Camber/caster adjustment

[Graham Odell]

Hi,
Would it be possible for some one to tell me what camber/caster adjustment pills are available and how exactly do the pills work, I've never really understood how to fully control the setup on karts using these pills...

Cheers...

[Jean Stafford]

Graham,
The pills are available in 1/2 and 1-1/2 degree increments, assuming you're speaking of the older Birel chassis. Newer Birel Chassis usse a rotating adjustment feature built in.

Older pills are installed in the top or bottom, or both, of the spindle hanger with the hex facing inward, inplace of the neutral pills that are standard. When installed the spindles can be canted forward, to remove caster, or aft to increase caster. Combinations of the pills can result in changes as small as 1/.2 degree, or as much as 3 degrees.

Once installed care should be taken to assure that the camber settings for both sides are what they should be, and EQUAL, very important. Use of a LASER setting tool simplifies the process. Care must be taken to insure the toe doesn't change, and the pitman arm, that thing on the steering shaft, swings the spindles equally from it's center of rotation.

I can't stress the importance of setting up the Kart correctly BEFORE you go to the track, as any adjustments there cannot be as close as you can get them in the shop.

If interested, send me an e-mail and I'll forward a pamphlet on setting the chassis up.

Jean Stafford
Stafford's Racing Products
www.staffordsraciing.com

[Graham Odell]

Yes, I have the older type 0.5degree ones instawlled onthe inside.

My question is this... If I have the neutral pills in then we assume I have X amount of caster degrees.

Now I install the 0.5 pills above and below...
What does is the angle now? If I rotate both to give mroe caster... Does each give 0.5 degrees more meaning I ahve 1 degree more caster from neutral... I.e. X+1 or does each add up to 0.5 degree?

Also, if I turn them for minimum caster... is this 0.5 degrees LESS than neutral X-A degrees overall or if this the same as neutral?

Also, aren't you screwing with camber settings??
I've nver really understood the power of camber on a kart but I know setting caster with pills screws with it alot.

I'm not really understanding what 0.5 degree pills mean... what is it 0.5 degrees from?

Aslo I've seen the newer one but not up close... it it just 1 single adjuster or do new karts also have several different pills? and what is different about it?

Thanks for any advice... I appreciate it..

[Jean Stafford]

Grahm, think about what the pills do. To increase caster you would have to tilt the kingpins backward. The 0.5 degree pills do just that, tilt the kingpin. That's all.. To add one degree you would have to tilt the kingpins more, so the additional pill would have to do that, therefore it would go on the bottom facing forward, increasing the angle of the kingpin.

To remove caster, the opposite is true. Rotating the top pill fop forward and the bottom toward the back decreases the angle of the kingpin, taking caster out.

Jean Stafford
Stafford's Racing Products
www.staffordsraciing.com

[Garry Lobaugh]

I can only hope that all of the visitors to the forum are appreciating your wealth of knowledge and credentials, Jean. Thank you for your input and please tell the folks about your history of karting, just to help build such well deserved credability! Thanks for your very fine contribution! Garry

[Jean Stafford]

on 29. Aug 2005 20:00 Garry Lobaugh wrote:
> I can only hope that all of the visitors to the forum are appreciating your wealth of knowledge and
> credentials, Jean. Thank you for your input and please tell the folks about your history of karting,
> just to help build such well deserved credability! Thanks for your very fine contribution! Garry

Sorry I didn't get back to this soomer, but things have been busy.
I started Karting in 1959 using a Power Products AH58 and Dart Kart. Got hooked when a friend took me to a race, and let me drive. Raced competitively thru 1970 and started a Kart Shop in 1971. We sold Bug Karts, and Hartman Karts. Participated in the IKF Nationals in 1969 and 1971 as Tech inspector, along with others from this area, and was a Charter Member of OVKA, the Ohio Valley Karting Association in 1965.

In 1974 and 1975, after EKA's formation, we built engines and Kart packages, and won the 125cc Reed valve class in Spring and Enduro within two weeks. Form that I was asked to participate in the First Pan-American Kart rcae held in the Dominicam Repubic. I hat a Palm Tree in Practice as I lost my brakes on the long straight. While laid up there, I builot the engine that won the 125cc Reed valve championship there for the son of the Dr whose home I stayed at.

Since that time, I have been working with the KLarting industry in developing Brake systems with MCP, and others, and finally returned to Karting in 1995 and immediately broke my coillarbone. Sionce that time, I became a Birel Dealer, and a Yamaha Distributor, along with other product lines for Karting in the Local area.

This year we won the OVKA 125 Shifter Class with a TMK9B and a Birel CM32 that has performed flawlessly for us, the Kart that is. The engine has bveen a learning process, but is coming along. One of our drivers finished also finished second in the highly competitibve Masters Yamaha Class there this year as well. We loanmde a Yamaha Can engine to a customer whose engine I didn't get finished in time, to participate in the long track race at Mid-Ohio, and was told jsut a while ago that he won the Super Can Class, and used his own engine to finish first in Yamaha Pipe class.

I guess I have been around Karting for about 40+ years, and still learn something every time I go out to the track.

Jean Stafford
Stafford's Racing Products
www.staffordsraciing.com