1996 MIK Squier Stratocaster Neck - Part 4

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7

Defretting the Neck

To recap, the owner isn't happy with the current frets installed on his 1996 MIK Squier Stratocaster neck. As such, he's requested a full refret. But first, these frets need to be removed, i.e. we'll have to "defret" this neck.

My go-to tools for defretting are a scalpel, a soldering iron, and a pair of flush-ground nippers. In the pictures below, the existing finish along both sides of each fret has already been scored with the scalpel to reduce chipping or tear-out. The frets were then carefully heated with the soldering iron, and slowly eased out of their slots with the nippers. Here's a short video demonstrating this process.

Hakko 981 Soldering Iron

Flush-Ground Nippers

The Nut's Been Removed

Defretted Fretboard - 1

Defretted Fretboard - 2

The Original Frets

Sanding and Restaining

Remember that darkish finish a previous owner applied to the fretboard? Well, that's got to go. I've tried paint thinner and even acetone, but to no avail. What's left, then? Good old sandpaper, that's what. In the pictures below, I'm using 240 grit paper wrapped around a 9.5" wooden radius block and a sanding sponge to get rid of that faux "roasted maple" finish.

Initial Sanding With a 9.5" Radius Block

Here's the Result

Subsequent Sanding With a Sanding Sponge

Checking the Fretboard Radius

Finish Removal Completed

Now the fretboard is rather pale compared to the headstock, so we'll have to darken it a tad. For starters, I've applied a wee bit of StewMac ColorTone Vintage Amber (#5030) liquid stain dissolved in isopropyl alcohol to the bare fretboard. We'll give it some time to dry, and see what it looks like.

ColorTone Vintage Amber Stain Applied