The 1980/90s 'HMSO Series' on MVs

Discussion in 'Books, Films, TV, Radio' started by von Poop, Sep 23, 2018.

  1. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    I have a copy of the Cromwell book, but... it's a rather specific sort of book, isn't it? If you want to know what the instructions were to operate a Cromwell, great. If you want to know about history there's not much.
     
  2. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    And yet it's one of the few tank books that if I leave lying around genuinely catches the interest of non-tankophiles.
     
    Chris C likes this.
  3. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    So 'Breakdown' & 'British Military Transport' arrived quite promptly (along with some Olyslagers I maybe could have lived without. :unsure: )
    Even though Breakdown cost twice as much, the Fletcher wins for sheer density & quality of information. Now that I have it in my hands I realise I've seen before, but hadn't associated with the HMSO series as it's hardback, and some republican functionary printed it under 'TSO'. Ghastly.

    'Breakdown' a quite strange book.
    Mostly all about the slightly pervy satisfaction of slipping in the missing HMSO paperback :rolleyes:, but chapter one being a single page is raising an eyebrow.
    Compiled from articles, apparently, so odd form forgivable.

    Now to wonder at that data book one, but mostly - softback HMSO, my precious etc.
    I'm not proud of it, but I do seem to be wired that way.

    Gollum_Render.png
     
    Chris C likes this.
  4. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

  5. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

  6. ploughman

    ploughman Junior Member

    Is there any similar book on Royal Engineer Equipment and Plant machinery?
     
  7. idler

    idler GeneralList

    Well, bugger me! It's only taken Bovvy forty years to realise they could make some money out of their back catalogue.

    They're launching a crowdfunder to reprint GTS and UT for the reasonable price of £29 for the pair. I suppose it generates some excitement but if they're worried about risk, why not go POD?

    And why not expand them - say with additional photos and plans - or do them as a hardback so we all feel the need to buy them again?

    British Armour in the Second World War Crowdfunder

    It's another dent in my pension, though...
     
    Last edited: Apr 19, 2021
  8. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    FMOB.
    Anyone might think they've listened to us droning on, for years.

    Hohum, so I now have to order editions of multiple books I already have, in order to find what a '21st Century Makeover' means. Right?

    Click.
    (While glancing resignedly at the other HMSOs... Mechanised force should be in the series, as I see it as a 3 volume set. And Landships' images look like they were printed with a potato.)
     
  9. idler

    idler GeneralList

    Perhaps they're not that daft and the expanded, combined hardback will be announced just as your 'facsimile' editions hit the doormat.
     
  10. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Almost certainly!

    £32.20 with postage. ;)

    That was weird.
    On the above link, neither Chrome nor Firefox would show the 'add to basket' for more than a second.
    Had to use Edge. (Spit.)
    Seems to go to a working page by navigating from the main site.
     
  11. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

  12. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Funny.
    I only started to wonder how it was going today.
    An email.
    Looks rather nice...

    Screenshot 2021-07-09 002723.jpg




    I do hope it means they'll keep them available in more standard editions.
    Couple of others I'd buy again with better production. 'War Cars' isn't exactly the strongest in the series, but I'd be tempted by a copy with clearer images.
    Still think Mechanised Force is needed for people new to the two 'classics'.
     
    JimHerriot and Chris C like this.
  13. idler

    idler GeneralList

  14. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

  15. idler

    idler GeneralList

    It's a bit sneaky not selling them as singles for those looking for the odd one.

    And it's left Moving the Guns out on a limb, unless it gets lumped with Breakdown and the softskin one.
     
    Chris C likes this.
  16. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    What is the Mechanised Force book about?

    I would probably break down and pay for an updated version of Moving The Guns... it's an obscure bit of history but the artillery experimened with an enormous number of vehicles in that period.
     
  17. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    I like the way they gave us that video of the first set just before announcing these.
    I feel seen.

    The finest period of British Armour. Interwar.
    Surely the term 'Mechanised Force' rings a bell? Central stuff in British Armoured development.

    Not sure I'll crack for the seemingly inevitable Moving the guns or Breakdown.
    Moving the guns is excellent, but not a core thing for me, and I find Breakdown a bit odd. Like a collection of newsletters.
     
  18. idler

    idler GeneralList

    Mechanised Force covers the Royal Tank Corps' technical and tactical/operational experiments of the interwar period. The bit where we invented Blitzkrieg for the Germans, then our visionaries were trampled by the Cavalry, allegedly...
     
    von Poop likes this.
  19. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Moving The Guns & British Military Transport reprinted next.

    MTG excellent, and BMT perhaps a lesser known but really rather useful primer.

    PRE-ORDER: British Military Transport & Moving the Guns

    Good on Bov for finally doing all these.
    Wonder how fast some of them will become silly prices again.
    Got them all at decent cost over the years, but Tank Scandal and Universal Tank took a while.

    Appreciate the scholarship may have moved on a bit, and Mr Knight etc. grasping the nerd depth more, but still think this series hard to beat as core publications on British gear.
     
    Chris C likes this.
  20. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    Moving the Guns is a very interesting look at what the RA were trying in the interwar period. The number of vehicles is bewildering.

    Are there actually newer books on the subject?
     

Share This Page