Vintage Karting Forum

Chapter 92

So I get to go to the races tonight. Yee ha! Unfortunately not to race this time. Paul Fisher seems to be a very nice person. Since I know Paul a little bit better, now realizing he had nothing to do with what happened to us when me and Steve made our first race at Fabens.

Chris was not at all impressed with Frank. Just the opposite really. He said he felt drained after meeting Frank when we made it back to the garage. I do understand. If I spend too much time around Frank, it is like the energy is being zapped right out of me.

Sort of like leaving a flashlight on for too long. The batteries are drained. You turn it off for a while, then back on and it works, but slowly the bulb starts to dim down again. That is what it feels like when around Frank for very long.

Short visits around Frank are not so bad. Just a heavy load on the battery. But when I leave it is charged back up fairly quickly. Especially if the sun is out bright. Maybe this is why I was so worn out after both days practicing at the track.

So I am understanding more about what Chris was saying after meeting Frank. Steve also made mention that he was thinking Frank must have been an escapee from one of those insane asylums like in a lot of horror movies we have watched late at night on the television. He is sure Frank is completely wacko. Sort of like an ax murderer.

Tonight Paul Fisher is race director at the track. There is a regional race at the San Antonio kart track. Most of the board members that usually run the races at Fabens are competing in the regional series and attending that race. So Paul is filling in for the night.

We were late arriving. Paul said he needed to be there by 5:00 and it is pushing 5:30. I was very surprised to see the parking lot being completely full. The pits had all kinds of activity going on. It looked like a normal weekend race night.

Paul had things to take care of, so we went snooping around in the pits. I was impressed finding out how many of the racers Chris knew. He took no time dragging me along and got introduced to everyone we stopped to talk with.

This is my friend Terry. He is helping me work on getting my kart more competitive. We are upgrading my frame and modifying the engine. I hope to be a lot faster the next time I race.

"Wow that sounds great Topher. I hope everything works out for you. I will be watching your next race and cheering for you too". This is what the general response was from everybody Chris had talked to tonight.

I know Chris is more than a likable guy, but didnt realize he knew just about everyone out here at the track. I hate meeting new people and terrible with names, so trying to remember everyones name that I have met tonight, well that sure aint going to happen.

I can actually remember someone from the kart they race. It is easy for me to put a face to that kart. Past that the name is lost somewhere in no mans land. I know it is a weird way of recognizing someone, but it does work for me.

What I saw tonight at the track was a lot different from our first race. Mostly new faces in charge of running the races. More layed back and casual feeling. I was surprised how many drivers there were too. More than the last race.

It seemed that there are a ton of local racers that like to come out here. From what I have been told, the politics and certain people running the races keeps a lot of these people from attending all the time.

So when there is a big race that takes most of the regulars out of town, the word gets around and all of these other people show up. Every one of the classes are full. There are even 15 in the junior bushing class. The two Westebend drivers are gone, then me Steve and Chris make three more not running. Wow, 20 drivers in one class. That would be so awesome.

What I thought so cool in the junior class tonight, is most of them are running Clinton engines. There are also a couple of Power Products bushing engines too. This is the first of them I have seen. Most of the karts are just like the slower ones from last time. There are plenty of them with dead axles too.

None of these karts racing tonight will ever be competitive against those two Westbends. But I would bet there is going to be a good race between all of them running together. I noticed most of the Clinton engines are stock. Just like they would have come when the karts were first purchased.

For our jobs tonight, we were supposed to be corner marshals. But there was more than enough volunteers at the drivers meeting. They would swap out with each other between races.

So me and Chris ended up working the grid. Paul assured us it would almost about run itself. We just needed to look official and nobody would give us any trouble.

Paul Fisher was the race director and also the flag man for the night. So he was very busy, leaving us to a job we had no idea how to do. Chris had raced out here plenty of times so hoping he had an idea of how it was done.

He explained to me about what he remembered seeing and that I would be the Grid Steward. He would make sure the karts are in order and lined up ready for each heat race. This is something he had done plenty of times helping Paul. Since he knows so many of the racers, it made the most sense.

One thing I did notice is since Chris has a higher pitched voice than me, it is very hard to hear him with engines revving up close by. So he just about has to yell to be heard over the karts running anywhere close to the grid.

So what was explained to me is when I see the checkered flag waved, make sure there was no one stranded out there on the track. When all is clear, Paul will acknowledge at the flag stand, then I wave the karts out on the track.

So long as Chris made sure the right class was lined up in order on the grid, my job was fairly easy. I just had to look like I knew what I was doing. I even got to wear a black and white checkered shirt to look official.

This shirt was anything but small. It swallowed me more like a hospital gown, than just a shirt that was too big. But it is what the grid steward usually wears. Or at least some giant guy that wore this shirt the last time.

What I found out real quick is how little bit of the races I actually got to watch. I stayed busy while the races were running just making sure the next class was lined up right. It was not even that long before intermission.

We had already finished running the first two heats and now intermission. Wow, where did all the time go? There were only a few mix ups, but easily corrected. Paul came over and asked how I liked working tonight.

After I sort of got the hang of it, was not so bad. But the time sure did fly by. I noticed Chris had his head down on a table at the concession stand. He was worn out already.

Paul asked if we could last one more heat race or did we need a break. I thought we could make it to the end. Chris looked over at Paul, nodded, gave a thumbs up, then planted his head back down on the table in folded arms.

During the night Chris made it his job getting every kart pushed up to the grid for the next race. He made sure we had no holdups waiting on people to get themselves gridded. Chris helped some drivers push their karts up and always confirmed they were positioned in the right spot.

Chris had an official clipboard and marker. He went around lining every kart up in the right order. He took this job very seriously. He spent the time to carefully explain things to anyone not understanding what to do.

When one class was on the grid, he went around making sure the next class was pregridded ready to move up after I released the first class. This went on all night until the races were over. He never slowed down.

The third heat races were finished and awards presentation was taking place. Unlike the last time out here everyone seemed to be in good spirits and enjoying themselves. Paul did the announcing and thanked everyone for coming out tonight, blah blah blah, the usual stuff. Tonight was already over.

Chapter 93

As the awards ceremony was taking place, I helped Paul with handing out the trophies. After the presentation was finished, the remaining time was spent going around checking over every one of the karts that were still in the pits. I wanted to look at all of them and get an idea of what was running out here. Also to check out how other kart frames were built.

What I found odd is seeing all of these karts on the grid earlier. But that is all I did, was see them. There was no time I could stop and take a good look at any of the karts. That would have been too much distraction for the reason I was out here tonight.

I wanted to make sure Chris had everything perfect on his kart when we got finished with the conversion. So far there was nothing out of the ordinary to look at tonight. Most of the karts were older models compared to what I had seen at our first race and the first time I came out here last spring.

There were a few obviously home made karts running to night. These all had dead axles and looked like a hardware store raid on parts. Two of them didnt even make it to the third heat. The other one did finish all three heats, but was in no hurry to take the checkered flag.in any of those heat races.

With all of the focus on pretending to be a grid steward, never gave me the chance to watch any of the races. I got plenty of glances of karts as they zoomed by the track entrance, but had no idea of who won or what took place from lap to lap.

The only part of every race I did see was the start. Paul did a great job starting most of the classes. Some of the drivers never seemed to line up for a decent start, so he ended up waving the green flag anyway.

There was no complaints from any of the drivers after the races either. This is a lot different than the time me and Steve raced here. I guess it all depends on who runs the race for it to be a good night or not.

It was late and Paul was closing up the track for the night. Practice went one for an hour or so, before he turned off the lights. I looked around and noticed Chris was nowhere to be seen.

I had been preoccupied after the races were finished to check out as many of the karts that were still out here. The whole time I didnt remember seeing Chris around anywhere. Finally I followed Paul back to his work truck. It was a International Travelall. In the back seat I found Chris curled up sound asleep.

Paul dropped me off at home and I thanked him for the invite to the track. Chris was still asleep when they drove off. It was now way past midnight. No sooner than I sat down on my bed it seemed the sun was blaring in my eyes. It was already Sunday morning. I dont remember even getting ready for bed.

I was still dressed from last night just laying on top of my bed. Man what a night. That was a lot more work that I thought it would be. Running the races is not at all like I thought it might have been either. It is actually like having a real job. Bleh!

Another odd thing is I am up early on a Sunday morning. I was excused from church this morning since being out so late last night working at the track. But I didnt expect to get up this early. Especially since I did get up so early yesterday.

Out in the garage, I went over everything we did so far on the Simplex. Right now there were no surprises. Since we are far enough along, now just waiting on parts, I thought about yanking the axle off my kart and use it to set up the Simplex for a trial fit.

If everything works as planned, go ahead and weld those bearing hangers on for good. Or at least tack them in place. So all that was needed to take my axle off is remove the four bolts holding the bearings. It was not a big deal and didnt even take much time to get this done.

After prefitting everything together, measuring a dozen times, I decided to go ahead and tack weld the Dart copied bearing hangers to the Simplex frame. These worked perfectly like Steve had thought they might. They put the axle at the right height keeping the frame level.

The only thing critical here, besides the wheelbase measurement, is getting the left bearing hanger square to the axle. I figured out a simple way by using a larger piece of tubing bolted between two axle bearings. This worked out perfect.

The original brake linkage was way too short since it actuated a piece of tubing that went across to the other side of frame. So I ended up cutting another piece of rod, then threaded both ends to the 1/4-28 size for the clevice to screw on. One thing less to worry about now the Bendix brake will bolt up just fine.

I didnt even think about letting Chris cut and thread the linkage. I bet he would have liked to do that. But there are a lot of small jobs that end up taking way too much time just so he can learn how to do the work. That can make this job take forever and might not get finished quick enough like we are hoping for.

