I think i am going to end up going the apprenticeship route rather than the college route and i was just wondering if there are any good books regarding diesel engines (repair and/or theory), hydraluics (sp?) or to be even more specific heavy equipment itself. I am asking because I would like to know some general things going in and not just jumping blindly. Thanks
Reading John Deere's series of books 'Fundamentals of Service' is a very good place to start... they come in volumes such as engines, powertrains, hydraulics, electrical systems, tires ands tracks and a few others. You may be able to pick them up on ebay if you can't find them new.
Good point about E-bay. You may be able to pick up other manuals there as well. Check out amazon.com for used books too. Sometimes a real steal.
I havent really had a chance to check amazon, but are these books specifically for heavy equipment? or are they more general type books?
Books You can find just about anything you desire on Amazon, excepting Alice.
Amazon.com is an online store where you can search for any type of books. You just need the title or ISBN #. The Deere FOS books are a good place to start in my opinion. I've been in the business quite a while and still refer to them today. A good thing to remember as you start out is that it's important to know how something works in order to be able to fix anything :bash
One way to learn mechanics is to actually do it. Ag tractors are a good machine to start on because main brands have alot of aftermarket parts available. Another benefit with tractors is that major components are easy to access. another benefit is that when properly repaired you have an item of value. May I suggest a John Deere, they are failry popular, and they break down fairly frequently so you will get plenty of experience. --- Best way to kill a deere, with a Magnum of course...