Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

[Scott S.]

Is there such a thing as an Assembly Manual that is PRINTED (i.e., type-written) as opposed to the regular engineer-drawing hand-written style?

I bought a 1967 AIM on CD, but it's like the printed version of the AIM. Due to the hand-written style of print, the "Search" feature is practically useless, because the computer cannot recognize most of the hand-written numbers and words.

[Jack H.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

The AIM books were originally intended for GM-internal communication with limited distribution. As such, they're based on drawings from the drafting department and what you see is what you get.

Some scanning systems are more intelligent than others when it comes to recognizing various fonts (including human hand writing), but to my knowledge NONE are perfect in this aspect.

Perhaps the best intelligent scanning system I've seen is the Diebold system used by Chase Bank that allows direct deposit of checks without stuffing them into an envelope and manually keying in their amounts.

Who knows, maybe someday there'll be a more intelligent scanning project undertaken by someone who wants to produce .PDF searchable AIM books on disk...

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Hi Jack,

There are many part numbers that I can't even read clearly with my own eyes on the computer screen (i.e., is that a "3" or an "8" or a "9"?) in the AIM that I'm using. It's no wonder the optical character recognition program can't read them.

Are the early printings of the AIM more legible than than later re-printings, as seems to be the case with other publications like the Chassis Service Manual?

[Jack H.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Yes, and there are multiple sources for AIM books, some of which are better copies of the original than others. Compare the books whose pages bear the 'Chevrolet Drafting Graphic' logos to those that don't (say Mid-America).

Plus, I've seen a few early AIM books from Michaellis that used double wide, fold-out, sheets vs. the majority of AIM books that have been optically reduced to fit an A-size page. These were MUCH clearer in their detail.

BUT, despite a given AIM book's individual source, we're still talking about copies of copies. So, there's no free lunch UNLESS someone wants to go negotiate a reproduction license with GM for the source!

According to Art Armstrong, the FULL end of year AIM book drawings are still in the GM drawing system replete with ALL of the running changes that were made that model year...

I suspect nobody has bellied up to the bar to negotiate a reproduction license to access original source documents because too many 'pirate' copies of the AIM books (obtained here/there; from this/that point in time for a specific model year) have 'leaked' into public domain.

[John H.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Is there such a thing as an Assembly Manual that is PRINTED (i.e., type-written) as opposed to the regular engineer-drawing hand-written style?

Scott -

Nope. The Assembly Manual sheets were manually-drawn by technical illustrators and graphic line artists in the 60's; that's the way it is.

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Yes, and there are multiple sources for AIM books, some of which are better copies of the original than others. Compare the books whose pages bear the 'Chevrolet Drafting Graphic' logos to those that don't (say Mid-America).

The CD version I have was sold by Willcox Chevrolet, and it has the "Drafting Graphic Chevrolet" logo at the top of every page. Is this the more legible version, or is the Mid-America version (without the "Drafting Graphic" logo) generally considered more legible?

Plus, I've seen a few early AIM books from Michaellis that used double wide, fold-out, sheets vs. the majority of AIM books that have been optically reduced to fit an A-size page. These were MUCH clearer in their detail.

I called Pro-Team, they knew what I was talking about, but I'm 30 years too late. If anyone has one of these old Terry Michaelis Assembly Manuals for a '67 that they no longer need, I'm looking for one

BUT, despite a given AIM book's individual source, we're still talking about copies of copies. So, there's no free lunch UNLESS someone wants to go negotiate a reproduction license with GM for the source!

If someone had done that, I would buy it. I already bought the Willcox Cd, because I thought it would be searchable (it is searchable, but only marginally). Negotiating a license is well beyond my knowledge (or connections) level. I'm just a guy trying to figure out how to identify correct parts and put a 43 year old car together.

According to Art Armstrong, the FULL end of year AIM book drawings are still in the GM drawing system replete with ALL of the running changes that were made that model year...