The next thing was to make the short arm for the steering shaft. Azusa steering kits have two small arms, exactly the same like used on the Go-Kart 800. But I decided to make a single arm slightly thicker and longer that will be welded to end of the shaft. This way everything lines back up close to the way it was originally. So there would be no surprises to hassle with later.

When I stuck a 5/8 inch piece of round stock thru to check for fit, the first thing obvious now is the spindle arms were sitting up slightly higher since we put caster in the front axle. This put the tierods up higher too. Now they interfere with the brake and gas pedals.

I remember Chris complaining about having to reach for the pedals, since he is not so tall yet. There is some decent length in front of the seat. My legs just reach the pedals comfortably.

I always wondered, well since I have been more serious about racing, why some steering hoops are so wide. There are a lot of karts that have very narrow hoops like the Simplex Challenger. All on the Bug karts I saw in the magazines have a narrow steering hoop too. This way your legs dont have to wrap around it.

When Chris first told me his kart was a Simplex with a dead axle, I thought it must be the Challenger. But after arriving with his kart Friday afternoon, I realized it was not that model.

Chris went on to explain his dad had bought this kart from Simplex in New Orleans when driving thru on a business trip. It was not brand new and he thought it was a model that came out before the Challenger.

After looking it over, me and Steve did recognize most of the parts were what we thought to be Simplex, but could not make heads nor tales of what model it might be. The kart is very well made and should work great after we finish converting it over to a live axle.

My Cates kart has a sheetmetal steering upright. There is no problem at all with my legs reaching forward. On Franks Dart proto special wannabe, wish it was an Abone kart, it has the wide steering hoop. There is plenty of leg room on his kart, so much that I had to stretch my legs to get a good reach on those pedals.

I remember having some bruises on the insides of my legs after that practice day. I didnt give it much thought, since there were cuts scrapes and brusies all over me afterwards. Getting thrown over Franks kart in the pits was the pits and left most of the damage, so didnt think so much about it.

But those bruises were the same place my legs would have hit the wide hoop. Changing to a narrow hoop on the Simplex makes more sense. Maybe even do some alterations by moving the pedals back a little bit so Chris can reach them better.

The steering hoop on this Simplex model is wide, but not as bad like most others. I dont see a simple way of converting it to a narrow hoop. Moving the pedals farther back may be our best option.

The steering hoop on this frame does have a lot smaller radius bend than on most any of the other frames I have seen. I can think of McCullouch and Bonanza karts that have wide hoops, but using a smaller radius bend.

I am not positive but think both of these karts use two small bends close together than one large radius bend. Way too many details to worry about something that doesnt make any difference. Except they are different.

Chapter 94

After our big night at the races working the whole evening, really wore me out. A lot worse than I would have thought. So most of Sunday was spent tinkering on the Simplex, but found myself still very tired later in the afternoon.

I was out in the garage all alone. It was boring without Steve or Chris hanging around. I made a lot of progress, but lost interest after a few hours by myself. If I had a spare hand to help on a few things, may have been able to get farther along.

I headed in early and decided to watch some of the westerns on tonight. I dont spend too much time on the television, but some of the westerns are cool to catch sometimes. So it was Have Gun Will Travel and Wanted: Dead or Alive. I liked watching Steve McQueen with that shortened Winchester model 92. Those are some monster sized bullets on his gun belt.

School took up another week. If I didnt stay on top of that Algebra, my grades would tank. That was not an option, so kept my head in the books. What sucked is also having to put the same effort in Biology and English II.

Not much exciting happened this week until Thursday afternoon when Chris finally called me. No sooner than I had walked in when getting home, the phone was ringing. Mom said that call was for me without even stopping what she was doing in the kitchen.

It sure was obvious that Chris seemed very wound up and more than excited. He told me all of the parts needed for his kart had been rounded up. He was ready to get his kart finished. Well that is just soon as I had some time to help him put it all back together.

He went on to tell me about Fish driving him over to another guys house that races named Pappy Neal. He is a retired dirt track racer and now sells parts out of his garage. He lives in Garland and races with his son at the regional level.

Most of the parts Chris had on his list were picked up from this guy named Pappy. He also said a box of parts showed up at the shop. Well that was at Pauls business. He was hoping the rest of what was needed came in, but had not ridden over on his bike yet to find out for sure. But Chris was confident that everything should be there.

I was surprised that Chris was about subtle as a sonic boom hinting to coming over again this weekend. If it was possible, he wanted to spend whatever time needed to get his kart finished. Since I havent been obligated by either of my parents yet, that should not be a problem.

Then Chris told me he had already confirmed this with my mom, since he called several times already. She told him I didnt have anything specific needing to get done this weekend, that she was aware of yet, but still needed to clear it with me to make sure.

So it looks like Chris is moving in for the weekend and we will be working on his kart the whole time. I was surprised how forward Chris was by already checking on what I had going on before even knowing myself.

Well now it seems that Chris is now committed to coming over tomorrow afternoon. He might be earlier this time, since the kart was already here, but didnt know for sure since he was relying on Fish to drop him off again. So I decided to spend what little time I had after all of my homework was finished, to clean up the garage.

With the work we did last week, well lets just say I dont have maid service, and am not good at picking up after myself. So the garage was a complete disaster. Well not totally, but a big enough mess to put off cleaning it all up so far. This is something I should have made sure Chris cleaned up last week, since it is his kart and his mess.

This got me to thinking. Should I make sure Chris clean up the mess out here in my garage? I mean I am helping him, but the mess we made is all from working on his kart. Should I just accept that since it is my place and Chris is a guest, that I take it upon myself to clean up after we are finished?

The down side here is that Chris has limited time to spend at my place to get any work done. It would be very considerate of me to use my time to clean things up after he leaves. This allows more time for us to get work done on his kart. But Chris does not know where all of the tools go to get put back up anyway. I dont know what to do about this.

After pondering on all of this while sweeping up in the garage, I thought how cool it is going to be getting his kart finished so soon. Well hopefully finished this weekend. This is so much quicker than me and Steve have ever been able to accomplish anything. Especially something like this type of major upgrade before.

Well thinking about it a little more, any of our projects that required a serious amount of cash to further it along, would have been a major set back to doing much more until we rounded up the necessary funds. So much as I liked a great project, when having to spend hard to come by cash really did slow down some things.

I probably spend a lot more in very small increments than really am aware of. I do have a ton of projects going on all the time. Unfortunately most of them fail due to lack of adequate funding. If I could just stay focused on one project to the end, would likely be able to finish a few of them more often.

Friday afternoon could not get here soon enough. I have been pumped all day with my mind focused on helping Chris get his kart put back together. My last class seemed to drag on forever. I swear the second hand on the wall clock in class was taunting me going around so slowly.

Finally the bell rang and I was free for the weekend. Thankfully, I didnt even have any home work to deal with either. We took the bus home today. Sometimes mom picks us up and other times Steves dad even drops by to take us home. There have been a couple of times we missed the bus and actually walked all the way home.

The first time me and Steve walked home was spooky. I knew the railroad track close to the school runs all the way to our side of town. But to follow the track took some serious guts. It is something guys our age just didnt do. Well not alone without anyone else knowing where we were.

We followed the tracks what sure seemed like forever. This track weaved way back into the boonies. I had no idea the woods were so thick in no mans land. Almost like cut thru an untamed wilderness. Reminded me of the Tarzan movies with Johnny Weissmuller. We could have been attacked by some natives living back there and no one would have ever known what happened to us.

Finally some signs of places I recognized. When the tracks crossed over the creek, just down from the White Rock Lake spillway, I knew we were not too far from our destination. Unfortunately at this point we still had nearly two miles of uphill walking left to go.

The big scare traveling thru the unknown here is there are two tressels that had to be crossed. They were long enough to think about the possibility of a train might be coming while we were too far to turn back. And naturally the train was too close for us to do anything but jump. Like you always see in the movies.

Since a train doesnt usually run this time in the afternoon, we were not really in any danger. But we didnt know this when first taking our journey. Both times we did follow the tracks home, it was only natural to stop at the tressels and put an ear down to the railroad iron.

This is what I remember seeing in those movies when train tracks were being traveled on by foot. So obviously that is what I had to do. But what was it supposed to sound like? Did it just vibrate or could you really hear the train coming? Was it rolling around the bend?

Wow, some of the thoughts that goes thru my mind when sitting on the bus waiting until our stop comes up. It took forever, but really not any longer than usual. Just today I had a reason to get home soon as possible.

Steve actually had some homework to do in math class. He did manage to get it all finished before arriving at our pit stop. There was this one problem that stumped him, so he asked me.

I looked at what was not much more complicated than what we had for math the last couple of years in elementary school. Well it was a more complex fractional equation. This equation took a moment to work it out in my head.

He got mad when I told him the answer right off. Man I need to keep my grades up, so dont jerk me around. If you dont want to help me out, then just say so. Oh heck never mind, I will figure it out eventually.

A few minutes later Steve had solved the problem, then looked over at me. Man, you dont even have to try and you are still a jerk. OK, so it was the right answer. Why didnt you say that to begin with?

About this time our bus stopped at the 7-11 where we got out with over half of the of the other students. Hey man, I will try to drop by. Maybe even spend the night if you want the extra help. Later.

One quick visit inside of the store to grab a few bottles of Mountain Dew and one large bag of M&M's. I dont know all what Chris wants to snack on, but this should be good enough for now. He can easily run up here later to get something else more to his liking.

I hurried down the alley and made a quick u-turn right up into the backyard. There sitting outside at the patio table is where I saw Chris. Hey Terry, sure glad you finally decided to get home. I have been waiting for like all afternoon. I was wondering if you would ever get here tonight.

