Custom Go Kart Seat

Making my own go kart seat was the best thing for it. I have ridden in many go carts and the difference is amazing. its like the difference between horseback and a Lexus SUV. uber comfortable!!

It is very easy and inexpensive to make your own seat for your go cart.

Here's how I did mine

First, cut some wood in the shape that you need


then cut foam to match. (thickness and squishability is up to you)
use some spray adhesive to keep it in place


cut some vinyl and use a staple gun to tack it over your wood cutout

And for that final touch take another piece of vinyl and use decorative tacks to cover the staples


This turned out a lot better then I was expecting.



as always
Have Fun

Front End and Stub Axles

Moving on to the front end, which, as I found out, is a little more difficult and took longer then I first thought. There are many angles that you need to know for proper steering and if you have a fixed axle or not.

The front end was angled in to allow maximum wheels turn and still have a fixed width (plus I liked the look). The metal was cut and welded to form the angles. There were no calculations made, just took the wheel and placed it where I wanted it to go.

These bushing are made like the split-frame bushings. The outside tube was from a weightlifting bar. The inside has rubber corks that were ground down and drilled out and then a metal spacer was pressed inside that. Of course it was welded to the frame before the rubber was installed.

This stub axle was bent, shaped, drilled, and welded by hand from materials that I already had (strip of heavy duty metal that was used to install our Pergo flooring) This is one area you need to do some reasearch for the correct angle needed based on the back axel you have. Most of the designs that I saw had the C shape welded to the frame. I choose this configuration to get the maximum steering angles without it getting stopped by the frame.

Split Frame for Shocks & Custom Halo (Seat Back)

I needed to have shocks on my go kart, just because they look cool!!
So I designed the frame to bend right behind the seat.

That round tube is a piece of fence that I cut from scrap. the square tube is from abundance of used railing.



Custom Halo/Seat Back


The seat back was made out of a used Bench Press weightlifting bar. It was perfect for bending without a pipe bender because it had a slight bend to start with.

I used the tie-down straps (in the background) and connected to either end of the bar. As I racheted it tighter, it would bend more and more. I didn't want it to kink so that's when it was time for some butane!!

Now imagine you are a kid making a bow-n-arrow out of a stick and some string. Same principle, 'cept with some heat.

Heat the middle section, until it glowed, then just ratchet the straps a little at a time. If there is a section that needs bent more, just heat it up, until it glows, and tighten the straps more.

After 40-90 minutes, you'll have a nice curve. (mine's not crooked-it's custom)

[or just use a pipe bender if ya got it]



Custom Bushings

I just used a rubber cork to make the bushing where the frame pivots. Used my bench grinder to shape it and inserted metal spacers to allow the bolt to freely move in and out.

Design, Construct, Re-Design

As I mentioned, I built this "as I went", meaning that I didnt design the complete go kart first and then build it, but rather, had an idea of what I wanted it to look like, and worked from there. I had to change the 'design' several times based on the materials I used and design 'flaws'.

Here is the sketch of what I wanted it to look like
















(pencil doesn't scan too well)


I kept a sketch pad for ideas, and designs that popped in my head. Of coarse, the final design was not exactly as I thought it would be, but it was surprisingly close.


The two main parts needed for this project were and engine and a frame, and I needed to find some metal to use on the frame.
Yes, I could have bought the metal, but this was a budgeted project, so I looked around for some scrap metal. Fortunately I had a neighbor that was fixing up their house and had a pile of scrap metal from a railing they took down.
Perfect!! One inch square tubing, and pleanty of it.


I wish I took more pictures, but I always get distracted from building that I end up taking pictures at the end of the day.

So here are some pictures of the back end of the go kart.

This is my ENGINE (before paint)

Bought this off EBAY. listed as a 8-10HP so the price I paid was great.
Unfortunately, it is only 6HP - oh well

Plannin it in my head, and THIS is what I Bought First?!

come to find out, it was the Driven half of a torque converter assembly

of course, found that out after ripping it apart

axle was originally from a golf-cart (i believe)

Finally Finished Go Kart

I will post the pictures soon. Check back regularly!!!