John Yerxa - Posted - 03/31/2025:  20:33:51

Today I did something that many builders have probably done once - shaping a neck and cut through to the steel bar channel from the back:(

The neck has a nice slotted ebony fretboard glued on with Original Titebond, and 2 layers of veneer. There are Abalone dots already inlaid and glued in with superglue. but no frets installed. The neck is toast, but I would like to try and save the board. How would people suggest trying to remove it intact? I've removed guitar bridges with heated palette knives before, but never a fretboard.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

sunburst - Posted - 03/31/2025:  21:02:55

Titebond releases fairly easily with heat.

I have an old flea market clothes iron in the shop, I set it on "wool" or a little hotter, lay it on the heel end of the 'board and get it good and hot... not scorched, but good and hot. Then I work my old Red Devil putty knife under the end of the 'board and start separating it from the neck, moving the iron ahead of the blade until it comes off.

My old putty knife has beveled edges all around, not sharp like a knife, but not blunt like many newer putty knives that I see.

Your veneers may heat loose and differently so I wouldn't count on saving those, but the 'board should come off cleanly. It will probably be curved (bowed) in the direction of the fret slots, so you can heat and flatten it if you desire.

Edited by - sunburst on 03/31/2025 21:05:14

banjoT1 - Posted - 04/01/2025:  00:40:45

or, another thought - since neck is a goner....
> the thought is theoretical only since I ain't tried it but sounds plausible...

....rather than coming in from topside, come up from bottom...

From your band saw stock of saw blades, chose an ugly sacrificial blade and a second one thats sharp but thin (~ .020ish).

Use the ugly blade to hack and cut out from the bottom side the truss rod or stiffener only as deep as necessary to free the hardware.

With the remaining 'top part' of the neck, rough cut to length (= 1/2" above nut groove).

Next, square up fretboard against a bandsaw fence setup, then with the nice new, sharp thin saw blade, slice off the fretboard + 1/16" of the remaining neck. (....now you might have a 2-ply fretboard of 1/8" + 1/16" of neck.) With this it could be carefully jointed down an extra 1/32" then re-used as is on your next build.

This method, if it works, avoids the issue of potential fretboard grain tearing, glue cleanup, and the possible need to resurface the backside of the fretboard. If I experienced your predicament I might try this myself if only to prove that with determination it can be done.

....but possibly not and only theoretical ??

lightgauge - Posted - 04/01/2025:  04:12:39

I have removed a few with heat and a thin knife. It takes patience, but can be done. An unfretted neck will curl on you in my experience, as described above. Bandsawing would be a good option if you can be accurate. It could possibly be done with a larger tablesaw if you can remove the truss rod as mentioned.

randybartlett - Posted - 04/01/2025:  06:23:06

On the broken neck that I have, I have pondered this situation.

One neck guy I talked to said that there's a risk that the fingerboard Dimensions will change slightly by Taking It Off. So that idea kind of steers me away from any kind of heat or Steam.

I thought I would loosen the truss rod and somehow attach the entire neck to a sled. Maybe some strong double side tape to a flat piece of scrap countertop. I reckon it would only be Holding On by the frets but at least I would have something to handle it by.

My sled might be thick enough to have one very Square side that I can use going forward as a reference on the band saw in jointer work to come.

Next I think I would drill some holes so that I could find out exactly where that truss rod is. I'd diagram it on the side of the the neck to have a visual.

Then I thought I would put it through the bandsaw; safely cutting off all the waste that I can and leaving about 3/16" of wood above the truss rod. I'd set the largest piece aside for later color matching.

Depending on how it went on the bandsaw I might want to run it through the jointer at this point to get it nice and flat. That would be an optional step.

I might find my oldest and most damaged looking router bit. Then I could shave off some wood to get down to the truss rod in a very controlled way. Of course at this point you could use a drill bit to get a good look at the truss rod ends and middle.

In an effort to use every tool in the shop I might run it through the table saw with a controlled depth to make a pass on the left and right side of the truss rod. Of course a couple of side pieces could be attached to my sled to position the neck in the right place if I was going that route. I suspect this seems like Overkill though.

At some point you get close to the truss rod and you just switch to hand-to-hand combat. I'd use some chisels in my mallet to relieve material around it until I could take it right out of there.

Lastly, a few passes across the jointer and I can relieve as much material as I want. I might leave that final glue to be sanded off.

This is all just my imagination but I bet it would work.

Pick-A-Lick - Posted - 04/01/2025:  06:59:05

As Randy mentioned above, make a router jig.

Remove the unwanted neck material to about 3/8” of the back of the fretboard. Use an absolutely flat piece of plywood wider and slightly longer than the neck. Lay the fretboard fret side down centered on the plywood and clamp each end to the plywood. Cut boards a couple of inches wide and slightly thicker and longer than the neck material that is clamped down. Attach the boards firmly to the plywood base, hugging each side of the neck. Set your router depth appropriately so that only neck material is removed down to the back surface of the fretboard. Move the clamps from the ends of the fretboard towards the center area that you have already routed and finish routing the ends.

I have used this method to save small inlay wood art section from larger panels 

Edited by - Pick-A-Lick on 04/01/2025 07:06:41

RBuddy - Posted - 04/01/2025:  10:29:14

I'm betting whatever you do to remove the fingerboard it is going to be more work and expense in time than just getting a new fingerboard. If it were inlaid with something a lot more complicated than dots it might be worth the effort.



Getting the board off, removing old glue, fitting it to a new neck blank perfectly and fitting the neck shaft to the fingerboard without damaging the board is more of a job than it looks.

Try John H's method and if it doesn't work move on.



Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Edited by - RBuddy on 04/01/2025 10:31:29

randybartlett - Posted - 04/01/2025:  11:15:52

quote:

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Originally posted by RBuddy

If it were inlaid with something a lot more complicated than dots it might be worth the effort.

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... or to preserve a vintage inlay pattern....

banjoT1 - Posted - 04/01/2025:  11:17:49

....ya, agree.....chalk up a scrapped fingerboard as the cost of doing business and get on with life.....



Time spent on trying to 'save' the fretboard is actually not justifiable....really -



unless you want to enhance your experience of 'creative' problem solving and woodworking savvy.



....best recommendation yet RBuddy !

Edited by - banjoT1 on 04/01/2025 11:18:21

John Yerxa - Posted - 04/01/2025:  18:30:12

Yes, well I knew I'd get a variety of replies, so thanks all. It's a nice piece of Ebony which I slotted myself, and I'm retired, so my time is free, so I think I'll try some heat.

lightgauge - Posted - 04/02/2025:  02:59:02

Injecting vinegar usually helps as well if needed.

randybartlett - Posted - 04/08/2025:  06:35:21

Today I stumbled across this YouTube video of exactly the question in this post

Warren Yates removing a fingerboard by bandsaw

Pick-A-Lick - Posted - 04/08/2025:  16:37:46

quote:

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Originally posted by randybartlett

Today I stumbled across this YouTube video of exactly the question in this post

Warren Yates removing a fingerboard by bandsaw

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Good video. Warren made me a bit nervous with his fingers pushing towards the teeth of the bandsaw blade, but as he said in the video "I'm a professional, which means I do stupid stuff all day". 

John Yerxa - Posted - 04/08/2025:  21:48:17

Thanks all. I don't think I'll be trying Warren's method. My reinforcing bar is 1/2" by 1/8" flat steel and is epoxied in. I've had a brief try with heat and a first string tied to handles like a garrotte, but didn't have much progress yet.

Don't know why Warren wouldn't use a push stick and/or a featherboard.