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Hello to all,

 I've been autoxing regularly for the past 5 years using a Subaru in SM.  I'm considering going to another class and try my luck.  What should I be looking for?  What should I expect to pay for a decent setup and what should it include.

I'll be at the Dixie National Tour next week so if I see any of you out there I'll be sure to meet and get some pointers.

 
Regards,

Jose        

 

I'd say somewhere in the 2000-5000 range. I got mine for 2000. It needed some routine motor work done and is getting that done now. It should be reliable then, but like any vehicle...things break....luckily on the kart its mostly cheap.

I was told to get a chassis supported by your local shops.

Birel, CRG, Tono Kart and Intrepid chassis are the popular ones around here.

Most folks use a stock to mildly worked on Honda motor. I am using a Yamaha and should be able to make more torque, but parts are a bit more but its fine with me.

It's a fun class and a very big challenge (physically and mentally). I think F125 will sharpen my skills so I can run any car with more confidence and ease. Things come at you very quickly :)

 
David
 

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David Hedderick
Pearland (Houston), TX
01 CRG YZ125 (FOR SALE! $2500)
08 Mazda 3s
02 Mazda Protege (automatic tow vehicle)
92 Miata SE - Fun half-arsed STS2 Car

My advice is to not drive one until you're sure you can afford one.  Why?  Because you'll need one afterwards. :) 

Get ready for a brain dump... I'm sure Brian Garfield will be on here at some point to fill in whatever I forget or fix what I got wrong.

For whatever reason autocross-only karts are usually cheaper than shifters used in sprint or road racing.  Maybe lack of exposure?  Most of the decent used packages are around $3500-5500, most of which is tied up in the engine and spare parts like chains, brake pads, gears, tools, seat, data acquisition, hubs, wheels, tires, axles, misc bolts+fasteners, etc.  Getting below that mark and you'll start finding oddball stuff like orphan'd chassis, older engines that aren't legal/competitive/supported anymore, or karts that need a lot of work$$ to get back into good running shape (ask me how I know...).  A local guy sold his 99 Margay CR125 that he road raced with literally a small garage full of spares and pretty top notch setup for <$6000.  Another local is/was selling his 2002 Biesse with a TM Moto engine for $5500 with a respectable amount of spares, in good running shape, and with a small trailer.  Two others were selling a pretty basic starter package of kart, motor, a few sprockets, and a pat on the back for $3500.
 
I'd personally be sticking with a CR125, having parts available down the street at any Honda Powersports dealer is nice and there's a ton of experience and support for those engines.  Stock moto's will be somewhat down on power to modified powerplants and ICC engine'd kart, but will be (relatively) easier to drive and less maintenance intensive.  A stock CR125 modified for karting from a reputable/national builder runs around $2500 and up and make around 35hp(?).  ICC motors (purpose built kart racing engines from Europe) cost around $4500-5500 but make 40-45hp.  You can have the CR125 modified to make similar power and cost somewhat less.  Here's a good couple of places to go shopping

http://www.accelerationkarting.com/honda.html

http://www.fastech-racing.com/home.php?cat=75

More Info

http://www.kartweb.com/

Should you want to do it yourself, here's a handy guide for at least building a basically stock CR125: http://metal-matrix.com/stockmoto/

Note, I am not supported by or affiliated with any of the above sites, just pages I found useful in my search for info over the last year.

