O.K. every christmas I get a bunch of shit I don't like or did not want in the first place, so this year I'm hooking up a wish list at Barnes & Nobles. I've got a bunch of books on customs & tech stuff. I'm looking for a little history(Bonneville,Henry,Harleys..) I really don't care if it's a book of just cool B&W photos or a biography. Got any suggestions? -John
[ QUOTE ] I've only been living in Florida for a few years. [/ QUOTE ] hey, I actually laughed out loud at that...and I thought the HAMB was dead.
Hot Rods As They Were(Another Blast From The Past)by Don Montgomery. Its simply PHENOMINAL!Without a doubt my all time favorite book.Get it for sure.Its full of vintage pics and stories from all over.Covers all forms of old time rodding and racin'........Shiny
My favorites are: 'The American Hot Rod' by Dean Batchelor 'The Birth of Hot Rodding; The Story of the Dry Lakes Era' by Robert Genat and Don Cox 'Hop Up - the first 12 issues' reprint by Mark Morton (hopupmag.com) These 3 have great dry lakes pics, early rod & custom pics. 'How to Build a Traditional Ford Hot Rod' by Mike Bishop and Vern Tardel -Good traditional A roadster build up. Another good A roadster build up is in the R&C mags from '67-'72, covering Bud Bryan's AV8. Tex Smith has a decent flathead book. Also, you need to look for these on eBay: Rod & Custom 1967-1973 issues - articles on wiring, top chopping (Jake's coupe), traditional AV8 build (Bud Bryan's A) Also, the Hot Rod Annuals from the 50's. that's a start.
heres my favorites, the american custom car, customs of the 1950's, someone could get you a subscription to the rodders journal, or anything by john grisham.
Two books I read much about but haven't actually gotten yet are Robert Genat's "Little Deuce Coupe", 94 pages of '32 Fords, and Larry Davis' "Gasser Wars". Am planning on getting C9's new novel soon, too (why can't I remember the title of it?!).
Am planning on getting C9's new novel soon, too (why can't I remember the title of it?!). Pinky, or something like that isn't it? I tried to find it in the local B&N, but they didn't have it or any of Bishops Books. Must not sell 'em in Farmland. I think you can get them through Amazon though.
Go here: http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewwork.asp?AuthorID=10687 Check the small print near the top of the page. This is the very best price by quite a bit. The pic shows the cover, spine and back cover.
Here's the first book. Non-Fiction. Available at Amazon and can be ordered at Barnes & Noble, Borders and others. Motorbooks has a good deal on this book every now and then. More information can be found here: http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewwork.asp?AuthorID=10687&id=7479
For those of you who can't find Mike Bishops great book, here's the Amazon addy for it: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0760309000/qid=1070373810/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-4506790-3415100?v=glance&s=books Make a point to read the reviews. Even if you're not planning on building an AV8 roadster, you owe it to yourself to get this book and relive a part of hot rod history you won't find in any magazine available today. Aside from the clear and lucid text, the well chosen and sharply focused photos and an easy to follow more than sensible layout, there are pen and ink drawings of historical roadsters as well as information on running a Deuce frame under the A roadsters. This last part done in a very traditional manner. There is quite a bit of additional information that is of value to the traditionalist oriented hot rodder. Intakes, carbs and all the rest that go along with it. The book is very complete and covers the subject matter well. It is, quite simply, the ultimate build-it book for a Model A roadster. If you don't lust after a traditionally styled AV8 after reading this book, you have no heart....
John, I very strongly recommend Douglas Brinkley's Wheels for the World: It is a superbly documented book on the Ford Motor Company by a historian specializing in the History of the labor movement (it is NOT a 1000 page ad for Ford products...) More than Ford, it is a history of the industrial age, the birth of both the auto industry and the labor movement in the USA. Superb book. whizzerick
I've read the Wheels for the World and it kept my attention. I read an earlier Henry Ford biography, mostly the same stuff. I read it to see if there was any mention of my great-grandfather bulding a bulletproof bank teller booth in Henry's office. Nope.
