Iq 1793

[hankir]

The wordplay in some clues ignores UP TO 3 letters.
In other clues a letter has to be removed before solving.

1. Grafting old boy takes lame Yankee cycling (6) Im?I??
12. Restless retired dame backs capital abandoning France (6) ???E??
24. Snippet from purist droning about dated points (4) ??DS

Thanks.

[cashier]

1 imping

[Captain2]

1 Imping (means grafting)

[ProfessorMaisie]

12 UNDEAD 24 ORDS

[ProfessorMaisie]

1 'B[o]Y' = 'IN'+ GIMP (US slang 'lame') with the letters cycled ['o' extra].
12 'DA[m]E' (reversed) +(f)UND = 'capital' minus '(f)rance' ['m' extra].
24 ORDS is in 'puriS[t] DROning' (reversed) ['t' extra].

[ProfessorMaisie]

...of course that's just the wordplay for 1a - the answer that's been given is right.

[hankir]

Thanks ProfessorM and Captain2.
I have a completed grid . I cannot parse some answers such as 21d and 42a.

I also have the two words that go from left column to last row.
Now to find the remaining extra letters.

[ProfessorMaisie]

21d [LI is unclued] 'catch' = NECK + 'not the first of (o)NES' = NECK[LI]NES.
42a 'trick' = con 'qui[e]ts' DEA(con)RY (a 'ministry') ['e' extra].

Is it the two words forming the 22 letter highlighting you've found, hankir? Not sure what you mean by 'last row'.

[ProfessorMaisie]

OK I now see you've got the two words of the curve, hankir - now you've to create the effect with some more highlighting (and swap the entries).

[hankir]

Thanks ProfessorM. Got it.