Sorry Chris, this junior high stuff is a lot more of a headache than last year. I am worn out from the weeks work, so dont expect too much from me right now. I also got chewed out by Steve for helping him on a math problem. So my brain decided to go on a long needed vacation this weekend.

Chris sort of chuckled at what I said. OK, well I was just kidding anyway. I only got here a few minutes ago. Your mom is so nice. She invited me inside to watch tv while I was waiting on you. But I said sitting out here would be fine. I got all the parts for my kart. I already checked and made sure everything came in.

Fish took me to that guy Pappy Neals house and we picked up a lot of the parts Wednesday. Most of them are used, but in great shape. He saved a bunch of money on the parts this way.

I went ahead and got all four matching wheels. They are 5 inch Go-Power wheels. The ones that are made out of Magnesium. I think they are so cool looking too. Way better than those stamped out steel dolly wheels like Fish calls them that are on my kart.

Oh anyway, this Pappy guy, well he lives over in Garland close to where I do. He paints houses for a living. He is like a real old guy too. I figure he must be almost 50 or so. At first I thought he was just some grouchy old man because the way he acts.

I was looking at everything and getting too interested, well nosy, checking out all the cool stuff. There are a bunch of karts in the garage. He was real nice to me and answered a whole bunch of questions I was asking him. Fish said I was going on way overboard, but the more I talked to Pappy, the more he seemed to lighten up and enjoyed me being there.

He even gave me a can of Kartane to try out. He suggested mixing with my gas to run in the Clinton. He said it will make the engine fly. I should notice a major big difference. Well until the motor blows up. Just make sure I mix in enough Blendsall castor or it will likely blow up even sooner. I dont think he is a big fan of bushing motors.

He had asked me what class I was running. He laughed when I told him the bushing class. In a deep gruff voice Chris said imitating Pappy, If that damdid engine blows up, dont be bringin it over here spectin me to fix it. I dont allow them in my garage.

I asked him what he thought of that Steens oil you had mentioned about. He said it was good oil, but hard to better how good the lubri, lubricisi, well something to do with how good castor is. If the Steens works for me, then no reason to change. But he didnt know how it would work if mixed with Kartane.

So I never asked you what oil I should be using. The metal engine tag on the shroud says Mobiloil 30wt mixed 1/2 pit to a gallon of Mobil gas. Oh yea, Mobiloil Outboard 30wt is also on that tag. The boat motor oil is a whole lot more expensive. I have run both but couldnt tell any difference. Well the boat motor oil does not smoke nearly as much.

Anyway the wheels, axle and bearings I bought from Pappy are used, but look like almost new. The steering shaft is a new Azusa kit. He had lots of these kits too. Something about a major rule change for next year. The steering wheel, I think is a Covico? Is that right? It is that one like Bug karts have. He runs Bug karts too. They look wickedly awesome. He said they are heavier than some other brands, so might not be the best choice for the bushing class.

I had already decided on the Azusa steering wheel, but this one was slightly cheaper, because it is used. They had flipped the kart it was on and bent the steering shaft. You can see a small scuffed spot here, but I glued it back down and almost doesnt show now. Sure does look a lot better anyway. I like how thick the padding is.

At first I was convinced the finger grooves on that Azusa steering wheel would be perfect. It really looks like something professional for racing. But once grabbing a good hold of this one, I was sold on it. It saved two dollars, and I like it a lot more now after comparing the two together.

Pappy also told me that Airheart brakes are the best he has ever used. He sort of laughed when I told him I had decided on the Bendix drum brake. But that was before he knew I was racing in the bushing class.

He said in the next few years the only brakes anybody will be running is Airheart. They are that good. "So I should keep this in mind before spending too much money on brakes later on". Chris said this again in his attempt at a very deep gruff voice to imitate this guy Pappy. But his high pitched tone trying to imitate deep gruff caused me to laugh.

After I told him about all of the things I was doing to my kart and hopefully getting the engine faster, he better understood some of the choices I made. I like Pappy a whole lot now after hanging out there and getting to know him.

So Terry, can we get to working on my kart right now? Or do you need to do stuff first? If you have chores that need to be done today, I can help out with whatever and much as I can.

Thats great Chris. I sure am glad you are offering. When I asked Steve to help me out, he bailed out really quick. So you will be a big help. My dad wanted me to paint the trim around all of the windows on the house today. Oh yea, make sure to scrape the old paint off first.

Then mow the grass, pull weeds, and maybe stain the fence if there was any time left this weekend. Otherwise I am free to do whatever I want to after that. Oh yea, sweep the driveway too. Maybe I should do the yard work first so nothing gets stuck in the wet paint.

Chris was sort of acting hyper with a big smile ear to ear. He just stopped there staring at me as that smile disappeared off his face. Are you serious Terry? You gotta do all that first? Sure sounds like that much work is going to take more than a whole weekend. What about my kart?

Chapter 95

Oh heck no Chris, just joshing you. That is way more more work than I could get done in one weekend anyway. So lets jump right in head first and see all what can be torn up on your kart today. No reason to hold back either. Lets get busy. Well soon as I get out of my school clothes. I know what is going to happen with whatever clothes I do have on. And mom wont be happy if it is in my school clothes.

Chris let out a big sigh of relief first before chuckling in mid breath as he had done a lot when something was funny to him.

Two hours later we were still very busy working on the modified Simplex. Or what is believed to be some variation of a Simplex. Or maybe just a chassis that was built at Simplex. Well I know for sure a kart that was bought used from Simplex.

Steve showed up and gave out a long whistle. Man, ........ someone sure has been busy today. I sure didnt expect to see this kart anywhere close to what you guys have it now. I am seriously impressed. Well impressed you got this much work done without any of my help.

With the short time working on his kart, me and Chris had everything bolted together for a trial fit. We were down to deciding what direction to go with the motor mount. I still had some of the parts off my kart in place. Most everything was just hanging loosely in place, but appeared to be completely assembled. Well until you gave the kart a second once over.

What I had not payed any attention to is the welded on motor mount. I mean we talked about what to do, but didnt bother to check it over very well or at all. It was raised above the dead axle. Not just a flat plate like done on most frames. It was folded down on both sides, then welded to the axle tube. This actually made it very easy to do a full floating motor mount riding on bearings.

But there is one thing that might be difficult. It is that someone had to cut the sides of the mount out so axle bearings could be bolted on. This required precision hacksaw work. After discussing the options with Steve, I looked over to him with a pouting look and puppy sad eyes.

OK, OK I get the message. Hey Chris, can I help you cut out your motor mount? I just love to play with a hack saw. You know just in case it is something way over your head and you might not feel comfortable trying to get right the first time. This is one of those things there is no room for error. If you screw up, it has to be replaced.

Steve has gotten very good with using the hack saw. Almost to the point of not needing much if any cleanup after he is done cutting. But cutting out those large holes for the axle bearings to fit will be a headache. I dont have any hole punches that big.

Me and Steve started discussing what was at our disposal that could make the openings for the bearings. First we considered drilling a few thousand small holes next to each other just inside of the actual scribed diameter of the opening. That seemed like a possibility. But would be a real pain to do it that way. It required someone to spend a ton of time grinding and filing after the piece was broken out.

Hey Steve, I got a better idea. After you layout the scribe marks and what needs to be cut, drill a 3/8 inch pilot hole in center of where the bearings go. Then use the 1 1/4 inch punch to make it big. The biggest hole punch I have should work now to go around and follow the scribed circle lines until most of the material is chipped out in small pieces. I think that will work. Got it?

It wont be perfect, but should not leave too much to clean up with the die grinder or maybe a smaller grinding wheel on the hand drill. If you can rough it out close, I bet Chris should be able to finish the rest of it up by himself.

This whole time Chris stayed quiet but seemed focused on what I was trying to explain to Steve. I could tell Chris had questions or just the gears grinding, since he didnt know what some of the tools were I had mentioned about to Steve.

Chris, why dont you help Steve do whatever you can. You know like keep him from cutting his fingers off. Sometimes he needs a spare hand or eyes. This way you will know exactly what he is doing. Chris brightened up and was ready to do whatever he could without knowing what it was he would actually be doing.

Steve set things up so Chris could use the hack saw cutting on a scribed line. No sooner than Chris started to cut, Steve yelled, STOP! No Chris, that is completely wrong! You are only using the center of the blade and loading down on it dragging backwards. All you are doing is ruining the blade. Steve was very in your face telling this to Chris.

Chris sort of bowed up immediately, but kept his mouth shut. Here pay close attention and watch exactly what I do here. Dont apply too much down force or the blade will get hot and warp. Make slow steady strokes, using as much of the length blade as possible. DO NOT EVER exert downward pressure when pulling the blade backwards. This will just knock the sharp edges off the teeth that much quicker.

Notice how smooth and steady I am doing it here. You dont ever get in a hurry when working with a hack saw. OK, you got it now? Dont disappoint me and remember dont get in a hurry. Keep your eyes on the line too. Adjust early so you dont cut across it. Here you go. Dont break anything either. Those blades cost like $50 a piece. So be very careful.

When Chris heard this he was very reluctant to proceed. Go ahead Chris, get to cutting. The mount wont make itself. I can wear out that blade just as easily as you can. But I would prefer you replacing it, not me.

During this whole hack saw cutting lesson Steve kept a stern and straight face. I could tell he was just short of busting out laughing.

The funny thing is I can see Steves dad acting the same way explaining to him how to use wood working tools at his cabinet shop. Strong and stern. Especially some outrageous price to replace something that gets broken. Steve had been down this road many times in recent years. Now is payback time for him.

