So, we all know that the big 3 karts (OTK / Birel / CRG) can all be made fast. Their derivative brands, also
Praga, Comp-Kart, Top Kart, DR, some others in the mix too.
I’ve decided to fully buy-in to running my own race program. It will likely be at the KA-100 level.
As to why, and why now, It’s a long story that will get told elsewhere.
But, I’m curious from a user’s perspective (yours…)
What kart has the widest competitive tuning window (ie. can be made ti win in a wide variety of track conditions.)?
My impression has been that OTK is easy to setup, has a finite shelf life (1 national year, 3 club years) before going off. And the reparto corse thread is just discouraging if you’re a non-factory driver…lol But if you had to pick ONE chassis for a full year, training and racing at the top level, that had to suffice for all possible race conditions (heat, cold, wet, dry) what would it be?
Anecdotal info appreciated. Conjecture allowed but disregarded.
All that really matters is to test, test and test.
Most karts can be tuned to be a front runner. It’s how much the driver practices and understands himself and his setup to get the most of it.
Part of it also is how the kart feels with you in it as well. I’ve driven margay, top kart, vlr and otk. I’ve always done best and liked the way an OTK handles.
The OTK has the largest tuning window of what I’ve driven. I’ve had success on cold tracks, hot tracks, green tracks, grippy tracks, 100cc racing, TaG racing… And the “1 year of national racing before it’s toast” is also BS.
My kart I ran at SuperNats this year was a 2016 with 2 full seasons of national and regional racing on it and I was second quick in the final.
Does anyone want to share experiences with chassis that have a very narrow tuning window?
I bought a Birel AM-29 in the middle of last year and I am finding it to be very sensitive to changes in conditions. I am certainly not the most experienced or knowledgeable about chassis setup, but I have also noticed this in the others that run Birels at my local track, some days they are flying and others they are nowhere. Sometimes that will flip over the course of a day! A lot of people run them at our club with LO206 on the mandated MG reds.
Most karts required constant tuning years ago until OTK started kicking butts and making a more tuner-friendly kart. Now many karts are fairly easy to set up and tune. Or not easy… but more intuitive or less sensitive.
Many people have/do pay a premium for that exact reason. Although the reality is now, MANY karts have a very wide tuning window. BirelART included, though the 29 might be more sensitive. But the Birels I have driven lately felt super similar to the OTK. Even the Merlins (Parolin-derived) I drove lately felt like they had that super strong front end that the OTK has been known for.
I remember hearing from an acquaintance in Canada that the OTK 4-stroke version is kinda bad. He only sees the 2-stroke version in LO206, though there aren’t many.
I don’t have specific experience with the 4-stroke OTK but the 2-stroke one goes well in 206 here. Part of the problem is Canada has a max rear width rule of 50” for some 206 series and the OTK stuff simply is hard to tune that narrow.
We never touch our baseline setup on the AM29 from March to November except an axle swap in the summer. We don’t even change it when we change tire compounds.
For context, we had our first race of the season last weekend. The conditions were very similar to the final round of 2024—ambient temperature was comparable, and although that race was held at night and this one during the day, it was very cloudy. The main difference was that the track started greener this time.
In the last round of ’24, my buddy and I were on very similar setups on the AM-29s—he won, and I wasn’t far behind in 5th. Two other regulars at our circuit, also on AM-29s, finished well down the order.
This year in Round 1, the roles were reversed. Those other two guys ran away with it, and I lost about half a second to the leaders as the day progressed, even though the conditions didn’t shift much aside from a slight warm-up and rubbering in. The chassis felt amazing in the lower-grip conditions of the morning, but as grip built up, it became too gripped up.
I suspect a harder axle would’ve been quicker, but it feels like that shouldn’t be necessary in conditions this similar—I take this to support the narrow tuning window idea. Happy to be corrected on that.
I concur. Have put a couple hundred standard OTK’s together for 206 Junior, Senior and Masters and they all tune basically the same and run very well. I’ve had four of the 4-cycle karts and kinda hated them all. But I did get one to run really well in Junior.
Get a standard OTK, put the struts on and an H axle for senior and an HH for Masters and then tune rear widths and pressures. Have Zero pills and a chrome bar for when grips goes down. Pretty consistent to drive and tune at that juncture.
