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Comment by carapace | Hacker News Reader

Not quite what you're talking about but the best book on car mechanics I ever read... It was red, and textbook-sized, hardcover. Lots of drawings.

It literally started with an explosion in a can, and then progressively enhanced that idea step-by-step: add a lid to the can to capture the energy, add a lever to keep the can lid from flying away, and then attach the lever to a wheel so that it returns the lid to the top of the can for another explosion, add walls to guide the lid, ta-da! Piston.

It goes on like that, adding each piece of the puzzle in a logical way, until you have a mental model of an internal combustion engine. You definitely feel like you could build one from scratch (if you had the metallurgy skill.)

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Boy if you could find the name of that book I'd really appreciate it

I would second this.

you might be interested in howacarworks.com. I stumbled across these videos on youtube earlier this year when I was researching the topic. I was unwilling to pay because it was more for my own curiosity than an actual need to learn but it seemed pretty thorough.

Thanks for the link!

Man, that site has come a LONG way in the past couple of years. I haven't seen it since probably 2015. Back then, the diagrams were super useful, and the content easily understandable. Now it looks like a Mechanics University!

There is a great WW2-era training film from the US military on how rifles work.

Don't want to link it as I am at work, but it's on YouTube.

It follows the same philosophy--start with a tube. Add a bolt. Add a trigger. Add a magazine. Etc.

Yeah, I remember watching those. Here are the links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcVeslwTvAw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJnhr08aIJs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJGu8prreZM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7Tx8OO3JGU

This is a transferable pedagogy. Want to learn a complex system? Start at the sources of the system graph and make your way to the sinks.

I would love to know the name of this book, sounds perfect for learning about combustion engines.

I'm hoping someone else remembers it and furnishes the title.

I was a kid when I read it, and the book was already old, so publication date circa 1970-80. Best I can do. I trawled through book cover images but no love.

- - - -

edit to add: It's probably "Auto Mechanics Fundamentals" by Stockel. I'm still looking for pictures of the insides of the book, but going by what I can see here, it's very likely:

https://archive.org/details/automechanicsfun00stoc/page/n5

The typography matches my memory, and the description in the introduction sounds spot on, eh? Cheers!

Is this it? Looks to be around the right time frame, and the reviews mention exploded view diagrams https://www.amazon.com/Auto-Mechanics-Fundamentals-Construct...

Internal Combustion Engines by Ganeson

How Cars Work by Tom Newton OR Auto Mechanics Fundamentals by Martin T. Stockel

Maybe?

I just previewed a few pages from "How Cars Work", and it listed this 'money saving tip' that I found pretty funny: "Don't ... make eye contact with police officers while driving"

Just going by description and the "red book" it seems like its Auto Mechanics Fundamentals:

>>> "It is the aim of Auto Mechanics Fundamentals to provide a thorough understanding of the design, construction and operation of automotive units. Each unit is approached by starting with basic theory, then parts are added until the unit is complete. By following this procedure, the function of each unit is explained, and its relationship to the complete car is made clear. Hundreds of illustrations were drawn especially for this text. Important areas are featured in these drawings, and many are exaggerated to place emphasis on parts being discussed. Unfamiliar words are defined immediately following the words. In addition, the Dictionary of Terms in the back of the book defines more than 1,100 terms..."

https://www.amazon.com/Mechanics-Fundamentals-Construction-O...

(This one is blue but there is another version in red)

Nice! My parents have this book, and I read some of it as a teen!

I bought a copy of "Auto Mechanics Fundamentals" based on this thread and I think it is definitely the book you're remembering. The exploding can image you describe is on page 9 and the first chapter builds up an engine from first principles like you've talked about. Thank you for recommending this, it's a great resource!

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