Short block LO206

foreverfaster

foreverfaster

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what is the difference between a short block animal motor and a short block LO206?
other then cable ties? are the stroke, bore, cam all the same to start with??
i'm sure by now someone has pulled these apart and made comparisons.
 
There is no such thing thing as an Animal short block from Briggs & Stratton. If you want a n Animal short block you have to buy it from the aftermarket. The ones I sell are made to the customers specifications. If you want a particular brand of rod, piston, cam, standard side cover or billet it's up to you. The price will vary depending on what u want.
 
still confused as briggs advertises animal is a motor,... so an lo206 short block is just under $300, an animal appears to be the same stroke and bore and assuming the cam is the same, with a different ignition, are all animals custom built??? to briggs rules???
 
Animal rules allow for aftermarket cams, and some other liberties in engine setup, such as billet rod. Lo206 cam may be ok for animal class racing. Aftermarket cams may allow for additional rpm which stock rod cannot handle.
A little research will confirm this.
 
A 206 short block assembly comes with a 206 spec cam. Cut the seals pull the 206 cam and put in your choice of after market cam (Dyno 2 is a good choice ) add your head ,carb ,ignition, flywheel ,etc etc and you have an Animal .
 
The LO 206 short block is a very good part. However, it comes with many parts you may end up throwing away when building an Animal.
If you already have a side cover why pay for the one that comes with the LO 206.
Some people want to put their own cam and side cover on their new short block.
If you are going to turn it above 6100 rpms you should remover the OEM rod an put in a billet.
Most people also use an aftermarket cam rather than the one that comes in the LO 206.
If so you will have another part you won't be using.
With an aftermarket short block you can machine the piston pop up right to the maximum (if that's what the person wants)
 
There are pros and cons on the short block. The new Gen 5 block is worth it all the latest bolts and fastners and side case /Block that become a matched set as you heat cycle your engine. With the close tolrences in the 206 deck height little or no machine work is needed . If your running a stock Animal class the rod should be fine . You can always use the 206 cam to build a play or practice motor out of used spare parts . It's all about personal choice
 
They are essentially the same, George.
If you want an animal, cut the seals on the 206 short block, add a billet rod and ground cam and bingo, you've got an animal short block. I would NOT recommend running the stock 206 rod in an animal -- they are not designed for the rpm that you will be running at - and will eventually fail.
Nice thing is that by starting with the 206 short block, you won't even have to machine the deck for piston pop-up - it's already at + 2 or 3 thou out of the hole (how much closer to the rules are these guys planning on cutting a custom animal shortblock?)
FWIW: We build animals out of retired/blown-up LO206s all the time.


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Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cutz
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
28 years of service to the karting industry
Linden, IN
765-339-4407
bcarlson@CarlsonMotorsports.com
 
If you look around, there are plenty of LO-206 used short-blocks available that have leaking crankcase gaskets which cannot be replaced. I was at a swap meet last fall and a fellow had five of them. Sold from $50 to $100 each. Had I been in the market to build a Alcohol Animal or and Open Animal, I would have snagged them up.

I would venture to guess when the new short-block with the rubber seal instead of a paper gasket hits the market, there will be quite a few older, gently used short-blocks hitting the For Sale pages.
 
If you've got his number, Mike, I'll take them for $50. Man, I've given that much for ones that have run without oil and seized, or went kaboom! ;)

By all means, send all those guys with leaking sidecover gaskets my way -- I'm always looking for good rebuildable animal shortblocks.
 
The LO 206 short block is a great deal with a MAP of $266.00.
You can't buy the individual parts for that amount.
 
that was my thought exactly! would love to have another motor, as I have more karts then I can drive, some without motors. this way someone could drive it.. add either the 206 ignition or the JR ignition and you've got a nice little motor that should be problem free.

Jimbo said:
The LO 206 short block is a great deal with a MAP of $266.00.
You can't buy the individual parts for that amount.
Click to expand...
 
two questions? we just purchased Cadet Kart w/ LO206 w/ older seals. It ok for our local club but is it a performance advantage/disadvantage to newer motor?
Is it worth (cost effective) getting a short block and having all swapped over with cylinder head rebuild? We are on budget but want to grow with adult karts...
 
