Repairing frame on GottaGoGottaThrow Cart

[Nick Pacific]

I have 2 clean breaks in the frame of my gotta go gotta throw cart. The internet says aluminum can be molded together with a soldering iron. Pic attached to show breaks. Have heard breaks here are common, possibly a design flaw, considering the combination of the existing bolts and it being a stress point for the cart.

I've owned it for 6 years now and I'm not going to purchase a new one given I know this stress point has breakage issues or shell out even more for a Zuca unless I have to. I've grown accustomed to using it and the mods/set-up I have and I like it, and I'd like to keep using it, like restoring a favorite old car.

So before I give up and shell out 350 + for the Zuca and all the bells and whistles that go with it I'd like to at least explore the option of a soldering iron repair. I don't have the equipment, I'd probably have to either ask around and have someone do it for me and pay them (Metro Detroit anyone?) purchase equipment and do it myself, or take it in to a machine shop and have them do it for me.

Any thoughts or experiences welcome. Thank you.

 

[Golden Tuna]

Not sure about soldering... my fist thought was to find a wooden dowel of the appropriate size to feed through the top & bottom, then use an epoxy to 'solder' the pieces together. A few screws at the top & bottom should do it.
I would start there before trying to actually solder the parts together.

 

[DoWork]

I am a lifetime welder... Don't waste your time trying to fix that yourself unless you dowel sleeve it with epoxy like golden tuna is talking about above.

 

[MarkDSM]

perhaps an ugly piece of perforated angle stock around the tube in addition to an inner dowel. a little more meat to screw into or glue surface.

 

[Motorpro]

Solder Aluminum? In over 40 years of welding I have never even heard that suggested. Follow tunas suggestion or find someone who know what they are doing with a tig welder.

 

[Nick Pacific]

Not sure about soldering... my fist thought was to find a wooden dowel of the appropriate size to feed through the top & bottom, then use an epoxy to 'solder' the pieces together. A few screws at the top & bottom should do it.
I would start there before trying to actually solder the parts together.

That's a fantastic idea that I never even thought of. The power of the internet! Looks like a Home Depot trip is in order.

Thank you. Will report back here on how it goes. Thanks everyone for the replies.

 

[Casey 1988]

I say try to use the JB weld material as the Epoxy, it is made for metal to metal bonding.

 

[JNichols]

Solder Aluminum? In over 40 years of welding I have never even heard that suggested. Follow tunas suggestion or find someone who know what they are doing with a tig welder.

Tig was my thought, too. But, I think I would take it to a weld shop and ask them if they could do anything. I can't imagine it would cost much, or take much time, to have someone fabricate you new Steel poles down to the axle, that would take a good weld. Replace the broken parts instead of a fix, would be my first attempt. Good Luck!!!

 

[DoWork]

Solder Aluminum? In over 40 years of welding I have never even heard that suggested. Follow tunas suggestion or find someone who know what they are doing with a tig welder.

Hahaha right? Damn internet!

I'm a cert TIG guy and I wouldn't take anyone's money under the guise that a thin wall tubing cart would STAY fixed fwiw.

 

[Motorpro]

Hahaha right? Damn internet!

I'm a cert TIG guy and I wouldn't take anyone's money under the guise that a thin wall tubing cart would STAY fixed fwiw.

i was a cert Tig welder and would turn up an aluminum plug to go inside and then tig it .

 

[DoWork]

i was a cert Tig welder and would turn up an aluminum plug to go inside and then tig it .

Yes, that would be ideal but by that time you're talking some pretty decent money (pretty high percentage of overall cost) to repair a cart that is likely about to fail somewhere else too. Just trying to be realistic for OP with the DIY. 2 or 3 repairs like that and he could have had a ridge roller haha

 

[Nick Pacific]

Yes, that would be ideal but by that time you're talking some pretty decent money (pretty high percentage of overall cost) to repair a cart that is likely about to fail somewhere else too. Just trying to be realistic for OP with the DIY. 2 or 3 repairs like that and he could have had a ridge roller haha

That is mostly my concern. The cart is 6 years old and I fear taking it into a shop and getting a decent repair will run me 100 bucks minimum and given all that I might be better off just buying a Zuca.

By the way, I'm pretty bummed about my GGGT cart pooping out after only 6 seasons (it's packed away for the Michigan winter). Like I mentioned in the OP I'm not the only person who has had a break at this stress point, and I've taken really good care of it as well, and at 155 pounds it's not like I am some behemoth sitting on it and breaking it. I was expecting a lot more life out of this cart at 220 bucks.

