Joint Fitting assistance

[Wrnchbndr]

One of the stores I work for handed me an Oud with a detached headstock. Its clear to see that a number of repairs have been attempted. There is model airplane glue, Gorilla glue, and I suspect fish glue all over the detached pieces but no wood fracture - just a separation of the joint. The instrument itself is a contradiction as some of it is well crafted while other parts of it are more what you'd see at a roadside stall near an airport for last minute tourist purchases. I'm nearly finished cleaning off the old glue from the mating surfaces. The joint itself is hand carved. One angle on the neck is just a flat surface while the other in a geometrically complex concave curve. I'm looking for the input of suggestive tips to improve the fit of this joint. What do you like to use if you wanted to employ something like a piece of carbon paper to identify the subtle flaws of a joint? Does pencil lead residue compromise the integrity of glue? --stuff like that...

[Ken]

I use chalk to help fit joints. Pencil lead (graphite) can give you problems with new glue adhering.

[belbein]

It sure would be nice to see some pictures. I don't work on ouds, but I've done a number of neck repairs as an amateur. I always learn from looking at someone else's problem and their solution. So if you don't mind posting pix ...