3 comments about High-Performance Handling Handbook (Motorbooks Workshop).

1. I don't have the budget or the guts to actually take my car out for track days or street performance racing. I've played racing simulators for a while and the level of realism they provide has come to a point where chassis setup is a vital ingredient of the game experience.
   
   So I bought this book looking for information on how the various components of the chassis work to maintain balance in the car, how they can be adjusted and how these adjustments affect handling. I found all of this in the book, and I keep looking it up after reading from cover to cover. The tire temperature chapter is especially good and shows some great examples.
   
   This is all very well explained in the book, but I missed some sort of "setup table" at the end, some sort of quick-lookup table summarizing the rest of the book.
   
   The one thing I really hated about this book is its editing. There isn't a single page without a picture (which I'm fine with), but most pictures are only loosely connected to the subject. Once again, this would be fine with me if it weren't for one small problem: there are so many pictures that the ones which are actually related to some topic are placed far away from the place they were referenced in. It is not unusual to read something like "see the accompanying figure for details" and finding out that this picture is already 20 pages past. Not only that, but figures have no reference number either!
   
   Summing up, I'll give this book a 3/5: the promised information is there, but there is no "quick reference"; there are some great pictures, but the editing is so poor that they can only be referenced as "the accompanying figure" and that company can be as far as 20 pages away.



2. Another book in "Motorbooks Workshop" series.This one covers your car's suspension and tyres.It explains how to improve your cars handling and which modifications and tyres to consider.This book tells you what you need to know and why and does so in simple English.An ideal book.



3. I found this to be a great starting point for learning what is possible in the way of handling improvements for street cars, what the issues are, and what to avoid.
   
   This book provided me the background I needed to be able to hold an intelligent conversation with the guys at the performance suspension shop so that I could clearly describe what I was looking for, what I wanted to avoid, and to be able to evaluate their suggestions. I ended up with a terrific setup that made a huge posititve difference in my car's handling without making the ride so harsh that I didn't enjoy driving it.
   
   There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all recipe. Each car and application is different. Understanding how the components each contribute to overall performance and what trade-offs can be made is the key.
   
   This book provides enough theory to allow you to understand the concepts without requiring an engineering degree and without getting bogged down in theoretical research models that don't actually work in the real world.
   
   Be sure to check out the Honda del Sol project car. It's amazing what they were able to accomplish.

5 comments about Hot Rod Pin-ups.

1. David perry (along with Chas Ray Kriger) is one of the two best photographic exponents of the future noir pinup genre. I waited a long time for the release of this book, and as I expected,the photographs are wonderful. Pity the book has been let down with some of the worst publishing design I have seen in ages. The cheesy slogans etc posted over the photographs and the annoying black boxes with model and car info in the corner of each photo are very distracting. The photographs speak well enough for themselves and would have been much better suited to full page spreads (as in David Perry's Hot Rod book) without the annoyingly colourful graphic design vomit on each page. Anyway if you dig pin up photography its still worth your dough..



2. David Perry not only gets the Hot Rod Kulture, he's part of it! and luckily, for us, he captures it on film, with mastery.
   The book is awsome. His choice of cars and models is right m*#@ing on!
   The only problem is keeping my friend's greasy mitts off my copy...
   I guess I'll have to get a couple more...books that is



3. Great photography,with some great babes draped over cool cars.
   Dave Perry has a way of photographing period perfect clothed girls in provocative ways that make the girls a counterpoint to beater rods. If you've got a grain of warm blood still pulsing though your veins then these girls will quicken the pulse.



4. I love this book. It shows fashion from various eras and adds the rough style of classic cars. The history is a good added bonus, but the pictures are more interesting to look at. Very colorful and exciting.



5. The cars are much better than the girls. The women generally are not classy looking. Maybe that is what David Perry had in mind. The cover shot is the best pinup shot. The photography is super.

2 comments about Honda CB750, 1969-1979 (Haynes Manuals).

1. All I have is a question.I just was wondering how extensive this manual is.I already have a clymer publications service repair handbook.Is there anyway to preview this book before i buy it??I need a fairly detailed book.any info you could send would be greatly appericated.thank you eddy udry



2. Repair manuals for these are easily found used. I prefer the Clymer version, and the original Honda Manual is best. Haynes
   is good but it feels a bit "stodgy." I keep it mostly as a
   reference when working on problems. It is good to have different perspectives (ie- more manuals!)

3 comments about 1974-1989 911, 912E and 930 Porsche (Authenticity).

