Real build fabrication package
The CAD, drawings and parts list behind my real build. Includes laser and CNC ready parts, jig templates and a fully costed bill of materials. Designed in CAD, built in a garage, revised where the design was wrong, then drift tested.
Every part of this kart was filmed being made, complications included. Watch first. If the build makes sense to you, the package will too.
Read the workshop story: DIY Drift Kart — How I Built It →
No music, no talking, no cuts to speed things up. Just the workshop and the sound of it. If you want to see every joint before you commit to building one, this is the whole thing.
Seen enough? The files are below.
A serious head start, not a kit and not a step by step tutorial. Every dimension in here came off a kart that exists.
If you have fabrication skills and access to a welder, this saves you weeks of design work and a pile of expensive trial and error.
Digital plans only. Payment and file delivery through Gumroad.
This is the actual CAD assembly included in the Complete Builder Pack, not a render. Drag to orbit, pinch or scroll to zoom, and pull the slider to see how the 229 parts come together.
Model shown is simplified for the web. The pack contains the full resolution STEP, IGES and OBJ assembly.
Straight off the bill of materials, so you know before you order anything. Rates move, so treat this as a guide rather than a quote.
Category figures are approximate USD amounts and add to $2,030; the listed BOM total is $2,027. Use this as a budgeting guide and confirm supplier quotes before ordering.
The US$149 Complete Builder Pack is additional: US$2,176 for the listed parts budget plus plans, before freight, consumables, tools and any hired assembly or welding labour.
Included in the USD 2,027 parts budget above, not an extra charge. The files are ready to upload to a fabrication service.
Or pull them off a used go kart, which is what I did. Mine came out about break even against new, but you get parts you can see running.
The bill of materials was built in Australia, so the purchase links point at Australian suppliers. Most of it is available anywhere.
Quantity, spec, cost and a link, grouped by supplier. If the link is no use where you live, the specification still is.
The product code after /dp/ usually finds the same item on your own Amazon. Steel and fasteners are better sourced locally regardless.
Aluminium hubs, steering knuckles, trays and pedal parts sit in their own folders with drawings. Send them straight to a service.
Check the tools and experience you’ll need before buying.
Designed in CAD, built in a garage, drift tested.
Dad Drift Kart, package V1.7Both editions include individual part and tooling STEP files plus PDF drawings. Complete adds the full-kart assembly in STEP, IGES and OBJ. STEP can be opened in compatible software such as Fusion, Onshape, Inventor, SolidWorks and FreeCAD. These are exported models, not a native CAD feature history.
The original frame uses bent tube. To reproduce it, use a suitable tube bender or have a fabrication shop make the bends. Mitred or pie-cut welded alternatives require extra fabrication work and assessment of the joints and geometry; they are not a simple vice-bending substitute. Check the drawings and your fabrication approach before buying.
You do not need my tools. The kart was designed around a normal MIG welder, not the gear in the videos. If you can lay a sound weld on 2.0 mm wall tube, you have enough welder.
Yes. The bill of materials was priced in Australia so the links point at Australian suppliers, but almost nothing in the build is Australia specific. For Amazon items, swap in your regional Amazon and the product code after /dp/ usually finds the same part. Steel, fasteners and the donor kart are all better sourced locally anyway. Every part is described by specification, not just by link, so you can buy the equivalent anywhere.
Metric throughout. Frame tube is 31.8 mm outside diameter with a 2.0 mm wall, rear axle is 30 mm.
No. Those parts are separated into their own folders with drawings, ready to upload to a fabrication service. Budget around USD 550 for those outsourced parts, included in the parts budget above. You will need welding, cutting and drilling equipment, plus a suitable tube bender or an outsourced bending service for the original frame geometry.
Updates to the files in your edition are included. Workshop updates do not add the full-kart assembly; that is included in Complete. Original package buyers retain Complete access. The update log records what changed.
Depends on your shop and how much time you get. The bends in the frame are the slowest part, especially if you are mitering or pie cutting them rather than using a bender.
I’m in touch with teachers planning classroom builds. The STEP CAD files can be opened in Onshape, and the dimensioned drawings work for students who are in the workshop rather than in CAD. I work with schools case by case, so if you are planning a class build, email me before you buy and we can talk through what your program needs. Explore the teaching ideas and discuss a class project →
Email me. I built the thing, so I can usually tell you what went wrong from a photo.
The design work is done and tested. Download it and get on with the part you actually enjoy.
Get the files
