Noteworthy
Literature
Listed on this page are books of interest to enthusiasts and where to
purchase them.
New Power Wagon Photo History
Monty Montgomery, a Dodge Truck expert and frequent visitor to the `61-`71 Dodge Truck Site, has
just completed his first all Dodge Truck Book titled Dodge Power Wagon Photo History.
The book highlights the entire run of Power Wagons produced from 1940 thru 1980 and includes
complete technical information, mechanical specifications plus production figures! The 120 page
book even has a section that covers the post-Power Wagon years as well as information on the
Ramcharger and Trailduster SUV's. The book is not available until April, 2000 but you can
pre-order it at Amazon.com right now.
Books by Don Bunn
Consider purchasing one of Don Bunn's books if you are highly interested
in Dodge Trucks. They are great for answering any "historical fact"
questions that enthusiasts like us wonder about. In particular, Dodge
Trucks includes informative captions describing all kinds of unique
photos from real world trucks, advertisements and promotional photos.
First, The Illustrated Dodge Pickup Buyers Guide details all years
of Dodge Trucks with general historical information. One of the neatest
features of this book is how it rates the collectibility of rare or
"special" trucks that Dodge has manufactured with a five-star rating
system.
Dodge Pickups, History and Restorations 1918-1971 is a complete
history of the trucks from their introduction in 1918 and on to the
Sweptline Era, which ended in 1971. A complete restoration section is
included as well, covering numerous resto topics common to all Dodge
Trucks.
Don's third book, Dodge Pickup Color History is a well illustrated
text including a great deal of OEM truck photos and information. Like
Don's other books, each year is described by the significant changes that
were made to the trucks. This book also depicts a few ultra rare
original trucks that are in unrestored condition.
Dodge Trucks; the title says it all for this book. Hundreds of B/W
photos, complete with captions in a year-by-year format. Also, each year
has a brief historical desription with facts relavant to the Dodge Truck
division of Chrysler.
Don Bunn's newest books are Dodge Pickups 1939-1978 Photo Album and
Dodge Power Wagons 1940-1980. Both are a part of the Icongrafix Photo Album
Series. Included in Dodge Pickups are 24 photos of Sweptline Era Trucks and
many more of trucks made before and after the Sweptline Era. Many of the photos in this
book have not been published until now. Dodge Pickups 1939-1978 Photo Album is a
recommended purchase for any enthusiast of `39-`78 Dodge Trucks. As for Dodge
Power Wagons, this book has a total of 119 photos with 25 of them being pics of
Sweptline Era trucks. All told, this book focuses on a number of W-300 and W-500 fire
trucks while focusing primarily on WM-300 Power Wagons throughout the book. Much
like Dodge Pickups 1939-1978 Photo Album, this is a highly recommended
purchase. Again, many of these Power Wagon photos were previously unpublished prior
to the release of this book.
The titles above may all be purchased through Amazon.com or
via a call to Classic Motorbooks
at 1-800-826-6600.
General Truck Books
Krause Publications sells these two books,
the first being The Standard Catalog of American Light-Duty Trucks,
Second Edition. This covers all makes and models from 1896-1986 and highlights
all those "off the beaten path" makes of trucks. The Dodge and Plymouth Truck
sections encompass 148 pages of the 800 page book. An updated price guide
exists in the back of the book, just in case anyone wants to know what their
truck is worth. ID data is also included for every Dodge Truck manufactured
from 1914-'86. This book is a must have for any Classic Pickup enthusiast
or restorer.
The second book is titled The Standard Catalog of 4x4's. It
handles the Power Wagon vehicles and their successors for the most part,
with in-depth information on all American 4x4 vehicles made from
1945-1993. ID data for all trucks (including pre-'61 models), a price
guide, and individual sections for all the Chrysler makes are the major
points of interest in this book.
Krause Publications Online
These and many other "Standard Catalogs" for American automobiles are sold
by Krause Publications. For more info and
a free catalog, contact them at 1-800-258-0929 or check out their website.
VIN Decoding info for '61-'80 Dodge
Trucks
Image from Chrysler Corporation, Dodge Light Truck
Code Book.
The best way to go about decoding your truck's VIN number is to purchase
the book, Chrysler Corporation, Dodge Light Truck Code Book
1961-1980 written by Galen V.
Govier. This is the most concise guide available expressly for
decoding Vehicle Identification Numbers on Dodge Trucks and A-100 Compacts.
For more info, contact:
Also, the Standard Catalogs for trucks available from Krause Publications (shown above) offer some
insight into VIN data. Unfortunately, they don't go into the depth that
Galen Govier's books do but are certainly worthwhile as a year by year
reference for the trucks. If you own a pre-'61 Dodge Truck, you may
be interested in these books, they offer more VIN information for the
earlier trucks than any other source.
Engine Books
Officially published and offered by Mopar Performance, Mopar Engines
is an enthusiast's compendium of knowledge on Chrysler V-8 and Six-cylinder
engines. It includes factory proven speed secrets and racing modifications
that are useful for any Mopar owner looking for that extra HP out of their
powerplant. Mopar Engines is available through your nearest Mopar
Performance parts distributor or from Summit
Racing Equipment.
This first book, titled
Musclecar & Hi-Po Engines: Chrysler 273-318-340-360, is a
compilation of past Hot Rod Magazine articles. Dated as early as '63, these
articles are exact reprints of the originals and are most certainly useful
in building up the small block Chrysler engine. Every topic is covered,
from history and specifications to 450hp buildups and speed secrets.
