Restoring a 1908 Martin O-17
I. Removing the neck
The first step in restoration of this guitar is to disassemble it. We begin by removing the neck. This is a common job for repair shops since it is the necessary first step to a neck reset.
First step is to remove the first fret in from the neck join (typically
the 15th or 13th fret). This fret is generally located right over
the end of the dovetail joint. Here, Ron is using a soldering iron
to gently heat the fret (this will loosen the fret) and gently removing
it with an end cutting pliers which is ground to a flush edge.
This enables the cutter to slide under the fret and grip the tang of the
fret, although here that is not necessary since the guitar has the old
fashioned bar fret stock.
The
next step is to drill a small hole through the fret slot into the area
at the end of the dovetail joint.
The
next step is to heat the fingerboard extension and (again, gently) free
it from the top. The heat (we use a silicone rubber heating blanket)
will soften the glue so that the spatulas can be worked under the extension
and loosen it. The wooden block in Ron's hand is used to hold the
heating blanket firmly on the extension so that the heat is transferred
efficiently. You can also see the needle which is inserted in the
hole drilled previously. This will be used to inject steam into
the dovetail joint, which will loosen this joint. We generate the
steam in an old pressure cooker which sits on a hot plate. One of
our benches is permanently setup with this equipment for neck resets.
Here Ron is gently twisting and rocking the neck to loosen the dovetail.
If the steam has been allowed time to soften the glue, this is an easy
task. Sometimes the joint is very tight and a special jig is used
to press the neck out of the body. Not necessary here.
The
neck is out!! Next step will be removal of the bridge.
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