AUTHOR     Spencer

    ENGLISH

    Second Edition

ISBN 10     0963172646

ISBN 13     9780963172648

OUT OF PRINT -- NO LONGER AVAILABLE @ BLOCKS BOOKS

FROM MY REVIEWS IN THE 356 REGISTRY

Following the recent second edition of his Complete Guide to the Porsche 912, Duane Spencer has brought out the second edition to his Porsche 356 Performance Guide – actually the third edition if counting the initial Porsche 356 Performance Handbook.  Duane states that the change from handbook to guide reflects the de-emphasis of vintage racing and more emphasis on street modifications.  However the chapters on “Safety, bodywork and Driver Qualifications” and “Vintage Racing” remain absolutely unchanged, other than substituting the photograph of Vic Skirmants in his Speedster with a shot of several 356s approaching the bridge at Road America – the only car I definitely recognize is Dave Burton’s coupe – with an unchanged caption.  The last chapter “Epilogue:  A Restoration Story:  A Tale of Two Porsche” is gone, shortening the new edition by seven pages (unusual in a new edition).  As you might expect, given the starting point, of improving the performance of an at least 40-year-old car, the book is essentially unchanged.  New, and this is important enough to justify buying the new edition, is revision of Chapter 2 Performance Engine Components – although you need get about 10 pages in.  Finally, we get to a new and extensive treatise on full flow/external oil coolers.  Duane is a firm proponent of taking the bypass filter out of the oil circulation, claiming the motor funs cooler.  I should have thought that even with the radian heat from the filter entering into the engine compartment, the motor would run cooler and more importantly, the bypass filter can filter more finely than a full flow filter.  New is the addition of aluminum oil coolers.  The crankshaft and connecting rod discussions are tightened.  Peculiarly, the Magnum 356 rod extensively described in the previous edition seems to have disappeared.  Revised and expanded is the list of camshafts, including their duration and lift.  Unchanged, but key, is the discussion of degrees versus use and car weight.  Expanded and most changed of all is the section on pistons and cylinders.  Although Duane developed and sells his forged Shasta pistons, understandably and correctly considers them the best, he gives a very even handed review of the less costly cast – particularly the new hyper-eutectic – pistons.  New are the considerations of the NL Engineering Nikasil and Shasta Durabar cylinders.  Unfortunately the tire section is unchanged and out of date; not only is my much loved Yokahoma A-008 tire gone, but it is hard to even find high performance tires in the sizes recommended.  Updating here is critical.

For a list price of $29.95 you get a book covering the basics of the 356 and how to improve it.  For the nominal $5.00 over the previous edition, you get 7 fewer written pages, slightly but definitely improved reproduction (Gordon Maltby with both RPM publishing and the 356 Registry just keeps getting better) and up to date parts information.  One quibble is that the cover is identical among the three editions.  This makes it difficult for a prospective purchaser to believe the edition is a new one.  Incidentally, as I was writing this, someone on 356TALK noted the new edition was now available but he could get the original for $90.00!  Amazingly, he wondered which to get.  Get the new edition – it is a standard.

AUTHOR     Spencer

    ENGLISH

    First Edition

ISBN 10         0963172646

ISBN 13         9780963172648

OUT OF PRINT - NO LONGER AVAILABLE @ BLOCKS BOOKS       

FROM MY REVIEW OF THE 1st EDITION IN THE 356 REGISTRY

Once we had Craig Richter’s How to Make an Old Porsche Fly and Duane Spencer’s Porsche 356 Performance Handbook.  But for the last couple of years neither has been available.   While 356 Performance Handbook evolved from an initial plan to write a preparation book for vintage racing, Porsche 356 Performance Guide represents a new paradigm and is a substantially new book.  The Guide is more attuned to street modifications.  Duane considers the current one or two weekend,180 hp torqueless wonders not to be in the spirit of vintage racing, and that it would be good for vintage racing in the long run to ban special gasoline and limit Solex venturies to 32 mm, 

I think it is more informative to review the Guide chapter by chapter, which will illustrate to those of you with Duane’s pervious book how extensively rewritten the Spencer’s Porsche 356 Performance Handbook is.

Chapter 1 356 Performance History, an examination of the relative performance strengths of the various models (old but light vs. late, strong & powerful).  Improvements in each new generation of motor are listed.  For serious horsepower, you need a minimum of the big oil pump and the shuffle pins introduced with the ’62 S-90 and the later .62” (larger) oil pick-up tube – but that can be added – and of course the ‘C reinforcements are desirable.  Unlike many other books the photographs are excellent and really illustrate the differences.

