Repair and Maintenance
21 April 2000
SPECIAL KINDS OF QUESTIONS For Repair and Maintenance section Thank You, Scott Mahoney, Omaha Metropolitan Community College, September 1999 TIPS FOR VEHICLE REPAIR QUESTIONS It is very important to find out what kind of vehicle the patron has (car, motorcycle, truck, etc.), its make and model, and just what the patron wants to repair. The majority of automotive manuals are for REFERENCE USE ONLY in the libraries that own them. If you refer a vehicle repair question, you will receive photocopies of the requested information rather than the entire repair manual. The relevant sections for a particular model can be scattered widely throughout a repair manual, so specify just what information your patron needs to avoid unnecessary copying. The worksheet on the following page can assist you in getting the necessary information. WORKSHEET FOR VEHICLE REPAIR QUESTIONS TYPE OF VEHICLE (auto? truck? motorcycle? tractor? outboard motor?): THE VEHICLE (Include the year, manufacturer and model number. Serial numbers can be helpful for identification when the model number or year is not known): ENGINE (The engine model number, as opposed to the serial number; the type of engine, for example: V-8): HORSEPOWER (If the engine is a boat motor): CYLINDERS (The number of cylinders and size of the engine, for example: 6-243): TONNAGE (If the vehicle is a truck): STYLING (If the vehicle is a truck: pickup, van, light duty, heavy duty): TRANSMISSION (Manual or automatic, 3, 4, or 5 speed): ORIGINAL (Indicate if the item to be repaired is original equipment or not): REPAIR INFO WANTED (The exact repair information wanted. Be as specific as possible since the majority of automobile shop manuals for a make and year do not circulate, so photocopies will often be sent): CHECKLIST OF SELECTED SOURCES OF INFORMATION ABOUT AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR This checklist is a reminder of some of the available sources of information. You may want to record the call numbers of the resources that your library owns and use this list to help you keep track of where you have checked in looking for an answer to a question. Very few libraries will own all or most of these titles. However, information from them and other sources can be obtained through your backup reference service. INDEXES Magazine indexes such as Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature can be used to locate articles on automotive repair. Reader's Guide lists these articles under "Automobiles - Maintenance and Repair." The Auto Index. (Suffern, N.Y. : Multidex Computing Co. Quarterly. ISSN 01456776) is useful for locating consumer comparison and tune-up and maintenance articles. GENERAL REPAIR MANUALS Chilton's Auto Repair Manual. Radnor, Pa. : Chilton Book Co. Annual. ISSN 00693634. Each edition covers cars made in the U.S. during the previous seven years. Chilton's Import Car Manual. Radnor, Pa. : Chilton Book Co. Annual. ISSN 10442456. Each edition provides instructions on the repair of foreign-made cars manufactured during the previous seven years. Chilton's Truck and Van Repair Manual. Radnor, Pa. : Chilton Book Co. ISSN 07420315. Hemmings' Vintage Auto Almanac. Bennington, Vt.:Hemmings Motor News, 1982 ISSN 8755-2272. Directory of suppliers of parts and services for restoring vintage cars. Includes libraries, museums, clubs, and registries to contact for information. Mitchell Domestic Cars Service & Repair. San Diego, Calif. : Mitchell International. Annual. Used by many auto repair shops, these manuals provide detailed instructions on tune-up and repair of the chassis, engine, electrical system, and emission controls on all U.S.-made cars manufactured during a single year. Motor Auto Repair Manual. Troy, Mich. : Motor. Annual. Similar to Chilton's manuals. Motor's Imported Car Repair Manual. Troy, Mich. : Motor. Annual. Motor Light Truck & Van Repair Manual. Troy, Mich. : Motor. Annual. PUBLISHERS Many additional manuals are available, including those that deal with a specific repair problem, such as transmissions or air conditioning. These manuals can be obtained from the publishers listed below. Many of the publisher web sites include links to other potentially useful information such as product directories. Chilton Book Company 201 King of Prussia Rd. Radnor, PA 19089-0230 Internet: http://www.chiltonsonline.com Haynes Publications, Inc. 861 Lawrence Drive Newbury Park, CA 91320 (800) 442-9637 Internet: http://www.haynes.com ALSO 1299 Bridgestone Parkway LaVergne, TN 37086 (800) 242-4637 Intertec Publishing Corporation P.O. Box 12901 Overland Park, KS 66282-2901 (800) 262-1954 Internet: http://www.intertec.com Mitchell Repair Information Company P.O. Box 26260 San Diego, CA 92196-0260 (800) 648-8010 Internet: http://www.mitchellrepair.com Motor Information Systems 5600 Crooks Rd., Suite 200 Troy, MI 48098 (800) 426-6867 Internet: http://www.motor.com SCHEMATICS OR WIRING DIAGRAMS: Patrons often need "wiring diagrams" for the electrical components of vehicles. Not all general automotive repair manuals contain this information. Manuals published by Mitchell Repair Information Company are the most comprehensive sources of wiring diagrams. Schematics and wiring diagrams for