Books!

[Farmer J.]

In an attempt to join in the recent aviation theme here's my humble offering. This one is only from 1986 but unusual. Published by Rolls Royce I believe they were given to apprentices/students when the first arrive in Derby. A girlfriend of my second cousin was doing her engineering degree and had sponsorship from RR, she kindly got an extra copy for me. My cousin wasn't so lucky with his degree sponsorship, he got taken on by British Leyland and had to work on awful Austin Maestro cars

 

[Private Lugnutz]

A Farwell to Arms

 

[bmwrd0]

Gotta hand it to you for that one!

 

[WisJim]

Where's my groan icon?

 

[Outlawmws]

Where's my groan icon.

I liked it!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Gotta hand it to you for that one!

Snerk.

I liked it!

Thanks, Outlaw. I have more! Twenty-three (23) more to be exact! (Don't worry - not all of them punny, @WisJim. Some are much more serious, or enigmatic, metaphorical, outrageous, etc). All made from old books found at flea markets for $1. The illustrations, many with weird captions, are all clipped from the same book, a quirky science book from 1934 that I found last summer. It's a secret project I've had going since then that I think of as "The Dearly Discarded Series." (Nobody on the GS thread has asked me about all the used books that I was not showing face up or counting in my hauls week after week.) No grand scheme. I'm matching covers with illustrations spontaneously, at my whimsy.

 

[four.cycle]

recent find:
"Wicked Tacoma" © 2021 Karla Stover - published by The History Press, Charleston, SC - www.historypress.com - 171 pages

Saw this on a rack and couldn't resist. Thinking of giving it to Mom this week when I go up. Definitely looks interesting.

Chapter 1 - The Battle to Ban Cigarettes
Chapter 10 - What's a port without smuggling? And what's smuggling without including Opium?
Chapter 21 - Vito Cuttone and his Italian Mafia

I'm sure she'll love it.

 

[ZRX61]

In an attempt to join in the recent aviation theme here's my humble offering. This one is only from 1986 but unusual. Published by Rolls Royce I believe they were given to apprentices/students when the first arrive in Derby. A girlfriend of my second cousin was doing her engineering degree and had sponsorship from RR, she kindly got an extra copy for me. My cousin wasn't so lucky with his degree sponsorship, he got taken on by British Leyland and had to work on awful Austin Maestro cars

I don't think they do it these days, but many years ago some of the RR apprentices (depending on their career) were handed a piece of rough cut steel which they had to hand file into a perfect 3in cube. Once they got that mastered & finished they had to file the cube into a perfect ball.
I can't recall what the time limit was, but it was several months & they worked on them whenever they had a spare few minutes.

 

[Provincial]

An immigrant German machinist told me that he had a similar project for his apprenticeship. This would have been soon after WWII.

 

[bmwrd0]

I know that Anschutz requires its apprentices to be able to hand file a cube also. And that the owner used to walk around the factory floor showing, in just a few file strokes, how to do it.

 

[Stubby1743]

I also have the 1959-60 edition but it has a plain cover.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Continuing the aviation trend...

As first reported on the 13th Annual (!) Garage Sale thread, I found this booklet at the flea yesterday. 1940 and 1942 copyrights, which helps explain some of the absences (no Mustang, no Superfortress, to name a couple famous wartime aircraft). It's in only fair to good condition overall, with the binding in poor shape, the cellophane peeling off the cover, and some minor staining on some pages. Due to its delicate condition, I don't want to handle too much. But here are some snapshots. We've all seen enough Messerschmitts and Spitfires, so I am choosing some lesser-knowns and/or oddballs. In addition to the aircraft, there are 4 or 5 pages of TTP - including torpedo bombing, dive bombing, and dogfighting maneuvers. Credit to the writer for the notes on each plane, but oddly, no credit for the illustrator.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

I was a cowboy in my first life.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

And then there is military. The book (up front) was a book highly regulated to not discourage the Toops and prevent others from joining during 1945.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

And then there is Huntin. A lot of fun facts that the books were laying in the Huntin camps for years. Rules number one Theis do not reach the Privy.

And of course, old cast iron.

