Bruce Anderson's, Engine Overhaul and Tune up class Options

[goobu]

I was hoping to get some input on these classes. A buddy and I are considering flying out and taking these two classes:

911 Engine Overhaul Classes - $600
911 Tune-up Classes - $150

http://www.911handbook.com/classes_engine.html

Has anyone taken these classes? Is it worth the time and money? I am considering dropping a 2.7 or 3.2 into my 914 either this winter or next and I would like to be able to do a lot of the work myself, but I have little to no experience with a project of this magnitude.

Any insight would be great.

Thanks!!

[ArtechnikA]

What should I know before I decide to take this class?
(For instance, I've never built a motor before..)

if you don't plan to own or work on an aircooled Porsche flat-6, it's probably an expensive extravagence, although just on entertainment and general information value alone it's probably worth the money if the history of the engine is interesting to you (and BTW - Jerry and Bruce did a lot of work with 914's in the early days - and built a lot of T-IV's including several of Rick Mears' Pike's Peak cars...).

if you plan to rebuild an engine, or speak intelligently with someone who will be doing one at your direction, it's great. if you're a 'checkbook mechanic' type who doesn't want to know anything about internals, you may not get much from the class.

i've been interested in flat-6 things for a long time, so it's a little hard to have a feeling for what prerequisites make sense. having read Frere's "911 Story" might not be a bad idea, having read through Anderson's book could be good, and reading Pelican Wayne's 'rebuild and modify' book is probably good too.

when i took the class, i -thought- i was weeks away from starting the buildup of a 2,7RS-spec engine; i'd bought the core longblock and was ready to begin. (but a couple of life-changing experiences occured and my plans changed...) i think i could do it now, although a refresher would probably be a good idea (much harder now that i'm a continent away ...)

although i'd done a lot of reading and research on 911 engines, i went with an open mind and leaarned that some of the things i thought i knew were wrong - or at least - were no longer true - such is the advancement of technology and technique. at that time, i never imagined i'd be dealing with a MFI engine - and now i'm driving a 911E. ya just never know.

having the factory workshop manuals is good, but some of those have been vastly superceded by 30 years of materials, tools, and techniques development. Wayne's book is actually pretty good.

it -is- a complicated engine, but it is not rocket science. mostly, it's a matter of attention to detail and getting things done in the right sequence, with the right materials.

what should you know -- well - you should know what you expect to get out of the class (i am not being facetious). there are SO many piston / cylinder / rod / head / port / bore / stroke / camshaft / compression / induction / exhaust (etc) combinations and you will not leave the class knowing everything Bruce and Jerry have learned about optimising a setup. but if you have a goal - even a general one - it will help you stay focussed. i went with a list of 30 specific questions. by Friday afternoon all but 4 or 5 had been answered in the course of presenting the material - have a little patience - the material is presented in the order and way it is for a reason - if you try to skip around you'll lose the sense of sequence. i asked my final specific questions during the wrapup Q&A session and went away with a good feeling.

you should have a general idea of how engines work, and the names of the parts and the tools - just so you won't be overwhelmed by the terminology.

that's about the best i can do with such an open-ended question - if you want some more directed information just say what you're looking for ...