Engine and Transmission Tech

Hey there,

I've read everyone's praise of Hammill's book on Rover V8s so I looked it up on the interwebs. I found a copy for $374.00! What the h3LL??? Is this some kind of rare gem that holds the holy grail?

Tim

Tim, let's make a deal. IMHO, $'s would be better on a Lady GaGa cd, and she's NOT one of my fav's. The book has no hard core/ serious data. No flow bench, no dyno sheets, in other words British ? Much about Wildcat P.R. and how to warm-over your put-put Rover. Roller cams?-no. American engine parts ?-no. Merlin heads ?-no. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Good Luck, roverman.

Thanks Art,

I saw a few excerpts from it and can't say I was impressed with the pics or the descriptions. I'd rather spend money on parts and not someone's opinions anyhow.

Cheers!
Tim

Obviously the $374 price is absurd... but if you keep surfing you'll find realistic pricing. I see it for $39 used or $53 new here: [www.bookfinder.com]

Time is the enemy ! An engine book that was written, just a few years ago, can be outdated. Even the Rover V8 is evolving rather rapidly, this being with(2) new heads available, roller cams, etc." How to make horsepower" by David Vizard, was skilled data, way back then, not so pertinent today. Time marches on. This forum is a good way to hear some current build info. Cheers, roverman

Thanks guys. Curtis, I searched and that site didn't even come up. I to Art all this is old news but to me it's like taking calculus 101 in college again. Remember slide rules? You guys probably don't.

Cheers,
Tim

I've been spending a lot of time looking for old, out-of-print books. If you have old David Vizard titles you don't want, please send them to me! Those are the books you need if you're trying to write about vintage racecars. Compared to thirty or forty years ago, we're living in a dark age. Fewer publishers, and the ones that are left aren't publishing many new titles. By the way, if you think the Hammill book is dated don't bother looking at Hardcastle's Rover book.

Curtis and clan, I have some elderly car books, I bought in London, 83'. How about an online library, for this forum ? I would gladly donate, for such a purpose. Cheers, roverman.

Art,

I'm going to contribute to the website and maybe we can get a library reference started. I don't know how Curtis would be affected by copyright laws on some publications but I found free pdf versions of Land Rover manuals online, even though they still sell print & cd versions.

It would be nice to have all the cam tables and tech figures in one place. Maybe we get some of us to help Curtis organize it so he's not bearing the brunt of our desires. I know I could nudge some of my people to put a few hours a month into this.

Tim

Curtis and clan ??

Cam tables and other tech specs shouldn't be difficult, especially when sourced from brochures, etc. Most vendors are delighted to see that sort of data excerpted into new magazine articles. Short quotes from other long-form sources are okay, but as soon as one starts scanning pages or chapters or photos...

An online library for books may be feasible, but the copyright issues can get complicated fast. Please keep in mind that just one lawsuit could conceivably shut the site down. When it comes to books, a lending library might be more pragmatic.

Ok Curtis, lending library. What's the next step ? Cheers, roverman.

I saw the following book about tuning engines on a newsgroup. Very old but very interesting data regarding head flowing and the theory behind it.

Performance Tuning in Theory and Practice - Four Strokes [auto engines] - A. Bell (FOULIS, 1981) WW.pdf

As I understand this book is not available anymore so maybe Copyright is different. I'm not an expert.

The only problem is that the file is 44Mb.

Frank

Quote:

What's the next step?

Here's one proposal:

1) people who wish to borrow books will sign up for a virtual library card. My thinking is that a designated "librarian" should maintain a file consisting of full contact of for all the borrowers... not just their UserName. A list of virtual library card holders will be put in a sticky message here in the message board so anyone can easily check their status. (e.g. "Am I a borrower in good standing?" "Do I have overdue books?" Possibly, "Do a owe a late fee?")

2) people who wish to contribute books to the lending library will provide filing/sorting info (e.g. formal title, author name, publisher name, copyright date, edition number, number of pages, physical dimensions, binding type) and possibly also scans of the cover (front and back) and the table of contents. The designated librarian will put all this data into a sorted master-list which will be kept in a sticky message here on the message board.

3) people who wish to contribute books to the lending library will actually hold onto their books until someone arranges to "check them out", at which time they'll mail them directly to the borrower. This will spread out post office hassles, and ultimately it will minimize shipping costs for all users.

4) borrowers will be responsible for paying postage and packaging costs to the respective book owners and for paying return postage to the respective book owners, and of course for returning the books in a reasonably timely fashion.

There are lots of little details we can discuss... such as:
"Should there be a standard check-out time period?"
"How many renewals should be allowed?
"Should we have minimum standards for shipping, such as insurance or registered mail requirements?"
"What action should be taken if some rogue fails to return a book?" ("Should there be some sort of collateral?)
"What about damaged books?
"What if someone wants to just donate books and wash their hands of responsibility (for shipping, etc.)?


The main benefit of this proposal is that it keeps the "librarian" job from becoming too time consuming.

Curtis and clan, I like last option, "donate and wash hands". Tax deductable donations ? Virtual library is not practical ? Thanks, roverman.

If people donate books & wash their hands, who maintains the library and accounts for shipping etc. for the lending of said books? I love the idea but maybe the "library" shows up at British V8 events and similar gatherings and you check out and return books to the "Librarian." That said, 50 books can weigh a lot and be cumbersome to haul around.

Tim

Ok, So BadAss needs a stylish MGB style trailer to tag-along, where it goes . Perhaps back-half of another MGB GT ? Onward, roverman.

Art,

I've seen one. I hated that B lost its life for the cause but it was COOL!

Tim

P.S. A trailer hitch on an MGB? That would stink, mess up the line of the rear valance.

Ok, Don't hate me just yet. Use a front/ totalled MGB GT. Put the hitch in a "slider" behind license plate. Wha-La ! Onward, roverman.

Quote:

A trailer hitch on an MGB? That would stink, mess up the line of the rear valance.

Really? Doesn't have to. This car has one:

[www.britishv8.org]