Introduction
Paddock areas in the UK can vary from ultra smooth tarmac at one circuit, to rocky hillsides at another.
We don't think there will ever be a trolley which will perform perfectly on all surfaces as there has to be some compromise.
If you are looking for a trolley to use as an all-round trolley, you need to go for one with large “off-road” tyres. There are several options available each with their own drawbacks. We think the best compromise is the 3 wheel “Super Trolley” offering from Dartford Karting (£149 exc VAT), Link: http://www.kartstore.co.uk/shop.cfm?cat=1709&node=266 . It will be able to handle the rough paddocks as well as the tarmac ones. It may not be as maneuverable as a 4 wheel, rear steered trolley but this is the price you pay for an all-terrain trolley.
Being able to handle the terrain is obviously the most important job of a kart trolley, but there are many other aspects which are important to consider depending on where you are racing, and even what level you are racing.
If you are racing at the very top level, you need somewhere to keep your tools for wheel changes as well as last minute adjustments, so a floor tray on the trolley is a must. This isn't to say you don't need a floor tray at other levels of competition as having your tools with the kart can be very useful for those last minute weather induced changes etc.
At most levels of competition, you are in possession of your wheels and tyres so when the weather is looking a little iffy, it's handy to have somewhere to put your wet tyres on the trolley to save carrying them down separately.
If you are a heavy driver and you are racing F100, chances are you will be able to get away with any trolley available and not have to worry about its integrity. On the other hand, if you are a light driver racing a gearbox kart with 20+ KG of ballast, the trolley is going to take a lot of punishment, so choosing a trolley which is up to the job is important.
Smaller drivers and mechanics may struggle to lift the kart on and off if the trolley is too high, so you may want to go for a trolley which is lower to the ground.
These are just a couple of examples of features you should consider when buying a kart trolley. Are they important to you?
Build/Observations
With the above in mind, the New Line Trolley we are reviewing today is a trolley which is aimed at smooth to moderately uneven paddocks.
At £162.50 Inc VAT, this trolley is well below the price point of it's competitors so we are interested to see how it performs.
Packaging is basic with little in the way of protection.
The trolley folds down into itself and when opened, is secured by three nuts complete with a plastic knob.
This mechanism is really well made and once the uprights are bolted into place, the whole trolley feels rock solid. On the rear of the trolley there are two uprights apposed to most trolleys which only use one. This is ideal for karts which have all the weight on one side or which have a particularly heavy engine setup.
Once the uprights are in position, you are required to fit the front axle and wheels.
This is done by sliding the separate axle into the tube and locking in position with a button head bolt. This goes through the axle into a captive nut in the middle of the trolley.
Once the axle is secure, you can fit the wheels.
The method of holding the wheels onto the trolley is simple, but has the potential to wear out the plastic collar if the wheel has repeated side loading. This is an area which could be improved.
The wheels are metal, with needle bearings in a plastic cage. The tyres are the solid "foam" type but seem much stronger than some of the tyres we have seen on trolleys in the past. They coped with a 100kg kart no problem. Over time, these may lose their shape if the kart is left on the trolley but we can't comment on that yet.
It's now time to fit the small rear castors.
They are held on by three button head bolts and have a 4mm steel reinforcing plate attached to the floor tray. This plate stops the castor bending the floor tray which can lead to the castors not working as they are intended.
One of the castors comes complete with a brake! This is an absolute god send for some circuits such as Rowrah. We have all had a trolley which decides to run off once you have lifted your kart, or a trolley that won't stay still when you are trying to lift your kart back on at the end of a race. Top marks to New-Line here for the inclusion of a brake. If both castors were braked it would be even better as the trolley could pivot on the one castor, however one brake seems to do the job and also keeps the price down.
The last job to complete the trolley is aligning the chassis cups.
This is one of our favourite features of the trolley. Some trolleys come with V shaped grooves which can sit against your chassis and cause unwanted damage. These chassis cups are perfect and will not cause any damage to your chassis as they are made of of nylon.
The cups hold the kart snug and because of the double uprights on the rear of the trolley, the kart feels really solid.
At the front, two pins will stop the waist of the chassis from moving side to side. These are not adjustable but were just the right width for an OTK chassis. They are not too high to foul on the brake master cylinder either.
There is more reinforcement underneath the trolley with some rectangular steel section spanning the length of the trolley.
Removing the white protective paper reveals the trolleys floor tray complete with sticker.
The sticker has a panel to stick on your race number to easily identify the trolley but we are not sure it needed to have the words "Factory Driver" on it. It may appeal to some but to us "Driver" would have been enough. Maybe this is something that does not translate from Italian to English properly, we don't know.
General Use
The biggest thing that grabs your attention when using this trolley is its stability. We think this could be the most stable four wheel trolley (of similar design) out there by some margin.
The trolleys footprint is wider than the average trolley which adds even more stability.
One thing that was immediately obvious after placing the kart on the trolley was how low the kart sits. This does mean that working on the kart is a little more difficult but once again means the trolley is ultra stable.
Here you can see it is around 2 inches lower than a Senzo 4 wheel trolley.
We can also see the handle at the rear of the trolley which is long enough to protrude from the rear bumper, unlike many trolleys such as the OTK trolley and the Senzo trolley which are too short.
Summary
If you are looking for a trolley and race at circuits with a decent hard standing in the paddock, you will be hard pushed to find a better performing trolley for this price. It's a rock solid trolley for the heavier karts and glides around with ease.
The brake makes issues on the dummy grid a thing of the past and the chassis cups are one of the best methods of holding the chassis out there.
It's ideal of you are smaller than average or struggle to lift a heavy kart on to the trolley. This may be an issue if you have a really tall mechanic, but for most will be a welcome feature.
Pros
- Price
- Stability/Strength
- Maneuverability
- Long handle
- Braked castor
- Lower for easier kart lifting
- Floor tray for tools
Cons
- Height could be an issue for taller mechanics
- No spare wheel spikes
- Wheel holding method basic
We are struggling to find any real cons with this trolley apart from the obvious which is it will be no good for rocky paddocks such as GYG etc. It's price compared to similar trolleys of lesser quality is it's biggest selling point. Lack of tyre spikes is disappointing.
Overall, an excellent product.
The trolley is available from Eurokart now!
NOTE: The floor tray sticker on the official photos is different to the one we received. We also noticed the spacers holding the two steel tubes together are rectangle on the images but small round bar on the item you receive from Eurokart.
This is just a modification and does not effect how the trolley performs.
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