Wheel base vs track width

JryKlnr

Member
Son racing asphalt sprint LO206 Junior. Is there a recommended starting % of track width to wheel base? Obviously nothing beats testing changing front and rear widths to determine handling and speed and making small adjustments for loose/tight conditions, but what would be a good starting spot?

And to confirm, wheelbase would be defined as center of front wheel to center of rear wheel, while track width would be center of tire/wheel on left to center of tire/wheel on right?
 
Not typically figured that way too my knowledge .
You may get better info with stateing chassis brand /model and class .
 
The rule for Sprint karts, for all karts as far as I know, has always been 40 inch minimum. Induro racing favors longer wheelbases, commonly about 48 inches. As a general rule, the tighter the track, the shorter the wheelbase. I don't recall ever hearing track width mentioned when talking about wheelbase. Just a thought, kart width might be a consideration on narrow/tight tracks.
 
I think of track width as from the outside edges. Put everything to max width and start from there.
 
I have a setup sheet for a banshee and it looks like the track width measurement is from the outside of the tread that touches the ground on each side. Is that correct or is it the outside of the wheels? Tough to tell in the drawing. Its something like 39inches
 
Set rear track width at approx. 48". Front 43-45" Scale kart out for 44-45 nose weight, left side 50 right 50 or as close as you can get them. Set cross about 49-49.5...

Most wheel base on a standard kart is 41.250. Junior and cadet karts a tad shorter. Measure for king bolt center to rear axle center will tell you what kart you have. It is probably a "full size" chassis. Bandits are great karts for Junior. We used a Road Runner years back and not many people could keep up with us. Tommy Triplett owns Bandit Chassis and probably can found on Facebook.

If you have any more questions, shoot a text or give a call. Mike ..386-503 9068
 
Thank you for your response. Would your opinion on track width change if his wheelbase is only 40.5?

Everyone in his class is running a larger chassis, most MGM and Bandits and the occasional Marguay. All have 41.25 - 41.5 wheel bases I think. My general observations and reasoning is as follows. Let me know if flawed.

My son handles the technical turns probably better than anyone else. I’d like to say it is skill but the shorter wheelbase probably makes his kart more agile and easier to turn. The larger karts seem to handle the high speed bank turn and long straight better which my opinion is that are longer and probably more stable. At times it looks like my sons kart is almost slightly bouncing.
 
let me go back into my notes from the days we had the Bandit Road Runner and let me see what we used. Something I didn't note in my previous reply was that my numbers are based on using a 40mm rear axle and the general setup we used now. Weight percentages won't vary much. Front and rear track widths a little bit. I always tried to stay as narrow as possible and keep the kart free.

You are most likely running 1.250"?

Where are you racing? What track?
 
We had plans that weekend but went on Saturday afternoon to support the track and club racers in his class. It was brutal hot.
 
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