over minimum weight doesn't matter; everybody's prep is better than everybody else's prep; no matter what your %'s they are always wrong or could be better; your gear is always too high/too low.
It's all tires. Tires. TIRES!!!!!

What I need is some guy to sell me the tires that will put me up front if my kart has a worn out engine, wrong setup and is overweight and with a mediocre driver.
That guy can be a multi-millionaire.
I'll go to Thunder next year. :)
 
On another note, as long as I'm on a roll -
As far as dynos go, had a guy tell me his engine dynoed 9.2hp. Our's dyno'd way less.
He weren't smoking us or anyone else down the straights.
Moral of the story, make sure the dyno #'s are corrected to standard.
Ours were.
 
I to think the motor is the smallest part of the puzzle. As long as the motor is not way off tires is what wins races. Will tell a little story. When I started we were backyard racers. When that got shut down & we went real racing we had a hot motor were told if we didn't have tires & kart right we would be in left field. Ran has high a 2nd & dead last. Met a friend who offered to put me on scales. We spent 5hrs working kart & tires. After running last the week before, I won heat & feature, lapped up to 3rd place. Well the win didn't count cause I got protested & knew I was wrong. To date that was my only win. I've got a great motor but suck at driving,tires, & crewchiefing. But I keep digging and tring to learn all I can & hope to get my 1st real win when all the pieces of the puzzle fall in place. This is the most challenging thing I've ever done, but man I love it.
 
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