Peter21X said:
two questions? we just purchased Cadet Kart w/ LO206 w/ older seals. It ok for our local club but is it a performance advantage/disadvantage to newer motor?
Is it worth (cost effective) getting a short block and having all swapped over with cylinder head rebuild? We are on budget but want to grow with adult karts...
Click to expand...

There is no advantage from the older engines to the newer ones.
Of course you kow what you're getting (for the most part) with the newer engine block.
Is it worth it? It very well could be (at least from a legality standpoint.) The trend is to replace the cylinder heads more often than the short block however. These shortblocks get better with time if they are maintained properly. The cylinder heads need touched up from time to time and eventually need replaced to stay sharp.
With that said, we've still got original 206 engines winning races that are closing on 10 years old now (where the old seals are still allowed.)
That says a lot for the reliability of the engine and the stability of the rules in the LO206 program!


-----
🏁Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cutz
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
Carlson Motorsports on Facebook
31 years of service to the karting industry
Linden, IN
765-339-4407
bcarlson@CarlsonMotorsports.com
 
Thank-you for your help. We are looking for a local or semi local engine builder (woljer was a local but fled Ca.) and thanks to sound advice looking for an updated chassis with good local support.
RLV in in our area but they don't offer support and no go kart shops in our region. So we are looking as close as possible.
 
Peter21X said:
Thank-you for your help. We are looking for a local or semi local engine builder (woljer was a local but fled Ca.) and thanks to sound advice looking for an updated chassis with good local support.
RLV in in our area but they don't offer support and no go kart shops in our region. So we are looking as close as possible.
Click to expand...

Don't be afraid to reach out to some shops outside of your area. In general, I support shopping local and supporting your local kart shops...but if there are none, or they are unwilling to provide the support you need, venture out a bit.
Engines are pretty standard affair, and support should be easy from coast to coast. Chassis may be a bit more local as fas as at track support, I get that. But you've got some great factory support with most of the major brands as well.
Keep us in mind if we can ever be of help with your engine program. We've got several customers in California currently.
 
CarlsonMotorsports said:
Don't be afraid to reach out to some shops outside of your area. In general, I support shopping local and supporting your local kart shops...but if there are none, or they are unwilling to provide the support you need, venture out a bit.
Engines are pretty standard affair, and support should be easy from coast to coast. Chassis may be a bit more local as fas as at track support, I get that. But you've got some great factory support with most of the major brands as well.
Keep us in mind if we can ever be of help with your engine program. We've got several customers in California currently.
Click to expand...
I have looked at your website and if we do, you are on my list. Not to suck up but the wealth of information you provide. The only, and I mean only downside is you aren't at our local races or within driving distance. However, that is not the end of the world. Just being new to karting, all of the help is appreciated.
"Too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup" as the saying goes. So we want to have a select few trusted voices to offer constructive input. Karts are very simple yet so very complicated. As former kart racer fiend (now in full sized cars) said, everything on a kart is needed, important and does a job.
A great engine isn't going to be the whole answer without us getting the best driving kart and then our driver get the thousands of laps in the seat. That's the fun part, right? Packing the cooler with sandwiches and drinks and testing. Meeting great people in person or online is great.
Thank you Mr. Carlson for all of your help and posts (and the others too) support us who either love this stuff or falling in love with this stuff.
It is appreciated.
 
Peter21X said:
I have looked at your website and if we do, you are on my list. Not to suck up but the wealth of information you provide. The only, and I mean only downside is you aren't at our local races or within driving distance. However, that is not the end of the world. Just being new to karting, all of the help is appreciated.
"Too many cooks in the kitchen spoil the soup" as the saying goes. So we want to have a select few trusted voices to offer constructive input. Karts are very simple yet so very complicated. As former kart racer fiend (now in full sized cars) said, everything on a kart is needed, important and does a job.
A great engine isn't going to be the whole answer without us getting the best driving kart and then our driver get the thousands of laps in the seat. That's the fun part, right? Packing the cooler with sandwiches and drinks and testing. Meeting great people in person or online is great.
Thank you Mr. Carlson for all of your help and posts (and the others too) support us who either love this stuff or falling in love with this stuff.
It is appreciated.
Click to expand...

Well said. Brian, Jimbo, and many others have shared way more time, information, and knowledge than they have ever needed to in the name of helping newer folks get started. I'm sure they never get enough business back to make up for their time spent or secrets given out (some, not all ;) ), so its good to support the folks that help you whenever possible.
 
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