 

[WisJim]

@Mike'smeatshop, I have that History of World War II by Miller--and "Up Front" also. I like reading accounts of historic events that were written much closer to the event, to get an idea of how attitudes and perceptions may have changed from then until now.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

@Mike'smeatshop, I have that History of World War II by Miller--and "Up Front" also. I like reading accounts of historic events that were written much closer to the event, to get an idea of how attitudes and perceptions may have changed from then until now.

I feel the same. I believe 90% are facts. And the Up Front was to pamper 1944. Great reads. I also like Danial Boone. Followed his footsteps. Even followed Kit Carson the whole way to Toas NM. Kit was born here. Not a nice guy.

 

[ZRX61]

Latest arrivals....

 

[ZRX61]

Yes, the ad in the back of my volume lists all 8 of them. Volume 8 was the electrical book, bigger and more expensive than the others. I haven't found a full set at a price I want to pay, but I'm still looking. I'm at a point where I seriously considering getting rid of a book or two whenever I buy another one. We have bookshelves throughout the garage and house. Some years ago when we got our first laptop computer, the justification was that a laptop made it easier to put all of our books on a spreadsheet, which took us some time. Entering what is now almost 8,000 books took awhile, but did help us discover some duplicates (the wife doesn't think that we need upstairs, downstairs, and garage copies of so many books). It is nice to have the book spreadsheet on my phone so I am less likely to pick up duplicates at the used book store or garage sale.

I just found a full set & bit the bullet... I'm now officially done buying any more books for several months.

In related news, I screwed up at an estate sale a few weeks ago. There were several Audel's books on a shelf. Looked to date from maybe the 1960's, maybe newer. They were construction & plumbing & I left them there...

 

[ZRX61]

@Mike'smeatshop, I have that History of World War II by Miller--and "Up Front" also. I like reading accounts of historic events that were written much closer to the event, to get an idea of how attitudes and perceptions may have changed from then until now.

Give Max Hastings Vietnam book a read...

 

[WisJim]

I have a few machine shop related books by Colvin, always find them intersting. Good stuff! I'm looking for a full set of the Audel's Engineers and Mechanics guide but my book budget is low due to a set of Knight's American Mechanical Dictionary and some other purchases recently.

 

[gearhead1960]

Give Max Hastings Vietnam book a read...

On my reading list now.....

 

[RalphInCA]

Deleted

 

[ZRX61]

Score!

 

[DAustin]

"The War in Algeria" by Pierre Leulliette

 

[Outlawmws]

Nice find ZRX! what year?

 

[kyrbz]

A book I picked up in Milan many years ago about mid century Italian design patents. The cover is a rubber cat toy called Gatto Meo designed by famed Italian designer Bruno Munari as a promotional item for Pirelli.

 

[Beerhippie]

There was a time when none of us carried a connection to the internet in our pockets, so we carried books in our tool bags.

Here's one that obviously spent a few winters in my bags:



Need to frame a complex roof system from lumber (we didn't use a lot of trusses back then)? Yeah, it's in there. I wish I could find my original Speed Square to go with it.

But what if you need to know about something other than roof framing?

Well, this was the maker's "internet" of the day:



I wonder why I put the painter's tape bookmark there?



For the welding/fabrication/pipefitters bench, this would be real handy:





Hey--that one has a painter's tape bookmark, too--and I didn't put it there:



Conversion tables, again! I guess we all hit those up frequently--and blue painter's tape was the bookmark of choice.

 

[Outlawmws]

For me it was my MHB 19th edition I bought new "back in the day" I used to keep it at the top of my drafting table on an early job and this guy would stop and talk to me and ask questions sometimes. That was fine, but he also leaned on my book and that wasn't. I must have told him two dozen times "don't lean on the book..."

One day I'm splicing something in with a #11 Xacto, and he pulls it again. I threw my Xacto into the table top like a dart so it was vibrating against his arm. "Don't lean on the book!" - He's white as a sheet (but did move his arm) and was like "What if you missed?" Response? "Don't lean on the book!" He never did it again!

 

[Jgaz]

There was a time when none of us carried a connection to the internet in our pockets, so we carried books in our tool bags.

Here's one that obviously spent a few winters in my bags:



Need to frame a complex roof system from lumber (we didn't use a lot of trusses back then)? Yeah, it's in there. I wish I could find my original Speed Square to go with it.

But what if you need to know about something other than roof framing?