It took about two hours for Chris under Steves strict and controlled supervision to finally get the motor mount looking like we had in mind. It is sort of cross between the new swing mount Azusa recently came out with and the Dart A-bone swing mount.

While both of them were working together on converting over the motor mount, I sat back in the desk chair in the corner tossing up M&M's in the air. Then trying to catch each one in my mouth. Followed this up by drinking down a nice cold Mountain Dew for a much needed sugar fix.

That Azusa swing mount has the bearings centered to the length of mount itself. The only way to make any chain adjustments is bolting on the style mount that raises up and down. Not so much back and forth.

The Dart mount has axle bearings offset to the back of the plate. Basically the mount sits more in front of the axle. The slots are very long so you can move engine forward or back a bunch.

Since we were limited to what could be done on this mount, it is sort of in between those two other ones. There is some adjustment, just not a lot like on a Dart swing mount. But way more forward than the Azusa style mount. So it will at least allow for some decent chain adjustment. Well that is the plan here.

Even tho an Azusa mount is slotted, the axle is centered between those slots. You can make adjustments back and forth, but not enough to make any difference to the chain.

When discussing this with Steve, there was no mention about the swing mounts on Franks Dart proto kart special one off wannabe. Well those swing mounts dont even look nice as the one Steve just made from a dead axle mount. But they are prototypes, so that makes them special you know.

Chris was totally silent while staying so focused on making the mount become a reality. But the determined look on his face told me everything. He watched Steve do his magic using the biggest hole punch I had trying to make even a much bigger opening for the bearings to fit in.

After Steve finished roughing out the bearing holes, he handed it back over to Chris. OK, show me your stuff kid. Finish this off and make it look nice. No rough or sharp edges either. I am going to use your neck to find out just how good of a job you do.

Chris went pale white then his eyes got big. OK, uh, Steve I will try to do my best. Will you help me if I have any problems?

Yea sure Chris, no trouble at all. Then Steve pointed shaking his finger at him. But just remember, if you bleed out, you get an F on your shop project. Then Steve went into laugh mode. Chris was still not sure if Steve was joking or being serious.

Steve plopped his butt down on the desk holding a hand out for some M&M's. Now where is my drink? We talked while Chris stayed focused working on the motor mount. Sorry Steve didnt buy any Cokes today, but.... As he grabbed one of the other drinks, Guess this will just have to do.

So far, all afternoon Chris had stayed busy working nonstop. He looked very determined to get that motor mount finished. But it was time for a break. Hey Chris, you wanna take a breather?

Heck yea, I am very thirsty as he watched me and Steve waving our drinks out in front of him. He looked around for the bottle opener since we were already drinking ours. I pointed to the edge of the desk. Chris just looked down not understanding.

Steve grabbed the bottle setting bottom of cap on edge of the desk. With a quick wack using the palm of his hand that cap flung across the garage. Chris took the Mountain Dew and turned up the bottle until it was empty. Wow that was good. You got another one?

Sorry Chris, only water. I said this while pointing to the garden hose outside. Chris went out and filled up the bottle then turned it up like he did the Dew. After a few minutes of resting his fingers, Chris jumped back on his motor mount. This time he had a renewed interest or just a burst of extra energy. For the rest of the evening he stayed working on the mount until it was completely finished.

About ten o'clock dad made an appearance. He worked late tonight and was tired. But he was not working any this weekend. After looking over everything, dad was impressed. Guys this looks good. Especially that motor mount.

I see you converted it over to a swing mount. Nice job. Good clean edges here too. This should work great. Whos idea was this? You guys are using your noggins for a change.

This is one of those times dad is complimenting me or us by not actually giving out one. I am glad he does it this way. Otherwise my head could swell up way too big. I know Steves head would get massive. But not hard to deflate it when the rare times that does happen. Chris was sporting a very big smile on his face.

Dad that was all Steves idea. I didnt even pay attention to the mount. Originally we never gave it any thought. We never looked at it that closely. I guess we did, but didnt think about making it into a swing mount at first. Just hoping the frame would not be too difficult converting over to a live axle.

Naw man, not really my idea, I just made the suggestion making into a swing mount. I didnt even think about cutting it out this way for the bearings to bolt on. I figured it would need some bearing hangers welded to the sides.

Well everything is looking good. If you have any problems, let me know before it gets too late. I am tired and dont plan on staying up much longer. You guys dont make an all nighter this time. Get to bed before the sun comes up.

Oh yea, one more thing, your mom is serving breakfast at 7:30. Yes in the morning. I expect all three of you to be in attendance. The whole time dad was staring right at me. You guys can get an early start this way with some fresh rested brain cells to work with.

We spent a couple more hours beating on the kart. Chris had done a lot of work this whole time and was tired. I was getting cranky. Some things were just not fitting right. Stupid little mistakes that are taking way too much time. OK guys, I am done. It is bed time.

Chris brightened up with this being said. I looked over at him and realized he was covered in dirt from top to bottom. All of that grinding and filing left a coat of dust covering him completely. Well except for around his eyes where the saftey goggles covered up. And two spots where he was breathing out his nose.

I am taking a shower first. Chris, you are on deck. Steve you are on your own. I am hitting the hay right after I clean up. When I walked back in from the shower, Chris zipped past me in a blur. I had just dried off and sitting down trying to relax when Chris popped back in all clean.

Dang Chris, that wasnt even five minutes. You actually look clean too. I had to take the hot water for a while just to loosen up. My muscles were sore after working all afternoon.

Yea Terry, I know. That is why I was out so soon. Somebody used up all the hot water. You can get real creative getting cleaned up when there is a reason. Like the water getting cold.

Sorry Steve. You gotta wait.

No problem. I am crashing on the easy chair. Besides I didnt really do much work tonight, so will just pass on it. Heck I might just hit it in the morning. Like way before you even think about getting up. I will have all the hot water I want. You guys spent a lot more time working than I did today. I am not the one that looked like my body was used to sweep up the floor. He said this while grinning right at Chris.

It didnt take any time before I was sound asleep. But thinking about getting up early didnt set too well. At least there is no reason to use the alarm clock. Not that I usually hear it anyway. My ears have become immune to hearing anything that rings. Chris will have no problem coming in here and waking me up.

Well that was some short lived dreams. Whatever they were didnt keep my attention so much either. Maybe it was too early for me to have those deep sleep dreams. Chris was shaking me to get up. Hurry and get up Terry. Steve just got out of the shower.

I sure dont want your mom mad at you this morning for not getting up. So hurry and get out of bed already. Maybe you should not have gone to bed with wet hair. You have a super funky hairdo.

Again I noticed Chris had his hair looking just like it always does. It is straight and hangs down, almost like it is glued in place.

I slapped cold water on my face and hair. It was a mess. Hopefully the dark rings under my eyes go away. They sure feel heavy right now. This is getting to be too much like real work.

Breakfast could not have tasted any better. Waffles and scrambled eggs with bacon and even sausage. Those little round sausage slices that taste so good. This time I volunteered to wash dishes.

But since we were all working on the kart, Steve and Chris would have to help so I didnt take so long this time. We spent about ten minutes and had everything washed and dried. Mom didnt say a word. Just a new expression of surprise I had not seen on her face before.

Back in the garage things were looking way better today. We had the engine mounted and it looks like everything fits and clears the frame perfectly. There is enough chain adjustment too.

This was one of my initial concerns. The thought of having to use washers under the motor mount never worked for me. Just like using a half link on the chain. It aint right that way. No way no how.

Shortly before lunch time we had the kart completely assembled just like it was race ready. Steve then made the suggestion, since we were going to tear it all down anyway to finish the welding, why not paint the frame before final assembly?

Chris went hyper with this suggestion. Can we Terry? Is it a lot of work to do something like that? It would be so cool to have a new looking kart.

From seeing him so excited, how could I say no? Sure Chris you can do a quick sand job, then maybe brush some enamel paint on. You have your choice of any color I have here in the garage. That would be a partial quart of black. So what color do you want to paint your frame?

I dont really know. It is not something I have given much thought until now. So would black be too much trouble to paint it? Chris went into deep hysterics after his attempt to being funny.

I tried to hold a straight face right up until Steve let loose. No Chris I think you should paint your frame black instead. It will look a lot better. Then I had to give in and join the laughter.

So for the rest of the day we all scraped and cleaned up the frame. We sanded and sanded some more. Then brushed on a thick coat of some good industrial gloss black enamel. It would remain here for the night and hopefully ready for final assembly tomorrow.

Dad came in after we finished washing up from the poor attempt at painting without making a huge mess. Naturally we failed miserably.

Any you guys interested in making a trip across town to South 77 Kart Strip?

They run the races on Thursday and Saturday nights. If I am not mistaken Saturday night is coming up fairly quickly. So if you guys want to go, we can take off in a little while.

Chapter 96

It took a good thirty minutes for us getting cleaned up. The amount of paint wasted mostly ended up on our hands and floor. We used up a lot of paint thinner to take care of the mess. Well mostly focused on our hands getting clean. I had first started washing off everything with some carbon tetracholoride, but that stuff is just way too strong smelling. It sure works well, but makes my head go all dizzy.

So not long after getting cleaned up we all piled in the Ranchero. We are now headed towards downtown and even crossed over the Trinity River. This is also the first time I have been to this side of the river and actually paying attention to it. A lot bigger than I had originally thought. I dont even remember any reason ever riding this far across Dallas before now. We ended up in what I always heard people referring to as Oak Cliff. But have no idea what is here or who lives over on this side of town

We took the Houston Bridge crossing over the Trinity River headed on the way to the track. Dad wanted to see how far the construction of the new interstate had taken it. He said this new super highway literally split Oak Cliff in two. There was this huge wide road. It is weird seeing the interstate, big as it was just stopped up ahead. That is far as construction had taken it so far.

