Hi guys,

I have some questions about converting my buggy to chain drive. This does not mean that the buggy will be chain drive. I do not want to cause any controversy about this subject. Please bear with me. I am just looking for answers to make a decision. I have used the search feature as part of my research. I have not found the answers that I have been looking for using the search feature. Any help with finding information is welcomed.

The biggest question would be cost. How much to convert over ? How many custom parts ? Is the chain from a motorcycle ? Are the sprockets custom ? More questions will come later.

All remarks are welcomed,
Thank you for any help,

You need to talk to the head cheez "curt" his dad invented the chaindrive.I do know the chain is probably 3 times bigger than a motorcycle chain.I wouldnt think it would be cheap at all to convert a buggy over to chaindrive.

aaron

A little info to ponder on till Curt or Rock or others chip in is that they run a #80 roller chain. The sprockets run about a dollar a tooth. Them guys run somewhere around 30 or so tooth on the trailing end and at least a 12 tooth on the leading end.

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

yes contact curt

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i dont always ride my buggy but when i do im glad it has a bad ass bow tie makin the horsepower

Jesus loves me, but everyone else thinks im an asshole.

Our Lady of Blessed Acceleration, don't fail us now!

Talk to firebug he is doing the same thing.

I wouldn't think it would cost a whole lot to convert to the chain drive itself, but to maximize the addition of the chaindrive the entire suspension setup itself would have to change. The chaindrive looks to be a seperate bearing carier that will accept a short cv driven axle from the transaxle on one side and a sprocket on the other. This upper sprocket would then connect via chain to the lower bearing carrier. The advantage to me seems the cv driven axle is at very little or no angle at ride height allowing for a lot more travel up or down without the cv's binding. If you can fabricate your own parts most everything on a buggy is within a reasonable price. The cost of steel, welding wire and a couple beers will accomplish a lot. Chains and sprockets are used so widely in industrial equipment I would think they would be the cheapest parts. I'm not biased to either one but I do like thinking out of the box and if it works for you go with it. Curt can help you through it.

The one I'm doing is kinda off the wall. It has only a few of the advantages of the real chaindrives. It is still in the R&D stage of development. I expect a prototype to be ready in a couple of months. Basically I am going to gain only about a foot in wheelbase and end up with a final ratio with 6 rib (456) of about 542. Really I'm just foolin around with some old ideas. There are similar cd arms out there. These things are gonna be heavy (blasphemy in ky talk). It's obvious that I am just tinkering and I will keep my old arms just in case.

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

There ain't a damn thing wrong with tinkering. You go man.

This information is helping out. I was not sure about the motorcycle chain working out. I thought the chain would have to be industrial grade. I was glad that was pointed out. The big plus for running a chain drive I would think is, that you could run any engine and transaxle combination. The drivetrain from a front wheel drive could help keep the cost down of building a buggy.

Thanks men for the info. Please keep the information coming. Everything can help.

be a pioneer

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

Keep watching and I am sure some of the chaindrive guys will help you out. I think this is something you are going to start seeing more often.
Dean

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It's amazing what you can accomplish when you don't care who gets the credit.-
Harry S. Truman

The two biggest advantages I see are easily changed gear ratios and extremely long travel suspension. The ratio change is nothing more than changing a sprocket the way a lot of people do on dirt bikes.

once you get the combo right you never have to chang .The reason I built mine was I was tired of working on my buggy all the time I could have built a load of CD for what I spent on 930 and tranys

good to see you on here al, i wish i could help you out more here but i am pretty ignorant to the subject. these guys will steer you in the right direction, though!

yea what he said

My next buggy will most likely be a chain drive.

Hurry up and get the bolt on CD done. This might be perfect for my 4x4 buggy if it'll bolt on to a beetle style torsion.

Hi Jeff, thanks for turning me on to the web site. It has been a big help.

I appreciate all of the comments and answers from everyone. I have more questions again. Here goes. Is there any brand of sprockets that people perfer to use ? What style of sprockets ? Are the sprockets modified ? I assume the sprockets will be stock. Is this the right assumption ? The custom parts will be the trailing arms and maybe the half shafts and any brackets. Am I on the right track ?

Thanks again for the help,

yes the arms are your bigest thing you have to bend them to match the other CD components .sprockets are just ind you can get at local farm store but the better the chain the better off you are.there is a good bit of machine work in the system

Here's a couple of links for sprockets and info;

http://www.ablproducts.com/sprockets.htm

http://www.surpluscenter.com/sort.asp?U ... yword=PH80

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

Anybody want to claim this?
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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

Firebug, Thanks for the links. They can be a big help. Your picture does not show up or I can't see it on my computer.

Thanks again for the help,

Thats weird, It showed up at work and then not at home,,but I redid it,,,,

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

Somebody should wash that nasty thing

I believe that I know who's that one is. Was taking when we were about to hit the trails I believe.

The Wild Kids

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I refuse to grow up therefore I will never grow old, and I will never die.