Red wagon pedal car

[clamor]

I found my son this late model pedal car and I have some red wagons that I bought to make go-carts & such out of. I'd like to take the largest and make an adult sized pedal car so I can ride around with him. Before I go buying metal, I wanted to get some input from the awesome body of fabricating knowledge that is RRR.

I'd like to use square tubing, but will use round if it's that much better. What dimension & wall thickness should I get for the frame?

I would kinda like to get hard plastic wheels like his so I can slide around, any idea where to look for them?

How would you go about making the axle/pedal assembly?

Thanks in advance guys, I can't wait to build this on here!

 

[Sam_Fear]

Well, you got my wheels turning instantly!

Plastic wheels - Harbor Freight has plastic wheels, BUT if you slide 200Lbs sideways on a tall plastic wheel, it'll probably rip apart at the hub. Use the ones that are plastic on metal rims.

1x1 square tube of about any gauge should be fine. You're not spanning very far and not carrying much weight.

Bicycle parts are a good bet for the drivetrain. [

 

[skull]

wagon

there are some people on here who build custom wagons, do a search, they can probally help a bunch.

Later

 

[GJunktionMike]

I like to use 1" square 14 ga.

 

[clamor]

Well, you got my wheels turning instantly!

Plastic wheels - Harbor Freight has plastic wheels, BUT if you slide 200Lbs sideways on a tall plastic wheel, it'll probably rip apart at the hub. Use the ones that are plastic on metal rims.

1x1 square tube of about any gauge should be fine. You're not spanning very far and not carrying much weight.

Bicycle parts are a good bet for the drivetrain. [

Thanks for the compliment, Sam!
...but I'll be sliding a *little* more than 200 lbs.

I've got a bunch of bicycle stuff, because I have a Worksman trike that I want to turn into a tandem, but I really want to keep with the pedal configuration of the LittleTykes, so I'm trying to figure out the logistics. Should I just commission a bent axle from a machine/fabrication shop? I don't have a bender or the room for one, at present.

I like to use 1" square 14 ga.

Thanks Sam & Mike for the suggestion on the metal size, I'll pick up a couple sticks tomorrow while I'm out looking for wheels so I'm ready when I get another work day.

 

[Snake Farm]

For wheels you might check out something like the 'trike drifting' crowd uses http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJkZ5eiqh70 There are several different ways to do them but a lot of them are pneumatic tires with PVC pipe around them.

Sounds like a fun build! [P[P[P

 

[Sam_Fear]

If you don't need perfect looking results, just weld your own pedal axle up. Or, do what I've done before and use a gas welder with the gas off to heat the rod to bend it - kind of a gorilla approach, but it's worked.

 

[clamor]

That trike drifting video is amazing, I so want to do that.
I doubt I could get PVC in the size I'm looking for, for mine.
If I went with a bike tire, I'd probably go with the 16 or 20" that are on the bike trailers.
-Chaz

 

[clamor]

I had a pretty awesome day Monday, running around to get parts and tools. I've been so busy this week that I haven't had a chance to post up what I got.

Craigslist is awesome, I got this Milwaukee combo set for $200, which is less than 50% of retail. And it has an extra charger. I wanted to get it for the rechargeable sawzall because one of the metal places I was looking at charged a bunch for cuts (less than $200, but I'll use the tools regardless).

Northern Tool is a higher quality shop than Harbor Freight & Cummins Tool, I had no idea. They had a ton of wheels, but not really anything in a drive wheel that would work for what I want to do, except maybe the trailer wheels. I could always remove or weld solid the bearings in one of the free-wheelers, but for now I'll keep looking. I got a 90* clamp kit & some blades for my new sawzall.

 

[clamor]

Monday continued...

Cummins Tool was the usual, low quality bordering on scary. The wheel section was picked over and similar to Northern. I ended up getting a magnetic parts bowl that I've been wanting (which is an improvement over the magnet-on-the-back-of-a-sign method that I've been using) and a spring loaded center punch. We'll see if that helps my walking drill woes, since I don't seem to be able to drill straight with or without a standard punch.

