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This the billy cart I made
at 120 Wright Street in East Devonport when I was about 13, and was the
culmination of a series of models, each getting more sophisticated. The
photo was taken at Xmas 1964, just before I moved to Hobart. It has a swinging front axle and a hand brake acting on one rear wheel. The wheels are from a lawnmower, and run on nylon bearings on steel axles. The flag and the paint job make it look quite swish. My dad organised to give it to someone in Devonport when we left for Hobart. I guess it has long since disintegrated. It was at least 30 years before I made another cart, prompted by a request from my daughter. |
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picture was taken by Phillip Randall
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This is Ben
Methorst racing in the upgraded "Bush Basher". Originally
built by David Edwards with steel reinforced plastic golf buggy wheels,
this version has 12" pavement cycle wheels with rear caliper brakes.
The steering uses parallelogram geometry, with a rope link between the steering column and the front track rod.
The modifications were performed by John McCulloch. The picture was
taken at the 29 March 2006 Billycart Derby at the Technopark. With the
new wheels and steering, Ben came first in his division. Top speed was
probably about 50 kph. Note the colour coordinated wheels and
tyres. There is no speed sensor. |
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This is David at the
Baskerville Racecourse at the 19 April 2004 Billycart Derby. This cart
is the third version of the "Speed Machine". It has 12" pavement cycle
wheels on the back and 12" plastic rim golf buggy wheels with
commercial bearings on the front. The first version of this cart used
ball bearing golf buggy wheels with soft non-inflatable tyres front and
rear. It was quite slow. The second version used plastic rims with
commercial bearings on the rear, but left the golf buggy wheels on the
front, and was somewhat faster. The third version shown in the picture
was faster again, reaching about 45 kph. The steering uses a pivoted
beam above the chassis with broomstick and rope steering. The cart was
constructed by David Edwards with help from Mike Meerding who helped
insert the bearings in the front wheels. A bike speedo is mounted just
in front of the steering wheel, with the sensor on the right hand rear
wheel. |
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This is David in his fourth cart at Baskerville Racecourse on 1 October 2006. This cart is designed to have a lower profile, and hence less wind resistance, and to be more stable at speed. This is aided by the longer wheel base. The steering geometry is true Akerman, with separately adjustable toe in and steering rope tension. The front king pins are parliament hinges mounted on the 4" x 2" side frames. This allows the driver's heels to sit on the floor. Braking is by calipers on all four wheels, with a three balancing beams to ensure that the braking load is distributed evenly over all four wheels. Accessories include a speedo and an air horn. This cart reached about 50 kph down the Baskerville Hill. |
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This photo was taken at the 10th Technopark Billycart Derby on Sunday 22 April 2007. David's fastest cart (so far) is in the foreground, and can be compared in size with his third speed machine in the background. The longer wheel base is immediately apparent. The new accessory - a digital watch incorporating a wind speed sensor, is mounted just in front of the steering wheel. With better front tyres and wheels, and aided by a 4 kph tail wind, David managed to reach 55 kph down the 18 m high 220 m long Technopark Hill on the day. |
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This photograph was taken
at the Billycart Derby held at Baskerville Racecourse Tasmania on
Sunday 20 April 2008. Peter Marendy is about to let David go on
the start line. David is sitting up on the back to get an extra 600 mm
of height, and will slide down right into the body as the speed picks
up. On the day, David came 3rd, with a speed estimated at about 55 kph.
This is the same cart as shown above, but fitted with a masonite
("Burnie Board") and duct tape cover. |
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This picture, taken at Baskerville on Sun 20 April 2008, shows Peter Marendy, Nicholas Marendy and David Edwards with the trophies they picked up on the day. As the base shows, we got a 1st, a 2nd and a 3rd, all in billycarts constructed by David, with help from Peter Marendy, Ben Marendy and John McCulloch. |
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Wednesday 31 March 2010 These are some photos of my new billycart taken at Will's Man Shed where we used his lathe to drill holes in either end of the steering rod.  The brakes have yet to be connected, and yes, I know the tyres need pumping up!!
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 Telescope ready to roll
 Driver Kerry
 Kerry's 1st Billycart Infringement Notice
 Winner Kerry
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Monday 3 May 2010 Telescope had its first outing at the Braidwood Community Bank Billy Cart Derby on Sunday 2nd May 2010. Construction was completed at 1pm on Sat 1 May, and Telescope successfully loaded into the Kangoo for the drive to Braidwood. On arrival, we had a great meal in the local pub with Jane and then retired to our pre-warmed motel room. We rose with the sun on Race Day, to be greeted with a clear sky - an excellent omen. On the track at 8:30am, Kerry and David registered as Drivers while Telescope was scrutineered. Then we lined up with the other Open category entries and waited for the call. Our concerns about the starting ramp proved groundless, as shown by David's first run, when he easily won his heat with a measured speed of 32 kph, despite an initial loss of energy as we scraped off the starting ramp. Much to David's chagrin, Kerry's first run - 2nd down the hill for Telescope - was much better, with Kerry reaching 34 kph and easily winning. So it seemed that Telescope was competive, and we settled down for the day. Kerry had a second run, again winning easily and progressing to the final of the Ladies Open category after a lucky draw. However, David's second run proved disappointing, as Telescope was easily beaten, knocking David out of the competition. This seemed to be due to David's heavy left foot on the left hand brake pedal (Telescope has coupled left and right pedals), as all seemed OK when David checked Telescope out after the race. It wasn't long till the big moment arrived - the final of the Ladies Open Category. Kerry came second, as Telescope again proved sluggish. With hindsight, it seems that the brakes are dragging only when the driver is installed - not easy to check as the wheels can't be test-spun while loaded, so David will investigate in due course. Billycart racing of course is only for fun, so it was with great pride that David watched Kerry receive her trophy and a voucher for $50 at the local IGA store. Then it was time to telescope Telescope back into the Kangoo, and set off on the drive back to Sydney. This was much slower than expected, as an accident on the freeway caused long delays. David and Kerry would like to express our appreciation to the Braidwood Lions Club and their sponsors, who organised a very successful and enjoyable day. There were over 100 entries, so it was somewhat hectic at times, but the Braidwood Lions rose to the task. Thanks especially to Laurie, the dominant Lion, who made sure it was a great day for all of the community. The Lions Club of Braidwood can remember the day with pride. To find out more about the Braidwood Community Bank Billy Cart Derby, go to the official Derby web site at http://braidwoodbillycarts.wordpress.com/. To see the track, look at Gillamatong Lane, Braidwood on Google Earth. There is a streetview picture which shows the course looking up from the bottom. |
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page designed by David Edwards Last updated 3 May 2010 Copyright © David Edwards 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010  |
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