Keith and others:
Thank you for complimenting me on my knowledge. I enjoy the opportunity to
share my thoughts and opinions with others who have the same interests.
Concerning my MGA "expertise," I should mention that I have only owned an
MGA for about 1 month and most of that time, it has been in storage. In
fact, other than driving it home from Iowa (every state has a neighbor that
they make fun of and Iowa is the butt of many Minnesota jokes so it is
tough for me to even type the word without adding a zinger or two but I
digress), I have only put 25 miles on the car.
I have spent a good portion of my life, chasing interesting cars and have
even actually bought a few. Also, having no social life, I spend a lot of
time reading about my hobby. Ask my wife, I am addicted to cars. But most
of us on this list could probably make that claim.
Has all of this experience and knowledge helped me? Not a bit, I still end
up with Alfa's that sag if you open both doors, MGB's with bad splines and
cracked heads, and MGA's where the doors don't fit. I buy on emotion and
usually this means that I forget three quarters of what I know just because
"I have to have that car."
If you too want to add to the amount of knowledge that you ignore the next
time you buy an LBC, I recommend reading everything that you can get your
hands on. In particular, I recommend Lindsay Porter's DIY restoration
series. I have read both the Spitfire and MGB versions and they are
fantastic book, IMHO. I have also read a lot of the "buyers guide" series
and they are a good place to start although the detail on a specific model
is usually pretty shallow. Green's boot on MGA restoration has good
pre-purchase suggestions but is not of the same quality as Porter's books.
Where do I get all of these? Every August, Classic Motorbooks in Oscela,
Wisconson has a big car show, airplane show, and book sale. They have 10%
off all books plus they have a tent where they sell return and slightly
damaged (dust cover ripped, binding bent) books for half price.
In the last two years, I have bought about 200.00 worth of books there at
half price. It's a great way to justify buying a book that you are
interested in but don't really need. If anyone is looking for a road trip,
this would be an excellent choice. I think there were about 50 MG's there
last year.
Regards
Bill Eastman
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