 

[clamor]

The last place I stopped was amazing. I walked in the place just expecting to make my metal order & then drive to the back, but I had to walk through the isles after walked in the main store. It's called "The Yard" and is in downtown Wichita. They have everything from new foam airplane toys to bulk steel. I there was military surplus, new bird feeders, machining bits that were from 2-3 inches to around a foot long, electric motors, a row of zippers & leather...it was crazy. I ended up with some airplanes for my son, used dental picks for my tool box & 40' of 1x1x11gua.

I need to head off now, so I can't finish my Monday adventures, but I'll post up the rest & the questions I have later.

 

[Sam_Fear]

We have a place like that here - it's were I get my steel, and it's also a liquidation house. Never know what you'll find. That metal sign with a magnet works well if you on cars outside - put it under where you're working and you have a 50/50 chance it'll catch any dropped bolts, screws, or sockets.

Go-cart wheels and axle?

 

[clamor]

We have a place like that here - it's were I get my steel, and it's also a liquidation house. Never know what you'll find. That metal sign with a magnet works well if you on cars outside - put it under where you're working and you have a 50/50 chance it'll catch any dropped bolts, screws, or sockets.

Go-cart wheels and axle?

I'll have to check the next time I go to The Yard to see if their stock is wildly variable inside.
I forgot to post this pic earlier, they also have a limited wheel selection. Nothing natively driveable.

I do have some larger signs, I'll have to try that as a tool/part catching method...with a big one I might be able to get better than 50%!

Go-cart parts are a good idea, unfortunately the one store I've found locally wants to tell you what you want to buy, rather than sell you what you've asked for. I don't have a good frame of reference, but they seem a little pricey. I'd like to find something local, so I can kick the tires...as it were.


-Chaz

 

[clamor]

So, I prioritized the purchase of my rechargeable sawzall because one of the places I was pricing metal charged $5 to cut the first 20' stick (maybe 24'...can't remember) and $2 for each additional. A lot less than the rechargeable kit I bought, but it's the principle & I'm going to use the tools anyway. The Yard had a sign on the wall for $0.25 per cut, however they don't charge to split your large sticks for transport.

Previously, when I'd bought full sticks and gotten them halved, there was this massive (24"ish) chop saw with a huge roller type feed for the saw with MOUNTAINS of metal shavings under it. And they cut it *roughly* in half.

After I take care of the inside business & come back to pick up my 1x1, I come out to see them finishing up my cuts. They've got what seemed to be a motorized band saw with a liquid cooled blade & they cut them EXACTLY in half. It was pretty awesome.

I noticed that the guy running the saw had gloves on that were really black, not by design. I wondered what that was all about for all of 30 seconds, until I picked up my metal. Everywhere else I've gotten metal it's been lightly oiled, or something similar, to stave off rust. This stuff is completely covered in a black dust, which appears intentional. I can only assume it's a rust preventative for during storage. I didn't have gloves with me, but luckily I had some paper towels in my truck. I grabbed some reasonably clean gloves when I got home & this is what I got from taking 4 sticks in & leaning them up against the wall for storage.

 

[clamor]

Help picking a chop saw

A couple years ago, I bought a DeWalt chop saw that came with an abrasive blade. I used it when I was making my welding table, but it's really poorly suited for cutting metal. Luckily (and surprising to me) I've gotten pretty good use out of it for its intended use of cutting wood.

So after struggling through the cuts I've done with a metal blade on a wood saw, I've come to the belated realization that I need a purpose built saw.

I was hoping to tap into the accumulated knowledge of this illustrious group.

What are everyone's experiences with the Harbor Freight, Chicago Electric saws?
(I think these are the ones pictured below)
3-1/2 Horsepower 14 in. Industrial Cut-Off Saw
2 Horsepower 14 in. Industrial Cut-Off Saw

My local Lowes has a DeWalt & a couple Evolution saws.
DEWALT 14-in Abrasive Cut-Off Chop Saw with Blade Change System
Evolution 14-in Multipurpose Cutting Chop Saw with Blade

I've really been liking Milwaukee tools & am impressed with the quality of stuff at Northern Tools, so these two have me intrigued as well (also pictured below, one of them & the shelf label for the other).
Milwaukee D-Handle Chop Saw — 14in., Model# 6180-20
Milwaukee Abrasive Chop Saw — 14in., Model# 6177-20

Anyone have any experience with any of these or specific things to look for in a metal chop saw?

