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All apart, and looking good.

I like to use the back edge of my 18mm violin knife as a scraper. Holding it flat, I can plow the old dried glue right off surfaces like this.

A 3/4" chisel is my favorite for general use, and I have several, so there's always a sharp one around.

Cutting back the surface of the neck that touches the body will make it easier to fit the neck to precisely the right angle.

After all, only the outside bearing edge needs to touch the guitar sides, so I cut back till there's just about 1/16" of the original surface showing. I'm not cutting very deep, as you'll see in a later photo.

Because I need to bring the neck back quite a bit, I'll start making a tapering slice, starting at about 1/32" deep at the heel cap.

And proceeding upward, where the taper will end about 1/4" below the fingerboard

Now, all my fine adjustments will be a matter of seating the neck back in position, slipping some 180 grit sandpaper in the joint, and pulling outward (and downward a bit) at the heel. I have some thin wide low tack tape protecting the finish from scuffing during the sandpaper pulling operations.

As I pull the sandpaper back toward the heel, it cuts the defining edges of the dovetail in a perfect taper. Up by the fingerboard the sandpaper hardly cuts at all, and at the heel it cuts quite a bit as I pull the entire length through.

After a few pulls on each side of the heel, I'll recheck the neck angle with my straightedge, until I have the neck aligned just where I want it. Usually, I'll want the straightedge to "land" right on top of the bridge (not the saddle) when I hold it against the tops of the frets.

I remove the protective paper for the last few pulls, just to make sure I get a good fit.

Check and recheck. It's easy to disturb the "string line" or side-to-side alignment of the neck, so I'm careful to keep watch on that measurement, too.

Now that the neck is fully fitted, look at how much of the heel surface contacts the neck. That's the smooth, light colored area I sanded by pulling the paper through.

After I've recut the neck angle, the dovetail will sit deeper in its recess at the heel cap, while remaining in the same position up by the fingerboard. So, I'll cut some shim stock (either veneer, or, in this case, thin fiber board.

After trying various combinations of shims to get a good tight fit, I'll simply glue the shims and neck in one operation. Many Martins and other guitars have shims added when they are first assembled, so I'll replace them as well.

This guitar was made with hide glue, and that's what I use to reglue the neck. Working quickly with the hot glue, I brush it on only the sides of the joint. I don't want to fill up the entire joint, making removal difficult for the next time a reset is necessary.

My fingerboard caul is mated to the radius of the fingerboard, and distributes pressure evenly

After the neck is clamped in position, I can still check the neck angle and string line to make sure nothing shifted during clamping.

All done. Well, all done except the setup, including, in most cases, refretting. As you can see, the straightedge lands right on top of the bridge. I think this one will work out well. You may notice that there's a bit more than the "usual" amount of drop-off over the body. Generally, if the drop-off isn't too severe, I prefer it that way, rather than seeing the uneven look of a shim under the fingerboard end.

Yep, a trial restringing proves that the action is just where it ought to be.

And, the neck is back on, fitting as tightly to the body as when the guitar was new.

No steam damage, so no finish touchup to spoil the "original" look. (Whew! It doesn't always work out that way.

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	All apart, and looking good.
	I like to use the back edge of my 18mm violin knife as a scraper. Holding it flat, I can plow the old dried glue right off surfaces like this.
	A 3/4" chisel is my favorite for general use, and I have several, so there's always a sharp one around.
	Cutting back the surface of the neck that touches the body will make it easier to fit the neck to precisely the right angle.
	After all, only the outside bearing edge needs to touch the guitar sides, so I cut back till there's just about 1/16" of the original surface showing. I'm not cutting very deep, as you'll see in a later photo.
	Because I need to bring the neck back quite a bit, I'll start making a tapering slice, starting at about 1/32" deep at the heel cap.
	And proceeding upward, where the taper will end about 1/4" below the fingerboard
	Now, all my fine adjustments will be a matter of seating the neck back in position, slipping some 180 grit sandpaper in the joint, and pulling outward (and downward a bit) at the heel. I have some thin wide low tack tape protecting the finish from scuffing during the sandpaper pulling operations.
	As I pull the sandpaper back toward the heel, it cuts the defining edges of the dovetail in a perfect taper. Up by the fingerboard the sandpaper hardly cuts at all, and at the heel it cuts quite a bit as I pull the entire length through.
	After a few pulls on each side of the heel, I'll recheck the neck angle with my straightedge, until I have the neck aligned just where I want it. Usually, I'll want the straightedge to "land" right on top of the bridge (not the saddle) when I hold it against the tops of the frets.
	I remove the protective paper for the last few pulls, just to make sure I get a good fit.
	Check and recheck. It's easy to disturb the "string line" or side-to-side alignment of the neck, so I'm careful to keep watch on that measurement, too.
	Now that the neck is fully fitted, look at how much of the heel surface contacts the neck. That's the smooth, light colored area I sanded by pulling the paper through.
	After I've recut the neck angle, the dovetail will sit deeper in its recess at the heel cap, while remaining in the same position up by the fingerboard. So, I'll cut some shim stock (either veneer, or, in this case, thin fiber board.
	After trying various combinations of shims to get a good tight fit, I'll simply glue the shims and neck in one operation. Many Martins and other guitars have shims added when they are first assembled, so I'll replace them as well.
	This guitar was made with hide glue, and that's what I use to reglue the neck. Working quickly with the hot glue, I brush it on only the sides of the joint. I don't want to fill up the entire joint, making removal difficult for the next time a reset is necessary.
	My fingerboard caul is mated to the radius of the fingerboard, and distributes pressure evenly
	After the neck is clamped in position, I can still check the neck angle and string line to make sure nothing shifted during clamping.
	All done. Well, all done except the setup, including, in most cases, refretting. As you can see, the straightedge lands right on top of the bridge. I think this one will work out well. You may notice that there's a bit more than the "usual" amount of drop-off over the body. Generally, if the drop-off isn't too severe, I prefer it that way, rather than seeing the uneven look of a shim under the fingerboard end.
	Yep, a trial restringing proves that the action is just where it ought to be.
	And, the neck is back on, fitting as tightly to the body as when the guitar was new.
	No steam damage, so no finish touchup to spoil the "original" look. (Whew! It doesn't always work out that way.