Hi Steve,
I will try and answer all you questions and proviode some more info for you.
Did you consider cutting the crank gear? - Mine was already pressed on to the crank so it was easier to modify the cam sprocket. I see no reason you couldn't modify the crank sprocket to get the desired effect.
Did you do anything to the gear other than have the keyways cut? - No I just had to two keyways cut.
How did you determine where to make the cuts?
First I installed the timing set straight up (with the marks lined up) and then degreed the cam to determine a starting point. I determined I was 8 deg retarded from where I wanted to be. There are 42 teeth on the sprocket - that is approx 8.57 deg per tooth. But remember that 1 deg at the cam = 2 deg at the crank.
So i decided I wanted new keyways at 2 and 4 degs (at cam). The original key was half way between two teeth (top) so I had one keyway cut inline with a tooth to get approx 4deg (left bottom) and then one keyway cut at 2 deg off the centre line between two teeth (right bottom). I had them cut at 1/3 around the sprocket to maximise the strength in the sprocket. You could cut them closer together or have more keyways cut to suit your application, but be very careful not to weaken the sprocket. I hope this all makes sense?
Using this method I was able to get the cam degreed to roughly where I wanted (109*). I was aiming for 108*, but the decrepancy could be inaccuracies in the machining, my cam degreeing technique or a combination of the two.
Have you had any problems with the gear? - I haven't had the engine running yet so I can't say
I hope that this is useful to you; i'm writing all this from memory so apologise if I've missed anything

If there is any info you want that I've missed please ask away
Cheers
Nathan