i noticed today for the 1st time smoke coming off front end of motor where exhaust enters motor and oil obviously leaking out either and or around valve cover or somewhere around the general area there. has anyone attempted to overhaul the top end and or how much $$ am i talking about??

 

When you say "overhaul" are you thinking of pulling the head and doing the valves or just sealing up the leak? Chances are you just have a minor oil leak that is running down on the exhaust stack creating some smoke. Clean things up really well and locate the leak then replace the gasket/seal and you should be good to go.