Build A Motorized Mountain

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80 SCIENCE and MECHANICS
By V. LEE OERTLE

H ERE'S the going-est buggy a fellow

could want. It's wilderness transporta-
tion to delight the heart of the amateur
geologist, weekend prospector or straight-
out sportsman who's looking for rugged
wheels for rugged terrain. It can be built for
about $300 more or less—depending on how
many used parts can be substituted for new
ones—and a few weekends of work.
Your First Step will be to draw a full-
size cardboard pattern for the Goat's frame.
In doing so certain dimensions, especially
regarding clearances, should be borne in
mind. These include the size of the tires,
wheels and engine; the space the drive chains
and sprockets will require to clear the frame;
and your own individual requirements for
space and comfort.
The tires will be your biggest expense,
running roughly $120, with wheels, for three
complete ready-to-go units. The three tires
used on the Goat are Goodyear Terra-Tires
with bolt-on flanges (Fig. 1). These are
tubeless jobs that operate at air pressures of
from 1 to about 15 psi, depending on the
terrain. They enable the Goat to claw its way
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MARCH, 1963 81
 FIG. 7: Split-axle power train permits more ground clearance under frame.
FIG. 5: Jack-shaft is section of Also, the Goat will keep going if one jack-shaft-to-wheel chain breaks.
1" kart axle keyed to accept
sprockets. Note self-aligning
bearings on the bearing hangers.

FIG. 6: Bearing hangers for jack-

shaft bolt to slotted braces so
hangers can be moved up or
down by loosening four 1/2" bolts.

over sand, mud, snow, rocks

and other obstacles that
would stop other vehicles
dead. Tire size for the Goat:
16x12—6R.
When you have made
your engine-compartment
measurements on your pat-
tern you can estimate the
Goat's overall length by sit-
ting down on the pattern at
the point where the seat will
be situated and drawing up FIG. 8: Clamp piece of floor steel to frame to check 45° turning angle.
your legs to a comfortable
position. Then mark the spot behind your local kart shop or through a mail-order house
heels and add 2 in. to allow room for the and you'll save money.
seat-back cushion. Overall length of the Goat, Frame. The frame is made of 1015-grade
including the front wheel, probably will be cold-rolled steel tubing having a wall thick-
75 to 85 in., which is average. ness of .083 to .120 in. with an outside diam-
Kart parts can be used almost exclusively eter of 1-1/2-in. Instead of being all-welded it
to make this type buggy. Standard-size parts is bent to shape following the full-size
are quite cheap. Buy your materials from a pattern.
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82 SCIENCE and MECHANICS
 FIG. 10: Brake and throttle control rods are 1/4" steel.
Connector plates permit offsetting these controls.

FIG. 9: Weld 16-gauge-steel floor to frame bottom.

Install crosswise so that scrap pieces can be used.

