Dick,
I certainly do not have first hand experience rebuilding a K-27 at the C&TS. I serious doubt that I ever will. Thankfully there are people working on that project do have experience rebuilding a K-27. Others may be experienced in rebuilding other C&TS locomotives. Some people on the project may have mechanical aptitude and are willing to do what they are told by those that do.
Beyond that I'm not sure how you know what my life experiences and professional background and skills are. There are a lot of other places to acquire and practice mechanical and engineering skills besides at the C&TS. That's the tough part of not being invented here.
Hopefully Marty they will see fit to pay Marty some additional consulting time when the 463 is totally finished, the final adjustments are made and it's running daily. This additional time could be used to evaluate this project in terms of what worked well and as planned, deviations from the master plan, viable contingencies related to other rebuilds or overhauls in the future. Some of us might even contribute towards that.