1272cc head skim - how much?

When Matthew finally scrapes enough cash together to have his piston rings done, we're thinking about having a bit skimmed off the head to increase the compression

I seem to recall that stock compression is only about 8:1 or 8.5:1, so there's clearly quite a bit of scope to increase it for some extra power and better throttle response

So - the question is - how much can be safely skimmed off the head and what CR will it give?

Heya Nige, its jay.
Iirc, the head on my engine had headwork by the previous owner, an im sure ive seen the receipt for it somewhere.
I'll try dig it out an see if its any use to you

Hi Jay

If your car has had some mild headwork, it may be cheaper for Matthew to fit your head than to have his own done, especially as you don't appear to have buyers queueing round the corner for your old 1.3 lump

His car died last night - pretty sure the compression has finally got so bad that it wouldn't start. We got it started by towing it with the Range Rover, but it only ran for a few minutes before it misfired and cut out.

Its going in to my mechanic at the weekend for a full strip-down and new rings - should be done within the week