Thanks,
Chaz

 

[RickyBobby]

Make sure the clamp is good, I've seen cheaper ones just break. Otherwises they're pretty fool proof. I myself use a water cooler horizontal bandsaw and it's amazing, picked it up on Craigslist for 250 from a closing shop.

 

[clamor]

Air compressor saga

A friend of mine gave me a 30gal air compressor when he moved a while back. He thought it was missing a part because it "sprayed" oil when it ran. I just stored it until I set up my garage after we moved & then I thought I'd look into getting a 'real' air compressor working (I have a little 2 gal for topping off my motorcycle tires).

It's an older version of this one: Kobalt 1.6-HP 30-Gallon 155 PSI Electric Air Compressor

Thinking it was probably low on oil from "spraying" when it was last ran, I picked up a quart & poured some in. I couldn't see any movement on the sight glass, so I just put the fill plug back on & ran it. It POURED out of the pressure relief holes in the fill plug (brass insert in the black hex fill plug below).

Not having a need for it at the time I let it sit for quite a while and decided to look back into it since I could use air assistance while I'm working on this project. I talked to a co-worker about it & tried to figure it out just from descriptions. We thought that maybe it was over-full, instead of under-full. So I went to Lowes to talk to them about it & after reasoning through it with the salesman and the manual we agreed with the assessment that my co-worker & I had.

Yesterday, I drained it, the drain plug was still painted on. Without thinking it through, I used an empty pop can, which filled almost instantly. Then the empty quart oil container from my previous troubleshooting attempt. I dropped the drain plug in the quart jug and it was showing no signs of stopping. So, I plugged it with my finger when the quart got full and had my son grab my wife, who saved me with an empty 1 gallon ice cream container.

After consolidating my 3 containers I still ended up with half a gallon of oil from the case & I'm pretty sure it didn't dip below the sight glass until under half a quart. I probably had close to .75 gallons in it at the most over-full.

So, I'm going to grab a fresh quart & carefully fill to the top of the sight glass & give it another go. If that's all I have to do to fix it, this will be a CHEAP air compressor for me!

...to be continued...

-Chaz

 

[clamor]

Make sure the clamp is good, I've seen cheaper ones just break. Otherwises they're pretty fool proof. I myself use a water cooler horizontal bandsaw and it's amazing, picked it up on Craigslist for 250 from a closing shop.

Ok, I'll take a close look at all the clamps.

I'm leaning towards the "D-Handle" Milwaukee from Northern atm.

I'd love to get a similar Cragislist score, but I have to get something that will fit on the shelves of my welding table, due to space constraints.

-Chaz

 

[ronnysplymouth]

I've had the cheap Harbor freight ones for a long time (ten years) and still going.....

 

[clamor]

Air compressor saga: conclusion...

I took my son to the parts store last night to get a smaller funnel & another quart of oil, just in case the case draining didn't go as planned. I really need to record him in there sometime, the three year old perspective on a parts store is hilarious.

So, apparently, regardless of the level of enthusiasm, a pre-teen neighborhood boy is not the best assistant. I really didn't think watching the oil level in a sight glass was all that hard, but he missed it. I drained over 400 mL out of the compressor case. That brought down the level to the upper recommended limit (which may or may not be visible in the picture).

The manual for these compressors is less than comprehensive on the topic of oil (or anything, really). It says something to the effect of, "Oil should be between the lines marked 'A' & 'B' on figure X." Where 'A' is the top of the scribed red circle & 'B' is the bottom, and that's it.

I ran it up to 150 psi a few times & played with my new air tools a bit. It works like a champ, not bad for a few bucks in oil & a little bit of time!

-Chaz