Disappointing to say the least. Thanks everyone for the responses.

 

[Alexplz]

That is mostly my concern. The cart is 6 years old and I fear taking it into a shop and getting a decent repair will run me 100 bucks minimum and given all that I might be better off just buying a Zuca.

By the way, I'm pretty bummed about my GGGT cart pooping out after only 6 seasons (it's packed away for the Michigan winter). Like I mentioned in the OP I'm not the only person who has had a break at this stress point, and I've taken really good care of it as well, and at 155 pounds it's not like I am some behemoth sitting on it and breaking it. I was expecting a lot more life out of this cart at 220 bucks.

Disappointing to say the least. Thanks everyone for the responses.

Have you tried emailing GGGT? At this point I wouldn't expect any kind of warranty assistance, but they might give you a deal on a replacement if you end up going down that road.

 

[Nick Pacific]

Have you tried emailing GGGT? At this point I wouldn't expect any kind of warranty assistance, but they might give you a deal on a replacement if you end up going down that road.

Alex,

Thanks for the reply and idea. Thinking about it, to be honest given I know about the stress point breaking issue I don't think I would want to spend any significant amount of money on a replacement, in my experience they need to reinforce/upgrade the cart frame or else I might end up in the same spot again a few years down the road.

Since they haven't done that with the newer model I wouldn't want a new one for even a discount off the cost. Just being practical about it.

 

[Nick Pacific]

Actually thinking about it, it's been a great cart, I used it a lot. Calling it a design flaw is wrong,
I just used the heck out of it.

Bummed to see her go!

 

[Casey 1988]

Actually thinking about it, it's been a great cart, I used it a lot. Calling it a design flaw is wrong,
I just used the heck out of it.

Bummed to see her go!

Well you can always sell the old one at 1/3 price new to a person who has the ability to fix it with tools and make the broken spot better. Then get a new cart, some carts like this one https://www.amazon.com/Trolley-Shop...qid=1540500682&sr=8-3&keywords=Cart+with+seat In one of the pictures you can see a person using it for disc golf stuff though with a big old type bag like the guy has it might not work all that well with sagging onto the wheels.

 

[MarkDSM]

Well you can always sell the old one at 1/3 price new to a person ....

terrible idea. hang in that one big tree over on the left side of hole 5 fairway. A little before the turn, big spruce(?). some bats will nest in it and eat them pesky skeeters up. everyone of my relatives has a vaguely related stories I could easily create many endless strings of words about.

and seriously... type your stream of thought like you do now. take a 5 breaths. critically read. 5 breaths. delete most of it. 5 breaths. critically read again. 2 breathes. more deletion. add some punctuation. save draft. log out for 12 hours. contemplatively review your goal for this post a couple times during the offline time. find a quiet place in view of a tree. when well relaxed, login and paste your draft. delete every thing. scroll up thread and 'nice' something. read some other stuff. repeat.

 

[hiflyer]

terrible idea. hang in that one big tree over on the left side of hole 5 fairway. A little before the turn, big spruce(?). some bats will nest in it and eat them pesky skeeters up. everyone of my relatives has a vaguely related stories I could easily create many endless strings of words about.

and seriously... type your stream of thought like you do now. take a 5 breaths. critically read. 5 breaths. delete most of it. 5 breaths. critically read again. 2 breathes. more deletion. add some punctuation. save draft. log out for 12 hours. contemplatively review your goal for this post a couple times during the offline time. find a quiet place in view of a tree. when well relaxed, login and paste your draft. delete every thing. scroll up thread and 'nice' something. read some other stuff. repeat.

Did someone find some blues?

 

[DoWork]

Actually thinking about it, it's been a great cart, I used it a lot. Calling it a design flaw is wrong,
I just used the heck out of it.

Bummed to see her go!

That's kind of what I was thinking. 6 years for $200? That ain't half bad for an entry level cart IMO. Nothing can last forever.

 

[Casey 1988]

That's kind of what I was thinking. 6 years for $200? That ain't half bad for an entry level cart IMO. Nothing can last forever.

It is not entry level cart, just more of an old school cart for the GGGT cart. Now an entry level is like the basic cart that Dynamic Disc makes without seat is an entry level/base level cart.