Besides the head gasket....you probably checked this stuff but....the dipstick and breather are in the area....if you verified, best as is possible, that it wasnt one of those, the head gasket is pretty much all that is left.
As far as tips....
If the rubber hose from the oil sending unit to the back of the head has any leakage, now is the time to do it....putting in a braided steel line like I did is a great way to fix it for the foreseeable future.
The timing chain and gear can be a real pain....might want to look at a new chain and the adjuster while your in there...
If you really want to clean the motor up inside a bit....pain as it is....pull the cam and cam deck. There is a puddle of oil under there that always have some settled out nasty stuff. Also drain the cam of the oil thats in it and clean out the lube holes in the lobes as best as you can. The oil path from the rear of the head up through the rear cam bearing is difficult to clean, but it is very important that this not have any residue that would reduce flow.
Other than that, its pretty much like other motors...torque specs and procedures are in the online manuals, if you need something thats not there, let me know.
brute4c
Lord send your Holy Ghost into our hearts and make the desire of our hearts Your Will.
Pro-choice, that's a LIE, babies don't choose to die!!