Keep in mind that pretty much everything on a kart is a wear item but autocrossing is really easy on these things compared to sprint racing.  Personally, I lean towards supporting an American chassis builder (Coyote, Phantom, Margay, though the latter is the only one who really concentrates on 2-strokes) since they tend to last much much longer than the Italian chassis (basically everything else out there, TopKart, Birel, Biesse, TonyKart, CRG, KGB, Parolin, Sodi, and half a dozen others).  When you are buying a used chassis, look for cracks on the frame, esp at the front spindles and around the engine mounts.  Look for crash damage, evidence of the frame bottoming out, check the axle for straightness, make sure the hubs aren't cracking, brakes aren't leaking, etc.  Most national level sprint racers move up to a new chassis every season, so there's always a bunch of last-years karts coming for sale in the silly season that are upward of half as much as a new kart.  As with cars, buy the newest chassis you can afford.  Especially with the Italian karts, remember that the chassis is the suspension so eventually it fatigues and loses its "springiness" so a kart thats a year old can be a second or more slower per lap than its replacement.  This doesn't seem to affect US karts nearly as much, but fortunately the depreciation hit is the same for the frugal karter. :)  Anything made overseas or after 1994 or 1995 from Margay will be metric (at least from the factory) and use metric fasteners.

You will need some safety equipment too.  At minimum, start with a sturdy, abrasion resistent jacket and pants and gloves, driving shoes, closed face helmet, and neck roll.  I knew I was sticking with this and went all the way and bought a Sparco kart suit ($150 on clearance), gloves ($80), and shoes ($110) locally from OG Racing.  Buy locally, that way you can try everything on to make sure it all fits.  I also recommend heavily that you get a rib protector, makes things much more comfortable for not a lot of money ($100).  For autocrossing, the standard $30 neck brace is fine enough and helps keep your head level.  I find mine very uncomfortable.  Since I'm likely going sprint racing this year more than autocrossing (and I just bought a dirt bike), I'm probably going to pony up for something fancy like the Leatt Brace (basically its a HANS for karting and motorcycles).

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2007 Toyota Tacoma
2002 Kartmini Rotax TAG kart - F125

Never run out of ideas, traction, and real estate at the same time.

I'm trying to make the switch over from STS to F125. There is some great info in the above posts, but are there any chassis that any of you would suggest I stay away from? 

Thanks,

Scott 

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Scott Clontz
F125 02 Birel CR125

Sorry for the delay on this, but:

In general, the consensus is to go with a chassis company that's popular in your area or at your local track as that's how you can get the most support.  However, in doing Solo, there is less opportunity for that.  So I would usually recommend going with one of the most popular, larger, or "best built" chassis companies:

Tony Kart
Intrepid
CRG
Birel
Trackmagic
(I may have missed one)

Of the above, I'm a big fan of the Intrepid, even though there's only one in our stable of seven.  The parts are nice quality, good availability, and great looking.  I believe they are generally a stiffer chassis which is better for getting grip in Solo.

Whatever you get, look carefully for good deals.  Our stable is large, but I've always gotten great deals on slightly used chassis.  For example:  2005 Intrepid Cadet roller new - $2200, used once $850 shipped!  2006 CRG Cadet new - $2300, used one season $500!

Brian
 

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**3Generacing**
Craig: STX MINI Cooper S
Jane: A Stock Boxster S
Brian: F125 2000 CTS/Honda
Lisa: F125 2002 CTS/Honda
Julian: CRG Cadet/KT100
Carson: Intrepid Cadet/KT100

I am getting back into it F125 as well.  Drove a friends on the 4th and that was enough motivation for me to start fixing mine.  It will be cheaper to run than my EP car as I can tow it behind my small car instead of trailering the car with my truck.  Good info in the posts above, i had lost some of my links that I had in the past.

Thanks for the info Brian. Sold my STS car and I'm currently looking for my first kart. Looking to pick up a complete package from someone getting out and looks like there are a lot available on the west coast(at least according to ekartingnews). I'm hoping to find something a little closer to home (NC).

Thanks again!

Scott

 

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Scott Clontz
F125 02 Birel CR125

I'll keep an eye out.

