Earlswood Press. independent book publishers

Transcription

1 Earlswood Press independent book publishers

2 About Earlswood Press I started Earlswood Press in 2009, when I was still driving a London taxi for a living. I d written several books for other publishers, and wanted to produce a small book on London taxis, but when the small-scale publisher I approached went out of business, I decided to self publish it. I had edited and produced Vintage Taxi, the magazine of the London Vintage Taxi Association, so I knew something about typesetting and took the plunge. That book developed into Taxi Jubilee and it s still in print. One theme that crops up through my work is that of the stories that many people know of, but know little about. This started when I wrote my first book, Carbodies: the Complete Story, for another publisher. This book shone a light on a once dark corner of research and it s my intention to continue in this vein. Bill Munro Biographies But doesn t Earlswood Press publish biographies as well? The short answer is, yes, we used to. But as much as I enjoyed producing them, the two strands were just too disparate and I was spreading my resources too thinly between them and the car books. I decided to stick with what I know best - the car books. The authors of the biographies are now following the self-publishing route Earlswood Press, 10 Chaldon Close, Redhill Surrey RH1 6SX United Kingdom Tel: enquiries@earlswoodpress.co.uk Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Cover Illustration The first Ford Mustang converted to full-time four-wheel drive and Maxaret anti-skid brakes by Harry Ferguson Research Ltd. The story of the development of this car is told in our new title, Traction for Sale - the Story of Ferguson Formula Four-wheel Drive Image: Olivier Cerf, Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, Florida, USA 2

3 Welcome To the 2018 spring catalogue. The big news, for a tiny publishing company like mine is the release of Traction for Sale - The Story of Ferguson Formula Four-wheel Drive. This the largest book in terms of size and content I ve produced so far, and it s my first hardback book. Read all about it, as they say on pages 3-4 Books on the history of the London taxi make up the rest of the catalogue. Taxi Jubilee, the book that got me started in the publishing business is still around, as is Checker - the All-American Taxi. Going out of print very soon are two others, London Taxis in Camera, which is on offer at less than half price on our website, and London Taxis - a Full History. This has all but sold out, but we have a couple of copies left at bargain prices on our website. What s coming next A Century of London Taxis, published by Crowood Press in 2005, is considered to be the definitive work on the history of the London taxicab. Century is 13 years old and a lot of events, some of them quite controversial have happened to the London taxi in that time. I covered a lot of those events in London Taxis a Full History (see page 7), but now it s time to update Century with a new edition. Contents Forthcoming Titles 3-4 Current titles 5-6 Going out of Print 7-8 This, like the first edition it will be a hardback, but in colour throughout. There ought to be a subtitle title too - something like, And More, because where Century began in 1903, the new edition will go back to 1897 to pick up the story of the Bersey and take it to December , when the era of licensing new London cabs powered by internal combustion engines was brought to an end. 3

4 Four-wheel drive and ABS are commonplace today, but this wasn t always so. That changed when, in 1950 Harry Ferguson bankrolled racing drivers Fred Dixon and Tony Rolt to design a super-safe family car that would reduce the unacceptably high number of road deaths. Their efforts, frustrated and arduous at times would produce the Ferguson Formula, the most effective and safest system of full-time four-wheel drive and anti-skid braking for the auto industry in its day. Though the Ferguson Formula name is known worldwide, Forthcom TRACTION The Story of Ferguson Fo Bill Munro an it s a story that few people have known about in any detail. Using material sourced from past directors, and design engineers, significant surviving archive material and rare and often unpublished archive photographs, Traction for Sale tells the whole story, putting right all the misunderstandings and misconceptions, from its beginnings in 1939, through the formation of Harry Ferguson Research and its successor company, FF Developments, up to 1994 and the takeover of FFD by Ricardo Plc. The principle vehicles featured include: Research cars: The Crab; R2; R3E, R3G and R3F; R4; R5 Prototypes and private conversions: Ford Mustang; Ford Zephyr MkIV police car; Triumph Stag and 2.5PI Race cars: Ferguson-Climax F1; BRM P67; Lotus 56B and 63; Hepworth-Ferguson-Chevrolet "Sandblaster" Rally cars: Ford RS200; MG Metro 6R4; Peugeot 205 T16; Lancia Delta S4; Lancia Delta Integrale; Ford Escort Cosworth Turbo Indy cars: Novi-Ferguson; STP Paxton Turbocar; Lotus 56 and 64 Abandoned prototypes: Ford Capri; Fiat 128; Reliant Scimitar GTE; Opel Manta rally; Jaguar XJ220 and XJS Limited production vehicles: Bedford CF 4x4; Opel Senator and Monza Ferguson licensed production vehicles: Jensen FF; Schuler Super Ranger; Stonefield; AMC Eagle; Ford Sierra XR4x4; Scorpio 4x4, Sierra RS Cosworth 4x4; VW Golf and Transporter Syncro; BMW 325iX; Land Rover Freelander; GMC Safari/Chevrolet Astro; Lancia Delta HF 4x4 and Integrale Transmission contracts: Jaguar XJ220; McLaren F1; Jaguar XJR15 3

