Chain Driven Axle

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Anyone here ever built a chain driven axle to turn car tires???

If so, how did you do it?

A high school auto shop class built a 3/4 size 30's roadster powered by a Honda 750 4-bang motorcycle engine & they used a long chain with a sprocket on a straight axle. Since bike motors don't have a reverse they used an electric motor to back up. Tried to find it online several times over the years but never could. It was pretty kool & I'd still like to build one someday (if I liv to be 100 I guess)!

BoB
 
I'm thinking it would be easy if you just drove one wheel with a sprocket . Not sure how it would work out if drive both rear wheels at the same time around corners. Might wear out a few front tires.:eek:
 
Works for a motorcycle, but I don't think I'd want it for anything that went over about 25 MPH. Early trucks used a chain drive, but seldom went over 25....
 
4 wheel drive guys drag race on a short dirt track. A lot of then use chain drive setups. Maybe you could find something searching dirt drags, jeep drags ..ect. Good luck
 
Not sure if this is the style you had in mind. Google Vintage Chain Driven Speedsters and you will get a fair amount of examples. RM Restorations has some nice ones with a lot of good pictures, but you can't copy or download them.
 

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You could use a rear axle right off the transmission with gears on the hubs. That would solve the problem of cornering... maybe. The wheels could be on independent suspensions.
 
I am sure that it will be hard on tires, but usually toys/rods are.... Cornering might be a bit rough but we will see how it works out. There are some diff setups out there to do this kind of stuff.

A high school auto shop class built a 3/4 size 30's roadster powered by a Honda 750 4-bang motorcycle engine & they used a long chain with a sprocket on a straight axle. Since bike motors don't have a reverse they used an electric motor to back up. Tried to find it online several times over the years but never could. It was pretty kool & I'd still like to build one someday (if I liv to be 100 I guess)!

BoB

The mighty Tripper hit the nail on the head for what I am thinking of doing. Keep looking at ZZ's golf cart for inspiration. Trying to blend that thought with a fuel injected R6 motor I have been sitting on for a couple years now. Gears turning.....

You could use a rear axle right off the transmission with gears on the hubs. That would solve the problem of cornering... maybe. The wheels could be on independent suspensions.

Sam, no sure I understand what you're saying...
 
I built a dragster about 15 years ago that had a Suzuki motorcycle engine in it. It was rear engine, with a chain. We used a centrifugal clutch and air shifted the trans, off the rpms. On the rear axle I used two front hubs for an S-10 4 wheel drive truck. They are splined inside. I talked to Greg Moser at a PRI show and explained what I wanted for an axle. He said no problem and was very interested in the project. So much so he gave be his direct phone number, so we did not have to go through the switch board at the company. I machined a hub for the motor cycle sprocket. It had a single 1/2" square key in it. I used a piece of lathe tool steel for the key. I fabbed up some mounts to adapt the s-10 hubs to bolt into the frame sides. Then got all the measurements and called Moser for the axle. I also had to run a center bearing support to keep the axle from flexing on launch.
We sold the car to a guy in Hawaii and it was back halfed and a VW engine installed.
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The topic made me think of this one... rear engine and chain drive

The third picture... I just thought that was awesome.. chain drive tandem axles

Last one looks like you basically have a rear axle that the chains are mounted too.. that would allow for the speed/rotational difference around corners.....? also very cool how the brakes are on the "upper" axle and not out at the wheels
 

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Lot's of cool ideas! The Harleys had them as far back as 36 I believe on the Servi-car. They are straight axles with the chain sprocket and yes they are squirrely in several ways. Around corners and standing on breaks that seemed no matter how you did them, one would lock up before the other and away you go...heheh. ask me how I know. Got a 55 out in the barn that I built for my ex wife years ago. Took it away from her to save her life....
 
The topic made me think of this one... rear engine and chain drive

The third picture... I just thought that was awesome.. chain drive tandem axles

Last one looks like you basically have a rear axle that the chains are mounted too.. that would allow for the speed/rotational difference around corners.....? also very cool how the brakes are on the "upper" axle and not out at the wheels

Last pic looks like it is from an old American LaFrance fire engine chassis. I have seen some pretty cool build threads using these frames as platforms to built giant speedsters. Don't know anything in regards to how fast they can go though.
Torchie.
 
Obviously the main issue is to have a differential or it's like driving a car with a spool. There are fancy chain or belt drive trike axles, all billet stuff and big bucks.
You could build one fairly cheaply using any type of rear diff that has a rear cover. Flip it over, remove and plug the pinion, toss the ring gear and mount a sprocket to the carrier. Of course, lubrication would be an issue since you'd have to run the chain out through a couple holes in the rear cover.... fill it with grease ??? [S
So how would you drive it from the transmission end ??
 
I don' know if this will help but I will trie to explain how I built the rear end for my wife's trike. I started with a mazda pickup axle. it has outer axle bearings that are captured to the axle so there are no clip in the carrier. I used the axle tubes cut off of the center section and welded them to two plates that I bolted 4 bolt flange bearings to that the carrier would spin in these are spaced apart the same distance as flanges of the bearings with spacer blocks and then wraped with a band of steel with openings for the belt to run in and out of. I enclosed the spider gears with a tin cover made from a center cap from a mag wheel it just happened to be the right size and installed a grease fitting to lube it. To drive it I removed the ring gear and machined the center out of an aluminium Harley rear pulley but you could do the same with a sprocket. I hope this helps.I'm sorry I don't have pictures.
 
Obviously the main issue is to have a differential or it's like driving a car with a spool. There are fancy chain or belt drive trike axles, all billet stuff and big bucks.
You could build one fairly cheaply using any type of rear diff that has a rear cover. Flip it over, remove and plug the pinion, toss the ring gear and mount a sprocket to the carrier. Of course, lubrication would be an issue since you'd have to run the chain out through a couple holes in the rear cover.... fill it with grease ??? [S
So how would you drive it from the transmission end ??

I have read some other discussion about what ya are saying.... This sounds like the best idea. But I would need to find some way to seal it or something for oil.

Driving from the trans would not be hard. It is a chain drive bike engine so that is why I want to run a chain axle.


I don' know if this will help but I will trie to explain how I built the rear end for my wife's trike. I started with a mazda pickup axle. it has outer axle bearings that are captured to the axle so there are no clip in the carrier. I used the axle tubes cut off of the center section and welded them to two plates that I bolted 4 bolt flange bearings to that the carrier would spin in these are spaced apart the same distance as flanges of the bearings with spacer blocks and then wraped with a band of steel with openings for the belt to run in and out of. I enclosed the spider gears with a tin cover made from a center cap from a mag wheel it just happened to be the right size and installed a grease fitting to lube it. To drive it I removed the ring gear and machined the center out of an aluminium Harley rear pulley but you could do the same with a sprocket. I hope this helps.I'm sorry I don't have pictures.

Kenny sounds like you are talking about the same thing ZZ said. Too bad no pics... I have plans for a mini rail and the back axle is made from geo metro parts so I was thinking of something like this but there is no diff so it would still be a solid axle turning issue.....
 

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