The new highway just crossed over the river and stopped right at where the Dallas Zoo is. Dad told us the zoo had first opened back in 1888. Well that is what he remembers about it. He had been here many times over the years starting around our age.


Interstate 35 construction

After checking out what some day will connect the other major cities south of Dallas nearly in a straight line, the Ranchero was headed back on course to the track. We drove up Zang Blvd and turned up on Jefferson during our sight seeing.

As dad was driving, telling us when he used to take mom to one of the the movie theaters over here. He pointed out the Texas Theatre as we passed by. He also told us when it had first opened coming here to watch silent movies staring Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin when he was just a young tike.


Texas Theatre

We turned left, then left again finding ourselves crossing Beckley. It looks like Beckley is Hwy 77. This is a very old part of town. Dad said most of this side of town dates all the way back in the 1880's. Some of the homes are really big. There are full wrap around porches on a lot of the bigger homes. Wow there are even wrap around porches upstairs on some of them.

We went down the road a ways, turned back around, then drove up to the parking lot at the track. I was surprised to find out not too far down Beckley it was still just like wilderness. The only thing missing were cows grazing. But farther down the road there they were.

As we got out of the truck, I looked all around. It was nothing but fields and weeds this far out around everywhere. But the track was huge. It is awesome looking. Nothing at all like the small Fabens track. According to a flyer I picked up after asking around, the track is 1/4 mile long and has a 400 ft straightaway. This is one impressive looking track. I am sold. Where do I sign up?


South 77 Strip pic

Wow dad, this place is awesome. How come we have not been here before? It is not that far from home. I know we would have to leave a lot earlier to get here on time. But wow, this track looks cool.

This whole time Chris never said a word. His eyes were wide open and been focused on the track layout since we piled out of the truck. Hey Terry, do they have a junior class? Do you think they would let us race here? I have never seen such an awesome track before. Well for karts anyway. This place is so cool looking.

I dont know any more than you do right now, Chris. Lets go find out what classes race here tonight. Come on Steve. Hey Steve, whats wrong? Your mouth is hanging wide open.

Uh, wow, this place is just WOW. Do you think we could start racing out here instead of Fabens? This place is ..... well just like I said WOW. Lets go check everything out. Come on, whats holding you guys up?

After about an hour of roaming around, we came up on some karts I had heard about, but until now never seen. I mean I remember seeing the Hornet karts in ads. But these dont look like any of those models I remember reading about.

The Hornet karts I saw in ads were built by Mercury Machine in Waco. But they were just like most of the older models that had been changed over from dead axles. Two straight rails running back with conventional seat and steering hoop. I remember the seat looked like it might sit slightly more upright than a lot of the others. But that is just from checking out ads in the magazines.


Hornet kart ad

The karts here tonight are totally different. The frame rails were slightly angled up and back with a tub that dropped down below the main rails a good four inches. The upholstery was a plush black tuck and roll that looked very comfortable.

I immediately noticed how the rear frame rails were running over the axle. This is nothing like the earlier models. A design that is sort of like a lot of those karts from California. But all of them were really different when you set them side by side and compare up close to each other.

As I was staring down at the three karts, a very friendly gentleman introduced himself. I am Jack Peck. These are the new karts we just came out with in the last year. So far they have been very successful. My son will be racing in several classes tonight.

Hey Richard, come over here and meet some guys. I saw a much younger man, really about the same age as my brother in college. He had a big smile on his face and looked a lot like his dad.

Oh by the way, I didnt catch your name. This is my son, Richard. He will be racing tonight in several classes with the three karts you see here. This one he will be running in A-Standard, the other one there with a Mc 20 will be in A-Super, and the dual Mc10's will be running in B-Open.

I stood there sort of in awe, since my ears went deaf while studying over the se neat looking karts. Must have caught the same thing Steve had a while ago. I was speechless. Chris finally nudged me and brought me out of my trance.

His name is Terry, my name is Chris. This other speechless lugnut here is Steve. It is nice to meet you guys. These karts are really nice looking.

Jack went on to tell us some history. Well we got hammered at the GKCA Nationals last year in California, so back to the drawing board. We came up with this completely new design. So far I am really satisfied with the results. All three karts here are of the same S-85 model design.

While Chris was speaking for me and Steve, since we were still so enamored by these karts, my mind kept looking over at how simple the kart was. The frame was made of a lot larger tubing than all of the others out here.

Well the frame rails are bigger than any other kart I have actually seen in person. I am sure there are some models made from large tubing, just nothing comes to mind right now. I wonder how these handle?

The frame runs back flat until the steering upright. Then angles up to the seat hoop. It runs back to the axle parallel to the front section. Oh yea like I mentioned earlier the rails sit over the rear axle. I guess there are some other frames like this. But I have not seen any of them at Fabens yet. Well except for the Rupp and Go-Kart 800 models.

There is a big difference with these karts compared to the Go-Kart 800  I saw last spring when the factory drivers were making their way thru. Those frames are one inch diameter and had two bends close together making up the offset the frame. This Hornet S-85 has smaller angled bends farther apart that offsets up to the seat frame then bends back parallel to the front section.

The Go-Kart 800 has what might be two 60 degree bends close together offsetting the frame rails. The Hornet S-85 has two smaller bends more like like at 30 degrees, but much farther apart offsetting the frame rails.  

Without even making introductions, I was already asking questions. These karts look really awesome. Can I ask you something about the front end?

Oh I am sorry, my name is Terry Bentley. It is nice to meet you, uh, Mr Peck? Is that right? And you said your son here is Richard? I am horrible with names. It is a real pleasure to meet both of you. I really like your karts. They are awesome looking.

So these karts, you said are made in Waco? Is that the shop close to the airport?

Yes, my shop you are referring to is Mercury Tool and Machine. But we have just opened up a new company solely for the kart business. It is P-R Enterprises. This is strictly focused on the production of kart related products.

You said your name is Bentley? Are you one of Jims sons? Is he out here tonight? Yes sir, I am the third and youngest son. My dad is around here somewhere. I think we sort of ditched him after arriving at the track.

Well it is really nice to meet all of you guys tonight. You were asking about the front end of the kart? What is it you wanted to know?

Oh yea, the front end is what I have question about. I noticed you dont have much geometry in the spindles. It looks like there is a lot of caster, but no king pin inclination or camber. I was just curious about that. Oh yea, one more thing. I see these karts have only a 1/2 inch steering shaft. Is this something that is going to be changed?

There is a reason for asking tho. I got the chance to drive a Dart kart and it only had a 1/2 inch shaft. When Frank, the guy that owns it was driving, he twisted that thing up all over the place. It was almost not fixable at the track that day. Both of our karts, well mine and Steves have the 5/8 inch shaft. It is almost impossible to bend. Well from what I found out so far. Even after a major wreck that steering shaft was barely bent.

Another reason I am asking about the front end, is well, we both own Cates karts. They have a ton of king pin inclination and I dont think nearly as much caster. But the kart handles really well without binding in the tighter turns.

Well you do have a good eye for detail. After a lot of track testing, we found out with this particular frame design, and is so lightweight, that caster is all is needed to make the kart handle like we were working to achieve.

For the weight of the combined chassis and driver, all we needed was caster to make it drive fast thru the turns without binding up so much. Now if the kart was a lot heavier, then maybe add some king pin inclination for a better weight transfer to the rear wheels.

The three karts you see here are some of the very first ones we made last year after the Nats. These have been raced three to four times every week for almost a year to see how well they hold up. The current production models have already been converted over to the larger 5/8 inch diameter shaft to meet next years IKF regulations.

OK, that makes a lot of sense. I also noticed the frame rails run over the top of the axle. A lot different compared to your old frame design and a bunch of others like it. But you also use this large tubing. That I have not seen before.

Well after a lot of testing the 1 1/4 inch tubing with thinner wall works better compared to the more common one inch tubing frames. We tested both sizes and  decided the larger tube was definitely the way to go. At least it is working on our karts.

We ended up with a stronger and lighter frame made this way. There are some upgrades we are working on that might even make this a better handling chassis, but still mostly in the design stages. So far we are seeing some great potential. Unfortunately these changes would add considerable weight to the chassis.

This current kart design of the S-85 is our lightest frame right now. We hope to get that down another pound of two on our next model. But right now the frame is very solid and strong at 85 pounds for a race ready chassis in the single engine classes.

Since we have been testing this frame non stop for almost a year, there have only been a few minor improvements made. The overall design has proven more than satisfactory.

Over the next ten minutes Mr Jack Peck went into a complete rundown in every detail about the new Hornet S-85 kart and its beginnings. I was glued to every word listening to him intently and uninterrupted from Steve or Chris until his pitch was finished.

Chapter 97

Mr Jack Peck, owner extraordinaire of Mercury Tool and Machine proceeded to give me the whole rundown on their products. He started out explaining all about the S-85 to me directly. His eye contact was fixed on mine for most of the sales pitch. If I was shopping for a new kart, he would have sold me after his dissertation of the history and development of the Hornets karts.

You see, we worked on the initial new design and have been developing this kart, known as the S-85, right after having a very horrible showing at the 1960 Azusa Nationals last year. I had actually sketched a layout of the frame on a napkin during the very long and arduous drive back from California.

[Writing all of this down in the journal took some time. I actually had to look up how to spell arduous. Also to find its meaning. This word stuck in my head the whole time Mr Peck was selling his product line.]