5 ming title FOR SALE ormula Four-wheel Drive nd Pat Turner Clockwise from top left: Major Tony Rolt with Ferguson research car R3E, 1956: MG Metro 6R4 Group B rally car, 1985: Triumph Stag, converted to 4WD by FF Developments, 1972: AMC Eagle Sportabout Station Wagon, 1980: Novi-Ferguson Indianapolis car, 1964 Hardback 350pp 276 x 219mm colour, fully illustrated ISBN UK USA $59.95 Publication date May

6 Current titles Checker, the All-American Taxi Ben Merkel and Joe Fay Nothing portrays the American taxicab like the classic Checker. The A8 to A11 range, made from 1956 until 1982, is the most famous model, and is the focus of this speciallycommissioned full colour book. Even though it has been out of service for many years, and out of production for even longer, it is the vehicle film and TV programme makers still want this vehicle to represent taxi transportation for their modern day characters. In this richly-illustrated book, Checker aficionados Ben Merkel and Joe Fay give us the lowdown on the historic models and many of its limousine and private car variants, in the USA and in other parts of the world. Checker - the All-American Taxi features: The background history of the company On-street pictures of Checker cabs in service across the USA and overseas Pictures of rare limousine, Aerobus, private and medical versions The Galva projects - new generation Checker models that were never put into production Fully informative captions... well illustrated throughout... a comprehensive and authoritative history of the company. Recommended. Michael Worthington-Williams, The Automobile magazine Publication: Current ISBN: Price Binding: Paperback Format: 246mm x 189mm Extent: 160 pages Illustrated: 250 b/w & colour Special offer price plus postage See our website for details 5

7 Taxi Jubilee Fifty Years of the Austin FX4 London Taxi Bill Munro Current titles For over fifty years, the FX4 London taxi was as familiar a sight in Britain s capital city as Buckingham Palace and the changing of the guard. The intention was to build it for just ten years, and replace it, but the rapidly growing cost of producing new motor vehicles prevented the makers from doing so. They were obliged to soldier on until 1997, when they were at last able to introduce a new model, the TX1. In the meantime, both Londoners and visitors to the capital came to love its familiar shape, its practicality and its timelessness and robust characteristics. This richly-illustrated book Features: The full story from development to replacement Some of the special versions ordered by the rich and famous Details of many versions sold abroad and of other bodies built on its chassis Colour pictures of preserved examples Toy and model FX4s Technical specifications of every major model Brilliant I sat down to browse through it and read it one go! Peter Simpson, former editor in Chief, Classic Car Buyer Publication: Current ISBN: Price 7.99 Binding: Paperback Format: 210mm x 148mm Extent: 72 pages Illustrated: c200 b/w & colour Special offer price 6.99 plus postage See our website for details 6

8 Bargain price - going out of print London Taxis in Camera Bill Munro London s taxis are recognized around the world. They are as much a part of the capital s transport as the red buses and the Underground, carrying millions of passengers every year, in complete safety. Introduced to the capital in the early years of the twentieth century as a motorised form of the equally famous Hansom cab, they have evolved over the years, but still retain the essential elements - the limousine partition, the distinctive look and the famous tight turning radius - that enable them to both perform the job well and be readily identifiable to the travelling public. Its special features include: Historical images from across the twentieth century, in both monochrome and colour, many previously unpublished Specially shot full colour images of preserved London taxis Fascinating snippets of information about the London taxi trade A glimpse into the future of the London taxi Publication: Going out of stock ISBN: Price Binding: Paperback Format: 246mm x 189mm Extent: 160 pages Illustrated: 250 b/w & colour Special offer price 9.99 plus postage See our website for details 7

9 Bargain price - going out of print London Taxis - a Full History Bill Munro London s taxis are world-famous and their story is a long and fascinating one, with constant challenges being presented to makers, owners and dealers alike by licensing authorities and regional, national and European legislators. London Taxis - a Full History is a fully detailed study, aimed at the automobile historian as much as the general reader. It traces the story of the London taxi from 1897, when the capital s first horseless cab, the Bersey appeared, right up to the present day, including the latest LTC, Nissan and Metrocab prototypes. With as much as information as possible gathered directly from the people who designed, built and operated British cabs, and from national and regional archives, this book is the definitive volume on the subject. And it s a great read, too! This, the second edition features: The history of every know model licensed and the prototypes that never made it into production Freshly discovered information about once-famous names in the industry Over 150 photographs, some of which had not been published before Production figures for most prominent makes and models Outline technical specifications for almost all models Publication: Going out of stock ISBN: Price Binding: Paperback Format: 246mm x 189mm Extent: 245 pages Illustrated: 250 b/w Special offer price plus postage See our website for details 8

10 Earlswood Press