Ask yourself. What do you want to do? If you want to go into another studio enviroment at a bigger station you may be able to get in with just your talents on the old Grass. Its been my experience that a lot of stations, my old one included, there is one or two TDs that excel and know everything on the switcher and the other TDs just follow. You have the director experience, I would emphasize that. Once you have the format down on the shows your doing you can learn the new switcher from there. When I taught new TDs how to switch and direct I was adament that they learn how to build the effects and not just call up a snapshot. If you are truly someone who likes to learn new gear and take it to the limits prove that to your prospective employer, read the manual it will give you a general understanding of how the switcher works. When I first learned to switch I didn't have the luxury of training classes if I wanted to do something I read the manual.

If you are thinking of going the sports TV way. I would do the training class. It would definately be worth it. I have used the new Kayenne a couple of times but I know it can do so much more. I'm hoping to get to one next March. When my old station bought the Sony, I had had some experience on it before, they got a trainer. The first trainer was an editor, he didn't know what he was doing. We had to ask Sony to send someone else. The second trainer was a TD, what a difference. Its not that the editor didn't know the switcher it was he was showing us things that didn't matter to a live product.

For me I don't have time to train someone for a show,  typically a set, shoot, strike. I'm working to get my stuff done, but you may get lucky and find someone who has the time. I was lucky like that. Don't expect them to show you everything you got to be able to learn and crash and burn on your own.  I still have questions for other TD's all the time. Its amazing how different everyone switches a show.

Just showing up to an idle truck may not help you that much, you need someone to show you. Learning costs money but the end product should make you money. I can't use the pilot analogy. If you crash a switcher you can walk away more than you can in a plane.

So far, these responses to your question should point you in the right general direction.  You need to ask yourself the all-important question of "where do I want to end up?", as that will make your training decisions much more relevant.

There IS a lot to to said about reading the manuals.  However, if you wanted to become a pilot, one does not learn how to fly a plane by reading the aircraft manuals.  Manuals will help you understand the product, but NOTHING takes the place of hands-on.  In the same way that you progressed with your current switcher by playing on it day after day; you need to do the same thing with the products that you want to step up to.

That being said, you need to understand that increasing the breadth of your knowledge is an investment in your future.  Yes, you can pay $1000 to $5000 for a multi-day factory course, or pay a freelance trainer between $750-$1500 per day...but remember that you'll make that money back within your first few jobs.  Of course you can try to get somebody who is active in the field to teach you for less money (or maybe for free) and maybe you can talk a truck company into letting you sit down & play on their switchers during down days - but I believe that the old adage holds true..."you get what you pay for".  Just because somebody is a TD does NOT mean that they can TEACH...that's a whole different talent that not everybody has.  To be able to teach, one needs to know how to communicate not just WHAT to do, but WHY you need to do it; and an instructor must be willing to share EVERYTHING they know about the subject - not just the basics.  One thing about freelancers is that they know that if they teach you, they are effectively teaching their competition and in the process are making themselves less valuable to potential employers.  Some are secure enough in their positions that they have nothing to hide, but with an ever-shrinking job market, many TD's don't like the idea of "giving away the farm" to others who may end up stealing that next job away from them.

Whether you consider factory courses or independent instruction, my personal opinion is that you need to find an instructor who actually does what you plan on doing.  Many of the factory instructors are not necessarily TD's - they call themselves "product specialists".  They may be able to show you what the buttons & menus do, but they lack the real-world experience to go beyond the button explanations and to explain HOW to use the features in ways that will enhance your skill-set (such as how to use key borders or recursive trails to create 3D type).  At the risk of drawing the wrath of those who believe that "you don't need to be a pilot to know how to fly the plane" [I was actually told that once by one of these guys], my rule of thumb is that if the instructor is not an active TD, they have NO business teaching you how to be one.  And I'd also suggest going beyond this to keep in mind that the TYPE of TD that's going to teach you is directly proportionate to what you will learn.  If you're going to do news, get a news TD to teach you...sports TD's who have little or no news experience tend to focus on the techniques that are used in sports (and often less in entertainment), which may have little bearing on how you need to accomplish your tasks.  The general rule of thumb is that many of the better Sports TD's came from a news background but generally know little or nothing about the specific requirements of the entertainment side of the business...Many of the better Entertainment TD's have moved into Entertainment from Sports and they moved into Sports from News.  So the higher you go one the food chain, the more expansive your knowledge and in my opinion the better qualified you are to teach.  So my point in all of this is to suggest that you check the credentials of your instructor (be it factory or freelance based) to see if your instructor's knowledge (and teaching techniques) matches your set of goals.

Grass Valley is still king of the truck market, which has a preponderance of Kalypsos, Kayaks, and a growing number of Kayennes.  Understandably, GV's teaching base is thus currently centered around sports TD's.  SONYs are the big dog in facility-based operations (news and entertainment), and their teaching base reflects that application - although in order to get a practicing TD you'll need to get a SONY-based freelancer.  Ross is making inroads in the facility-based operations, and thus their teaching is focused there, as is Kahuna.  Regardless, I'd suggest learning as many products as possible...the features of one brand have applications on other brands.  Many of the "new" features on Kayenne were actually taken from features that the SONY has had for many years; and SONY also incorporates features previously found on GV switchers.  Ways of accomplishing something on one brand have counterparts on other brands; so learning how EVERYBODY's switcher works can only make you a better & more versatile TD.

If you want to learn how to fly a plane, you can't get around the fact that it'll cost you $5,000-$8,000; if you want to learn to be a flying instructor, it'll cost you closer to $20,000; and if you want to be the captain of a 777 it'll cost you closer to $50,000.  Pilots know this & invest in their careers appropriately.  You can try to teach yourself, but there's no substitute for being taught by someone who's already been there.