I have a set of 100k mile heads that look to be in good shape and do not look like they have any burned valves.
I want to put in new seals, springs, and rather than fork out for a complete valve job on some heads that are probably decent anyway, i thought i might try using valve grinding compound and get them a little better before I throw them on. I will be putting new seals in.
1. is there a certain method/kit to use when using valve grinding compound?
2. any how-tos around?
3. should I even bother with some 100k mile heads that were running good but the passenger side blew a HG?
4.telltale signs of burned valves, just in case I am wrong?
5.any general advice for a DIY head freshening would be much appreciated.

I used lapping compound on my valves when i did a 4.0 headswap on my old 258 and got great results. What i did was lock the valve stem into my drill chuck and applied pressure to the valve face as it spun away. Trick to this is to oil up the valve stem for friction relieve throught the guides and above all, keep the lapping compound out of the guides. make sure you remove all of the lapping residue from the head or your engine will die a quick painfull death.

This method's not as good as a 3-angle grind, but it suffices.

thanks.
I have heard that it is best to just use one of the hand spinner things, is a drill just too harsh, too much side leverage or what?
frankly I dont really know if the heads need a whole valve job perse, I just want to do some easy, cheap tricks to get them a little better.
how long did you spin them for?

A drill works ok, just dont crank up the speed all the way. The lapping compound will take material off the valves and seats so you will see the progress. It doesnt take much grinding.

You will get better results when you hand lap them, spinning the valve in the same direction will remove a lot of material and can cause seats to groove.. when you think you have a good seal, find a couple of light pressure springs that you can use for a temp valve spring, and install both valves using the light springs.. then fill the combustion chamber with solvent, thinner or some builders use gas, to see if there is any leakage aroung the seats.. if there is you will need to keep lapping until there is no leakage getting past the seats..

is it better to test with liquid from the combustion chamber or can you do it from the ports?
is it important to use a lighter spring or can I just reinstall some regular old ones(changing the springs when I do this).

Naglfar, you a black metal fan?

Test from the chamber side, watch the ports and the stems for any leakage.. and the only reason to use the lighter springs is to make it easy to do the testing without having to use a spring compressor, because all you need is a couple of pounds of seat pressure to hold the seal on the seats, you can use the standard springs you just have to use a spring compressor to install and uninstall them.. and Nagalfar is the name of my boat.. it's a old Viking name ...