swapping necks - Strats.

siraxeman

Simple enough I know - strings off...undo the 4 bolts and voila. But is there a safe way to ensure that the paint doesn't chip on the body round the neck joint...last time I did this just slackening off the screws seemed to crack the paint and a lil piece came off...hoping to avoid this if possible. All I'm trying to do is swap the necks between my Oly white/maple Strat and my Sunburst/Rosewood strat. Purely for aesthetics really...just be nice to have oly wh/rosewood and burst/maple.

skunkwerx

Razor blade around the edges maybe? 
I've seen a luthier do this when swapping nuts to prevent the same issue at the headstock.

thermionic

I thought it was over-tightened screws that caused this. If it's some release of stresses caused by over-tight screws that causes the cracks, then maybe undo them over a long time? A seriously long time - like a quarter turn every day.

guitars4you

I asked this question to a tech at Fender and he told me heat gently with a hairdryer to soften - less likely to split - never tried it - I just loosen everything off and be as gentle as possible - Or tape up finish around joint first