It is not very difficult to remove and reinstall a side-valve Briggs cylinder head Steve, but unless you are blessed with one of the metal-covered head gaskets you will need a new one because it will split and part will stick to the head while part sticks to the block. You have to clean the stuck gasket residue off the sealing surfaces on the underside of the head and the top face of the engine block, both of which are aluminium, and this requires careful work with a scraper. Also, to do the job you need a torque wrench.

Here is the page from the overhaul manual:

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Let me know if you have questions about this.