General seat position questions

mike97760

mike97760

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I've got an older dirt kart I bought and have raced a little which basically is all in the same configuration that the last owner used (Octane Blaze 2005). The seat arrangement isn't to my liking at all but in general it's position looks basically the same as everyone else, tilted way back. It's uncomfortable for an old sprint car guy who is used to sitting basically straight up. I can't tilt my head forward enough to see all I want to see (Simpson neck collar) and I just don't like it.
I measured today and the top of the seat is 12 inches higher than the top of the rear axle. Seat position is slid forward mostly.
Basically I'm short and could stand to lose 25 pounds.
Can I raise the seat without screwing up handling, and if so, what other changes do I make to compensate for raising it? How will it in general affect handling. Running mostly on small indoor tracks, good grip.
I haven't scaled it yet, just raced it blindly and really it didn't handle bad.
Thanks for any ideas.
 
If it "didn't handle too bad", I'd say you must be close, regardless of how high your seat is.

I would think corner weights would be a lot more important than seat position, at least in your case. I would think being comfortable in the kart would be important.

Get your kart on some scales and see if proper weight distribution can help you. Of course "proper weight distribution" can be an elusive goal.

I have this idea that "proper" rear stagger, especially on small indoor tracks, can be important.

Be aware that most gear ratio recommendations are given with a 34" tire circumference in mind. Be aware that a larger circumference tire will need a corresponding change in gear ratio. A rule of thumb; 3/8" change in circumference, +/-, is very near 1 tooth, +/-, with #35 chain. if you had my Excel spreadsheet, called nine sheets, you could calculate the difference exactly, with or without a Jack shaft.

anunley@austin.rr.com for your free copy.
 
i have sat my seat up to be comfy and then rescaled had to make a lot of changes to get it right but it was good at the end now i can set and drive everything is good now after all the changes keep trying until you get it right
 
W5R said:
I would have thought it was already about 4" too high for a super heavy driver...the ones I know are running the seat about 8" above the axle
Click to expand...

At only 8" I would think it would not meet WKA rule on Min height from the ground, Can't remember off top of my head exactly what the measurement is.
 
Unfortunately it comes down to two things...do you want to be comfortable or do you want to be fast?

Ideally you want to be at 8.5 off the axle. If you absolutely have to sit up, you are going to need to add left side weight to compensate for the center of gravity being raised
 
Again, thanks guys. Dave that's the sort of thing I was wondering about. Thanks. I appreciate what you're all telling me and I'm sure I will slowly drop the seat lower as I go along but this current setup feels like riding a fast snow sled, not actually driving it.
 
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