Initially after we had a working chassis, Richard and Yeada De Armon campaigned our first Hornet S-85 for the ba1ance of the 1960 racing season. They were racing 5 nights a week with a Mc 6 engine. Racing 3 nights a week here in the Dallas area while the other nights in Central Texas. The results we faired are incredible too. Out of 72 starts, there were 57 First Place finishes, and 12 Second Places, with only 3 DNF's.

So as for the name, S stands for Super and the 85 is for 85 pounds complete race ready weight which originally included a Mac 6 engine. We are on the final version of our chassis right now in full production.

As of this date there are 3 main versions of the S-85 kart. These three here are the first ones originally made. Many of the improvements have already been made on these particular karts here tonight. All of them are built using 1 1/4" OD X .065 wall 4130 Chromoly tubing, dropped steel seat pan with aluminum floor pan, and 7075 T-6 aluminum alloy centerless ground axle with staggered keyways.

The first production karts after our initial testing in mid summer last year were equipped with a small round two quart tank, and Hovey mechanical brake with a welded plate that accommodated an aluminum motor mount. Hands aluminum wheels, and a long throttle cable are among the main items unique to this first model.

On the next version, we incorporated changes adding Go-Power Wheels and a long chrome swing mount which floated on extra axle bearings and was anchored to the frame via a tab, secured in rubber bushings. This version also included an Airheart Brake that became standard equipment. Now along with Kurtis Kart, are the first production models to offer the Airheart Hydraulic Self Adjusting Disc Brake. A Bendix mechanical drum brake is offered for anyone that chooses against the Airheart brake.

We changed the reinforced plastic steering wheel over to the Covico steering wheel. A round Palmini chrome fuel tank was another one of the changes made early on.

That long throttle cable was originally on these karts here, but have already been changed over. We went with a much longer steel rod and very short cable. Then more recently, we changed the fuel tank again to the Chilton.

Our final version came out just a few months ago. We are referencing this one as the 1962 model for next year. The steering shaft is now legal per the 1962 rule changes. We made some motor mount changes for more versatility. We now have a very short stubby swing mount which utilizes a vertically adjustable side plate. The mount is attached using an aluminum clamp on the rear crossmember, which allows the owner to position the mount anywhere desired, along with adding a second or third one for more engines.

Right now Richard thinks the current model kart is about good as it is going to get for handling. No complaints at all.

To do the testing we have been running at every track we can make here in the state and the surrounding ones. Especially at the bigger races. Tomorrow we will be racing back in Waco. Then next Thursday start all over again.

Normally we are racing here on Thursdays, but there is no racing tonight since they are adding a new pit strip running inside the full length of the track right now. So we raced here Thursday and then last night over in Ft worth. Then back here again.

So are you guys racing tonight? There sure is a lot of juniors that run regularly out here. You mentioned something about having a couple of Lynns karts?

Well almost. It is sort of a long story. I ended up with one that was completely trashed out last spring. We worked all summer fixing the wrecked frame then copied it building another one. So both of them are sort of Cates karts.

Mr Cates has been a great help with getting both of the karts built. Without his generosity and advice, there is no way we would even have a single kart ready to race right now. I owe him a lot for everything he has helped us with.

Hum, I remember hearing about a kid getting in a tangle at the Fabens track last spring. We dont usually run there very often tho. They said the kart was beyond repairable. Never heard anything about the driver. You know like who it was or if he got hurt bad.

Well that might have been me going for a test flight in outer space. The kart was completely destroyed. Fortunately I was not really hurt. Only shaken up a little bit. But sure dont remember very much past the point of lift off. Jack and Richard both got a good laugh from my exhortation of that night.

After all of that information from Jack Peck, my mind was again in orbit. But this time, not like from that accident last spring. He was nice enough to give me a brochure. This is a full size ad for the latest S-85. It looks totally wicked too.



1961 Hornet S-85 pic

Chapter 98

Mr Jack Peck was standing proudly over the three S-85 kart sitting here in the pits after the great presentation he gave.

So do I need to worry about having some competition in building karts? You say that one kart is fixed and you also copied it? How are those karts working out for you?

Yes sir. Oh, I mean no sir. This is the only way I thought of actually ever getting a kart of my own. It took a lot of work, but we finally managed to make our first race. It was a whole lot of trouble and a great learning experience for me. I am more confident in my welding abilities now, but no where near where I would like to be yet.

We spent all summer trying to fix that one frame and finally copying it so me and Steve here both have the same thing. The karts worked out very well. I am not disappointed at all in how they handle or even run.

But me and Steve, well now Chris here are going to be racing a lot more in the bushing class together. It is all I can afford anyway. I would really like to race in a faster class, but sure cant afford those new McCulloch or Power Products engines everyone else is running up front with.

Well boys there is nothing wrong with racing in the bushing class. You can really learn how to drive when there is not so much power to compensate for mistakes. You have to be smooth and not get too crazy in the tighter turns or will loose all of your momentum. Once that is gone, your race is over.

Dont knock the class just because it is slower. When you can afford to move up, you will appreciate the driving experience you have gained. It will help out a lot when setting up your kart to handle the extra power better too.

When there is very limited power to work with, the kart has to be spot-on perfect or you go backwards. You have to drive using your head instead of your right foot thru the turns. Because if you try to make a risky pass and scrub off too much speed, it was for nothing. You loose everything. Sometimes you can loose several positions too.

I try to recommend new drivers considering starting out with a practice motor. Something like the old Clinton or any of the bushing motors. Most people dont know how to take care of their equipment, so a cheap engine to start out with makes sense.

Unfortunately those same people dont want to learn how to work on or even drive a kart first. They want something fast that is race ready. So that is what we are developing. A great handling kart with the most common motors that run up front.

Past that, we cant do much else unless they take the time to learn what to do with what they have. There are still other people that come back and want the engine modified and with all of the aftermarket parts.

So that is what we give them. But still suggesting they spend time learning how to drive and set up the kart. I dont know how many calls we get complaining about getting beat by someone else with about the same equipment.

I have even put Richard in their kart for one heat race to find out what the problem is. He almost always runs up front with the fastest in the class. Doesnt win every time in someone elses kart, but sure doesnt end up somewhere in the back where the owner usually runs.

What I find irritating is how someone lets their equipment just sit between races. Then expects it to run fast as someone else that spends a lot of time keeping up and taking care of their karts.

I dont know how many times we do nothing but change a spark plug or adjust tire pressure for some of our recent customers so the kart is running like it did when they first bought it.

Other times the frame has been in a wreck or some bolts has been over tightened. But we get blamed until finding the culprit and fixing for free. Just to save from loosing a customer.

But usually Richard might make a few minor adjustments on some and then can run right up there in front. But we cant be doing that with every customer that buys a kart from us. We would never get a chance to race for ourselves to keep improving the karts.

Well anyway, tell your dad to drop by and say hello. We need to get the karts ready for tonights race. It was very nice to meet all of you. I hope to see you out here to race very soon too. We will be running up here a lot for the rest of this year.

Yes sir. It was nice to met you and Richard. Thanks for your time and the information about the karts. I am very impressed with what you have here.

We went about looking at all of the other karts that will be running tonight. The atmosphere here is not anything like what we had to endure at Fabens. You can feel the energy and excitement in the air.

This track is something else. I cant even explain it. But I have not been to any other track but Fabens. I would love to start racing at this track. It is not much farther to drive from home either. OK, it might not be ten minutes from there. But still not too bad. The distance to drive is a little farther. It did take us nearly 45 minutes to get here.

It was getting dark and the races were about to start up and going. First thing happening is time trials. I have thought about time trialing and on the fence about it. I do like drawing for position, instead of fast guys always start in front.

I have always thought the real winner of a race has to beat everyone in the class. If someone time trials fastest, then he is only outrunning everyone else. To drive thru the pack or battle for your position is real racing. Starting out front and maintaining your position is nothing more than fastest lap time. I will now get off my soapbox.

At this track if you get fast time in your class, you are almost guaranteed the win for the night. That is if you dont slow down during your race. But if someone passes you, just make some adjustments for the next heat and try again to get your position back.

The third heat almost predetermines who the winner is going to be. But just winning the third heat doesnt make you the winner. It is a total of points from the three heat races. If everyone has a bad running in the first two heats, then you only know who has the most points. If the leader fails to hold position in final heat, the finish is still up for grabs.

So your time trial determines your starting position. The finish of that first heat is the starting position for the second heat. Adding the points from your finish position from the two heats determines the lineup of the third heat.

What I dont like with time trials is if someone sets fast time, he starts first. If no one gets around him, he starts in the pole position for all three heats. So he doesnt get any real driving time against the other karts. Only holding on to his position or just blocking like I have seen happen way too many times before.

I know all of the professional racing is more or less done this way. But I dont see how you can get any real driving experience just starting up front all the time. If you can maintain your lap time, nobody should be able to make a pass. The same for the second heat race.

The final heat race is combined points of the first two races. If you dont get passed in the first two heats, almost gurantees the same finish position. You have fast time, no mistakes, then you are the winner.

Obviously there is the human factor. You botch the start. Someone else gets a jump on you out of a turn. The driver on outside pole cuts you off. If he causes you to give it up you position, then you have to get back around him. This does require some more talent than just turning the fastest lap time.

Another very important thing is your kart must be handling the same throughout the whole race. You might make an initial fast lap time, but then your kart slows down as the race progresses. This is a real problem that you would have to be good enough at setting up the chassis to maintain your speed on every lap.

I guess yet another possibility is someone gets faster as the race progresses. Your kart might be a little bit loose on the first few laps. But then as the tires get hot or the track gets more hooked up, your times improve. You make that last second pass and take the checkered flag first.

