Hoglet Kick Starter

I'm about to start building the Hoglet by Randall Cox. I'm in the process of accumulating the materials required.

Could any one tell me where i can purchase the slip sprag clutch or it's equivelant in the UK for the kick starter. Or does any one have an alternative way of starting the engine.

MickyT

Search for sprag clutch bearing. Simply Bearings appear to have a few.

I've seen quite a few that just fit a simple dog arrangement to one end of the crankshaft and use a cordless drill to spin the engine over, that's what I'll be doing if I get round to finishing my one. Not got my drawings to hand but ARC do a couple that may suit as well as most of the online bearing/drives suppliers

Just dug out my drawings, finding the combined sprag clutch and chain sprocket is not going to be easy.

If I were going to make the kick starter then I think I would make shaft #24 from 3/8" silver steel and reduce the end down to 1/4" to fit the small gear and bearing. On the other end a 3/8ID x 5/8 OD sprag clutch will run on the now 3/8" shaft. Fit the sprag clutch into a cup shaped housing with the end tapped with a ring of holes so that a sprocket with matching hole PCD can be screwed onto the end. If you are not sure of this shout and I'll sketch something out.

This will in effect form a part like the one shown but with no need for the 1/4" shaft extension.

Edit, the part in question is the second one down just in case anyone knows of a similar UK item

Edited By JasonB on 24/08/2021 14:38:18

Thanks Howard never thought simply bearings did them

Thanks Jason same with Arc. I had found the part that you had linked in your second post which is why I asked the original question about uk availability. I do like the idea of making the part as you described shouldn’t be too complicated.
I also looked on eBay for anything suitable and came acrossQkAAOSwKfVXH2xj">Freewheel Sprocket not sure of its suitability but you have both given me plenty to think about.

thanks again

MickyT

My only thoughts on that is you will need a larger pitch chain which may look out of place, 6mm pitch is fairly easy to get chain and sprockets fore here and not far off the 1/4" sprocket specified.

I agree after all it’s all about the look. If I can’t figure your original suggestion, although it does seem straight forward, I may ask you to draw it up for me 👍. Thanks again for your help the kick starter is a long way off as I haven’t started cutting metal yet although I have all the metal for the engine ready to go.

MickyT

I think something like this should work. The bearings, spacer and gear sprocket are the same as original drawing. There is a new full length shaft, hub for the chain sprocket with sprag clutch inside and the sprocket itself screwed to the hub

Thats great Jason I was having a little difficulty visualizing the remade part but its clear now. I still had the shaft as 2 parts in my head with the sprag clutch and sprocket attached to the second part on the left but its much simpler with the shaft as one piece probably stronger too.

Thanks once again for taking the time to explain it to me and definitely a better option than the bicycle free wheel sprocket that I had found.

Regards, MickyT

Traditional kick-starts tended to have a chunky ratchet driving a chunky gear - because full size motorcycles can deliver a serious kick-back if the operator is nervous, or the timing is a bit advanced, etc. Not for nothing do the owners of Velocette singles and BSA Gold Stars tend to limp a bit. So, my advice is to err on the chunky side, whatever you come up with. And make sure your ignition timing is spot on ...

Cheers, Tim

Here are a few pics of my Hoglet kick starter. The sprag clutch and chain and sprockets were purchased from one of the on-line bearing suppliers. Can't remember which one, but not difficult to source. If you can't find anything then I can rummage around and find the supplier.

Incidentally, the engine does not start easily on the kick starter. To demonstrate the engine I remove the crankshaft sprocket and replace with a hexagon which then fits into a socket on a drill driver. Engine starts almost instantly like this.

Thanks for showing your Kick starter. I have found a couple of suppliers of the sprockets and sprag clutch online. I’d like to make the kick starter as I want to make the engine as close to the original as possible but I am always open to surgestions.

MickyT

The Hoglet is primarily a display engine and I think the kick starter is a visually interesting addition. I've built lots of differnt models of various kinds over the years and the Hoglet probably gets the most interest from visitors.

Some constructors have added an enclosed crankcase with enhanced lubrication which enables the engine to run for longer and maybe even power a model motorcylce, but in its orginal form you can only run it for a minute or two. Makes a great Harley-like sound though.

Good luck with your build.