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Hey - did you know if you click on the title of a thread it will take you to the first unread post since you last visited that thread?
but were afraid to ask: 
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Pretty Please - add it to our Events forum(s) and add to the calendar! >> 
twigworker
Jedi Trainee
Offline
I'm posting this for the common good on both of the forums that I frequent, so if you have seen it elsewhere, well hard cheese old chap. LOL
*****************
Kathleen is still up stairs asleep, Mother's Day you know, so I have a few minutes before I have to serve breakfast to "The Queen".
It occurred to me that some new members of the MG clan might not know of some of the more useful reference books pertinent to the affliction so here is a list of the ones that come to mind. As far as I know lots of them are available on Amazon, most of the time at least, and sometimes even on eBay. There are other sellers too but they are too numerous for me to list, so you will have to do your own digging in that department.
I have, well I don't really know, perhaps three or four hundred publications in my library gathered over the course of my forty five plus years of messing around with cars. I don't pretend to have read each and every one from cover to cover and I never expect to, but the reference resource, both general and specific, is very comforting to have sitting around. I would encourage anyone who is even remotely interested to invest, and I mean invest, in what ever books that you can accumulate. Coffee table books to things that only five people on earth would ever use are all valuable in some way. You almost can't go wrong. I have very few that I would consider to have been worth less than I paid for them.
Printing this list out and letting it sit around where it might be seen by friends and family, especially at gift giving time, could be a good thing.
I post this in hopes that other, more seasoned characters here will chime in with their favorites too.
Here goes, in no particular order of importance.
The Complete Official MGB / THE workshop manual published by Bentley, Inc. Two flavors, the green cover goes from 62 through 74 and the red cover goes from 74 thru 80. Arguably the most essential MGB publication.
Original MGB With MGC and MGB GT V8 by Anders Clausager / What might be the definitive picture/specification reference on the marque.
BMC and Leyland B-Series Engine Date by Lindsay Porter / A real nuts and bolts reference on the B-Series motor with more detailed information than one might ever need.
How To Power Tune MGB 4-Cylinder Engines by Peter Burgess / A soft bound Speed Pro book that concerns itself with just about every phase of building and hot-rodding the B-Series engine. Excellent publication.
Tuning the A-Series Engine by David Vizard / This book devotes itself to the little brother of the B-Series motor, the A-Series lump used in lots of LBCs, particularly the Spridget line. It goes from the 850 size up to the jumbo 1275 and a little beyond. Although aimed at the A-Series builder there are LOTS of points that carry over from those engines to our B-Series cars.
How to Build & Power Tune SU Carburetors by Des Hammill. / One of the Speedpro books that is as usual very useful to both novice and experienced tuners. Basic design theory right on up through the racing stuff. Buy it if you have SUs on your engine.
How to Build and Power Tune Distributor Type Ignition Systems by Des Hammill / A general book on these ignition systems, from the OEM points and capacitor types up through the breakerless electronic stuff. Lots of good reading here.
Weber Carburetors / For Weber owners, a Haynes manual covering a great deal of the Weber line. Lots of good information and about all most owners will need.
Weber Carburetors by V. Braden / An HP manual that covers lots of the same stuff as the Haynes book. It is perhaps a little better too.
MGB Electrical Systems by Rick Astley / A Veloce publication that surpasses every other book on dealing with The Prince of Darkness.
Some esoteric tomes that might be useful only to hard core builders or machine shops :
AERA's Cylinder Head and Block Guide / Specs for machine shop work.
T.E.C. Import and Domestic Cylinder Head Sec. Manual / Specs and parts lists for cylinder heads of all flavors.
Sunnen's Complete Cylinder Head and Engine Rebuilding Handbook by John Edwards / A hard bound tome published by Sunnen, the cylinder head service machine manufacturer. Covers ALL kinds of stuff, but if you take the time to read a bit of it you will more clearly understand the whys and hows of the Black Art.
Engine Builders Handbook by Tom Monroe / One of the HP book line that covers all kinds of engines and delivers a lot of general machining and assembly information that carries over to our little motors.
The following two books are way, way out of print but if you ever have a chance to snag one, do it without hesitation.
One of two of my very favorite OLD OLD OLD publications is Internal Combustion Engines by Edward Obert. First published in 1944 my Second Edition published in 1956 is in my mind the definitive book on internal combustion engines. Period.