At Fabens, for the weekend races, you draw for position, so nobody has any real advantage over the other drivers. Well unless you are the flagmans kids racing. They always seemed to line up close to the front at every race, according to Chris. The second heat race is inverted from your draw position. The combination of points from the two heats is your start position for the third race.

If lucky you draw a good start position, then finish close to the front. Second heat you start nearly in the back. If you are decent in traffic, you move up quick enough earning a lot more points. Then the points added up puts you close to the front for the final heat.

You still have to actually race until the last lap if not starting in the number one position. There is a big downside to this type scoring. The third heat race is your actual finishing position for the night. If you break, then your race is over. So someone could easily punt you off the track at the start, then you have no chance to even place.

Drawing for position you end up running against other drivers that may not be anywhere as fast. If they can drive a good defensive line, you may not be able to get around them. So you do get some good driving experience. And probably a lot of complaining from sore losers.

It was surprising the first time we came out to Fabens. That guy Greg Mullins was cussing up a storm about being faster, but he could not get around David Watkins. But that is racing. You dont win if you get beat. Doesnt matter who is faster.

Even tho they did time trial at that race, Greg thought he was faster than David. But he ended up on outside pole because of a little screw up in one of the turns. So for the rest of that night it was just one yelling scene after another. Then Greg Mullins got pitched out for the night.

So after the races he just had to prove it to everyone else who was actually faster. But I was in the way. Or in the wrong place right then. Really I guess I was the reason David didnt go spinning off the track instead of me. I was the reaction to Gregs action against Davids kart. Some of that laws of physics thing going on out there.

Chris had explained to me about those two brothers driving the Westbends. At first they were always starting in front. Well until a lot of complaints from other drivers.

Everyone pulled numbers from the same hat. So you didnt really know where your start position was until the grid sheet was drawn up. You also put your number back in the hat. If someone drew that number again, would be behind the other person in that class that pulled it first.

Chris had also noticed, after all of the complaints, those Westbend drivers would at the worst only be one or two rows back. But the drivers now in front were never any competition to them. They would always be some of the slow racers that never finished anywhere close to the front. These same drivers would also move out of the way if someone was following close behind.

Chris came up with a theory that someone was manipulating the lineup for at least the Junior Bushing class. He rationalized this because of the year end awards they had. There was a one hundred dollar gift certificate to the driver that has accumulated the most points for the given season.

The two Westbend drivers also race regionally. But they dont usually fare so well at other tracks. This is something Chris had filled us in about them. One thing in the brothers favor when there are scheduled regional races, it is a non-points weekend at Fabens.

Chapter 99

When we first arrived, the three of us were checking all of the karts in the pits. There were plenty of makes and models to look all over. There were so many different ones I had no idea of what they were. Chris was pointing out some of the ones he recognized. Then he just dashed off in mid sentence when pointing to one kart as we passed by.

I noticed Chris tear out and running toward a station wagon. There was a family standing at the back with the tailgate down. He quickly offered his help to these people about ready to unload a kart. As me and Steve approached them, Chris was talking up a storm about what was going on and how they have been doing.


McCulloch kart-1


The people were some fellow racers that Chris had met at Fabens earlier this year. Chris is very easy making friends with. He is personable and just someone you like for no better reason because of his personality. When we first met up he was chattering nonstop about what he knew about racing. But now he is more absorbing everything instead of motor mouthing as Steve first put it.

Hey guys, check this out. It is a McCulloch kart. This one is the F-1 model. I think these are cool looking. Oh yea, meet the Thompsons. Mr Thompson was racing out at Fabens when I first started. I have not seen them for several months. His son Ryan will be racing when he gets older.


McCulloch kart-2

Chris was all over this McCulloch kart. He carefully helped Mr Thompson unload the kart from back of their station wagon. Check out the motor Terry. It is the McCulloch Mc6. Sure would be cool to have one of these on our karts to race. Just think how fast they could go. One of these days I hope to get a motor like this.


McCulloch kart-3

Chris was kneeling down next to the kart checking it out. His hands were all over everything about the kart. Wow, this kart sure looks well made. I bet it handles great. Mr Thompson you sure take good care of your equipment. This kart still looks brand new.

Well Topher, it sure is nice to see you again. We have only had the kart for a short time. This is only the second time we have been out here to drive it. So it is almost brand new. I have not seen you out here before. Do you still race at Fabens?      

Yes sir, I am still racing there. It is too close and convenient for me not to. I would love to race out here someday. This track looks so awesome. Maybe I will get the chance one of these days.

Well you might want to make it fairly soon. Rumor has it the new Interstate will be coming right thru here in the next year. So that puts an end to this track. I plan to race out here just long as it is still open. It is a great layout and lots of racers to compete with every week too.

I stopped dead in my tracks after what Mr Thompson just told us. We made it out here to check things out. Then might actually get to race here eventually. Now I just find out the track is marked for termination in the next year. There is a big lump in my throat.

Steve made a big deal about me taking those pictures of Chris just now. He thought it showed the true spirit of kart racers. Then suggested we grab a few more shots of happenings in the pits before the races get started.

I didnt realize how right Steve was after making that suggestion. At first it sort of sounded hammy to me. But looking around the pits, he is spot on about it. There is something about how things feel here tonight. The atmosphere is nothing like at Fabens. Seems most people really enjoyed being out here together.


Trackside 1

There is good feeling in the air. You can make a lot of friends out here, this is for sure. I met Chris that one night right after our first heat race. He was persistent at first, and now I think he is working out to be a great friend.


Trackside 2

We were watching as people sat around together like a big family. You are talking to a fierce competitor on the track, but having a great time socializing between races. At Fabens, it was more like having to watch your back or else ..... It felt that way the first night we raced. But the second time out there, when helping Paul, things went much more smoothly like how it feels out here tonight.


Trackside 3

The races finally got underway. Chris told us what he knew about the Thompsons while we stood outside the fence to catch all of the racing tonight. We could have watched from the bleachers, or in the pits, but it was not nearly up and close to the track as being out here. We ended up walking all the way around the track to watch at each turn. I tried to take every opportunity snapping pictures. But ended up watching the races more than I remembered to use the camera.

There was some awesome racing for sure. Richard Peck ran away with two of the three classes he was entered in. I could not believe how fast his kart looked making laps. It was amazing to watch him drive that kart thru the turns.

I sure wish there was a way to film him out here driving right now. I wanted to go back and watch it in slow motion, just to figure out how he was getting that Hornet S-85 thru the turns so fast. Well maybe one of these days it would be possible for this to happen that I could afford.

I know my grandpa has an 8MM movie camera. I dont know how expensive the film is. But wow, that would be so cool to have a closeup movie made to watch later.

To go back and watch frame by frame, especially in color with so much detail. I might be able to learn a lot on how to drive really well. I wonder what that would look like filming Frank. Naw, that would be a total waste of film.

Richard started on pole in both of the single engine classes. He ran away with it. There was no real contest in either class. He just kept pulling away every lap. It was almost boring after the first few laps.

Well I cant say boring to watch how fast and smooth he was running thru the turns. But the real up and close race was about half a lap back for the second and third place finish. It was almost embarrassing how much difference there was.

What I thought really strange is claiming is allowed out here in some of the stock classes. That means you can make a claim to buy an engine if it wins. I am not sure about the details to do that. But someone can buy that fast engine right out from under you. Or at least an engine that is assumed to be fast.

I saw Jack unbolting the engine from the A-Standard kart after the last heat race and handing it over to someone else. He was laughing about how many hours was already on the engine. It was time for a new one anyway. Before they loaded up to leave, there was already a new engine on the kart.

There was something else that really got my attention in the stock class. I saw only one guy even remotely close to giving Richard any competition. It was a much older guy that was a whole lot bigger than Richard too. Richard had a serious advantage on overall weight. But the cool thing is that other guy was racing a Cates kart.

This old guy racing looked just about consistent as Richard did thru the turns. His exit speed was just as good. But the old man did take it a little bit easier on entry. He backed off slightly earlier, the rolled back on the gas as he exited the turn. His driving was smooth, just not aggressive like Richard.

By the end of every heat race the old man was completely out of steam. He was the only one that stayed close to Richard early on in the race. Unfortunately with every lap, Richard had pulled ahead a few feet. There was a big gap between this old guy driving the Cates and third place kart by end of the race too.


Richard Peck S-85-1

During the dual engine race, Richard really had to work hard for that win. There were several fast karts running. At the start of the second heat race there was a major crash. I mean it was bad from where we were standing. Karts were scattered all over the far end of the track. It took a while to clean everything up.

I was surprised to see four karts taken out for this race tonight. During intermission, we went back in the pits to check over the carnage from that wreck. Nobody got seriously hurt, but the karts didnt fair so well. One of them had gotten air born clipping the kart in front. It made several flips and an end over end before plopping down by the fence.

There was not much left of this kart either. The front end was torn off and frame curled up badly. Even one of the engines was missing. They brought the two karts back on a skid behind a tractor since neither one would have been pushed back in.


Wrecked karts  

On the final heat race Richard and the other guy each had a win and second finish. This time they swapped positions all thru the race. It got down to some side by side running in the last turn before the checkered flag. Richard stuck his nose on the inside and the other driver got loose on the outside then backed off just enough for him to pull ahead. Richard got the win for the night.

There was another S-85 in the dual engine class. A big guy was running a pair of Westbend 700's. He did decent in the first two heats, finishing consistently in third place. But the last heat he was so worn out and done for the night. You could tell by watching he just lost all of his mojo and couldnt keep up the pace with the others.


S-85-4 pic

It was amazing to see how fast those Hornet karts accelerated out of the turns. Dad tried to explain to me that was not the engine making it happen. But the chassis was setup well enough to not bind up in the turns. Staying hooked up but not scrubbing off any speed was the big secret.

