Can a Horizontal Shaft Lawnmower Engine Be Used to Build a Go-Kart?

[Quadruple Bypass]

so I am thinking about building a go-kart out of a lawn mower engine. i want to build the whole thing, except for the frame and engine.

lately I've been on the lookout for random broken down lawnmowers on the side of the road. my question is will a 2 HP lawnmower engine be strong enough?

 

[RonL]

If speed is not important 2HP can be geared to work just fine

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

If speed is not important 2HP can be geared to work just fine

its not, its more about the fun and experience. its a shame though, i just read somewhere that lawn mower engines won't work because 'Motors pulled from lawn mowers are usually vertical shafts, and won't work when flipped to a horizontal position without obscene customization.' ill still be on the lookout for lawnmower engines though ;)

 

[RonL]

Part of the fun, and enjoyment of engineering is learning to change things in order to make them work for you.
Lots of sources for horizontal shaft engines, tillers, and edgers are two. Also you might look at rental stores, and small engine repair shops.
Yard sales are good, some larger cities have freecycle, look it up on the internet and see how close you might be.
And last if money is not a problem, less than $100. can buy a new one (i might be a little behind the times, on this last point)

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

unfortunately money is a problem lol, but if it is under $100 like you said, then it won't be much of a problem :P

 

[RonL]

I was a little off, but here's a start point


http://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2008021222465281&item=28-1623&catname=engines

Also you might want to think about electric power, this site has some good choices in DC motors

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

wow nice find. thanks!

 

[Mech_Engineer]

its not, its more about the fun and experience. its a shame though, i just read somewhere that lawn mower engines won't work because 'Motors pulled from lawn mowers are usually vertical shafts, and won't work when flipped to a horizontal position without obscene customization.' ill still be on the lookout for lawnmower engines though ;)

Not all lawnmowers have vertical shaft engines. I once made a go-kart using a horizontal shaft 3.5hp Briggs & Stratton engine off my grandma's lawnmower. This is a very common go-kart engine, and there are lots of parts available for the rest of the drivetrain, like geared centrifugal clutches for the output shaft, live axles, etc, etc.

You would probably be able to find a horizontal shaft engine on specialty lawnmowers with belt-drive rotating blades up front, snowblowers, generators (2500W and up), or other power equipment like pressure washers. All of these pieces of equipment use horizontal shaft engines, which should be able to be adapted to a go-kart with some rigging.

This is basically the kind of engine you should be looking for: http://www.jackssmallengines.com/bs35horizontal.html, keep in mind you can buy one of these things brand new for about $270.