Removing an armrest: how hard is it?

[Birdbrain]

The new/old Tacoma Jumbo arrived today from GC. I'm trialing it against my less blingy JM9 to see which is a keeper. The new guitar has a brown plastic armrest attached, and that turns out to be a problem. The owner who added it must have had a foot's more arm reach than me, because the armrest is too far down the upper bout. My right arm comes down right on the upper end of the armrest, and that feels worse than no armrest at all. I'd like to try this out with the armrest repositioned, but that raises the big question-

How risky is it to remove a glued-on armrest?

I'd hate to mess up the glossy finish, which so far hasn't suffered the dreaded Tacoma Rash. It's also important not to do anything that would cancel my 45-day return privileges.

This JK50C is a beautiful guitar with a heroic voice, so I hope there's a practical solution.

[fazool]

I have installed and removed many armrests. I started with John Pearse ones. I make my own now as I like to customize them to match the guitar and I like them tiny.

It depends on the finish type and how long its been there.

Really, if the finish is messed up from the removal, simply put an armrest back on to cover that and it will essentially be the same.

Treat it like a thick pickguard./ I would use dental floss and pull it through to rip the two-side tape without worrying yet about the adhesive itself. Separate the parts first. Then go back with some naptha and rubbing with just your fingertip rub the adhesive off . Kinda like removing rubber cement but much more patiently

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Birdbrain

The new/old Tacoma Jumbo arrived today from GC. I'm trialing it against my less blingy JM9 to see which is a keeper. The new guitar has a brown plastic armrest attached, and that turns out to be a problem. The owner who added it must have had a foot's more arm reach than me, because the armrest is too far down the upper bout. My right arm comes down right on the upper end of the armrest, and that feels worse than no armrest at all. I'd like to try this out with the armrest repositioned, but that raises the big question-

How risky is it to remove a glued-on armrest?

I'd hate to mess up the glossy finish, which so far hasn't suffered the dreaded Tacoma Rash. It's also important not to do anything that would cancel my 45-day return privileges.

This JK50C is a beautiful guitar with a heroic voice, so I hope there's a practical solution.

The answer seems self-evident.

Wait 45 days and then it's fully "yours" to do whatever you like. Removing the rest before then is going to negate that return policy.

[printer2]

Take a hair dryer and heat up the rest (you could cut out some cardboard to shield the rest of the body), it should let go.