How to Build a Great Gravity-Powered Go-Cart!

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At times like that, knowing I built my go-carts myself is almost as much fun as riding them. Why don't you try it? Building a cart takes a bit of careful planning and attention to detail.

But it is definitely worth the effort.

Ten Simple Steps for Building a Really Good Go-Cart

1. First make sure you have wheels, axles, and plenty of sturdy wood, plus all of the other materials you'll need. The main tools you'll use are a hammer, saw, wrench, and drill with bits.
2. Start by building a frame. Use three 2-by-8 boards that are each about five feet long. You can substitute a lot of 2-by-4s for the 2-by-8s if you have to. (When I built the Thunder Racer, 1 used only two 2-by-8s and put a short 2-by-4 section between them in the back of the cart to make the boards angle in towards the front.) Cut three 2-by-4s to 23 inches in length for cross braces. Nail these under the main boards with 10d building nails, nailing some from the top and some from the bottom.
3. Make your axles out of two steel rods, each 36 inches long and the same diameter as the holes in your wheels. This part is hard, so you may need some help. (My grandpa helped me.) Clamp each rod in a vise, and drill two holes (with an extra strong drill bit) in each end. Put a 1-inch cotter pin through each inside hole, then add two washers, a lawn mower wheel, two more washers, and another cotter pin through the outer hole. If you can find wheels already on axles-like the Big Wheel type I used on my first go-cart-you can skip this step.
4. Put your axles on your 30-inch axle boards. You can do this with a lot of 1-inch fencing nails (putting the two points of each U-shaped nail on either side of the axle) or with 1 1/2-by-4-inch U bolts (drilling two holes on either side of the axle, sticking the U bolt through the holes, and tightening the nuts on the ends).
5. Put the back wheel assembly on the cart. The back wheels don't have to swivel, so just use large nails to fasten the axle board securely to the frame. (Be sure it's perpendicular to the length of the frame.)
6. Put on the front wheels, which do have to swivel unless you want a go-cart you can't steer! (See the drawing in the Image Gallery.) Drill a 3/8-inch hole through the very center of the axle board and another through the very center of the front of the go-cart frame. Push a 6-inch carriage bolt through the frame from the top down. Turn the go-cart upside down and put two thick 2 1/2-inch washers on the bolt. (You need the washers to keep the axle board and frame from rubbing against each other. Without them, the steering would be very stiff.) Then put the axle board over the bolt. Finally, add some more washers and screw two large nuts onto the threaded end of the bolt.
7. Put sides and a back on the cart, if you want them. You won't need them if you're going to be using your cart just for hauling. If you have some sort of old seat you can add, put it in. (I used a piece of old shag rug in mine!)
8. Add a brake (shown in the photos in the Image Gallery). Nail a 2-by-2-by-3-inch spacer block onto the outside of the sideboard or frame. Then drill horizontally through the sideboard and the block and put a 1 1/4-by-4-inch carriage bolt through this hole. Find an old wooden closet rod and saw off a 24-inch section. Drill a hole for the carriage bolt through the center of this rod. Now, find an old sneaker and cut off its back half by clamping the shoe in a vise and sawing it with a coping saw. Then stuff one endof the rod into the toe of the shoe and secure it all around with 1/2-inch staples and carpet tacks. Slide the rod onto the carriage bolt and fasten it in place with a washer and nut. You can also hook up a spring between the brake handle and sideboard with a couple of screw eyes to keep the brake shoe from constantly rubbing against the wheel.
9. Put on a rope to steer with (and to pull the cart). Drill a hole in each end of the front axle board. Screw a 1-inch eyebolt into each hole and tie an end of an 8-foot rope to it. If you don't have eyebolts, you can just push the ends of rope through the drilled holes and knot them.
10. Fancy the go-cart up however you want. I added a bike flag to mine, and that's probably a good idea, since it makes the cart (and me!) easier to see. You can also paint it, decorate it, and for real class-add an old license plate on the back!

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