Old Books and Things

I'm always on the lookout for old books related to tools and technology. I try to find them in the Salvation Army, Goodwill or other thrift store. I have a few sets of do-it-yourself encyclopedias dating back to the 1950s. I had been carrying around three volumes of a Popular Mechanic's Encyclopedia from the 1950s for years looking for more. I originally got the three volumes when I was a kid, then started looking for the set after getting out of the USAF. I found another volume after a few years. Finally one day I ran across the complete set for $10 or so.

I did pick up a couple of reprints of old books. Lee Valley sells a few sets that are very interesting. There's Popular Mechanics tip collection that spans the years from 1905 to 1930. The automobile hints from the early days are eye-opening. There was lot more to driving a car, than just jumping in and going. You had to be a pretty fair mechanic as well.

My latest treasure was a six volume set of Automobile Engineering from 1923 that I found in Salvation Army. I think they're leather bound in almost perfect condition. It tells everything about cars in the early twenties - more the late teens I think. Wooden wheels and frames, six volt electrical systems and solid rubber tires. Actually, the most surprising thing is how much things haven't changed. Just about all the technology used today was pretty much there. It's been refined a bit, but hasn't really changed much.

One of the things about old books is what you sometimes find inside. This set had an order blank for a "new Bargain Le Rhone" motor from Marvin A. Northrup in Minneapolis for $15 in full or $18 in 5 weekly/monthly payments. I've done a couple of quick searches for this online and pretty much came up blank. I wonder how many he sold?