[Vwdiesel] prepping block for head gasket tips

[Will Taygan]

first of all my shift key and caps lock aren't working atm, sorry for
the punctuation...

94 frankenjetta 1.6td - 85 or 86 engine - had 500 compression, blew a
hose, lost coolant, overheated, now blows lots of bubbles into the
coolant.

i tried retorquing, no luck.

i'm trying my 2nd ever head gasket - the first one was an utter failure,
i think because i didn't prep the block well..  i was nervous about
scratching it.

i'm pulling the head today, ordering parts and putting it back together
next weekend.

any suggestions/specific products to use to prep the block

i'm bringing the head into the shop - 350 bucks high end estimate..
we'll see...

are there any other repairs i should do while i'm in there

i'm in a buddy's garage, so i've got a heated space, but don't want to
take too much time, especially since things were great - other than the
standard oil drips - before the hose blew.

thanks,

will in alaska.