repairing electrical or electronic equipment are available from a company called Howard W. Sams which has been publishing these since 1946. Howard W. Sams has series that cover televisions and radios, car radios, CD players, computers, VCRs and more. The index may be searched at the Howard W. Sams web site: http://www.hwsams.com/photofacts.html Paper copies of the index may also be downloaded at the web site. If you prefer to have the index mailed to you, a request form is available. You may also call (800) 428-7267. Use the Sams index with your patron to identify the "photofact" booklet number needed, then request the schematics through interlibrary loan. (Schematics may also be ordered from Howard W. Sams but this service is not free. Contact the company or check its website for prices and details.) If you are not able to identify the schematics needed in your Sams index, refer the request to your back-up reference center, but make sure that you include complete information about the equipment (e.g. television, stereo amplifier, etc.), its manufacturer, model number and exact or appropriate date of manufacture. Your reference center may be able to find the schematics listed in an older Sams index (once Sams stops publishing the schematics for a piece of equipment, they drop the listing from their current catalog - so it's a good idea to hang on to your older indexes). If the schematics cannot found in an older index, your reference center may contact the manufacturer for the schematics. Older (pre 1946) television and radio diagrams may also be found in a John F. Rider publication. John F. Rider manuals work on the same principle as the Sams Photofacts, although fewer libraries own these indexes and manuals. TIPS FOR HOW-TO-DO-IT QUESTIONS If you can't find the material in books, try magazine articles. The Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature is full of useful citations to articles on repairs and do-it-yourself projects. Look under "arts and crafts", "Christmas projects", or under specific crafts or projects, such as "woodworking." Other general magazine indexes may also be useful. Another excellent source is the Handicraft/Hobby Index, compiled by the Metropolitan Library Service Agency in Minnesota's Twin Cities. This is a subject listing on microfiche of do-it-yourself projects from 46 craft and hobby magazines. It indexes projects on needlecraft, home improvement, woodworking, crafts, repairs, alternative energy, autobody work, computers/electronics and more. Many "how-to-do-it" magazine publishers have web sites on the Internet. Many of these sites do not include the full-text of the magazines but may include other useful information and links. Gernsback Publications, for example, provides an online index to Popular Electronics at its web site: http://www.gernsback.com Additional Internet sites can be located by using Internet subject guides including: The Internet Public Library Arts & Crafts Reference http://www.ipl.org/ref/RR/static/ent1000.html The Internet Public Library Home & Garden Reference http://www.ipl.org/ref/RR/static/ent3200.html WORKSHEET FOR HOW-TO-DO-IT QUESTIONS PROJECT: What does the patron want to make or do? It helps to be as specific as possible. (Example: The patron wants to make a loom. There are many different kinds of looms. What kind is wanted?) PURPOSE: What is the use or purpose (Example: hi-fi speakers for a 1000 seat auditorium). What does the item do? CAPACITY OR SIZE (Example: a rocking horse for a child: a 2-ton trailer) SCALE: Is this for home use, or for a commercial application? MATERIALS to be used (Example: wood, plastic) LEVEL OF THE PATRON'S EXPERTISE IN THIS AREA (Example: beginning carpenter; experienced electrician). DIAGRAMS? Can the patron work form diagrams or pictures? KITS? Is the patron interested in information about kits or plans for sale? HOW-TO-DO-IT INFORMATION INDEXES Handicraft/Hobby Index [microfiche]. St. Paul, Minn. : Metropolitan Library Service Agency, 1984 - . Bimonthly, with each issue being cumulative for the year and the last yearly issue being cumulative from Jan. 1980. ISSN 1081-7883; 0730-6466. Continues MELSA Do It Index to Current Periodical Literature. "A current periodical index to doing, making, and building." Heim, Mary Ellen. Make It II: An Index to Projects and Materials, 1974-1987. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 0-818-2125-7. "Supplements Joyce Shield's original volume, Make it: an index to projects and materials (Scarecrow, 1975)." Index to Handicraft Books, 1974-1984. Pittsburgh, Pa. : University of Pittsburgh Press, 1986. ISBN 0-91086-889-1. 6th supplement to Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects. Compiled by Eleanor C. Lovell and Ruth M. Hall. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1936. ISBN 0-873-05057-6. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects, Suppl. 1. Compiled by Eleanor C. Lovell and Ruth M. Hall. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1943. ISBN 0-873-05070-3. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects, Suppl. 2. Compiled by Eleanor C. Lovell and Ruth M. Hall. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1950. ISBN 0-873-05079-7. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects, Suppl. 