Daniel,
Another dreaded "best way" question. I went the official route and pulled the valve covers. They do not have gaskets, and the cylinder heads remain in place. A bit of an adventure, but not all that hard.
There are many posts that describe other pieces/parts you should replace while you're there, e.g. O-rings in the cooling system and insulators on the carburetors. And the incorrect torques in the Service Manual. And how careful you should be about not displacing the shims under the lifters.
There are also many posts about slide hammers, files, various external sealants, ... .
Do you have a coin to flip?
Seth
