best cart to convert into hunting buggy

sparky3

Any opinions on what to look for in buying a cart to convert into a hunting buggy? It will need to climb pretty step hills

BGW

__________________
This advertising will not be shown in this way to registered members.
Register your free account today and become a member on Buggies Gone Wild Golf Cart Forum

Sir Nuke

for starters, get one that has a SERIES drive system. its more capable of doing a lot of crapping through the woods......where as a sepex drive is more a tunued to full speed all the time, and will tend to overheat if you do a lot of slow creeping along.

HiTechRedNeck

Might look at RXV,
good on hills,no heat issues at low speed.
has limited slip rear end stock..

scottyb

There are two carts that you will see out in the woods in greater numbers than any others. One is the club car series drive DS model. The body style remained unchanged from 1982 until 2004. The aluminum frame and lightweight fiberglass or later plastic injection molded body reduced the overall weight significantly and yielded a great power to weight ratio. The 1980s models had two types of resistor coil drives. These cards are easily converted to modern electronics to yield better than new performance.

The Marathon and TXT model Ezgo is the next cart you see out in the woods in great numbers. These series drive carts are easy to work on and simple to upgrade. They yield the little better ride than the club car. The 1980s resistor coil models are also convertible to modern electronics. All parts for both of these models are still readily available which makes owning and operating them easier.

There are other carts available but these are two choices you cannot go wrong with.

coosa

You've already gotten great advice from guys that know way more than me, but I'll share my experience anyway. I own 2 hunting carts - both EZGO TXT, but they are PDS and not series. One is a 2002 and one is a 2008. Both have 500 amp controllers and HD solenoids.

I have no need to creep through the woods and have been careful to avoid that. I have tested them both by climbing the highest mountains in our area in them and putting them through harder work than I will ever do in hunting. I have not been able to get the motor temp of either over 180 degrees, and I think that is well within the safe range. That temp is measured with a laser thermometer. They usually run around 160, but have hit 180 after the most difficult and extended climbs I've been able to find.

I'm planning to take the 2002 to the hunting club tomorrow and leave it there. It may give problems, but I really don't think it will, considering the way it will be used.

The guy I bought the 2008 from customizes and sells hunting carts for a living, and he swore by the PDS. He said he could not keep the F/R from burning up in the series carts that he sold, despite using the heaviest he could find. I haven't read of others on here having that problem when using Scotty's HD F/R switch, so maybe he was using the wrong kind. He said he'd never had a serious problem with a PDS that he sold, but had many with the series, so he quit selling them. He also told me he'd had bad luck with RXV conversions and would never do another one.

This guy may not understand something vitally important about converting a series cart, but there is no doubt that he sure sells a lot of PDS carts and gives a one year warranty with them.

My 2008 will run 26 mph on a flat road. I understand that its hard to get that kinda speed from a series cart without spending a lot of money. If you have a need for that kind of speed more than the need for being able to creep through the woods for a long distance, you might consider a PDS. But I would also say that you would be very smart to listen to Scotty and Sir Nuke and ignore me.

HiTechRedNeck

I would be interested to know what problems dude had with
RXV conversions.
Just curious.
Good luck!

DaveTM

I can speak for the EZ-GO TXT model. I had mine built about 6 or 7 years ago. The only real problem or weak point in the TXT model is the F\R switch. But that has now been resolved with the Scotty B "Super Duty Reversing Contactor". I have no more toasted F\R switches, no more melting of the wires, no more of that "fresh" smell of rubber wire coating burning!!! Plus, I do in fact do a lot of "creeping" along and my cart does not get all hot 'n bothered by that. My Alltrax 4865 Controller is set for maximum torque and a speed of only 7mph....so I'm not looking to go anywhere fast....I know I'll get there.

Now, I am a disabled hunter so I rely heavily on my cart to get me there and back. These guys on this forum are fantastic problem solvers and ScottyB has great products at very competitive prices.

But...you gotta watch out for that guy named JohnnieB. He's the one with the tin-foil hat. Just tell him you have your own personal collection of tin foil hats and he will answer all of your tough questions. BUT....don't besmirch the tin foil hat!!

Dave

JohnnieB

There are many types of hunting, they are done on many types of terrain and there are several ways a cart can be used during the hunting process.

How much ground clearance is needed?
Tall tires reduce the amount of torque available where the rubber meets the ground, which in turn limits the hill climbing abilities.
Tall tires may require the body to be lifted, which raises the center of gravity and increases the potential of rolling over sideways while driving across the face of a hill.
Tall tires also reduce motor RPM at any given speed, which in turn increases the amount of heat generated by the motor at low speeds.

My hunting is more or less limited to handguns at an outdoor shooting range, so the cart I use to pick up milk and bread at the store in town is the same one that I use to get to and from the range and while I have to climb some steep hills, not much ground clearance is needed, so a PDS cart with short tires and a high-speed motor works for me.

Basically it boils down to what your needs and desires are.

sparky3

Thanks guys that's great information. I was wondering what is the difference between series and PDS. And how will I know by looking at a cart.

JohnnieB

The same current that passes through the armature in a series wound motor, also passes through the field (stator) windings. A series motor is wound for High torque, or high speed, or something in between at the factory and you get the type performance that was designed into it at the factory. (Pick one)

Sepex (SEParately EXcited) motors are used in DCS and PDS carts. Basically, the armature current is different than the field windings (Separately excited) and the motor's performance (Torque vs Speed) can be adjusted during operation by altering the ratio of armature current to field current, (It is called field mapping), so carts with Sepex motors have good low end torque as well as good top speed.

A standard Series motor will typically have better low end torque than a standard Sepex motor, but less speed, however you can get high torque or high speed Sepex motors as well as high torque or high speed Series motors.

You can also get two speed series motors.
And you can get two speed differentials, which will work for both Series and Sepex motors.

----------
How to tell them apart: There will be a Run/Tow switch on the controller cover.
Plus the other stuff shown in the attached drawing.

Attached Images

ezgoguide.jpg (78.0 KB, 0 views)