1. Hundreds of B&W photos. Describes model changes in each year. Not enough detail to perform restoration. Appendix provides a quick reference to options, colors, wheels, chassis numbers. (I did find at least one minor error...the color of my '89 is listed as available only on '87 and '88)



2. Porsches tend to get 'modified' over time, as owners add little touches they think are wonderful, or simply replace parts with the cheapest thing available. This book, part of the Authenticity Series by Beeman Jorgensen, Inc., gives tons of nice black and white photos and listings of what accoutrements came on specific model year 911's, 912E's and 930's. I've used it several times to identify trim pieces and fitment of items for myself and customers. Like the other books in this series, it doesn't do much about mechanical pieces, concentrating on trim and such, but if you want information on mechanicals, there are other books available for that (like the Parts & Technical Reference manuals or Bruce Anderson's book). This will get your car LOOKING right!



3. This was an excellent reference! The pictures identifying the differences, between everything from trim pieces to gauges, made it very easy to discern model and year changes. FYI this is mostly for asthetics and options. Not a lot of focus on mechanicals.

1 comments about How to Build Hot Rod Chassis-Smith.

1. I was given both "So-Cal Speedshop's How to Build Hot Rod Chassis"book and "Street Rodder's Chassis and Suspension Handbook." Both provided some good information but fell short in straight forward technical descriptions and were chock full of blatant adds for prebuild parts that are out of this world expensive. ONLY this book shows how to build a frame from SCRATCH. The other books start with stamped rails! This is the only book that shows building a frame jig and modifying rectangular tubing for a custom look. I gave it four stars because it does still have advertisements for available products but they are only one page and not the basis for the entire book like the other 2. Also, there is no index; this simple addition would make this book the reference it could be. Highly recommended.

No comments about Dirt Bikes (Cool Rides).

No comments about Cars of the Soviet Union: The definitive history.

5 comments about Industrial Motor Control, 5E.

1. Well written electronic/electrical books are like finding gold nuggets. I have an electrical background and used this book as a refresher to study for a professional test. I found it was well written, accurate and to the point. The authors did not get bogged down in endless calculations, but did present what was necessary. The authors covered each subject completely with well selected words, illustrations, and pictures that conveyed the idea in a simple to understand format. I would recommend this book to anyone, beginner, or craftsman seeking review of subjects they have not worked with for some time. I liked the short unit concept of covering each subject. I will look to these authors first for other electrical titles in the future.



2. This book is loaded with informative and valuable essential
   information that anyone in the field would find enteresting, and would be of extreme benefit to those entering the field.

   I found each chapter well written, easy to understand, and not cluttered with useless information.

   The Unit on "Synchronous Automatic Motor Starter" was of particular interest to me as I have operated these machines before.

   The section on "Developing Control Circuits" was also exciting for me as I have worked on storm drain pumping stations, and sewage lift stations which utilized the two pump alternating scheme shown in Figs. 2 thru 6.

   The solid state theory and circuits was excellent.

   This book makes for great reading, and I recommend it for all hands.




3. Very competently written text that covers all areas of traditional motor control. The author demonstrates his field knowledge by including typical characteristics of device failure and indications where inspection and possible maintenance would be prudent. Circuits and schematics are shown in standard ladder logic convention and in some instances even shows analogy to digital logic for those who are formerly trained electronics technicians.

   My one criticism is the sequencing of some of the chapters. The author seems to have weaved in and out of some areas where I expected more complete coverage only to find the topics further toward the back of the text. This detracts from an otherwise well written and authoritative text for the 1st time and intermediate level learner.




4. For those who want to know the fundamentals of Automated Industrial Systems under the heading of Electrical Motor Control... This text of ISBN 0-8273-8640-0, I can not recommend. There maybe better text that I am not aware of, But ISBN 0-8269-1663-5 from 1987 is a text you can grow with. I'll be upgrading to ISBN 0-8269-1675-9 by Gary Rockis & Glen Mazur. Sincerely, Industrial Maintenance Electrician of 12+ years. I will post an additional review once I have viewed the upgraded edition. (I've wondered about these reviews... Are they posted by a PR / sales people???) Good Luck & Be Safe.



5. Exellent study guide for beginner and journeyman Accompanying CD is articulate and the best I have seen.The author has done a fine job,both technically and artistically.

No comments about Mass Motorization + Mass Transit: An American History and Policy Analysis.

No comments about The Business of Speed: The Hot Rod Industry in America, 1915--1990 (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology).