Pro and con of just dealing with the heads

[tdskip]

So it turns out that allowing someone else to drive your car on a rally and actually following them is a bad idea, you can see the smoke on deceleration that way. Turns out I have the fairly common smoke on throttle lift that appears to be valve guide related. That leads me as a relative newbie to a couple questions if I may:

1) I am happy to pay for quality work but why is head rebuild tagged as a 3-4k expense?

2) are there performance considerations to be aware of when the heads are being rebuilt? This is a 84-87 3.2 in my '74, and I don't have a history on the engine

3) are pulling the heads a DYI project or am I fooling myself if I'm just OK with a wrench?

4) should I do a leak down test before doing any of this to make sure my rings are ok?

Thanks guys!

[mreid]

Remove the heads yourself and send them out for a rebuild. Your costs will be 1/2 that price.

[tdskip]

Hi Mark. Any tips or gotta-ya items to away of when removing the heads?

Thanks

[shrtshck]

If unfamiliar with the job at hand best tip is before diving in, read, read, then read some more.
Get Wayne's engine rebuild book, read the Porsche service manual, read the Bentley, and search the board. All the documentation is your friend, after all the preparation once you dig in you'll be confident and have all the tools / methods needed.
The twist in your case is that the engine and chassis are a combination of two different years, so you will have to bone up on both years before digging in.
Final piece of advise is don't rush it, if you want it done quickly take it to someone experienced. If you have the time by all means go for it.