That's exactly what we need. Transcribed and deciphered into searchable print-text.

I suspect nobody has bellied up to the bar to negotiate a reproduction license to access original source documents because too many 'pirate' copies of the AIM books (obtained here/there; from this/that point in time for a specific model year) have 'leaked' into public domain.

Not having a good, legible, readable AIM is like not having the right tool for a specific job. I need all the help I can get!

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Scott -

Nope. The Assembly Manual sheets were manually-drawn by technical illustrators and graphic line artists in the 60's; that's the way it is.

Thanks John, it sounds like I should look for the earliest printing I can find. I'm sure the early editions are clearer, and that would help me to make out some of the smaller handwritten numbers that have become difficult to read after multiple generations of copies made from copies.

[Donald O.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Is there such a thing as an Assembly Manual that is PRINTED (i.e., type-written) as opposed to the regular engineer-drawing hand-written style?

I bought a 1967 AIM on CD, but it's like the printed version of the AIM. Due to the hand-written style of print, the "Search" feature is practically useless, because the computer cannot recognize most of the hand-written numbers and words.

There are versions of the AIMs converted into a Microsoft Access database, very easy to use with full search capabilities. Search by part name or part number and the answer tell where in the AIM book it is listed, every location. In fact this person has compiled all of the C2 AIMs into single database. He sells these databases very cheaply, usually for a cup of joe or less, like a promise to never re-sell or distribute it.

Now if I could only remember his name.......

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Now if I could only remember his name.......

Sounds like an old David Crosby album...

[Terry M.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Humphrey (17100)
According to Art Armstrong, the FULL end of year AIM book drawings are still in the GM drawing system replete with ALL of the running changes that were made that model year...

That's exactly what we need. Transcribed and deciphered into searchable print-text.

No it is not. I have seen some of the microfilm copies and the ones I saw are harder to read than those that are copies of copies. If you think I am fibbing go to your local library and look at some of their microfilmed newspapers. Microfilm is better than nothing, but just barely.

Oh and you have no idea how many pages those full copies become. The 1968 might be a bad example, but it is about seven inches thick.

[Joe L.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Is there such a thing as an Assembly Manual that is PRINTED (i.e., type-written) as opposed to the regular engineer-drawing hand-written style?

I bought a 1967 AIM on CD, but it's like the printed version of the AIM. Due to the hand-written style of print, the "Search" feature is practically useless, because the computer cannot recognize most of the hand-written numbers and words.

Scott------


Solution: get rid of the 1967 and get a 1968 or newer Corvette. The AIM's for 1968 and later Corvettes have TYPED part numbers.

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Scott------


Solution: get rid of the 1967 and get a 1968 or newer Corvette. The AIM's for 1968 and later Corvettes have TYPED part numbers.

Hi Joe,

I had a 1969 Corvette (my first) for eleven years. I bought it in 1996, and I really miss it. I didn't know about this place (or any other Corvette forums) back then

The one I'm working on now was my Dad's. My sister and I used to ride around in the back storage area when we were little. I would really like to get another '69 some day, but the '67 is a keeper

[Scott S.]

Re: Is there a 1967 Assembly Manual (AIM) that is PRINTED instead of handwritten?

Plus, I've seen a few early AIM books from Michaellis that used double wide, fold-out, sheets vs. the majority of AIM books that have been optically reduced to fit an A-size page. These were MUCH clearer in their detail.

It took a few days, but I tracked down what I hoped was the version you described. Unfortunately, it doesn't have any large fold-out pages, so there must have been more than one version produced by T. Michaelis. There's no date on it, but the Corvette in the logo over the "t-Michaelis Superior Quality Products" looks like a 1982 model. The pages do have the "Chevrolet Drafting Graphic" logo.

If anyone has one of the T. Michaelis AIMs with the fold-out pages and could email some pictures to me, so I know what to look for, that would be appreciated