[Augusto]

I know most people will say NO, but several must have done it, what is like driving down the street without a differential? how does it feel? what are the pros ( obvious ) an cons of doing so?

I race go-karts, not like the american karting but road race type, sprints, with 45 + hp 125cc motors, this machines are the grassroots of formula one, just count how many south american drivers have made it to the top class of auto racing, but the idea is that this karts don't have differentials despite the 52 + inches of rear track, and they corner like anything on earth, even very tigth pit road turns, so what's the deal for cars?

I'm not talking about daily drivers here, but the hot rod machine on cruise nigth.

Augusto

[Henry Highrise]

In my opinion....spools are dangerous for street use.

[Augusto]

in the rain I agree, but if dry?

Augusto.

[BMM]

Care to explain what is meant by spools?

[Augusto]

a device that joins both rear axles together and eliminates the differential, also I've heard that some guys weld the spider gears to achieve the same result.

Augusto.

[powerrodsmike]

I have a car in my shop right now with a spool. (that 41 plymouth in my gallery.)
It steers hard , squeals the tires on most any kind of turn, and makes other suspension and frame noises that don't sound happy at all.

I have been telling the guy to put a limited slip or even a locker...Anything but a spool.

Spool on the street is not ok.

Even when dry there are too many instances where a spool will lose traction with one wheel.

Later,
Mikey

[Centerline]

This has been discussed several times.

If you expect to find people here that will recommend a spool for the street, you will be disappointed. Most knowledgeable people realize there is NO advantage to running a spool on the street. A spool is hard on axles and tires and will be extremely dangerous on anything but dry pavement.

Enough said.

[T-bucket23]

Spools are dangerous on the street period. They effect the ability to safely navigate a corner on wet or dry pavement, cause undo tire wear and put stress on a lot of other parts. a good clutch type posi is much safer and much easier on the rest of the drive train.

[Crosley]

Augusto ;

here in the USA these karts you discuss are called shifter karts. Many folks race these here.

It is not a fair comparison for cars to the shifter shifter karts. Karts weigh very little to the weight of the automobile.

Spool on the street is bad for all the reasons mentioned.

[BOBCRMAN@aol.com]

That spool can cause problems beyond your imagination.. Been there.. In my past, a locker would have been far cheaper than the loss of the car and over $8000.00 in property damage. Insurance company will not cover you. "Knowingly operating a defective vehicle".. and worse, a woman that constantly drags the incident up everytime there is a little squabble...Like I said,,, Been there!!

[Chevrolet4x4s]

not a good idea

[Augusto]

Originally Posted by Crosley

Augusto ;

here in the USA these karts you discuss are called shifter karts. Many folks race these here.

It is not a fair comparison for cars to the shifter shifter karts. Karts weigh very little to the weight of the automobile.

Spool on the street is bad for all the reasons mentioned.

Hi Crosley,

Them shifter karts are not what we race here, shifters use a motocross bike motor, ours use a SUDAM motor which is purpose built for this class, it's a direct drive unit, no clutch or gearbox, just a chain links the crank with the rear axle, must be push started, the motor revs past 19.000 rpm and makes your heart beat like an orgasm, the sound it makes at that speed is unbelievable, power to weigth ratios are brutal. This Sudam motor is used in some open classes in USA and people love it, it's known as the most powerful motor made for karting, they use a clutch though up there.

I think the spool is a bad idea for the street now, it's great knowing the opinions of people who know, I love this forum, I'll post here untill my computer burns up.

If I only could find a posi somewhere here... it's gonna be hard but where there is a will....

Thank you all for your opinions.

Augusto.

[k-star]

For me i would need to know what you mean by "street"

I have customers and my self included that run spools on our race cars that get maybe 500 miles a year of street driving...

If you intend to drive the car once a week or put any kind of regular miles on it i would stay away from the spool. Like someone else stated it's not necessary...

If your careful and a skillful driver (meaning paying attention to whats going on around you) you can make them work...

My advise to customers is that you better be spending most of the time drag racing the car and it should be a high horse power car to even consider it... If it's a 400 hp street driven car only i would not do it.....


Keith

[Augusto]

Keith,

I don't do drag racing, just ocasional stop ligth sprints, I was looking for a way to make both tires hook up without a posi or lsd wich are very hard to get here, but seems like I'm out of luck... unless there is a trick from the old times kept under secrecy and somebody is willing to uncover it... say like assembling the spiders very tigth or something else ????

anybody knows something? please.

Augusto.

[Triaged]

Originally Posted by Augusto

... unless there is a trick from the old times kept under secrecy and somebody is willing to uncover it... say like assembling the spiders very tigth or something else ????

One old school trick was to put in an extra thrust washer under the side gears which would bind them up somewhat like a LSD. How well it would work in practice I have no idea.

I drive a truck with a spool in the back. It is not my daily driver. My turning radius about doubled which makes parking lots suck. I also get dirty looks from all the tire squealing. My rear tires wear about 2x faster then they did before. On the other hand as long as your axle shafts are strong enough to handle the extra stresses I see nothing "dangerous" about it. In fact I find it to be safer and more predictable then a locker (or the stock Gov-Lock in my S10).