"For me, the BIG changes are:-
Seat and weight forward/backward (C of G) Seat height and weight height (other C of G) Caster Camber Track Width (spacers/hubs)
The rest are just TOO esoteric at your stage!"
I've had the excellent fortune to do a lot of testing with a really good driver this year. The way his thought process parallels your is really interesting Ian. I used to get fed up with him wanting to try loads of seat positions, but it's so fundamental that I do it myself when he's not there.
The biggest deal was making changes, and not telling me what he expected to happen, but asking me to tell him what I felt. For the first couple of tests he could watch me and give ME feedback on what the kart was doing, but once I'd got to grips with it, he encouraged me to try to drive the kart to suit the changes as I felt them. I've found a LOT of time this year, but more than that I'm getting a much better feel for what happens as I make changes, and a lot of the time can pre-empt the first couple of changes from last time just from the weather and track conditions.
Bits where his views differ from yours are seats and seat-stays. He's very big into it, to the point that the seat stays aren't doing what he wants them to do because the seat is too soft. Obviously he won't explain to me what he's expecting to happen until I've tried it and told him what I can feel.
You and Traxtar can laugh at me, but most of the stuff we've tried has been at low or no cost. Unlike mag wheels which are just a non-issue. Better off trying different length hubs for all the obvious reasons.
I'd add tyre pressures to the list above - I'm learning to use them - but would agree 100% with your advice. As for braking later and later - it's how you learn, and by following your advice drivers can learn to control the kart when they've left it all a bit late. Without that, you can't overtake into corners.
Most of the advice I've had since starting karting has been from people that talk quite a lot but don't necessarily have a great deal of experience. Two years on I realise how right you have been about pretty well everything.
Liam
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