[pdxmotorhead]

If you pull the head its best to take it to a good engine builder and have the head rebuilt. Your way down the road once the head is off and the shop will ,,, Grind valves (there is a bit of a power bump for not a lot of $$ here..), Replace cam bearings, mill the head flat(Minor power bump), Replace valve springs (Reliability). Clean the head (AL hot tank)

Often the bottom end can be done (main bearings and rod bearings)
by just dropping the oil pan.

Another option, Pull the motor. Its not that hard(Easier than a head replacement in teh vehicle IMHO) and then you take the whole motor in and have it gone through. less than a couple grand and you have a new motor with lots of nice power work done, and its good for another 100K miles.

Talk to some NASA bmw racers in your area, they will know who the "man" is.

Dave.