Thread: Ungluing...

Consider one side of the joint 'waste' and cut to the glueline with a bandsaw.

I dont know about a headstock but ive steamed off fingerboards with an iron. I just run the iron along the frets using steam and patiently slide a putty knife between the two to separate the seam.

I've seen PVA joints unstuck by them being put in a microwave. Master Splinter's method would be my first thought too

..thanks guys..I know someone with a band saw...and with an iron I can scavenge a truss rod!! )

Steam or hot water will let the titebond go

Regards Mike

This is sourced from an old AG Magazine on neck resets. Hope it helps...

In guitars with dovetail neck joints, take out the 15th fret or whichever fret is right over the dovetail joint. The fret should be heated to make removal easy and to avoid fingerboard chip-outs.

Next, gently heat the part of the fingerboard that’s over the body to soften the glue joint with the top. Applying lemon oil to the fingerboard will help transfer the heat through the board and prevent excessive drying and cracks. The idea here is to preserve the structural integrity of the fingerboard by not having to cut through a fret slot. Loosen the fingerboard over the body by carefully slipping in a sharpened blade that looks much like a very thin, wide oyster knife (or putty knife). A bit of spray-on dry lubricant makes this step go easier.

Next, two holes are drilled through the fret slot down into the dovetail area (obviously, this is easier if you know your dovetail dimensions). A bicycle pump needle attached to a tube and steam source (I use a coffee machine steamer) introduces steam into the dovetail joint. The steam heat softens the glue in the dovetail, allowing the neck to be removed from the guitar’s body.

There are a number of ways to actually remove the neck. I use a specially made jig that clamps to the guitar’s body and has a screw that bears against the heel cap. After an average of two to five minutes of steam, the neck is ready to slide off, usually clean as can be. If there is any chipping of wood in the dovetail, I glue the pieces back immediately . Then I clean out any old glue, because new glue wants to stick to wood, not old glue.

Oops!! Misread the 1st post ie neck for headstock. I'll leave this here anyway. Cheers

The headstock/neck shaft joint will be a scarf joint. A bit tricky getting heat and steam into same and a bit pointless as cutting with a bandsaw or hand saw is much quicker.

Hi guys.

I used a heat gun & vinegar (since I figured there was enough 'safety' water in the vinegar) and a putty knife. It came apart surprisingly readily.

If anyone is reading this... once I got the scraper edge into the join I applied the heat to the blade and every now & then prised the join open a bit & tipped a small amount of vinegar in & worked the blade down keeping the heat on the blade.

There was a little discolouring of the wood (neck side) and surprisingly little clean up on the headstock side.