The Hub

This thing had a conveniently placed hole in the neck pickup cavity that ran all the way to the end of the tenon, presumably the entry point for the long drill bit that drilled the access from pickup cavity to control cavity before the neck was originally fitted.

I injected several pipettes of hot water into this hole while heating the fretboard extension area with a silicone blanket to loosen the extension from the body. Reactivated hide glue started running out the back of the heel pretty fast and the joint immediately started to loosen but it still took about 25-30 minutes of wiggling to get the neck out. If you wanted to try foam cutters you’d be wise to drill through the bottom of the 19th fret slot, about 3/4” either side of the neck centreline in the hope of getting a cutter at the edge of the tenon. I had no idea about the size or shape of the tenon going in so hot water/steam seemed an easier path to take considering the access is already there.

Note that the tenon is dovetail shaped so the neck pulls out vertically. Tenon and mortise pretty close to 2” long, x 1” deep, dovetail in shape with width tapering from roughly 1 3/16” at base to 1 1/2” at the widest point. Lots of hide glue on every possible surface including neck cheeks.