OK, this neck.......

pull the frets first.  they really were all over the show!

Then, sanding off the nasty fret slots first.  A purist would, of course, have a beautifully sharp jointing plane.

I've got a belt sander!

a guideline to aim for.......

and off we go!

surprised to see that the marker dots are actually inlays and not just paint......

sadly, when I'd got this far, the sander belt ripped so I'm stuck until the replacement arrives in the post.