Rough Running

While at the circuit, i have noticed that compared to other karts, my kart sounds very distinct.
The sound is coarser and dirtier, almost grittier. Like an L.A hairmetal band as compared to vivaldi.

While mingling, asking around and looking for solutions for an engine running rough, i discovered a few tipe.

1) RPM adjustment. start at a 50% setting

2) Change gear ratio

3) change fuel valve in carburator



other tips

1) remove bar at front axel

YOUNGEST RACER EVER

The Contender


Hairnet for hygiene


Helmet on for safety


Tightening helmet straps


Visor down


Gloves off, time to beat the competition to a pulp.


One for the camera. A true racer lives in the limelight and knows how to work the camera.

I had to take a picture of the young chap who lapped me not once but twice!

The honour is all mine!

Karting Race at Plentong OPEN TO ALL, 6th Dec.

The karting track at Plentong, Johor is seeing a lot more foot traffic than i've ever noticed before. Arguably even more so than when it was at Permas Jaya. It's definately an enjoyable track with enough straightaways to open up and let the kart propel you stomache grabbing speeds.

However, the one at USJ is definately still a close contender for my favourite. Have a go at it if you have the chance.

Leisurely puttering down a track is one way to get to know and fall in love with a track but there's definately nothing like a little competition to spice up a romance.

That said, an excellent chance to romance the track at Plentong is at the go kart race that
OB Racing is organising in conjunction with kartingedge. It is open to everyone.

The place is at Plentong Go Karting Circuit.
The date and time is 6th Dec, 10 am.
Transport can be arranged.
Food will be provided.

More information can be found here:
http://kartingedge.com/forum/index.php?topic=330.0

Training Schedule

TRAINING SCHEDULE - 19 Nov 2008, Thursday

The only silver lining in the gloomy overcast skies of the economic slowdown is that i now find myself with more go karting time. It is a happy albeit temporary situation, until my savings run dry.

Objective of the day is to reduce variance between the fastest and slowest lap to between 1 - 2 sec. The aim is to improve consistency. When that has been achieved, a proper set up can be performed on your go kart to suit your driving style and preferences.

The next part will then be to improve your driving time with different approaches to driving. For example to approach a circuit in as smooth a way as possible or to go all out in accelerating and braking.

OB Racing apparel now available at Plentong!

Now exclusively at the

Plentong International Karting Circuit!

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OB Racing gloves, balaclava, suits, rib protector, racing shoes available upon request.

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Our banner now hangs at Plentong.

If it was difficult finding OBRacing products before, it's easier now.

With a creedo that extends to providing quality, value and usability

Watch out for improved product lines coming soon.

See you at the track soon!

Weekend at the races

An exciting day today.
We put our kart through its paces to see what it is capable of, to get a feel of how our kart handles and what needs to be improved.

First at the helm is Joshua. Coming right at ya!

Speeding down the circuit
Discussing modifications to be made.

Next in line was Steph in his own self designed helmet. A real beauty not to be missed.

Advising on some problems that came up. Also, noticed that the gear ratio was all wrong. We would have to replace it with the proper sized sproket.

Zipping down the circuit

Attired in black was Chris. Sales manager and the man who seals the deals. Continued problems with the accelerator pedal cut short his run time.


The man on the ground who helps with the karting.

Always remember to have appropriate footwear. Shaven legs not neccessary.

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Some takeaway points we learnt

1) Fuel can only be kept less than a week in the kart fuel tank. Reason being the evaporation of fuel will change the petrol/ oil mix ratio.

2) Always lube the chains and sproket after every racer.

3) A larger rear axel is less flexible, more suitable for heavier racers and would skid more on a lighter racer.

4) The pedals should be of the same height after installation.

5) Ensure that you are using the correct size sprocket. Changing the sprocket involves changing the chain as well.

Accident avoidance

Whenever one speaks of go karting, a pall of silence falls, then someone shouts from the back " isn't it dangerous". "Didn't someone die in Malaysia", adds another. There are some simple defensive tactics that you can adopt. No one wants to get hurt or at the least, no one wants to pay for costly replacement of parts.


1) Avoid bumper cars. Cars with crash protection, like fun karts are likely to contain inexperienced drivers.

2) Maintain a safety distance. Imagine space as a safety buffer. If you give others space, you can minimize your chances of crashing because you'll both have more time to react.

3) Stay far from inexperienced drivers. You can judge this from their attire. They may be inexperienced or presume that go karting is like bumper cars.

4) Stay especially far away from children who may not understand the dangers of a crash.

5) Take the inside corners of turns so people can't clip you from behind.

6) Don't let people get directly in front of you; they may stop unexpectedly, causing you to crash in the back of them. Similiarly, don;t tailgate.

7) Move to the side to avoid crashes if they get directly in front of you. Stop for awhile if that's the only way to give yourself more room.

8) Warn the operator of the ride if someone is giving you an especially hard time.

May the force be with you

You've felt it when pulling away in a quick acceleration, while cornering at high speeds and then you crash into barriers. You've even seen it in the bruises on your body. Just what are the forces exerted on the drivers of go karts?

