Best to make a head gasket

copper works very well for head gaskets.

I concur about the aluminum gaskets... SBP has 'em for just a couple of bux.

You can make a good head gasket for cheap with a thick aluminum turkey roaster pan from the dollar store. Trace it and cut it out. Don't worry about raised designs because it will flatten out as you tighten the bolts. Try to find a nice thick one for best results.

In a jam, I used a flattened soda can on a Vespa once. Until the right one arrived from the store. I put the correct gasket on, and since it was slightly larger, it made my compression slightly less, and had slightly less performance.

I too have used the soda can trick. If you cut out a square of the metal, you can iron it flat with a clothes iron and then trace & cut. Not really recommended, but it does work. I've also heard of people using the metal from disposable aluminum pans.

As long as the surfaces of the head and jug meet properly(are completely flat), I wouldn't worry about buying a new gasket unless you wrecked the one you already have. I took off the head many times on my last motor and used the same gasket without any related issues.

would .016 or .020 Alum work well for head gaskets? i have access to that material at work.
i also have access to .010 & .016 stainless steel. is that any good for head gaskets?

you want it soft, so the aluminum would be best

It has to be soft aluminum, the alloy sheet aluminum wont work too well unless its perfectly flat as well as the mating surfaces of the head and jug... the factory gaskets are dead soft aluminum and most aluminum sheet is an alloy of some type to make it harder or more corrosion resistant.
dead soft aluminum sheet is kinda hard to find but the aluminum used for disposable cooking ware like turkey tins or pie tins is also pure or very close to pure aluminum and soft enough to make a good seal.

Copper also works great since its also very soft but it usually needs to be annealed before using as a gasket by heating up to cherry red then dropping into cool water, this will make the copper dead soft, because the copper can be annealed it can be reused several times. Copper does work harden so it will harden up some as it smashes to seal but it still seals very well, its the vibration its subjected to from the engine that'll harden it up enough to need to be annealed any time its removed and put back into service. Copper sheet can be bought at hobby stores and it cuts easily, this is also agood choice for raising compression since its available as thin as. 002" up to .040" and thicker, but this is the size range most commonly used to raise compression, lower compression, or raise or lower the cylinder to set port hight or timing.

Aluminum pie tins are the most common for cutting head gaskets out of since its thin and it works really well, not to mention its cheap and easy to obtain.

Can the same aluminum tins be used to make exhaust and intake gaskets? I'm assuming so since you can use it on the head but just thought I'd ask

if I were to use them for exhaust, I'd use several to get some extra thickness

The aluminum would work for intake or exhaust gaskets but only if the flanges are perfectly flat and true, I'm using a 1/8" thick copper exhaust gasket and it sealed but I had to true the flange on the pipe by sanding it with a tabletop belt sander. On the intake side the flange would also need to be perfectly flat and true before a metal gasket would seal and would most likely need the assistance of gasket shellac or copper gasket spray on both sides of the gasket. Ive also got a leak free intake seal by using anaerobic sealant which also works really well but its expensive... the typical paper fiber gaskets tend to work best on the intake side and can easily be cut out if you buy a sheet of gasket material from the local auto parts store.