Quick question before I put new gaskets on...

I just pulled the top end off of my '81 kz550 to replace all the gaskets. I have a more experienced friend sort of overseeing the process (first Kaw he's worked on, he's a Honda CB dude)and he wanted me to ask if there was any valve adjustments necessary before we put it all back together and try to start it. They were left untouched when we pulled the engine apart and i just covered them up to clean the fins. Are we gonna have to go diggin' in there and make this process a little more painful? Bike ran great before, just had a shredded base gasket that caused it to bleed oil like crazy. Any suggestions? Thanks,
Lucas

For all the time it takes, just double check your valve clearance to be sure. I would have checked them before disassembly. Underbucket shims are a bit more work to adjust when it's all together.

Sometimes you have to wait til it's torqued down. Any movement of the head seems to affect the valve clearance one way or the other. You may want to run the motor a little to let everything get settled before doing the final adjustment.

Just remember, the valve cover is part of the chain-guide system. Don't run it with the cover off, and don't put the cover on while the chain tensioner is installed. Or at least release the tensioning mechanism before installing the valve cover.

Cool. Thanks for the help. I'll give it a shot!