The 82001 engines came with a single 1/32″ thick head shim. Jim Cavanaugh said he put in another head shim to reduce compression to make the engine easier to start. This engine did have 2 1/32″ thick head shims but was still difficult to pull over. I stuck in another 1/16″ shim for a total of 1/8″. The go kart racers use electric starters and I can certainly understand why.

The extra 1/16″ head shim made it difficult to install the head tin. I had to do some minor trimming with my die grinder to get it to fit. I also had to drill the front engine mount to get the bolt in.

The Krylon Caramel Latte paint is a good color match but has a bit too much metal flake.

I did not paint the carb after stripping it since most of the original paint survived. There was no gold under the yellow paint on the elbow which makes sense because 82001s did not have elbows. I think the elbow is a Nethercutt casting not West Bend.