centrifugal clutch with bike sprockets?

[brain_dead00]

hey guys, im a high school student and for my final project in small engines im building a barstool racer. i have a very limited budget and was wondering if it was possible to buy a cheapie clutch (only has to run for a couple hours lol) with either the right tooth size for a bike chain or without teeth so i can weld a bike sprocket on.. also im using and old 8HP briggs & stratton engine that wasnt runing but i have completely torn it apart and rebuilt (including new bearings, ground and gapped valves, new connecting rod and crankshaft, mostly scavenged out of my school auto shop) and am 90% sure that it will run once i get a head gasket, but will the 8hp rip apart bike sprokets / chains? i dont want to go out and buy go kart sprockets and mounts etc.. any help would be appreciated

[voodoo_stepchild]

Hey braindead welcome to the forum,
The 8hp will not harm the sprockets you mentioned even being from a bike. There is a clutch available for not a large amount of money however they are all mostly 35 and 40 pitch chain. The sprocket could be welded to the clutch drum if you wish but not without a little machine work to make it fit. The clutch you are seeking is a max-torque and it is available with a 3/4" bore or a 1" bore depending on what size crankshaft you have on the pto side of the engine. Most 8hp engines were 1" but there was some produced with a 3/4" bore so be sure and check. The clutch is about 20-30 bucks and should work fine. You would be much better off buying the correct setup but sometimes $$$$$$$ doesnt allow us to have what we want or need so we have to improvise. Thats the beauty of a barstool racer. Good luck with your project


Voodoo:cheers:

[brain_dead00]

hey thanks for the advice.. i was at princess auto (the best store in the word lol) and after looking at clutches and gearing and such ive decided to use pulleys instead of a clutch and have a tensioner attatched to a pedal for stop and go.. it seems a littlle cheaper considering the only clutch i could find with a 1'' drive was 70$ and my budget is about 150$ (im getting the steel for the frame for free). another question i have is i dont have the money to buy a true brake assembly and my dad wont let me take one off my go karts so if i can mount a disc on my axle and just put 4 bike brake pads on it will it have any stopping power at all? it obviously wouldnt work while the engine was powering it...

[garleness]

if your using brake pads from a bicy they are usually rubber they might heat up and fail brake discs are alot smaller than a bike rim. maybe you can find an old set of brake pads in the auto shop and cut them to fit. just an idea

[brain_dead00]

hey, thats a great idea, thanks