http://www.naani.com/how_do_you_remove_locks_.htm
The Technique
You'll need a pair of angled tweezers, metal nail file or any instrument with a smooth, yet knife-like edge. You want a utensil that will penetrate the dreadlock, but not rip it apart.
Shampoo your dreadlocks. Rinse thoroughly and towel dry. Doing this process on damp hair will minimize breakage.
Begin by snipping off a very small portion at the end of your dreadlocks. When I say small, I mean small. All you want to do is remove the rounded tip.
Take the tweezers. Using one of the prongs, insert the tweezer into a small section of the lock. Gently pull in a downward motion with the tweezers. If the prong does not work itself out easily, take the tweezer out, reinsert it and pull down again. After a bit of maneuvering, the hair should seperate.
If you began with braids, you will notices that the hair will begin to unravel like a braid normaly would. The same with two-strands. For those that started with palm-rolls, you will find that the hair will unravel just as easily as the dreadlock will always maintain it's internal structure.
This technique will not work of course if you manipulate/maintain your dreadlocks with methods other than palm-rolling/finger-twisting. Interlocking for example is similar to creating a series of knots and it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to undo these types of dreadlocks.
Continue unwinding the dreadlocks using the tweezers or like utensil until you are about .5-1 inch up the dreadlock. If you're doing the process correctly, you shoudn't see very much hair loss. The hair that does come out should be that which has naturally shed over years of dreadlocking so there is no need for alarm.
After you have freed the hairs, you'll notice all types of build-up/lint that has naturally or UNnaturally accumulated over time. Some dreadlocks will have more than others. Build-up in dreadlocks is natural to a degree but in the case of excessive debris, you may want to reexamine your maintenance routine.
It's up to you as to how far you want to go up the dreadlock. The lady I met began by loosening 1 inch of hair. Over the years, she continued the process and added to the loosened portion. She said that it'd look too awkward to have only an inch of unlocked hair and 30 inches of dreadlocks.
IMPORTANT: After you've completed your entire head, be sure to shampoo again. You'll need to wash away the lint, dirt and product residue.
A Word of *CAUTION*
If you're apprehensive about the technique, try it on one of your dreadlocks in a not-so-visible area. Undo 1/2 to 1 inch of the dreadlock. If you like what you see, keep going. If you don't, two-strand twist the end and let it relock. In some cases, the unlock'd hair may resist relocking so you may have to eventually snip off the end for uniformity.
Be sure to initiate the process slowly and methodically. Don't force the hairs apart...encourage them with a little pressure but too much will result in breakage.
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OK, so I'm going to do just a few to begin with and see how it goes.
