Edward Dean Butler has owned some amazing cars. An ex-Louis Chiron Bugatti Type 51, ERA RIA, an ex-factory Maserati 8CTF, one of three Allard J2s that raced at Le Mans in 1953, and the MG TD he has owned since he was 16. Next to the garages that house his cars is an automotive library and collection of magazines that is one of the largest in the world. In it is a complete set of C&SC, Autocar, Motor, Car & Driver, Hot Rod, and hundreds more.
Butler has got the collecting bug bad. Apart from the cars and his world-class motoring library, Butler has a collection of more than 2000 slide rules. Surely this must be the largest in the world? "I'm not sure," he replies. "The head of chip research at Intel has a huge collection." "The slide rule was invented in Britain in the 1700s for use by tax collectors," explains Butler.
"The calculation to check the amount of beer in a barrel was very complicated, especially because the barrels differed in size and the liquids varied. There was no such thing as an imperial gallon and each product had its own measurement."
Denne historien er fra August 2022-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra August 2022-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Mick WALSH
'Had someone said that this worn-looking titan would win the most famous old-car event, we would have laughed'
ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF
Rewriting the rulebook on what an SUV can do, and how it can make you feel
FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE
Citroën's DS-replacing CX was at a cutting edge so sharp it still looks fresh today, and it had the drive to match - as five superb survivors reveal
"It's a car for posing in really"
Broadcaster Michael Buerk reflects on more than three decades with his beloved Jaguar E-type S1 3.8 fixed-head coupé
HONDAS DECK THE HALL
The Japanese firm's Los Angeles collection is now on public display for the first time in two decades
ABSOLUTELY buzzing
Honda's Si Civics brought agile, cheap fun to motorists long before the Type R name got anywhere near a hatchback
THE FEMININE TOUCH
In 1955, General Motors styling guru Harley Earl brought 11 talented women into the male-dominated world of automotive design. What was their lasting impact?
Out on a limb
Panther's innovative Solo 2 was something completely different, both for its maker and the sports car market
Restyles with substance
Panther Westwinds blended a passion for pre-war designs with modern-era mechanical usability and remarkably fine coachbuilding
Dead ringers
The Maserati Kyalami and De Tomaso Longchamp share much, having emerged from the same stable, but are poles apart at heart