I seem to recall that our junior high school library had several books by an author named I.G. Edmonds with titles like "Hot Rodding For Beginners" "Motorcycling For Beginners" and such. I checked out the hot rodding one several times, along with many Henry Gregor Felsen books and enjoyed them to no end! My nephew goes to that same school now...if I thought he could use a card catalog, I'd ask him to see if they still have any of those books there!! (in the 629 numeral range on the Dewewy Decimal System, if I remember correctly!).
I recently picked up and have been reading "Super Stock; Drag Racing The Family Sedan". It's full of really good info on stock and A/FX drag racing from the late 50s to the early 70s. Hundreds of bitchin' pictures too.
Someone a few weeks ago was talking about an old book that was republished recently on the history of Bike clubs back in the 50-60's anyone??
very o.t. but let me recommend "investment Biker"by Jim Rogers. Jim is the dean of the Columbia U, school of buisness. He went around the world on a motorcycle checking out world markets for buisness. It's somewhat of an intellectual read, but he explains money,how it's created and how country's succeed or fail as a backdrop to the trip. I couldn't put it down.
If you want dynamic racing car theory, then I'd recommend Carroll Smith's books. If you want a good read about running, racing, and restoring 1950's sports cars, then get something from B.S.Levy. If you want a great glimpse of what cars were all about in the 60s and 70s, get a collection of Ken Purdey. Any of those are wonderful. --Matt
Such kind words, my friend, and especially appreciated by someone with your credentials in this wonderful nonsense we've been involved in for so many years. Thanks, too, for providing me the opportunity to post a spam-free source for the book -- Vern Tardel his ownself. Folks can order direct from the co-author by writing . . . Tardel Enterprises 464 Pleasant Avenue Santa Rosa, CA 95403 . . . or FAXing . . . 707-838-6065 The books is $25.00 plus $5.00 S&H whick translate as a book-size box and Priority Mail. It also comes autographed by the authors at no extra charge, so there's further inducement to buy from the source! It's not payback/payoff when I say to all the young folks hereabouts that "Pinky" by Jay Carnine is an honest, unembarrassed look at life in a rather typical young hot-rodder's world back in the day. It's also a very good mirror to hold up for some of us old warriors. Probably help us recall that we weren't nearly the rascals we've been telling one another about since those days. Lots of fine reads recommended here alreay -- Don Montgomery's series, Dean Batchelor's wonderful memoir of his first and stongest love -- hot rods -- before he went on to become the editor of the most prestigious sporty car magazine on the planet. I'm going to raise the dollar bar here because I feel that there are some super-committed HAMBers who may be willing to step up for some serious gearhead library fare. My first recommendation is Mark Dees' "THE MILLER DYNASTY." The archival photos alone make this book as valuable to the reader as it is pricey. Factor in the numerous Leo Goosen engineering drawings from which Miller cars and engines were built and you have a stunning database for viewing the evolution of the American racecar. The book has been out of print for several years, but I've heard the Motorbooks International has some copies. Not sure about the price; when it was first published it was about $130, and I've heard prices of $200-plus for those that remain today. If you can find a copy, bite the bullet and enhance your motor library with one of the most revealing and interesting hot-rodding books ever. My second recommendation for pricey-but-worthwhile reading is Loren Sorensens's set of six "Fordiana" books. Written with the full support of FoMoCo, including unrestricted use of their entire historical photo and narrative archives, the Sorensen Fordiana series is as close as you're likely to come in finding the definitive Ford reference library. Like the Miller book, the large, crisp photos in Sorensen's Fordiana books will knock your socks off. Last I heard, MBI had some sets of this limited edition available. Count on paying a couple hundred or better for the set -- and count yourself blessed as you browse through the several hundred pages of spot-on reportage and stunning photos. Happy holidays . . . and good reading!
Not car related but a good read nonetheless... a book called "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash". This is the book that the movie "A Christmas Story" came from (You'll put your eye out kid!)... that whole movie was just one chapter in this funny book!
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