Acceleration/Deceleration
These result when the tyres exert a forward or backward force on the track. It is the result of attempting to brake or accelerate.
This force is in the same plane as the track, below the karts centre of inertia. For this reason, the force exerts a turning moment (or torque) on the entire kart. I.e there is a downward force towards the front of the kart and an upward force at the rear of the kart while breaking and vice versa when accelerating, with the fulcrum at the center of gravity of the kart (which, is below the driver). This is called a rotational torque. There is no actual movement of any mass, but the torque effectively forces the appropriate part of the kart 'harder' down on the track.

While Cornering
While cornering, the driver feels like he is being pushed outwards from the kart. Actually, he is not being throw out but is trying to move in a straight line, due to the forward momentum. The tyres of the kart are producing a grip which imparts an angular acceleration on the kart (and driver), forcing the kart to corner. It is this angular acceleration that produces the sensation of being thrown out. The force which the ground imparts on the kart to make it corner is known as the Centripetal force, and it always acts at towards the centre of the imaginary circle we are cornering round.

Imagine the centripetal force is split into two components, a vertical and a horizontal. The horizontal force we have just described, but the vertical can be regarded as the cornering equivalent of the forward acceleration case. Because the centripetal force is acting on the kart, it imparts acceleration to it, and again, this acceleration is acting at ground level. Therefore a torque effect is again produced, but this time it is acting across the kart, and we get a weight shift to the outside of the kart. This weight shift also helps the inside wheel lift, as the weight shift reduces the weight on the inside wheel by an equivalent amount. This force has not been show on the diagram to aid clarity, but is simply in the opposite direction over the inside rear. In fact once cornering is initiated, this weight shift is more important to raising the inside wheel than the steering geometry.

The distance between the rear wheels affects how the centripetal force is distributed over the horizontal and vertical components. As the width of a track is increased, more centripetal force is distributed as a sideways force in relation to the weight shift. This means a wider track produces less weight shift to the outside rear, and more sideways force. A narrow track increases the weight shift and decreases the sideways force. Therefor a narrow track is less likely to exceed the grip of the tyres when cornering than a wide track. Consequently, the grippier the tyres used, the wider the stance can be before the grip is exceeded.

Accelerating around a corner
The final force to consider is a torque around the vertical axis experienced when accelerating during a corner. It is common knowledge that braking while cornering on a kart causes massive understeer while accelerating can improve cornering. This at first seems counterintuitive, since normally when accelerating there is a weight transfer to the rear, which you would expect to try to push the inside rear back onto the track. However, this weight transfer is dwarfed by the torque around this vertical axis caused by the fact that only one wheel rear wheel in on the track, and this wheel is offset from the centre of inertia.

Singapore Team's 1st Night Race?

Singapore organised the 1st ever F1 night race.

How about a circuit that organises go kart races at night?

Lets take a look at this concept around the world?

I came across some circuits in Australia that offered this possibility.

Also in Miami, USA

There was also a video of a guy who couldn't wait to drive his kart and took it onto the road?

Dangerous and definately ill advised but a fantasy for most, i'll bet.

WET WET WET

Attempted karting in wet weather tyres today.

Familiar with slicks performing as their names suggests at the slightest hint of moisture on the ground, I was pleasantly suprised at the amount of control i was able to regain with wet weather tyres.

Shah Alam, city karting......

After a work trip to KL, i organised a karting session for my collegues.
All that anticipation over the work week and in accordance with Murphy's law, rain clouds came rolling in as soon as we arrived.

Kudos and appreciation to City Karting who showed us that driving in soaked Y fronts can be an utterly enjoyable experience.

The performance was great, no puddle could wrest control of my vehicle from me.

So, lets have a look at the kinds of tyres available and find out more about them. Upon first glance, we notice that they are about the smallest tyres one has seen on any vehicle. Smaller than a car, smaller than a scooter...

The rims are made from aluminium or a magnesium alloy. There are various choices of tyres to suit diverse weather / track conditions. They are:

1) SLICK TYRES (for dry weather)

2) WET TYRES (for wet weather)

3) INTERMEDIATE TYRES (for conditions between dry and wet)

4) Other specialised tyres ( for ice, etc etc)

Tyre compounds are what the tyres are made of. The compounds are constructed from very hard to very soft. The manufacturers are Bridgestone, Dunlop, Bridgestone, Maxxis....

The patterns on the tyres itself are known as grooves and determine the usage of the particular tyre.

1) Slicks are smooth with no markings at all. They are designed for optimum contact with the surface of the track. On a dry track it provides the maximum traction possible. However the amount of traction is reduced in the presence of moisture and will hydroplane as water cannot escape the space between the tyre and track. Slicks are constructed of soft rubber but not as soft as wet weather tyres.

2) Intermediate tyres are generally used when there is a little moisture in the air and on the track, but not soo wet that wet weather tyres are required. These tyres are also used when there is likely to be low amounts of traction. As a substitute, worn wet tyres can also be used to serve this purpose. The rubber that they are made from is softer than slicks, but not as soft as wet weather tyres.

3) Wet weather tyres are used when the track is very wet or if there are puddles on the track. They are constructed of very soft rubber and thus should never be used in dry weather where they will break off and disintegrate in a short time. These tyres are grooved tyres, and offer much more traction in the wet than slicks, they offer a lot less traction in the dry. The grooves are designed to wick water away from between the tyres and track, thus creating better traction. It allows more contact with the track surface and maintains its grip.

Here are some pictures of tyres which i have found.

Turf

Sawtooth

Ribbed

Studded

Slicks
Offroad Studded