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I'm finishing a guitar and the neck is slightly underset - action is a bit high with 1/2" string clearance at the bridge. Is it possible/wise to leave the fret board attached (it's glued) and bend the neck up enough to slip some sand paper in and floss to increase the neck angle? Anyone done this?

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It may give you a bit more "fall away" over the body, but should work O.K. otherwise. Don't sand the heel too much near the fingerboard or you will create a gap. I have done it a couple of times with mixed results.

That sucks!!! It's why I want to eventually transition to a completely bolt on neck.whatever you do decide to do, Larry, document the results and share. I'm interested in how it will work out.

Good advice Clay. Worse case is I have remove the fretboard but would rather avoid if possible.

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Really not that bad but it's right on the edge of being acceptable. Still not sure how I'll go about it but I'll post results.

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One other thing - check your progress twice as often as you think you need to. A surprisingly small amount of sanding can make a large amount of change.

I don't see any issues with doing it the way you are planning. When doing a neck reset no one ever removes the fretboard from the neck to do it unless there is a very serious problem. The one thing you do want to be careful about is sanding the heel up near the fretboard itself. You can sometimes sand too much from that area and leave a gap. The good thing is by flossing it you are actually sanding less from the top than you are from the bottom so just take it easy and only do one or two pulls from each side and check the fit. I would only use 120 grit paper or less since a little bit of sanding will change the angle quite fast. If you do end up with a ski jump at the fretboard extension (which you probably won't) you can probably just level the frets enough to remedy the situation. If you already have a bit of fall away then there should be no problem.

I am sure you will be fine since you are already within specs with 1/2" at the bridge.

Cheers,
Bob

Thanks Bob, Should have clarified that the fretboard is glued to the upper bout and that's the glue joint I want leave intact not remove the fret board from the neck. Will heed your advice.

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Larry,
It sounds to me Like you nailed the decription of the fix perfectly.
Loosen the bolts, put some masking tape in the joint so you don't mess up the finish and give it a few pulls on each side.

Check progress frequently.

I discovered cloth backed sandpaper recently. It is the total and complete bomb for flossing the cheeks.

Thanks Dave - Yeah I have some cut-offs from my hook and loop drum sander belts. The soft backing works great for flossing - probably the same stuff.

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Larry,
Ah yes, that makes it a bit more of a challenge but still do-able. I am assuming you have a bolt on neck... I would consider not removing the bolts completely for fear of snapping the fretboard right at the body. Since you have a fret slot right there that is the weak spot.

I am sure you will will do a fine job though since you probably already know to be careful.
Cheers,
Bob

I usually put clear packing tape on the back of the sandpaper for flossing. You can cover sheets with the wide stuff and cut to width with an Xacto. Pretty slippery.

I've done minor resets with the extension attached and it works.

A bigger correction? I'd remove the extension.

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Decided to leave it for now as the action is within reason - just no room to lower saddle in the future. Will heed all your great advice and help.

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See Frank Ford's website (Frets.com) for a description of exactly that process ( for resetting the neck angle on a Taylor guitar.)

Terrence,

I've been backing the sandpaper with masking tape to a avoid scratching the finish, but packing tape seems like a good idea too. Also really supports the paper to prevent it from ripping.

Awesome - will check it out when I get a chance.

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I had been using the brown binding tape but I think I like the clear packing tape a little better.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.