Kart Stand
Actually I am on my 5th kart stand model that I have made. The first two models were simple. They were made from one inch angle iron. The used ten inch wheels and a winch from harborfreight. They had no casters. You simply tilted them backwards like a mower to change direction. The goal for these were to be low cost, low weight, and be able to fold up small. I made four of these. One for myself, one for a friend and two that I sold.
The second kart stand moved up scale. It was more like commercially available kart stands. It had caster wheels so it could be positioned more easily. A harborfreight winch was added after being modded to use a webbed belt instead of a cable. This is preferred because cable sometimes get tangled or nested in a way they jam. The previous was a little involved to fold to store. This one took just one pin.
The next was just an evolution of the last. The changes were not so much to make it better functioning, but to make it more interesting and easy to build if I made multiple of them. I had just got a Langmuir Systems CNC plasma cutter. I took advantage to add a little style to the stand. The side step plates made it easier to weld bottom frame by just lining up the sides. Each plate like for caster had indents that allowed parts to be aligned without measuring. A tool tray was add for function and style. It had my kart number and dimple died holes to strengthen. Finally wheels were solid so flats were no longer a problem.
The final model, so far, is some parts a throw back to first style with some parts of the last and some new features. The first new goal was a stand that was easier to push. The Quincy Grand Prix has a temporary grass pits that are difficult to push through. Some other tracks have gravel pits that can be hard to push through, especially when rainy. For this reason I used 20 inch hard rubber wheels.
The next goal was to lift the kart from the frame instead of rear bumper. Almost all lifts use the bumper. This damages the bumper. It also can be an issue when the bumper is pulled loose in an on track incident. To accomplish this a small piece was built that gets added to rear of the Margay frame to hook the frame to lift it.
I also wanted the stand to operate from a Ryobi 18V battery. Mostly this is because I always have plenty of them charged. So I do not to specically charge batteries for the stand. I did some analysis and decided the 18V was likely going to work. I used a Bambu X1C 3D printer to create a box hold a contactor and the battery. An added feature was printing holders for bearing luber, chain lube, and tire air pressure sensor.
I expect as the year passes I will learn things and likely modify this one or make a new one. The geometry is more difficult with frame lift. The result has required an air shock to get desired operation. I have some ideas of how I can change to improve. Also this model does not fold. I would like to figure out a nice solution to allow it to fold.
