Is it worth the money to switch from direct spindle mount to metric mount?

I’m still skeptical on claims that wheels have different “stiffnesses” in any meaningful, measurable way.

I will say that different materials (and wheel volumes) can affect how the tire pressures develop during a race though.

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There isn’t any formal data that the manufacturers will share on this topic, but there is definitely a difference in handling between various rims.

Generally, a spun aluminum rim is “free-er” than a cast magnesium rim, although this really depends on the rim! The OTK MXC and MXL are notable exceptions to this.

Many American karts take to spun rims quite well, whereas many higher horsepower or softer chassis you don’t see them used as much. For a long time they were quite common in use. For a Briggs, a low horsepower application, getting rid of grip you don’t absolutely need is always a great thing.

Interesting eric, so what kind of rim do you think would best suit a yamaha 4 hole can kart? Aluminum?

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So far I cannot find any cracks or anything bent. Just a dirty old kart in need of some TLC

20181027_042959 this is the right rear tire

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And both fronts

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Left rear

As frustrating as it sounds, the type of rim that will suit a Yamaha kart the best is dependent on many factors.

One of the biggest will be your track—is it a greasy track or is it tacky? Are you a tall driver or are you short? What chassis are you running? What seat? What axle? The list goes on and on.

I will say this—generally, a Yamaha regardless of can is a fairly slow low horsepower kart. So, it follows you may want to consider ways to alleviate significant resistance to the engine to move the kart. Aluminum rims would be a solid, low cost place to start. Would MXCs be even better? Maybe, maybe not. Likely if your kart is a margay, many seem to play with aluminum spun vs. the Douglass cast or magnesium rims.

My tentative guess is on a cold track, the Douglass mags would keep the kart fairly free but also give you a bit more grip and sustain that grip than a spun aluminum wheel. But, again, it really depends on the chassis and all the other things we outlined.

You can also run different rims front vs back, depending on what you need in terms of grip.

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Generally, aluminum is going to be softer and heat up faster. Mag wheels are going to be stiffer and stay cooler.

Aluminum wheels in any high horsepower application is basically asking for the kart to fall off halfway through a run. The mag wheels keep the tire operating in it’s temp window better.

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