Some observations were very interesting:  Porsche aluminum cases seldom need line boring and they hardly ever need helicoils and a full set is a waste of money.

“A full-flow oil system will do more to keep your engine healthy then will any other thing available for street use or competition.”

Chapter 2, Performance Engine Components list what may be done, including ceramic coatings and Molybdenum-disulfide on the skirts.  Guide is the only book listing with Solex 40Pii serial numbers and their changes.

Chapter 3, Street Performance Upgrades (Recommended performance improvements for 356A, B and C engines) are keyed to the starting motor.  An example are the recommendations for a 356A motor: rev limits <5500 & lower the better for early A; use 616 rods not 502 rods and steel cam not iron cam followers; steel push rods; big bore (SHASTA by preference naturally, but others are discussed), which require 30 degree head modification; late valve springs; Zeniths with 28mm venturies; 28 blade fan; alloy rocker stand.  In that I am going to rebuild my ’59 normal, I found this to extremely useful information.

Chapter 3, High Performance Engine Assembly is not a substitution for a shop manual but lists specific steps for optimizing and parts substitutions

Chapter 4, Converting a 912 Engine to a 356 Car -- Duane points out that Harry Pellow has a section in his book on converting a 912 motor, but that Harry assumes that you will have a mortally wounded 356 motor.  This is no longer necessarily true, particularly if you are building race engines.  I was astounded at the possible cost of $4000, if your were to start with a 912 motor and buy all the pieces and have someone else do it.

Chapter 5, Converting a 6 v to 12 is fairly straightforward, but again the cost is amazing.   Who would have thought that narrow diameter 912 generators would be so hard to find?

Chapter 6, Gearbox and Ratios is an extremely useful chapter, not the least because it is the one single place where you can find all of the transmissions and their gear sets.  Speedster gears (BBAB) are ideal for a “built” street motor, but significantly different gearing is needed for competition.  Cogently explained is the theory, with formulae, for gearing a give track.

Chapter 7,  How to Make Your 356 Handle covers tires and wheels, including legality considerations for the various vintage clubs, and brakes, including twin master cylinders. In his previous Performance Handbook, Duane was enthusiastic about the promise of Ray Litz’s upcoming graphite push rods, but they didn’t work out.  Now Duane is enthusiastic about the German front disc brake conversion but has no direct experience with them.  One can’t help but wonder if these will pan out.  Chassis trueness and suspension optimization, including camber compensators, H&H and Vic’s Z-bars are there, along with the explanation that there is no way to set a 356 up for high and slow speeds.

Porsche 356 Performance Guide ends with chapter 8 on Vintage racing and chapter 9 Buying a 356.  Not being a vintage racer I have no idea if chapter 8 is helpful, but it does cover safety equipment and the sanctioning bodies.  Jim Schrager’s Buying, Driving and Enjoying the Porsche 356 is still far and away the best book to use when buying a used 356.

Porsche 356 Performance Guide is a necessary book for any 356 enthusiast and does an excellent job of providing the basis for performance modifications, ranging from rebuilding a motor with the current good stuff to a vintage racer. 

AUTHOR     Spencer

    ENGLISH

ISBN 10     0879384174

ISBN 13     9780879384173

OUT OF PRINT -- NOT CURRENTLY AVAILABLE @ BLOCKS BOOKS

FROM MY REVIEWS IN THE 356 REGISTRY:

In spite of it's being about 911s I have in the past recommended Bruce Anderson's PORSCHE 911 PERFORMANCE HANDBOOK just because it was such a spectacularly good book about Porsches,

albeit not 356s. As part of the same series Duane Spencer has just finished the PORSCHE 356 PERFORMANCE HANDBOOK.  The writing isn't as smooth as Bruce's and the history isn't both pithy

and useful but in about 160 pages every aspect of a 356 engine is covered. The pictures are uniformly excellent -- details are actually illustrated. In that points are not illustrated by parables with only tangential application, the book is reasonably compact.  Yet it is extremely complete.  Appropriate mention is made of specific companies or persons.  After stating that for the most part S-90 and C/SC heads don't need modification, Vic Skirmants is mentioned as the one to whom to send yours for an ultimate engine.  Where else are you going to know about Shasta pistons or carbon fiber push rods?  As with Bruce Anderson's book there is a stratification of mild and hot street proceeding into the various vintage car classes. There are even chapters on buying a 356 and not just from the point of buying an old car but

from the point of view of going vintage racing.

