1/23/2024 0 Comments Rat fink hot rod mustang![]() I had to redesign my steering a bit, because the oversized air filter I installed interfered with the original steering linkage on one side. ![]() Hopefully it'll pick up some rust soon enough. So I had to use a rather new-looking paint thinner can. And in my case, there's actually a third lesson learned: don't use a can with a hole in it.Īs it turns out, the rusted gallon jug with a dent in it also had a leak right in the middle of the dent. There are two VERY important parts of properly executing this task: 1) using a Nylock nut because you do not want that nut backing itself off and spilling gas everywhere 2) place the hole in a location you can access with a deep socket and long extension through the filler hole. Installing the valve is as simple as drilling the right sized hole in the bottom of the can and bolting the valve into place. So I picked up a shutoff valve complete with gasket on Amazon: It had a great patina, and I think it matched the rust and chipped paint of the barrow really well. I compromised with a dented and rusty paint thinner can I had. Turns out one of those was surprisingly hard to find. A mini keg? Stainless beer growler? Hide it in a mailbox? I really wanted an old square one gallon gas or oil can. One of the staples of a rat rod is the fuel tank. To make the steering fit, I had to lower the front end another inch and flip the steering arm to bias towards the rear of the mower. The filter isn't in the best spot for keeping clean, but sometimes fashion trumps function. The tire at full turn would just clear the air filter. ![]() I bent the frame around the pipe as much as possible and welded in as many spots as I could get the stinger into. I'd have 2.75" of weld area on the front section with the axle (as much as my design would allow), and 5.25" on the engine-side. I cut my pipe (1" sch40) frame extensions at 20". This was the minimum I needed to lengthen it for the tire to clear the air filter at full turn. Instead, I had to compromise again and flip the frame section that houses the axle and install it upside down with a straight pipe. However, with the carburetor and big air filter on the engine, there just wasn't room for a bent pipe on that side. Originally I thought I would bend some pipe that we had leftover from a project at work to get the perfect angle for the front axle. ) He supplied me with some scrap parts: new front tires and tie rods for the new steering to be designed later. It also just so happened that a friend of mine had a large quantity of old mower parts laying around from his time racing lawnmowers. Bigger tires roll over objects better and can eat up any imperfections in the steering setup. I really wanted to use the smaller tires, but, again, not very practical. Plus, rat rod axles are supposed to be in the very front.Īfter cutting the frame apart, I had to mock it up with a couple tire sizes and frame lengths to see how it looked best. I also cut off the frame pieces that stuck out past the front axle they were just there to hold the cowling and exhaust, and we don't need those where we're going. The steering would have to be lengthened or changed, but lengthening the frame here would have almost no other effects on major components of the kart. Using a Dewalt Reciprocating saw, I cut the frame just in front of the motor mounts. My wife is a rural mail carrier, so the mail box certainly fits an emerging theme for the build. So I picked up an old mailbox from my parents, who had recently replaced theirs. Because of the hinged barrow seat and the way the bed would cover the tow hitch, I had to make some new plans. But, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. I welded them directly to the frame and bolted the springs under the seat for a little cushion while driving.Īt this point, I "knew" that I wanted to build a little truck bed behind the barrow to make it look like a T-bucket pickup. I grabbed some scrap 1/8" sheet metal to bend up little spring pads. The seat was mounted using the old seat hinge with new holes drilled in it. When done right, I think it really looks like an old T-Bucket hot rod. To do it, I knew I wanted to cut the wheel barrow in such a way that I can use the deep end of it as a seat with a high back, and the shallow end as the dashboard. One main goal of this project was to use an old wheel barrow as the seat/body of the kart.
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