im going to start on building one soon and i was wondering how wide to make it, basicall the specs on a frame, like a blue print or something?

good luck buddy ive tried and that info dont come easy

_________________
lets just ride

yeah i'd have to agree with bmoore, or,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, you could just buy one allready together for twice what it's worth

_________________
Just Stand On It!!!!

Chris

all jokes aside, i am currently building a new frame, and trying to get close to what the ky men run! larry tried to get me to just go see chuck jones and be done well if i had to do it again thats exactly what id do

_________________
lets just ride

im just gonna build a 1 seater frame and make it reseamble a beeline cobra frame, build it not as wide and put my own touches on it, but i need to know how wide to make it and stuff like that

Why would such a simple question be such a secret. I would measure the seat and allow enough for a shifter a cutter and just go with it. Ive looked at several and for the most part there all different.

id like to build me a single seater something like a ky buggy also but its to far for me to drive to have one built in ky. come on ky guys give us some floor specs that all we ask

_________________
Awesome 2387 Beeline Cobra

Begley's 1 seaters ressemble his 'cobra' design. See if he will give you the measurements.
For the average ( and even a little above average) backyard fabricator, its crazy NOT to have Chuck build you one. He buys pipe by the semi-load. He can build you the basic frame for not much more than what most people have to pay for just the tubing to build one themself. Then you can finish it by putting in your own tabs, tree bars and control mounts.
Time is money. Instead of spending countless hours trying to build a frame from scratch yourself, spend that same amount of time working OT or doing some kind of sidework and you could earn twice as much money as it will cost for him to build it for you in the time most would spend on building one themself. You have to keep in mind how fast an experienced chassis builder like Chuck can do what takes the casual buggy builder weeks or months to do. You will come out ahead, and have peace of mind knowing your frame is right and built by a professional.

Take Bmoore's advice. Hindsight is 20/20 , aint it Brandon?


There are no "specs" to give. Every single one of them that you see that climbs well is different. A frame that is balanced right is built around the driver. They are only "cookie cutters" to those who dont look closely enough, or cant tell the difference without a measuring tape in hand.
Kevin is giving sound advice. If you are determined to build your own, sit your seat on the floor and start placing controls, and build from there. The dimensions dont matter, balance and set up is what matters and that changes with every driver and drivetrain. Those things are impossible to achieve by just telling someone where to put everything.

I'll share some info with you. That seems to be the differance between the "cookie cutter crew" and the rest of us. We SHARE ideas, concepts and designs. We promote the building of our cars so others can take thoes ideas and run with them. I have shared so many designs that more people use than would be willing to admit they hi-jacked it from me. There are companys making parts that I first came out with. I've heard storys of some of the "cookie cutter crew" being pissed if you even looked like your going to lean on their car, 'gonna mess my suspension up', grow up. And the idea that the southern boys are the only ones that know how to build a buggy, ya right.
My single seater floor rails are 30" wide at the rear torsion housing, I would suggest going 6" wider to allow room for shifter and cutter brakes.
At the front beam it's 21" wide, again I would suggest going narrower than that. Allows more range of motion for the steering.
The cage should be 5 to 6" taller than you are sitting in your seat, mine is 40", should be 42 or 44".
Also suggested to make the top arm rails as tall as possible, some where around sholder height. This makes the roof section shorter and stronger. Also much more protection for the driver.
Any other top secret information you need, just ask.
Besides, who wants a "cookie cutter" buggy anyway.

_________________
Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.
M
A
G
A

Thanks madmike them are good measurements for a start. I think that 36 at torsion and 27 at front beam is what im going with but another ? is how long from the torsion to front beam on the bottom?

_________________
Awesome 2387 Beeline Cobra

From the rear of the front beam to the front of the rear housing, on mine is 81"
I agree with Larry on the dimentions not being all that important. If you have the desire and the means of building your own chassis, do as he suggested. Put your seat on the floor, set your components where they need to be for you and go from there. If someone were to build exactly what I have then you would have a "yankee cookie cutter buggy", heaven forbid.

_________________
Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.
M
A
G
A

another thing i think that is a key point is making sure the suspension is setup right and moves freely and probably most important is seat position in front of the torsion due to balance issues ( bad to wheely or no traction )

_________________
Just Stand On It!!!!

Chris

thanks for all the info, but how far off of the torsion does the seat need to be?
ill give chuck jones a call and just see what a frame will cost

We made the a-arm buggy 40-w & 44-tall . You the to build the buggy to fit you & your driveing & eng &trans

no one can answer that if you want your buggy balanced to fit you! you need your tranny and engine mounted and your buggy set on scales then place your seats controls etc..etc.... that is were your fine tuning and balance comes into play

_________________
lets just ride

o yea, im from the great state of tn and i love the cookie cutters i would atleast call and talk to chuck before i started from scratch:wink: larry is exactly rite, hindsite is always 20/20 my 2cents

_________________
lets just ride

no secret going on my ss buckeye buggy , as i work on it i will make a buggy build post for it and secrets are only meant to be kept from your wife

_________________
Theirs no replacement for displacement !

im not from ky but no one can argue the fact if you want to be the first to the top you will have to beat a cookie cutter to do it! thats just a proven fact! and i think thats the secret! years of proven buggys! i just hope to finish mine and stay close

_________________
lets just ride

Jessie the frame i have for sale is all you need front kingpin welded in rear torshion in racetrim seat . this frame needs to be finshed and in the woods. the hard part is done 1500 bucks is a steal on this frame it is a cookie cutter and hill climb winning design

You can always do what I did & convert a 2 seater. When my girlfriend decided she wants to sit in the 4 seater & spectate I put the seat in the center & built around it. I will probably weigh 100 or so pounds more than the KY buggies but it's the balance that matters when climbing. My center of gravity is already going to blow theirs away so to get the balance right I will scale it & then position the battery, oil tank, twin 4 gallon fuel cells, tool box & cooler to get a 70/30 distribution. I also have steel or aluminum front wheels & carbon fiber or aluminum rear wheels to fine tune it.

_________________

yankee i know it has to be a good buggy and all but i just dont have 1500 right now to put into a frame, and my papaw has been wanting to build one for a long time, and if i build my own frame i can save my money and spend as i go, but if you could do some trading i might be able to get some money for that frame

Here is the build thread. I haven't posted anything for 7 months because my job has kept me working weekends & killed my enthusiasm. The low C/G comes about due to my extremely low roof height, 45 degree layback seat & mounting all weight at floor level. I spent 20 years watching what works & experimenting on C/G & weight distribution. This set up probably won't work for anyone else since I am one of the few who could lay back at that angle & call it comfortable. There is a good chance my purple buggy is going to come back to me soon & if it hasn't been screwed up by the children who have it now I can use the parts to either get the 1 seater done or get my Stalker moving.

http://www.woodsbuggy.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=10&jfile=viewtopic.php&f=23&t=8071

_________________

what exacatly does cookie cutter stand for

callin them cookie cutters was started because the ky style single seaters look pretty much the same

_________________
lets just ride