These guys are apparently long term clone builders and confirmed 9hp from an LO206 on their dynos
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I’m skeptical of a 3-4 HP difference when a couple dudes over this way are running the 206 and G212 heads up and turning identical laptimes.
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Although I think the numbers shared so far can be considered to be reliable. They were tested back to back on the same dyno and it shows the correction factor on the sheet.
That said, peak numbers never tell the full story of engine performance, especially in a single gear application. If you look at the curve above you can see the torque band on the Ghost is quite a bit narrower than the 206.
This looks a bit like early TaG days where at certain tracks, certain engines do better than others. The ghost looks like the TaG equivalent to the Rotax (punchy mid, tame on bottom and top), 206 being more a leopard, less severe but broad powerband.
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Thats my thinking, maybe more peak power, LO206 probably has a much broader flatter torque curve.
Seems like this topic fizzled out?
Right now seems like some advantage to the Ghost is just overall availability.
Personally I hope the increased internet traffic helps our friends at Ghost Racing . . . but then there is this:
The F Series in the Northeast floated the idea of the Predator Ghost for their region (No 206 over there yet), Kart Chaser discussed the pros and cons of adding the Ghost to the mix… It should jump to the timestamp, if not it starts at 35:00
Oooh. This is of interest.
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After most of a season, the 3 Ghosts we used for our Arrive and Drive program have been virtually flawless. Changed the oil, cleaned the air filters. It’s hard to judge against the LO206, as we only had one of those show up, but I think the LO had a smoother power curve, but again, that may be more about the tuning and the fact it was a persons personal kart, and not basically a rental.
At this point we’re going to shut down the 4 stroke A&D karts next year, simply because the class just isn’t flying here. The engines have been a joy, and so far very durable. If 4 stroke ever starts to show life here I’ll probably put the engines back on chassis and run them again, however for now we’ll put 2 strokes back on for now and make a little cash.
I pulled the oldest (by 1 race) motor and except for a slight carbon tinge, it looks new, no scratches on the bore, rings wearing well, etc. The only thing we did to these is install the HF accessory kit, put a magnetic drain plug in, add a fuel pump riser, and change the oil every race. I check the magnets every race and they have had very little metal sticking, which always makes me happy.
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Were you able to get any data on how the three engines performed relative to each other?
I just got an Inside Track Member coupon for 10% off any Predator product and thinking about grabbing one just for the hell of it and throwing it on in place of my Lo206 just to see if it runs well and keeps up on practice days. I’m a tinkerer and it’s a small investment and wouldn’t mind having a backup motor to run here and there and beat on.
Sorry for the late reply, end of season has kept me off the site… All three are within 20 rpm of each other, if they have the same size driver for the day, they’ll spot on use the same gearing. Honestly, all three have been very consistent. What’s interesting is that 2 came from one harbor freight (I bought them out) and the third came from another.
With all that said, the castings are the typical Chinese junk casting. Nothing like our high end 2 cycles, and not really all that pretty. I’ve heard people say that you can’t run the flywheels, but those same people whine that it has a rev limiter. Um, that is a type of governor, so technically it is a governed engine, no issues with any stress marks on anything. I tore down one engine and it basically look new, the one wear item I did see is the case seals looked a little more worn than I expected, but that was about it.
That engine had about 10 total hours, and I’ll take a wild guess and say that seal probably will go another 30-40 hour, or maybe it’ll go 10 more.
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Good info thanks!
Yeah a lot of the guys in the mini bike circles seem to not really understand flywheels. Even on the standard 212 they need to be able to withstand about 5800 intermittent in the case of governor failure or a linkage disconnect. At that point valve float is your rev limiter.
There’s a perception that 3600 RPM is a safety limit. When you realize that 3600 RPM is 60hz that speed starts to make more sense.
Where they get tripped up is when they change the springs, then you’re in the danger zone for sure.
That said, a cast iron flywheel isn’t necessarily bad, it’s depends on how it’s made. How the magnet is attached makes a big difference to as those seem to go into orbit more often than the flywheels actually coming apart.
Agree 100% James. All in all, they would be good practice motors, and for a get people started cheap class. For serious racing I think I would go with an established motor, but that’s just me, and I’d miss the brap brap. 
I’m not even sure if that’s true. As a class the ghost IMO is a bit of a false economy. The 206 is ultimately only a couple hundred bucks more and you get a lot for that money. Ruleset, a class you can race almost anywhere, prize program along with parity and reliability that’s a known quantity.
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Marco at NY race complex is setting up a cheeper entry level predator series for next year. 5 yr old chassis and a 212 ghost motor. Racing for under 2500$ … I m in…
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Thanks, Todd. I’ll be interested to see how it plays out. His track is pretty far and I have yet to make the trip up north. Maybe this will give me a good excuse!
Yeah that’s a bold play by Marco with the Ghost, but no better guy to try something different and see how it goes. Given Marco had a disagreement with Briggs and the fact that 206’s still seem to be slow to obtain anyway, can’t blame him.
$2500 206 karts are a thing too. But the East Coast has it’s own four stroke scene going on.
I’m looking at the Ghost (Amongst others incl Tillotson, LCT & briggs) for my ice rental karts.
Another option for you - http://72.52.146.15/820.htm - built in America and doesn’t have a valvetrain