3. (Covers 1950-1961). Compiled by Harriet P. Turner and Amy Winslow. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1965. Out of print. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects, Suppl. 4. (Covers 1962-1967). Compiled by E. Winifred Alt. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1969. ISBN 0-873-05096-7. Index to Handicrafts, Modelmaking, and Workshop Projects, Fifth Supplement. (Covers 1968-1973). Compiled by Pearl Turner. Westwood, Mass.: The Faxon Company, 1975. ISBN 0-873-05102-5. Followed by Index to Handicraft Books, 1974-1984. Index to How To Do It Information. Wooster, Ohio: Norman Lathrop Enterprises, 1963- . Annual. ISSN 0073-5930. (Individual annual volumes may also be purchased separately.) "A subject guide to how-to articles in craft, hobby, how-to, and special interest magazines." Katz, William A. and Linda S. Katz. How To : 1400 Best Books on Doing Almost Everything. New York : R.R. Bowker, 1984. ISBN 0-8352-1927-5. Out of print. MELSA Do It Index to Current Periodical Literature [microfiche]. St. Paul, Minn. : Metropolitan Library Service Agency, 1980-1984. ISSN 0-730-6455. Continued by Handicraft/Hobby Index. The Mother Earth News Index, Nos. 1-60. Hendersonville, N.C. : The Mother Earth News, 1979. The Mother Earth News Index, Nos. 61-90. Hendersonville, N.C. : Mother Earth News, Inc., 1985. Science Fair Project Index, 1960-1972. Edited by Janet T. Stoffer. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1975. ISBN 0-8108-0783-1. Out of print. Science Fair Project Index, 1973-1980. Edited by the Science and Technology Division, Akron-Summit County [Ohio] Public Library. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1983. ISBN 0-8108-1605-9. Science Fair Project Index, 1981-1984. Edited by Deborah Bishop and Deborah Crowe. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1986. ISBN 0-8108-1892-2. Science Fair Project Index, 1985-1989. Edited by Cynthia Bishop, Katherine Ertle, and Karen Zeleznik. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1992. ISBN 0-8108-2555-4. Science Fair Project Index. Prepared by the Science and Technology Division of the Akron-Summit County [Ohio] Public Library, 1990- . Available on the Internet at: http://ascpl.lib.oh.us/scifair/ Shields, Joyce F. Make It: An Index to Projects And Materials. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1975. ISBN 0-8108-0772-6. Out of print. FORMULAS The Chemical Formulary. Brooklyn, N.Y.: Chemical Publishing Company, 1933 - Irregular. "Collection of commercial formulas for making thousands of products in many fields." Dick, William B., ed. Dick's Encyclopedia of Practical Receipts and Processes: Containing Over 6400 Receipts Embracing Thorough Information, in Plain Language, Applicable to Almost Every Possible Industrial and Domestic Requirement: or, How They Did It In The 1870's. 1872. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1975. ISBN 0-308-10157-X. Out of print. Goldschmiedt, Henry. Practical Formulas for Hobby or Profit. Brooklyn, N.Y.: Chemical Publishing Company, 1973. ISBN 0-8206-0347-3. Hiscox, Gardner, ed. Henley's Twentieth Century Book of Formulas, Processes and Trade Secrets; A Valuable Reference Book for the Home, Factory, Office, Laboratory and the Workshop. New rev. and enl. ed. by T. O'Connor Sloane. Cornwells Heights, Pa. : Publishers Agency, 1981. 0-8778-1028-1. Out of print. Nigh, Edward. The Formula Book 3. Kansas City : Andrews and McMeel, 1978. ISBN 0-6868-5635-X. Out of print. Stark, Norman. The Formula Book. Kansas City : Sheed and Ward, 1975. ISBN 0-8362-0629-0. Out of print. Stark, Norman. The Formula Book 2. Kansas City : Andrews and McMeel, 1976. ISBN 0-8362-0675-4. Out of print. GENERAL TITLES Better Homes and Gardens New Complete Guide to Home Repair and Improvement. Des Moines, Iowa: Meredith, 1997. 0-696-20469-X. DeChristoforo, R.J. Popular Science Complete Book of Power Tools. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal, 1998. 1-57912-026-1. The Family Creative Workshop. 24 vols. New York: Plenary Publications International, 1974-76. ISBN 0-88459-021-6. How To Do Just About Anything. Pleasantville, N.Y. : Reader's Digest, 1997. ISBN 0-89577-936-6. "A money-saving A-to-Z guide to over 1,200 skills and household solutions." Nash, George (text) and Ronald Dahlquist (illus.). Do-It-Yourself Housebuilding: The Complete Handbook. New York: Sterling, 1995. 0-8069-0424-0. Popular Mechanics Do-It-Yourself Encyclopedia : The Complete Illustrated Home Reference Guide From The World's Most Authoritative Source For Today's How-To-Do-It Information. 27 vols. New York: Hearst Direct Books, 1986. ISBN 0-87851-154-7 (vol. 1). Reader's Digest Book of Skills and Tools. Pleasantville, N.Y. : Reader's Digest, 1993. ISBN 0-89577-469-3. Reader's Digest New Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual. Pleasantville, N.Y. : Reader's Digest, 1991. ISBN 0-89577-378-3. Reader's Digest New Fix-It-Yourself Manual. Pleasantville, N.Y.: Reader's Digest, 1996. ISBN 0-89577-871-8. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- STAR Reference Manual Table of Contents ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- This page maintained by: Julie Pinnell jpinnell@neon.nlc.state.ne.us
