[sugarwood]

I vastly prefer private party, and not buying from a dealer. I'm also not paying for a car via Panorama/Excellence, where people think their 130k mile SC is worth $75k. I know it's not a popular opinion, my best bet was CL. Search a 2-3 hour radius. I found real sellers, asking realistic prices, on a real cars.

If it’s a good deal, it’s going to soon be gone.
If an item is priced fairly, and is actually in demand, it will sell your item in a day or two with minimal interaction on dead leads.
When I found my 911 on CL, my first and only communication was,
"When can I come see the car? Are you around this afternoon? Please call me back at 800-SHG-WOOD"

I'm not saying you can't find a car for sale at an event. In my experience, cars for sale at events (and via the "scene" like Excellence Mag, for example) tend to a crack pipe asking price from an highly UN-motivated seller who wants an offer he can't refuse. Events are the last place I'd look, because if I want to pay crack pipe, I'll go directly to Holt and get unicorn miles, and save myself the hassle of trolling events.

Just my 2 cents, if you've got the money, I suggest buying a nicer, more original car. A vintage car is an asset, so the money is not gone forever. You just have more tied up into it.

Perhaps, if they list on CL, they may be cheap and can is a litmus of cheap maintenance habits (a valid assertion) If they list in PCA/Excellence, they may be obsessive owners who expect 150% of fair market value. (Also a valid assertion)

If you're not an expert wrench, and this is your first rodeo, then the more you veer away from "standard", (Backdated, engine swapped, modded, etc)
I think the more potential trouble you can get into.

This may make it harder for you to ask questions about the car, when it has an issue.
(The car is year X, but the engine is year Y)
Also, might complicate learning how to order parts.
Things will also be more complicated for shops to service your custom "Franken"-car.

It may also make it harder to judge the quality of a prospective car,
since you are not dealing with an original car.

If it's your first one, I'd personally stick to the beaten path, and not venture too far off the trail.
It will be more standard to service, and it will be simpler to re-sell down the road.

Once you have some hands-on Porsche ownership experience,
you might reconsider and venture into more exotic territory for your next Porsche.

Conditions can vary wildly. Try to give yourself a 2 hour search radius and try to see a few in person.
If you have a healthy budget, then wait for a turnkey car, and don't need to settle.

In general, during the initial stages of a search, there is too much "Road & Track" data specification analysis/paralysis out there, and not enough test driving. How large is your search radius? You might want to increase it to 2-3 hours. Once you drive these cars, you will see the differences are trivial for road driving. Shopping for cars is a fun journey, but to pull the trigger, the first step is to forget about the G50 vs. 915 debate. Comparing weight of an SC and 3.2 is also very academic. For 99% of your driving, the differences are moot. For SC vs. 3.2, it seems CIS vs. Motronic is the most practical factor that may influence your search parameters.

Also, it is a mistake to pass up a good car only because of the color.
After that, it will all about the condition and seller profile.
You don't choose the color when looking for a 30 year old car.
The color chooses you.

After you decide on your year range, like '78-'89 or just '84-'89, shopping for your car is not like ticking off a "build sheet" for a new $150k car you are ordering from the factory. You are limited by real world constraints of what is available and crosses your path, even if you plan to budget $1000 for each car you jump on a plane to visit. Make it your goal to physically view 5 cars. With that, you will get a better sense of what is out there, because when the right car comes around, you are not going to have time to dilly dally and think about it. It will be sold from right under you. You need to get to a place where you know the market, the basic range of condition of cars out there, and be ready with a stack of cash.

The last word in this discussion on Car Hunt Search Buying Advice is to buy your 911 in the right condition and history, from the right owner, within your search radius, at a price you're comfortable with.