My second OLD, OLD, OLD favorite is Automobiles by J. S. Zerbe, published by Cuples & Leon Company of NY in 1915. It is astounding to me just how much engineering/design was done and known that early in the life of cars. This has to be the easiest to understand book that I have on the general principles of the design of engines, gearing and chassis/suspension. It is also amazing to me just how much of it carries over to our old limey cars.
*****************
Kathleen is still up stairs asleep, Mother's Day you know, so I have a few minutes before I have to serve breakfast to "The Queen".
It occurred to me that some new members of the MG clan might not know of some of the more useful reference books pertinent to the affliction so here is a list of the ones that come to mind. As far as I know lots of them are available on Amazon, most of the time at least, and sometimes even on eBay. There are other sellers too but they are too numerous for me to list, so you will have to do your own digging in that department.
I have, well I don't really know, perhaps three or four hundred publications in my library gathered over the course of my forty five plus years of messing around with cars. I don't pretend to have read each and every one from cover to cover and I never expect to, but the reference resource, both general and specific, is very comforting to have sitting around. I would encourage anyone who is even remotely interested to invest, and I mean invest, in what ever books that you can accumulate. Coffee table books to things that only five people on earth would ever use are all valuable in some way. You almost can't go wrong. I have very few that I would consider to have been worth less than I paid for them.
Printing this list out and letting it sit around where it might be seen by friends and family, especially at gift giving time, could be a good thing.
I post this in hopes that other, more seasoned characters here will chime in with their favorites too.
Here goes, in no particular order of importance.
The Complete Official MGB / THE workshop manual published by Bentley, Inc. Two flavors, the green cover goes from 62 through 74 and the red cover goes from 74 thru 80. Arguably the most essential MGB publication.
Original MGB With MGC and MGB GT V8 by Anders Clausager / What might be the definitive picture/specification reference on the marque.
BMC and Leyland B-Series Engine Date by Lindsay Porter / A real nuts and bolts reference on the B-Series motor with more detailed information than one might ever need.
How To Power Tune MGB 4-Cylinder Engines by Peter Burgess / A soft bound Speed Pro book that concerns itself with just about every phase of building and hot-rodding the B-Series engine. Excellent publication.
Tuning the A-Series Engine by David Vizard / This book devotes itself to the little brother of the B-Series motor, the A-Series lump used in lots of LBCs, particularly the Spridget line. It goes from the 850 size up to the jumbo 1275 and a little beyond. Although aimed at the A-Series builder there are LOTS of points that carry over from those engines to our B-Series cars.
How to Build & Power Tune SU Carburetors by Des Hammill. / One of the Speedpro books that is as usual very useful to both novice and experienced tuners. Basic design theory right on up through the racing stuff. Buy it if you have SUs on your engine.
How to Build and Power Tune Distributor Type Ignition Systems by Des Hammill / A general book on these ignition systems, from the OEM points and capacitor types up through the breakerless electronic stuff. Lots of good reading here.
Weber Carburetors / For Weber owners, a Haynes manual covering a great deal of the Weber line. Lots of good information and about all most owners will need.
Weber Carburetors by V. Braden / An HP manual that covers lots of the same stuff as the Haynes book. It is perhaps a little better too.
MGB Electrical Systems by Rick Astley / A Veloce publication that surpasses every other book on dealing with The Prince of Darkness.
Some esoteric tomes that might be useful only to hard core builders or machine shops :
AERA's Cylinder Head and Block Guide / Specs for machine shop work.
T.E.C. Import and Domestic Cylinder Head Sec. Manual / Specs and parts lists for cylinder heads of all flavors.
Sunnen's Complete Cylinder Head and Engine Rebuilding Handbook by John Edwards / A hard bound tome published by Sunnen, the cylinder head service machine manufacturer. Covers ALL kinds of stuff, but if you take the time to read a bit of it you will more clearly understand the whys and hows of the Black Art.
Engine Builders Handbook by Tom Monroe / One of the HP book line that covers all kinds of engines and delivers a lot of general machining and assembly information that carries over to our little motors.
The following two books are way, way out of print but if you ever have a chance to snag one, do it without hesitation.
One of two of my very favorite OLD OLD OLD publications is Internal Combustion Engines by Edward Obert. First published in 1944 my Second Edition published in 1956 is in my mind the definitive book on internal combustion engines. Period.
My second OLD, OLD, OLD favorite is Automobiles by J. S. Zerbe, published by Cuples & Leon Company of NY in 1915. It is astounding to me just how much engineering/design was done and known that early in the life of cars. This has to be the easiest to understand book that I have on the general principles of the design of engines, gearing and chassis/suspension. It is also amazing to me just how much of it carries over to our old limey cars.
