What books on the A for a newbie?

[ETAModel]

I have the Owner's manual on PDF, and Les Andrew's book. What other books should my library have on operating the Model A ?

[Bob C]

Service Bulletins

[CHuDWah]

Originally Posted by ETAModel

I have the Owner's manual on PDF, and Les Andrew's book. What other books should my library have on operating the Model A ?

Depends on what you want to know. Here are a couple lists:

https://model-a-ford.org/resources/books/

https://www.mafca.com/ref_books.html

[700rpm]

Model A Restoration Guidelines and Judging Standards very accurate and up to date.

Also: “The Ford Model A as Henry built it” by George DeAngelis

Be careful of "restoration" books published before 1980. In most cases obsolete, out of date, and/or incorrect information.

[wwirz]

Ditto on the Les Andrews RED book. A must have!

[alexiskai]

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Originally Posted by 700rpm

Model A Restoration Guidelines and Judging Standards very accurate and up to date.

I resisted getting the RG&JS for a long time because I have no intention of ever showing my car. But I got my hands on (admittedly an old) one and it's turned out to be really useful for just telling you how something is supposed to look. What color is this supposed to be? Is this part supposed to be on this car? What am I looking for at this swap meet?

Anyway, you should get one.

[40-A Twins]

I carried a photocopy of this page from Windshield wiper chapter in the Judging Standards book so I would recognize the correct wiper motor needed for my Model A. I finally found one in very nice condition, possibly even could have been NOS. Without this page to identify that wiper motor, I could not possibly identify the correct one. If you ever look through a box of old wiper motors at a swap meet you will see hundreds of variations. It won't fit the Model A unless it is the correct one. There are several other parts that are model & year specific that are identified in this manual.
Kevin

[mercman from oz]

Book - Henry's Lady

[Ernie Vitucci]

Good Morning...All the above books are good...I also have found excellent information in this book from 1931. It is: 'Model A Ford, construction, Operation, Repair'. Revised for the Restorer. Reprinted in 1973 and 1998. It was written by Victor W. Page and is available from Bratton's...532 pages...still in print, hard cover and really interesting...it naturally includes the thought processes from 1931 which are interesting and quite helpful...Ernie in Arizona

[ETAModel]

Thanks all, I found the service bulletins on Amazon and they are enroute. I'll keep searching for more.

[TomIII]

I have a bunch... the Andrews book Ford A Mechanic Vol 1 is good, but not perfect. (especially the brake section that glosses over a few issues that you will always face if doing a complete job) Take pics & notes as you go! If it's bi-lateral, do one side at a time.

[Y-Blockhead]

One place I find a lot of good info is MAC's online catalog. And it is free. https://www.macsautoparts.com/modela_specs

Bratton's catalog has some good info also, like bolt and thread sizes.

[Kevin in NJ]

First off understand you should not just trust the books to be correct. Verify all the information.

You should take time to understand the how and why of Ford's engineering and manufacturing of the A. There is an interesting discussion in 'Fordlandia' which is mostly about the Ford rubber plantation. But there is a discussion on the A factory opening delay because they needed to solve some high accuracy manufacturing issue.

The book 'The Legendary Model A Ford' gives a picture on how the A was actually driven when it was new.

It is wise to collect factory prints for parts that sometimes get posted on these boards. They help you sort out the wrong parts of the 'shop manuals'.

[mhsprecher]

Les Andrews' Vol II and III are also useful.

[Russell Reay]

I, too, am a newbie, and had the same question--what books to have. I am not new to vehicle reconstruction having built a ground up 57 Chevy pickup 15 years ago. On the theory that more information is better than too little, I bought How to Restore the Model A Ford, Model A Ford Restoration Handbook, and The Complete Model A Ford Restoration Manual They all have good information, but they all include a lot of story mixed in with the technical stuff. Some of them have great detail about a specific issue on a specific car, but if yours is different you have to guess if the recommendations apply to yours. A major flaw is none of them have an index. Unless you line the pages with your own sticky tabs, be prepared to do a lot of re-reading until you find what you are looking for. I guess I don't regret buying any of them, because they have a lot of history you would not have in a purely technical manual, but I am disappointed for what they lack. If your car is a project, bookmark this website, and use it frequently.

[rotorwrench]

This instruction book will be something to look at for a while.
https://www.palmbeachas.com/Model-A-...ion-Manual.pdf

[Jim Brierley]

If you are interested in performance, you need my 4-bangers and me book. [email protected] for info on it.

[psimet]

If it makes you feel any better I have probably 40 or so books about the model A. I’ve been collecting and reading them for about 25 years.

That said I still consider myself brand new and while they all have gems inside them they all skip so many specifics and details that they all seem to take for granted as an experience base that just isn’t there.

This from a 46 yr old mechanical engineer who has worked as a machinist, worked in heavy industrial metal fabrication, and own my own manufacturing companies and turn a wrench as a profession. These all assume you have a 70-something yr old knowledge base leaning over your shoulder filling in the blanks they didn’t bother to cover.

Out of the piles of books I have I like Les Andrew’s red book of course. I like the judging standards as they’re the only place you can actually find out what was supposed to be on your car (when you ask someone who knows they always just say to get the judging standards anyway).

There’s a great little paper pamphlet about the distributor I got through someone that’s worth it.

A lot of the other stuff really is just generalities that cover all the different variants there are and don’t really cover a lot of the specifics newer people are interested in. Great to flip through while on the couch at night but not really handy to have when tackling a problem. Or idea.

Just my opinion

[vangorde]

The three Les Andrews' Volumes are my go tos.