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Hi folks, It's been while since I visited this issue. Quick recap, I have an 1860's Martin with that heel. I have been reading, watching and listening to everything I can find on the issue. What I haven't found is, what part of the heel do you actually remove to reset the neck angle. Typically we do the back of the heel on the typical neck. This one has more options. What is the right choice? It seems that removing wood from the heel attachment at the body would, or might, leave some bare body wood visible around the joint. If you remove from the place the heel dovetails to the neck that seems to open another set of issues. I'd love any input on the actual mechanics of the thing.

The problem with an ice cone heel is that it can be very thin in the end. If the neck reset needs a lot of adjustments, it might be a good idea to glue a triangular shim to the wings of the heel instead, with the thicker end under the fretboard. This will change the intonation at the saddle, though. There may also be possible to sand away a bit of wood on the sides under the heel wings or on the top under the fretboard close to the joint to rotate the neck in the right direction. The brace under the end of the fretboard can also be reglued and given a greater radius against the top to rotate the neck back.

Fresh wood popping out in the process can always be hidden with a suitable stain.

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