Replacing Dot Inlays

[Stray Dog]

Im rather new to this guitar builing shindig. What Im working on right now is completely re-doing a cheap 335 copy - all new hardwear, refret, and refinishing.

Anyway, the guitar has some rather ugly abalone dot inlays which don't work very well with the rosewood fingerboard, which isn't very dark.

How hard would it be to remove the dot inlays and replace them with new MoP ones? Is it worth doing myself? What would I need to do?

[ibanez_crazy]

I have had luck using a drill press with a 1/4 inch flat-bottomed bit, but make sure you have it centered on the old inlay. Drill out the old, put in the new. Thats about it.

[WezV]

I would drill a smaller hole in the middle of the old dot. You will usually find that this releases the glue and the dot comes out cleanly, but even if it doesnt it is then easy to pull out the remnants. Its a bit safer than drilling the exact same size of the old dot. Obviously you could also drill a larger hole and have larger dots.

[cSuttle]

I would drill a smaller hole in the middle of the old dot. You will usually find that this releases the glue and the dot comes out cleanly, but even if it doesnt it is then easy to pull out the remnants. Its a bit safer than drilling the exact same size of the old dot. Obviously you could also drill a larger hole and have larger dots.

Agreed. This is the way to do it.