Feel free to email me with any questions, or just to establish a conversation via email: bgarfield at gmail dot com

Brian
 

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**3Generacing**
Craig: STX MINI Cooper S
Jane: A Stock Boxster S
Brian: F125 2000 CTS/Honda
Lisa: F125 2002 CTS/Honda
Julian: CRG Cadet/KT100
Carson: Intrepid Cadet/KT100

I'm still trying to unload mine. Comes with everything I think a new karter needs :)  Including a suit and such :)

It's under $3000 with a trailer. :)

 

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David Hedderick
Pearland (Houston), TX
01 CRG YZ125 (FOR SALE! $2500)
08 Mazda 3s
02 Mazda Protege (automatic tow vehicle)
92 Miata SE - Fun half-arsed STS2 Car

David,

I have looked at your kart but honestly, there are a few things keeping me away from it. First, I'm hoping I can find something closer. Even though it has been straightened, it has been bent before:

Davebs14:

The JB weld on the side of the motor was for a surface crack. I took the cover apart and couldn't see any damage inside the case. So its just cosmetic. It apparently hit a curb and fence.........the driver absorbed most of the impact I was told :) 

So the frame was tweaked about 1/2" on the right side.

Last, I'm just not interested in a YZ125.

Good luck with your sale.

Thanks,

Scott

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Scott Clontz
F125 02 Birel CR125

I have a buddy selling one of his karts. You can see his add on swra.org .  Its a Intrepid with a CKT Honda.

Here is his add:

I bought this with the idea of having two karts but I haven't run enough to justify it. This is a new kart that I had on the track for 8 half throttle laps at a practice at grand sport speedway (breaking in an engine). I have a CKT motor (CR-125, 99 Modified) that Todd V. overhauled for me. It has one race day on it at the short track at MSR Houston. I plan to sell the kart with that motor if anyone is interested. Kart has a deep seat. I was going to keep the Mychron for a spare. I have the graphics kit but haven't put them on yet. $5,500.00. I plan to have it at TWS for a spare or to run if I have problems. Call me if interested. I don't check posts very often. Nate 832-607-2742

Howdy,

This just got posted on ekarting news and looks interesting...

http://www.ekartingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=72597

No affiliation, etc.

Mark

Thanks for the info and links. Just got back from FL with an 02 Birel with a CR125. So now the learning begins... how do you shift this thing? 

For anyone looking that does seem like a nice starter that Mark posted.

Thanks everyone!

Scott 

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Scott Clontz
F125 02 Birel CR125

Ive been looking into these for a while, and heres a practicality question:  Im 6' 270.  Is there anyone else my size that is running these carts, or am I just too big? 

Not that I know of. I'm about 205 and on the porky side for the class.

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David Hedderick
Pearland (Houston), TX
01 CRG YZ125 (FOR SALE! $2500)
08 Mazda 3s
02 Mazda Protege (automatic tow vehicle)
92 Miata SE - Fun half-arsed STS2 Car

You might take a look at this thread, similar size and question:

http://www.ekartingnews.com/viewtopic.php?t=72455

Probably not as much info as you would hope but it does give a little advice.

Scott
 

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Scott Clontz
F125 02 Birel CR125

Jazzie604:

Ive been looking into these for a while, and heres a practicality question:  Im 6' 270.  Is there anyone else my size that is running these carts, or am I just too big? 

I am a big guy who plays with little karts.  I just got back from the Wendover Pro where I scaled at 464 kart and driver.  Am I giving away a big weight advantage.  You betcha, am I having fun, HELL YES.  I can hold my own against our local drivers.  Am I ever gonna beat J.T. or Paul Russell.  No....but it still beats the heck outta my A stock car.  Fast=fun, really fast= really fun.

 

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F125 #17
AS #197

Bah, you'll be fine at 270 so long as you get a big enough seat and a durable chassis.

 Here's me in my Rotax. I'm 5'10" and around 220 when this was taken.

 

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2007 Toyota Tacoma
2002 Kartmini Rotax TAG kart - F125

Never run out of ideas, traction, and real estate at the same time.

I'm also interested in getting into F125 as well and was wondering are all F125 shifters?  The reason I'm asking is because where I'm from most people are running Rotax Max, if I were to bring one to Nationals will I get stomped on (not considering driver skill level)