We have a pile of them here pretty cheap.Īs flexible as the kart is already, I still run them very loose through the center of the kart. If you are looking to pick one of those up, let me know. With a bigger driver, if you are running without any weight, the 2.1-3.0mm axles will save you overall weight and I think the kart will react a little better. The general shape of that kart with the single bend lets it twist and flex fairly easily even without a ton of horsepower or weight transfer.Īs for axles, we traditionally found them to be most responsive to the thinner wall axles in the shorter format of 960-1000mm. I still get the warm fuzzies from seeing one - what a badass little kart, particularly for low horsepower applications. I think axleĪnd front width will answer a lot of questions.Ĭool - that is the traditional Praga single bend kart. I believe that you are having a typical high grip issue that the Praga needs to be tuned around. Rear width compared to axle, length of axle, front spindle spacing, caster, camber, toe, ride height, hub size front & rear? When you were quick what was your baseline setup?
When you say you are using a Medium axle and have ordered a Soft - are you referring to the IPK/Praga factory 5mm thick axles? If not, which axles are you running? It is also the most amazing green, cold, wet, damp track kart you’ll ever run but it does struggle some in the grip. Is this a single bend Piccolo? Meaning do the main rails have one bend by the gas tank or does the rail bend once and then run straight for awhile (perpendicular to the axle) before bending back out again? I’m going to assume that it is a single bend as that is the most prevalent. A lot of things still apply the same though: Those adjustments are going to causing the frame to flex more as more weight jacking is pushed through the frame while the wheel is turned, hiking the inside rear wheel more and letting the kart roll through the corner without scrubbing.Ī ton of great advice up there from TJ - really gives you a lot of things to work with.Ī few quick questions for you as it’s been a few years but we spent a lot of time on the Praga Piccolo and had a lot of success, primarily 2 cycle though. Those are quick and easy changes to try out. This can be done by adding caster, widening the front track width, or stiffening the front bar. Generally, to do this, you need to increase the amount of weight jacking that’s occurring through the frame. I understand this can be super confusing trying to decipher all these terms…īut your goal here in “freeing” up the kart is to get the inside rear wheel to lighten or lift. You might actually be trying to increase mechanical jacking (adding “grip” or “sidebite”) to the chassis so that the outside tire can dig in harder and allow the inside wheel to lift. I always try to refer to the inside rear wheel lift rather than the “grip”. That’s why talking about adding or taking away “grip” in a kart can be really misleading. You aren’t trying to reduce traction, you’re trying to get the inside rear wheel to lighten so the kart rotates without scrubbing. In a kart, the rear can be “loose” aka oversteer, “free” aka rotating properly with no binding, or “tight” where both rear tires are on the ground and the inside wheel is scrubbing/binding off the corner. In a car, typically either the rear is sliding or the front is sliding, and those are your two options. In karting, it’s a bit different as well, because unlike cars (where all this terminology originates from), you need to hike the inside rear wheel to keep the kart rolling through the corner. “Free” can mean “loose”, it’s just different people’s terminology preferences. “Loose” generally means you’re getting oversteer. It’s tough because soemtimes the 206 doesn’t generate enough power to really get a kart to flex, so it can be hard to keep it free. If the kart isn’t lifting, add a little caster, narrow the rear track up 5-10mm, raise the rear ride height etc.
My suggestion would be going back to your baseline setup and then working the opposite direction. The kart simply won’t slide, leaving the whole chassis flat from apex off, binding the rear tires and slowing the kart down. However, this won’t work on a track that builds rubber or a tire that can actually generate some rubber build-up. This can work on an especially hard tire or on a track that doesn’t build much rubber. By going softer, reducing caster, shortening hubs, and widening the rear track, you’re removing “grip” from the rear because you’re softening the rear of the kart up so it absorbs the weight transfer and starts to slide a bit. You need to either take “grip” away from the rear, or increase how much inside rear wheel lift you’re getting. In the lower horsepower classes especially, it’s important to keep the kart from binding when the grip starts to ramp up.