Things to know about the Harbor Freight Predator 212 Non-Hemi

Рет қаралды 2,190

Күн бұрын

The thumbnail may be clickbait. I don’t actually HATE the Predator 212. It has some differences though and may or may not be the best choice for you in a given application. In this video I point out some of the things about the Predator 212 non-hemi that annoy me. I hope this video is informative and helpful. If it makes you mad, oh well, we will both get over it. Be sure to like and subscribe.
#minibikes #minibike #gokart #gopowersports #carsandcameras #redbeardsgarage #smallengine #harborfreight #predator

Пікірлер: 10

@CrawdaddyCustoms Ай бұрын

Thanks for the tear down- learned a few things. I had no idea there were Hemi lawn mower engines.

@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance Ай бұрын

Yep, they exist. You can have every hemi head in my pile though. They sound like a good thing but it doesn’t scale down well. Very little meat to port, cut spring pockets, etc.

@middlesiderrider 29 күн бұрын

Great info in this video. The last minibike engine i built was an old flathead 5hp Briggs twenty years ago. I did all the kart racing tricks (told to me by the owner of the local kart supply), including a 3 degree advance key, stepped header, ported block, and two exhaust valve springs from(iirc) the new for the time Briggs Animal engine. It doubled the speed of my old Speedway Scorpion minibike, doing somewhere above 50mph. Too many high speed full throttle runs eventually burned the rings out and I gave the bike away to some kids. But I'm always on the lookout for another cheap minibike/gokart engine. One question-It was generally accepted that the old Briggs cast iron flywheel could take rpm fine, but if you stupidly replaced it with the cast aluminum version(from a 3hp i think) you were creating a grenade. What's the deal with the Predator flywheel? Are they fragile because of cheap manufacturing?

@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance 29 күн бұрын

@@middlesiderrider Those old flatheads were cool. I worked on tons of them when I was a kid. The predator flywheel magnet is held on by a single screw and some glue. It will fly off at higher rpm. The casting is also pretty bad and can come apart. Best to install a billet flywheel or a cast aluminum with pinned magnets. I’m planning a video on that.

@Deucealive75 24 күн бұрын

Initially the differences were because of the lawsuit. Remember the Harbor freight Greyhound? That had a unique block and a "5 bolt" head. The Baja minibikes came with a 196 that used a block with tank mounts like the non hemi 212 . Even though we called them clones they weren't an exact clone of the GX200. I agree 100% and will never get a Pred 212 for the minibike hobby. There are just too many better engines out there these days for not that much more money, and more importantly use clone parts. Not long after the Pred 212 came out (2011) there were guys saying "What do you mean wrong taper? I run 7500 RPM without a problem". A lot of guys are still using clone flywheels on their non hemi Predators. The current and very popular $30 cast aluminum flywheels have clone tapers but are actually advertised to fit Predator non hemi. It's crazy but I'll never have that issue. Year after year there are guys who are new to this ordering the wrong parts for their Predator 212's. I feel bad for them.

@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance 24 күн бұрын

@@Deucealive75 Great information. I knew it was something like that but wasn’t 100% sure on the facts when doing the video. I do a lot of Predator non-hemis for people just because they are cheap and plentiful but definitely not my favorite.

@Deucealive75 24 күн бұрын

@@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance What's your opinion on the inexpensive cast aluminum flywheels? Even though I'm not running a lot of RPM I use them. I had a quick look and they come timed around 18-20 degrees. I just set them at 32 and torque them down without a key.

@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance 24 күн бұрын

@@Deucealive75 I put one on my stepson’s bike and it’s worked good. I’ll also install them for someone who’s looking to do a mild build but doesn’t have much money to spend. Not my favorite but definitely better than stock.

@taxxzempt3576 29 күн бұрын

What’s the price difference one the Honda Vs predator ?

@WalkerSmallEnginePerformance 29 күн бұрын

@@taxxzempt3576 A genuine Honda is expensive. A GX200 is around $379. I’d use one in a mower or other equipment because they are reliable and durable but I’d probably not do it on a mini bike or kart. The predator 212 is $149. You can get them on sale for $99. That’s before modification of course. You can buy a Wildcat 223 or Predator 212 for $179 at the moment and they are both more “standard”. The Tillotson and Ducar can both be purchased for less than $300. All are Honda copies, the Predator 212 is just slightly different than most of the others.