Or, how about an engine swap? Numerous questions have been posed in relation to
this subject by site visitors, and this second book Chrysler Engine
Swapping Tips and Techniques can help to answer them. Although not
specifically highlighting any '61-'71 Dodge Truck swaps, it does overview
the required modifications for numerous other vehicles. Most of the
articles involve the shoehorning of early Hemi's, but there are also a few
small and big blocks swaps as well.
Specialty vehicles deserve awesome powerplants, and the place to read
about these high horsepower tips is How To Build Dodge/Plymouth
Performance. This masterpiece covers LA series and B/RB engines
while describing the ways to squeeze max power from every cubic inch. Head
prep, induction, exhaust systems are covered extensively, while a list of
part sources and old Chrysler Part numbers helps you find what you need to
do the job.
These books are definitely recommended for an engine rebuild if you
plan to do the work yourself. Even if you are going to have the work done by a
pro, it wouldn't hurt to have one or all to get an idea of what is involved.
The first is titled How to Rebuild Small Block Mopar Engines.
Written by Don Taylor and Larry Hofer, this book is by far the best
around. The authors provide a step by step analysis and breakdown of the
rebuilding process. Since it is specifically written for small block
Mopar motors, it covers those special tricks not mentioned by those
plain-jane rebuild books. Over 550 black and white photos make it easier
to visualize and compare the parts involved.
Second, here is The Haynes Chrysler Engine Overhaul Manual,
written by Mike Forsythe and John H. Haynes. This book covers the popular
LA series small block engines, B/RB big block engines and the 3.9L V-6
engine rebuilds. Since this book describes many different powerplants, it
can never go into as much detail as those specifically written for one
size or type, but it does cover all the processes as well as the tools
needed and performance modifications.
Third is How to Hot Rod Small Block Mopar Engines. Larry Shepard
went into incredible detail in this book, covering all of the LA series
Blocks as well as the special racing X blocks. All kinds of performance
building tricks and tips are found in this manual, including part numbers,
charts, and performance packages which match the buildup to the
purpose.
All of the books listed above, except those published by Krause Publications,
are available through Classic Motorbooks.
Call them at 1-800-826-6600 for a free catalog or go to the Classic Motorbooks Website.
Be sure to check Amazon.com for all your
Dodge Truck or Mopar book needs. A simple search on the phrase, "Dodge
Trucks" will bring up a number of useful books for the interested
enthusiast. They also offer great prices, excellent service and many of
the books listed on this page. [HINT: Amazon.com is usually the cheapest of all
sources for all of these books.]
Other Useful Books
Looking for a guide that lists multiple vendors for Mopar parts? Check out the
Vintage Parts 411 Mopar Parts Locating
Guide. You will find parts sources for all your Mopars in this book, and truck sources
are included as well. There are mixed reviews about this book in the Mopar community,
but overall it is probably a worthwhile investment. More information:
Vintage Parts 411
4909 Ruffner St.
San Diego, CA 92111
Phone: 1-800-MOTORHEAD (668-6743)
E-mail: cars@vintageparts.com
How to Build Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth Hot Rods is not the obvious
choice for the '61-'71 Dodge Truck enthusiast, however, it can be useful
depending on the subject. Amongst all the Custom Ideas, the ID guide and
numerous other topics, there are some interesting suspension articles. The
Ackerman Principle, subframing a 1953 Dodge Truck, axles, brakes, Mustang
II IFS and alignment tricks are all included. These are beneficial in that
1. You can never have too much information, and 2. Pre-'71 Dodge Trucks
need all the help they can get in the suspension department. Unfortunately,
this book is no longer in print.
Service Manuals
Although the best way to get information for your Sweptline Era Dodge Truck
(or any for that matter) is a Genuine Mopar Service Manual, there are
certainly some alternatives.
If you can't get ahold of a factory
manual, a Chilton's manual is nothing to be ashamed of. Three are shown
above; The first is titled Chrysler Dodge/Plymouth Full Size Trucks
1967-88 Repair Manual. It covers U.S and Canadian 2wd and 4wd half-ton
thru one-ton trucks, Ramchargers and Traildusters. Each section is filled
with all kinds of quick repair tips, useful diagrams and other features
not found in a OEM manual. One can never have enough information, and this
manual is an excellent resource for nearly all repair chores and related
fixes. Chiltons Part Number 8662.
The second book is essentially the same as the first listed above, only it is
slightly smaller in size. The same data is in both books, but the book above is
a more recent edition (1995 vs. 1989). Chiltons P/N 7459.
Finally, the third book is titled Chilton's Truck Repair Manual
1961-1971. It covers all American trucks; the Dodge Truck section covers 73
pages. Plus, extended sections in the latter portion of the book evaluate
General Repair along with a large section on Tranny repair. Chiltons P/N
6198.
Mopar Performance Catalog
One fine piece of literature, and certainly drool fuel, is the yearly catalog
produced by Mopar Performance. The catalog is loaded with tons of things all
Mopar vehicles should have, and the engine parts available in this catalog are
mind boggling! Contact your nearest Mopar dealer for the latest version (1997
shown).
Although this page may seem like a huge advertisement for the publishers and
authors involved, in reality these reviews are supplied as suggestions for
interested enthusiasts. All books have been purchased at full price by the
author of this site, and that fact is only further testament to the intended
nature of pages like this.
Unless otherwise noted, all images on this page are from
the books or publishers above.
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