Dad continued on telling me about how much more power the other driver had in the duals class. He had stopped by and talked to Jack Peck while we were outside the fence watching the races. He said Richard was running pump gas on stroked but otherwise completely stock Mc 10 engines.

The other driver was running alcohol and nitrobenzene with those new Mc20's that came out earlier this year. They are supposedly fully modified. At least they had dual carburetors. But his kart was binding up a lot in the tighter turns. You could tell this by how much time Richard made up in the turns, but lost some of it on that one long straightaway.

By the time the races were over, I wanted to go back and talk more to Jack and Richard Peck. Jack had already loaded everything up and was getting ready to leave just soon as the awards ceremony was over with.

He did say they were running again at their home track in Waco tomorrow. What a wild time that would be to race four times a week. That would be like actual work, but I sure could get used to doing something like this. I guess turning it into work might eventually not be as fun, but sure would be exciting for a while.

Dad asked me what I thought about those new Hornet karts. I told him they were good looking karts and sure seemed to be handling better than any of the other karts we saw running tonight. I knew there is more to just unloading a kart to getting it around the track faster than the next guy.

Mr Jack Peck and son Richard have done a lot of work designing their new line of karts. Then track testing them all over the state. They know what adjustments are needed to make it handle the best on any given track. After the short time I have been involved, realizing most people dont have any idea of making adjustments on their equipment.

I asked dad what might happen if Richard picked any one of the karts running tonight and spent time working on setup. I wondered if most karts could be made to handle as well as what I had seen tonight with  those Hornet karts.

Dad seemed surprised with both my observation and quirey. Now you are using that thick head again I see. No son, I have told you it is just an expression. Dad smiled big at me when he said this. I dont always know what angle my dad is working. But he has never been someone wasting words on idle chatter.

Well son, I was talking to Jack. You made quiet a first impression with him. He made an offer I tried to refuse more than once. But he insisted that I take him up on it. There is something for you to tinker with sitting in back of the truck. It was destined for the scrap heap, but now there might be a chance it might see some use in the future.    

I was now totally focused on what there was as we headed back to the parking lot. I cant imagine what Mr Peck would have given me. It sure was nice of him to even think about something like that. My mind is going into overdrive while I was picking up the pace as we walked back.

Steve realized this was killing me to find out so goated me into a foot race back to the truck. He yelled, On your mark, Get set, then took off first before saying Go. So naturally he beat me back to the truck.

We were both out of breath arriving at the Ranchero with him barely edging me out for the win. Sorry, Terry, but I figured this might be the only time I beat you in a race. Since you are building my engine, I dont expect it to be any faster than yours. So you got the advantage no matter what.

As he was trying to catch his breath at first, I would risk passing out not first checking to find out what Mr Peck left for me. Sitting in the bed of the Ranchero was one ugly looking light blue kart frame. But not just any old kart frame either.

dang a cliff hanger. 
this is the best thing on the forum in my humble opinion. keep up the great work!
d

Chapter 100

It sure turned out to be a perfect night for racing. Well it might have been if we were racing tonight. Maybe we will have a chance to race out here before the track is gone. I got to meet some awesome people. It was very late already and I dont remember much shortly after we piled in the truck and were headed back home. I must have fallen asleep.

But I did have a million questions by the time dad made his way to the Ranchero before we left. He held his hand up for me to just slow up for a second. In a very casual calm voice, he proceeded to give me the low down. Jack had replaced the frame with a new one for a customer. This frame is one of the earliest S-85 karts they had sold over a year ago.

He was delivering the new chassis all set up to race for a customer here tonight. They decided not to keep the old frame. He also had no plans of taking this frame back with him to the shop in Waco. Jack then thought you might be interested in it to tinker with.

Jack asked me a lot of questions about you guys and your karts. Mainly how much interest you showed in building them. I told him you acted like having more enjoyment in working on the karts than actually racing them. I do realize you dont have it very convenient getting to the track right now.

But I did give him the whole rundown on what you two have done since last spring. It impressed him enough to think about offering to take this off his hands. He did say it was not going to be put to use for anything else. So thought you might enjoy having another project to add to your never ending list of them already.

Wow, Mr Jack Peck had given me an older model S-85 frame that had been retired. It is beat up, but looks solid enough to possibly make use of. The frame had been repaired on the left side in front of the motor mount. This early model has the flat plate welded to the main frame for a motor mount.

So now I own one for myself. But it is only a bare frame with the seat pan welded in. After what Mr Peck explained about the differences, this one still had the long throttle cable, instead of a steel rod running back along the seat. The other karts they were running tonight had already been modified to the newer style.

After dad took a moment he continued with more information. Jack did make a suggestion you might consider. He said you could go ahead and remove that welded mount. Then fabricate a new style swing mount out of box tubing.

I told him what you guys were doing with the kart Chris brought over for an upgrade. Like converting to a live axle. Then even modifying the old motor mount over to full floating type. He then asked my opinion of how that project was coming. I didnt exaggerate when telling him the work you guys did was top notch.

One other thing I probably should not mention to you guys. But Jack told me, in his opinion, that your Cates karts are good as it gets right now. That is one chassis they have tried to work past how well it handles too. If someone knows what they are doing setting one up, will give the S-85 a good run for the money. You guys keep this under wraps too. He will deny ever saying that. So dont repeat it to anyone.

It was about three years ago now, when my oldest brother just had to start racing. My dad went overboard trying to get him something going. But like most projects my brother got started, well that is what happened to all of his projects. They got started, then he lost interest.

Dad thought my brother would stick it out and even start racing, but his interests only wandered off to other things. Mainly focusing on getting his first car, then on to college. My brother usually got way too deep in doing anything that had his attention. But he had a very short attention span.

For whatever reason he would tear apart a perfectly working bicycle, kart, and even that first car he just had to have. Then think he could do a much better job in making it perfect. Unfortunately none of his attempts went any farther than disassembly. He spent a lot of time sketching out ideas. But some were so far fetched, I dont know how he could not see they just wouldnt work like he thought.

He got mad at me plenty of times when I just asked a simple question. Not one that was trying to make fun of his way of thinking. Just that I did not understand what the purpose was or what he was trying to do.

Thinking back now, especially with how much the karts have progressed in the last couple of years, some of his ideas sort of make a little bit of sense. Not that they would have worked like he thought, but not so far off that with some more thought put in them he might get there.

I think the word concept fit best what my brother was working on. He saw one kart then reinvented it from scratch. He didnt bother to see what else was already available. But three years ago, there was not that much available or any different yet from how those first karts were built.

My brother would come up with something different than what everyone else was using, then could not grasp why nobody was doing his way. To him it was an obviously better idea, but he didnt bother to invest his time any farther than scribbling it down on a piece of paper.

So when my brother hit any roadblocks with his ideas or projects, then he just walked away. He left them torn down and not worth his time to do anything further. He was done with it completely.

Little did he know I kept a lot of his sketches, drawings and ideas he had jotted down. When he left for college, almost everything he had was just tossed in the trash. He sold off what things were of some value, then trashed the rest. But when he lost interest in something it became worthless to him.

Last year one of the last projects he worked on was a two engine mini-bike. The mini-bikes had just came out and took off like the karts did. He put a lot of thought into the two engine machine. It was his project in shop class.

But it got canned since he went too far with ideas and no way to fabricate most of the parts needed to finish. One thing he hit a snag on was not thinking everything all thru to the finish line.

The dual engine frame was just about to become a reality. But he failed to work in how the brakes would fit together. This is before he realized there was no provisions for a gas tank.

When Steve asked where the gas tank was, my brother just blew a head gasket with him. I cant believe he didnt figure that out until now. Steve didnt realize my brother had not thought this thru yet until just then.

Steve then suggested mounting a small tank on top of the frame. Or maybe even put one behind the seat. It could feed gas down to both engines. But my brother went totally rabid. THAT IS THE STUPIDEST THING I HAVE EVER HEARD. WHY WOULD ANYONE PUT A GAS TANK THERE? THAT MAKE NO SENSE AT ALL.

So one more almost project was abandoned and sold off. He had managed to horse trade some other failed project and rounded up the Power Products AH-47 engines for that mini-bike.

These were bolted to some cool motor mounts he did build in shop class. He also worked in a jack shaft to connect both of them together with a timing belt drive. Sort of like Tom Spaulding did on one of his cool projects. I think that is where he came up with idea for his project.

Another one of the setbacks was modifying the chainsaw clutches with drivers and a way of adjusting the belt itself. Both engines needed a way to adjust separately. But my brother could not see it right if they didnt both move exactly the same amount either.

Dad thought my oldest brother would have been more hands on at first, but realized his talents were better suited doing something else less direct. But every time my brother threw in the towel when hitting a snag, he bailed out quick. Then something else would catch his attention.

I was impressed in some of my brothers projects. But learned early on to keep my questions to myself. He thought I was trying to be a smartace whenever I asked him about anything. He would loose his cool then reply back trying to deflect with something making me feel stupid just for asking.

The are a few things given up on that he didnt bother with trying to sell off. They were not worth anything but I had fun messing around with one to see if I could get farther along with or work past what he didnt catch the first time.

Thinking now, my brother would give me all kinds of grief. He would laugh at the thought of wasting so much of my time working on such a lousy old worn out frame.

If he were here right now, would already be telling me everything that was wrong with this old frame. It isnt even worth scrap. Why didnt I spend my time making a better one instead of all that effort attempting to fix this one.

He had already assumed I would waste all that time fixing it instead of starting with new materials and build a better one. After all that is what he would surely do.

I always wanted to ask him how those new projects of his turned out. But would have to duck and run to avoid his wrath.