Well, this was the maker's "internet" of the day:



I wonder why I put the painter's tape bookmark there?



For the welding/fabrication/pipefitters bench, this would be real handy:





Hey--that one has a painter's tape bookmark, too--and I didn't put it there:



Conversion tables, again! I guess we all hit those up frequently--and blue painter's tape was the bookmark of choice.

I have two of the three you listed, speed square and pocket reference.
Both well used. No batteries required

I had a MHB at my bench but the pocket reference lived in my tool box

 

[Jgaz]

Here is another book that resided in my toolbox and was well used depending on the department I was assigned to.

 

[Ricky Joe]

.

 

[Provincial]

I agree. I have a lot of contemporaneous history books from before the Civil War. It is amazing how much revision of history has occurred. Especially true of the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.

Official histories are written soon after the events, and while the winner are in power. They tend to show things from the perspective of the winner, and his supporters.

Since at least the second half of the last Century, history has paid attention to individual experience, and with the improvements in recording technology "oral history" has allowed living persons to enter their personal experiences into the record. These experiences may conflict with the "official" record, and revise the view from the "official" perspective. But individual experience may conflict with the big picture, so a historian needs to put all this information in perspective.

Another factor is censorship. It took almost a half century for secrets from WWII to be revealed, and for official records from the defeated powers to emerge. For instance, it wasn't until the 1990's that the documents relating to the thinking of the Japanese Government relating to surrender were released to historians, and they conflicted with the story told by the Soviets, which was being repeated in academic circles.

Bill Mauldin, who wrote and illustrated "Up Front", became a successful editorial cartoonist after WWII. He wrote an autobiography called "The Brass Ring" which is a good read. He experienced the lives of the soldiers who were in combat, and documented that experience. His writings are a first-hand record of that part of the War, and as such are a valuable record. One can see how those in power would not want some of the real life experience to be widely distributed. It could be "bad for morale."

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

Official histories are written soon after the events, and while the winner are in power. They tend to show things from the perspective of the winner, and his supporters.

Since at least the second half of the last Century, history has paid attention to individual experience, and with the improvements in recording technology "oral history" has allowed living persons to enter their personal experiences into the record. These experiences may conflict with the "official" record, and revise the view from the "official" perspective. But individual experience may conflict with the big picture, so a historian needs to put all this information in perspective.

Another factor is censorship. It took almost a half century for secrets from WWII to be revealed, and for official records from the defeated powers to emerge. For instance, it wasn't until the 1990's that the documents relating to the thinking of the Japanese Government relating to surrender were released to historians, and they conflicted with the story told by the Soviets, which was being repeated in academic circles.

Bill Mauldin, who wrote and illustrated "Up Front", became a successful editorial cartoonist after WWII. He wrote an autobiography called "The Brass Ring" which is a good read. He experienced the lives of the soldiers who were in combat, and documented that experience. His writings are a first-hand record of that part of the War, and as such are a valuable record. One can see how those in power would not want some of the real life experience to be widely distributed. It could be "bad for morale."

Yea I read that. He, Bill Mauldin was under a lot of pressure.

 

[WisJim]

My finds at our public library book sale today. Dollar apiece.

 

[RTM]

My finds at our public library book sale today. Dollar apiece.

Bargain on the Krenov, paid $15 or so for each of mine over time.

 

[WisJim]

I got one of Krenov's other books at the last book sale, also for a dollar. I did think they were a good deal and didn't hesitate to grab them.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I picked up this Audel's Welders Guide at the flea market yesterday. If you're wondering, like I was, why the cover is not black, I think the difference is the later timeframe. It was published in 1949.

 

[Outlawmws]

Inclined to agree on the later edition Lugz, but I have the same cover from 1946? a scan through active Eprey listings showed all but one like our covers? So it was in black also, but possibly only in 1940?

EDIT: My other Audels' straddle both dates, All black...

Off Eprey - claim is it was printed in 1966? (No pictured evidence though) - Way more $$ than I'm willing to spend to find out. :



Mine:



A stack of some of my vintage "Tech" books:

 

[Outlawmws]

And back to the Aircraft books theme: I found this when checking the Audel's printing dates - Notice the stapled "binding":



1942 - so probably so they could crank them out fast so we could train pilots as fast as possible:




And from the back also (Not on every page):