Ive done the heat implement thing myself to remove larger chunks of galal. Usually a screwdriver or cheap knife heated hot on a torch (not hot enough to scorch the wood just hot enough to make the pitch run) that I use to attract and rub off the galal. You arent trying to cut into the wood, just soften and wipe out the galal. The galal should run at a lower temp than the wood will burn, so you dont need to over-heat it. You can usually remove 90% of the excess this way without removing wood. After that Ive usually finished cleaning/roughing the area with a sharp chisel. The amount of wood removed at this point should be very very little, as most of the galal should be gone with the hot cleaning. The real purpose of the chisel work is to rough the inside of the puhan so as to create a gripping surface for the pitch to grab a hold of.
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