Shaved Heads

Did the first shop mess up? Probably. Is it "normal", it's possible, but I would say far from "normal". Are you going thru anything unique to an engine rebuild? Not at all. Like Goody siad. A thicker head gasket, or shims under the rocker shafts will address most of it. The big deal is, make sure what ever you do that the rocker geometry is right. How you get it right isnt nearly as big a deal as getting it right.