CONNECTOR
Check out your sketch by sitting down on PLATES LEAD
CONTROL POD
the pattern and trying to visualize the loca- TO BRAKE
tions of steering tiller, seat back and wheels
(Fig. 2). If the sitting position seems
cramped, extend the front radius a little. And
make sure two persons can sit within the
sides of your pattern. Then take the pattern
to a tube bender.
The cost for the frame-bending job will
range from $15 to $25. The recommended
method for bending the frame is to have it
bent up in two sections, then joining the sec-
tions with a welded joint at the front of the
frame and another at the rear (Fig. 3). 12-tooth sprocket on each end of the jack-
After bending, check your frame against shaft; (2) a 60-tooth sprocket on each rear
the original pattern (Fig. 4) for any varia- axle; (3) a 48-tooth sprocket on the jack-
tions that may have resulted. Don't worry if shaft; and (4) a 12-tooth sprocket on the
the dimensions are not precise (you can engine clutch.
allow for some error in both length and Drive Chains. The jack-shaft-to-wheel
width). The important thing is to make sure drive chains should be #40s. The engine-
the frame is aligned correctly fore and aft so clutch drive chains can be #35s.
that the Goat will steer and track properly. Jack-Shaft. The jack-shaft (Fig. 5) is sim-
Superstructure. Any Goat you build will ply a section of old 1-in. kart axle. Such axles
require a superstructure to support the seats are already keyed to accept standard sprock-
and arm rests. This can be bent from smaller ets and brake systems. Use standard self-
tubing, such as 1-in. cold-rolled steel, then aligning axle bearings to support the jack-
welded in place. shaft, and bolt the flangettes onto standard
Gear Ratios. To calculate your gear ratios bearing hangers. The latter can be made ad-
divide the number of teeth of the clutch justable using the simple sliding-bracket
sprocket into the number of teeth on the arrangement shown in Fig. 6.
jack-shaft sprocket; for example: 12 into 36 Split-Axle Power Train. By using a pair
equals a ratio of 3:1. Do the same with the of stubby axles instead of one long one the
jack-shaft-to-axle sprockets; for example: 12 Goat will have greater ground clearance and
into 60 equals a 5:1 ratio. Now multiply the fewer projections (Fig. 7). The parts needed
clutch ratio by the axle ratio, as: 3:1x5:1 for one rear-axle assembly include axle, nut,
equals a 15:1 ratio—the same as was installed flangettes with self-aligning bearings, lock-
on my own Goat. However, I recommend a ing collar and chain sprocket. The axles are
gear reduction of at least 20:1. This would suspended in the self-aligning bearings which
require the following six sprockets: (1) a (Continued on page 120)
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MARCH, 1963 83
 Build a Motorized Mountain Goat . . . . (Continued from page 83)
in turn are supported by flangettes, the latter frame to be sure there will be enough clear-
bolted through steel bearing hangers welded ance to permit the wheel a 45° turning angle
to the underside of the frame. in both directions.
Both rear wheels have 1/4" x 1/4" keys cut Make the U-shaped front-wheel yoke from
inside the flanges to permit keying to the the same l-1/2-in. tube stock used for the
axles. The rear-axle sprockets are also keyed frame. Flatten out the end of the yoke's U and
to the axles so that when the jack-shaft drill holes through each to take, say, a 3/4-in.
rotates, a drive chain turns the power axle. Now chop off a length of kart axle (with
sprocket. Both rear axles are "live"; that is, keyway) and weld this onto the top of the
they rotate with the wheels. The front wheel, center block welded to the yoke. This piece of
on the other hand, turns freely in 3/4-in. axle stock will ride in the neck of the steering
pressed-in bearings. sleeve. The sleeve can be of any heavy metal
Steering. To determine your ground-clear- having a minimum wall thickness of .125 in.
ance requirements place the frame atop some with an inside diameter of 1 in. It is welded
boxes at the desired height to see where the into position on the forward end, or exten-
front wheel will go (Fig. 8). When position- sion, of the frame.
ing this wheel, clamp a piece of floor-pan The tiller handle can be bent of 1-in. cold- V"
steel temporarily to the underside of the rolled or chromoly tubing, preferably the
latter. Weld a 2-in. piece of steering-sleeve
tubing to the base of the tiller so that it can
be slipped over the yoke shaft. Use set screws
to tighten it on.
MATERIALS L I S T - Engine. Four-cycle engines provide the
MOTORIZED MOUNTAIN GOAT* best power in the low-gear ranges. Geared
down to 20:1, a 7-hp Briggs & Stratton mill
Amount Size & Description will drive the Goat, with two people aboard,
. FRAME up anything short of a 45° grade. At this
30' (approx.) 1015-grade, l ' / 2 " od cold-roll steel tubing ratio you'll get about 10 mph on hard flat-
25' (approx.) 1" cold-roll steel tubing (superstructure)
hardware, pipe suppliers
lands and roads.
TIRE-WHEEL UNITS Jack-Shaft Bearing Hangers are welded
3 Terra-Tires (with wheels) size 16x12—6R to the 1/8-in. steel plates forward of the en-
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, 0. gine mounting plate. A slotted brace (Fig. 6)
Geneva Wheel Co., Geneva, 0. ($38.69 per unit)
GP Enterprises, 152 Huntington Dr., Monrovia
under the hanger allows the jack-shaft to
Calif. ($19.95) be moved forward or back by loosening four
ENGINE 1/2-in. bolts. This adjustment is necessary for
1 Briggs & Stratton, 7-hp, 4-cycle power unit the fitting, adjustment and removal of the
SPROCKETS drive chains.
2 12-tooth for each end of jack-shaft
2 60-tooth for each rear axle Floor Pan. Fabricate the floor pan from
1 48-tooth for jack-shaft standard-width 16-gauge steel. Run the strips
1 12-tooth for engine clutch
kart shops, mail order houses
across the bottom of the frame (Fig. 9), weld
REAR AXLES
the seams and weld the edges to the bottom
2 split-axle power train of the frame's tubing. By running the floor
DRIVE CHAINS pan across instead of lengthwise you can get
2 #40s for lower-end installation away with using narrower scrap pieces and
2 #35s, clutch-to-jack-shaft
kart shops, hardware
avoid having to buy extra-wide sheet steel.
JACK-SHAFT The Connectors to brake and throttle con-
1 used kart axle with keyway; 1" dia., 3-4' long
kart shops
trols can be lengths of 1/4-in. steel rod. Weld
STEERING 2-in. steel connector plates onto the ends of
1 front axle; short section of 3/4" kart axle the rods to allow offset connections to be led
1
1
front-wheel yoke; l-1/2" cold-roll steel tubing
tiller; 1" dia. chromoloy tubing (steering handle)
to the desired control. Simple gussets
kart shops, hardware welded to the frame serve to anchor the rods.
CONTROLS Also be sure the rods turn freely inside pre-
1 brake control; 3/8" dia., 16" long steel rod drilled holes. The brake-rod installation
1 throttle control; 3/8" dia., 16" long steel rod
kart shops, hardware shown in Fig. 10 is activated by a foot pedal.
MISC. Now slap on a coat of primer paint and
Other parts incl. clutch, steel-disk brake assembly, floor pan (16-ga. take your Goat out for a test run through the
sheet steel), self-aligning bearings (8—with hangers), flangettes,
gussets. controls and pedals ($10), and frame bending and welding
country. You will find that your Terra-Tires
charges. will take you over the sandiest terrain with-
* Design of the Mountain Goat is such that considerable leeway is out bogging down. The front-wheel steering
afforded the builder in making innovations. For that reason this
Materials List need not be considered mandatory, since additions, should give you excellent control with light
such as transmission, bumpers, etc., may want to be made by indi- arm pressure. And you will discover that
vidual builders.
your little 7-hp plant has all the spirit you
could desire. •
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120 SCIENCE and MECHANICS