Once we had Craig Richter’s How to Make an Old Porsche Fly and Duane Spencer’s Porsche 356 Performance Handbook.  But for the last couple of years neither has been available.   While 356 Performance Handbook evolved from an initial plan to write a preparation book for vintage racing, Porsche 356 Performance Guide represents a new paradigm and is a substantially new book.  The Guide is more attuned to street modifications.  Duane considers the current one or two weekend, 180hp torqueless wonders not to be in the spirit of vintage racing, and that it would be good for vintage racing in the long run to ban special gasoline and limit Solex venturies to 32mm, 

I think it is more informative to review the Guide chapter by chapter, which will illustrate to those of you with Duane’s pervious book how extensively rewritten the Spencer’s Porsche 356 Performance Handbook is.

Chapter 1 356 Performance History, an examination of the relative performance strengths of the various models (old but light vs. late, strong & powerful).  Improvements in each new generation of motor are listed.  For serious horsepower, you need a minimum of the big oil pump and the shuffle pins introduced with the ’62 S-90 and the later .62” (larger) oil pick-up tube – but that can be added – and of course the ‘C reinforcements are desirable.  Unlike many other books the photographs are excellent and really illustrate the differences.

Some observations were very interesting:  Porsche aluminum cases seldom need line boring and they hardly ever need helicoils and a full set is a waste of money.  “A full-flow oil system will do more to keep your engine healthy then will any other thing available for street use or competition.”

Chapter 2, Performance Engine Components list what may be done, including ceramic coatings and Molybdenum-disulfide on the skirts.  Guide is the only book listing with Solex 40Pii serial numbers and their changes.

Chapter 3, Street Performance Upgrades (Recommended performance improvements for 356A, B and C engines) are keyed to the starting motor.  An example are the recommendations for a 356A motor: rev limits <5500 & lower the better for early A; use 616 rods not 502 rods and steel cam not iron cam followers; steel push rods; big bore (SHASTA by preference naturally, but others are discussed), which require 30 degree head modification; late valve springs; Zeniths with 28mm venturies; 28 blade fan; alloy rocker stand.  In that I am going to rebuild my ’59 normal, I found this to extremely useful information.

Chapter 3, High Performance Engine Assembly is not a substitution for a shop manual but lists specific steps for optimizing and parts substitutions

Chapter 4, Converting a 912 Engine to a 356 Car -- Duane points out that Harry Pellow has a section in his book on converting a 912 motor, but that Harry assumes that you will have a mortally wounded 356 motor.  This is no longer necessarily true, particularly if you are building race engines.  I was astounded at the possible cost of $4000, if your were to start with a 912 motor and buy all the pieces and have someone else do it.

Chapter 5, Converting a 6 v to 12 is fairly straightforward, but again the cost is amazing.   Who would have thought that narrow diameter 912 generators would be so hard to find?

Chapter 6, Gearbox and Ratios is an extremely useful chapter, not the least because it is the one single place where you can find all of the transmissions and their gear sets.  Speedster gears (BBAB) are ideal for a “built” street motor, but significantly different gearing is needed for competition.  Cogently explained is the theory, with formulae, for gearing a give track.

Chapter 7,  How to Make Your 356 Handle covers tires and wheels, including legality considerations for the various vintage clubs, and brakes, including twin master cylinders. In his previous Performance Handbook, Duane was enthusiastic about the promise of Ray Litz’s upcoming graphite push rods, but they didn’t work out.  Now Duane is enthusiastic about the German front disc brake conversion but has no direct experience with them.  One can’t help but wonder if these will pan out.  Chassis trueness and suspension optimization, including camber compensators, H&H and Vic’s Z-bars are there, along with the explanation that there is no way to set a 356 up for high and slow speeds.

Porsche 356 Performance Guide ends with chapter 8 on Vintage racing and chapter 9 Buying a 356.  Not being a vintage racer I have no idea if chapter 8 is helpful, but it does cover safety equipment and the sanctioning bodies.  Jim Schrager’s Buying, Driving and Enjoying the Porsche 356 is still far and away the best book to use when buying a used 356.

Porsche 356 Performance Guide is a necessary book for any 356 enthusiast and does an excellent job of providing the basis for performance modifications, ranging from rebuilding a motor with the current good stuff to a vintage racer.