Ratcher hub
- Thread starter just fish
- Start date
mikelavite#72
Member
yes , not legal in stocker classes
If all classes ban them, why are they available and being sold still? I'd be willing to bet people are using them at some tracks, at least on the local level. Have never seen the hubs on a kart checked in tech, only the pre race inspection of the safety components then post race engine tech.
Vintagequest
Member
Not banned in all classes. UAS comes to mind too.
bodyman127
New member
I have one for sale 40 bucks plus shipping
Actually they are not legal in UAS. Reading the rules will display that the chassis must be within the limits of all kart chassis, in any series. All karting series specify that the rear wheels must be locked to the axle.
On very fast karts, the bearing presents a tremendous safety issue. Make a slight right hand turn, even in passing, and you may go on your noggin.
I saw that exact thing take place a few years ago, and the driver went to the hospital with a broken shoulder and spent 6 weeks out of work.
On low powered karts, they are a really good substitute for a guy who cannot set up a kart properly.
It is nearly impossible to change wheels quickly with one of these in use. Also, ALL of them allow the RR
wheel to flop up and down a little to a lot.
On very fast karts, the bearing presents a tremendous safety issue. Make a slight right hand turn, even in passing, and you may go on your noggin.
I saw that exact thing take place a few years ago, and the driver went to the hospital with a broken shoulder and spent 6 weeks out of work.
On low powered karts, they are a really good substitute for a guy who cannot set up a kart properly.
It is nearly impossible to change wheels quickly with one of these in use. Also, ALL of them allow the RR
wheel to flop up and down a little to a lot.
alvin l nunley
Site Supporter
In 1972 I built a Sprint kart with one-way clutch bearings in each rear wheel. Without going into all the details, which are many, it didn't work as planned. It did work, I ran several races with the setup. Both Sprint and Road Race. Problem was, it was no advantage. It might have been an advantage, if I could've built a kart that utilized the function of the one-way bearings, but that was beyond my capability at the time. In later years, IKF band it anyway. In any case; an advantage is only an advantage if you're the only one with the advantage.
In my setup, I had a disc brake on each rear wheel. If the break is on the axle, with the clutch bearings in only one wheel, when you hit the brakes you're only using one tire to stop, the tire with the clutch bearing overruns the axle speed. It was really funny, because I had clutch bearings in both rear wheels, I could go down the straight and let off the gas and the engine would go to an idle. People thought I had lost a chain. It really sounded like I had lost the chain.
I thought it was a great idea, and while I had very little trouble driving it, Gary and Linda Emmick, (if you don't remember them, they were two of the top national level competitors of the day) tried to drive it and had all kinds of trouble. Linda more than Gary. They just couldn't get used to that complete lack of engine breaking when they let off the gas. It really surprised me how drastically it threw off their timing.
Here's the problem; with a Sprint kart, in order to turn, you have to break the traction of the inside rear wheel. That's why we have caster, to get the weight off the inside rear tire. That means all the drive force is in the outside rear wheel. If you could get all the drive force into the inside wheel, then the outside wheel could overrun the axle speed. This could be some advantage in an LTO kart going down the straight. The stagger wouldn't cause any drag. In the turns, if you could somehow get the majority of the weight on the left rear tire, the outside rear tire could overrun the axle speed, and that would be an advantage, less drag and more side bite. In order for this to happen, major changes in the design of the present-day karts would be needed. Caster would need a major re-thinking.
From the desk of Al Nunley
Comments compliments criticisms and questions always welcome.
If the data does not support the theory, get a new theory. (Al Nunley)
In my setup, I had a disc brake on each rear wheel. If the break is on the axle, with the clutch bearings in only one wheel, when you hit the brakes you're only using one tire to stop, the tire with the clutch bearing overruns the axle speed. It was really funny, because I had clutch bearings in both rear wheels, I could go down the straight and let off the gas and the engine would go to an idle. People thought I had lost a chain. It really sounded like I had lost the chain.
I thought it was a great idea, and while I had very little trouble driving it, Gary and Linda Emmick, (if you don't remember them, they were two of the top national level competitors of the day) tried to drive it and had all kinds of trouble. Linda more than Gary. They just couldn't get used to that complete lack of engine breaking when they let off the gas. It really surprised me how drastically it threw off their timing.
Here's the problem; with a Sprint kart, in order to turn, you have to break the traction of the inside rear wheel. That's why we have caster, to get the weight off the inside rear tire. That means all the drive force is in the outside rear wheel. If you could get all the drive force into the inside wheel, then the outside wheel could overrun the axle speed. This could be some advantage in an LTO kart going down the straight. The stagger wouldn't cause any drag. In the turns, if you could somehow get the majority of the weight on the left rear tire, the outside rear tire could overrun the axle speed, and that would be an advantage, less drag and more side bite. In order for this to happen, major changes in the design of the present-day karts would be needed. Caster would need a major re-thinking.
From the desk of Al Nunley
Comments compliments criticisms and questions always welcome.
If the data does not support the theory, get a new theory. (Al Nunley)
alvin l nunley
Site Supporter
I forgot to mention; one big bonus was pushing the kart through the pits. Because both wheels could overrun the axle, meaning you were not trying to turn the engine over, and the outside wheel was not trying to drive the inside wheel, it would turn left and right with absolutely no drag.
From the desk of Al Nunley
Comments compliments criticisms and questions always welcome.
If the data does not support the theory, get a new theory. (Al Nunley)
From the desk of Al Nunley
Comments compliments criticisms and questions always welcome.
If the data does not support the theory, get a new theory. (Al Nunley)
paulkish
old fart
... and what about if it was on the axle gear hub? Any time the kart because of gravity or what ever would want to roll faster then the engine could power it, the engine would disengage at the axle gear hub and let it roll, preventing any possibility of the engine slowing you down. Lifting and rolling would then be instantly a rolling thing without any braking from the engine possible. Or is it the other way around? ... 
Weaver Performance
Member
I herd somebody years ago was making the gear hubs,any body now anything about them,still available
i
want it,call me 901=288=8025
For dirt oval racing, it would almost completely eliminate stagger out of the equation I believe, and would let the kart roll much more freely thru the corners, and we know that more corner speed usually means more strait line speed, which also means faster lap times. It would be interesting just to try them out, like in practice or something, and compare lap times to see if its really an advantage or not.
The way the clutches we use now are made, we can easily push the kart around the track or thru the pit with little to no resistance from the engine, the clutch is keyed and locked to the crankshaft but the basket or drum spins free with the chain and rear wheels until the engine is at the rpm where the clutch locks up.